HappyValley

Thanks!

Yes, time does fly. :eek:

Well, it has been almost 3 years since my FUT. The first two picture are before the transplant and the last two are how my hair looks today. For me it has been a big change. I'm not embarrassed to show my hairline now... before I was. Life is good.

What a fantastic result... and a huge change. Congratulations Mike!

Thanks MAGNUMpi... much appreciated! Doctor L said I had great laxity... no tension on the incision. I'm also fortunate to have alot of remaining donor hair.

Yep, our cases sound very similar xtatic5. I knew going into this that I had a few things working against great density... thin, straight hair transplanted onto a bare forehead makes it tough. I think my doc did an excellent job and I believe even at month 7 the change has been drastic. The thing for me is I now feel like I have a hairline... one I'm not afraid to show to others.

Now the biggie. Is it as dense as I would like? If I'm honest, the answer is no. To your question, will another 25% be enough? I guess that depends on how we measure what "enough" is. My wife thinks it looks great, so does the person who cuts my hair, my parents can't believe the change, my friends are envious... even my doc felt that one transplant procedure would be adequate to give me "enough" density. I seem to be the guy who feels that the density is lacking and its not "enough." Maybe that's the hair greed creeping in? Maybe its that I see others who have had a better result than me? Maybe its because I know my hair better than anyone and can see its not as dense as my native hair? Maybe I'm just more critical? Maybe I'm too much of a perfectionist? Maybe I'm right and it needs to be more dense? The fact is, I'm not sure I know.

What I do know is that I am happier now than before the transplant. I like how my hair looks better than before. I feel more confident. I think I look younger. Others tell me it looks much better than before. If I measure "enough" by those standards then the extra 25% that I may get over the next few months is just a pleasant added bonus.

Great question... best of luck on your journey!

I just hit the 7 month mark. Not a whole lot of change in density since last month... my hair is very fine, half the 2300 grafts were 1's, and most of the HT was done on bare scalp. Regardless, the transformation has been huge, imo.

The first two pics below are pre-HT on the day of the HT... you can see that most of the transplant was in areas with very little to no hair. Pic 3 is my hair as I am styling it now. Pic 4 is a close-up of the hairline wet. Pic 5 is the hairline towel dried. Pic 6 is the back of my head with a #3 clipper cut... can't even tell I have a FUT scar.

Any thoughts on the density are appreciated... at 7 months I'm at about 75% of the final results, right? Thanks!

Looks fantastic! Can't wait to see it at the one year mark!

Fue123 - Yes, lateral slit.

ThinToWin - Good luck with the visit to Dr. L. He told me to come see him in the Fall. Post some pics when you can... eager to see your progress.

Thanks Mike! Yes, the pre-HT hairline pic keeps me grounded every time I get greedy and wish for more... I have come a long way in a short time. Next time I come to Vegas I'll have to take you up on that clipper cut.

Okay, tomorrow is month 6 for me. Not a whole lot of change in density since month 5... my hair is very fine and half the 2300 grafts were 1's. Still some thin spots, more frequent on the right side. I know its still relatively early, but the hairline is definately there!

However, the new hairline is growing longer. I have 3 hair lengths going on up in front... native bangs that were not shaved during the HT, native bangs that were shaved during the HT and are now about 2/3 the length of the unshaven native bangs, and the transplanted hair which is about 1/3 the length of the unshaven native bangs. I'm hoping that once they all reach the same length (yes, a haircut would help ) maybe the bangs will appear more dense.

The first two pics below are pre-HT on the day of the HT. Pic 3 is my hair now when towel dried, but still damp. Pic 4 is a close-up with gel and pic 5 is the same shot, but farther back. Pic 6 is my hair parted in the middle with the bangs pulled back. Pic 7 is my hair parted in the middle with the bangs hanging to the sides. No pics of the scar this month... its all but invisble and pencil thin.

Here's hoping for more density and length and the ever-important patience.

Thanks agenteye... much appreciated. Just checked out your progress... its looking REALLY good. Congrats!

So, today is my 5 month anniversary and I felt a little daring. I got my hair cut and had the donor scar area buzzed with a #3 clipper. I was pretty impressed with the result. Who knows, maybe at my next haircut we'll break out the #2?

Looking great! Its obvious that there have been big changes already... "already" being the key word. Can't wait for month 12, huh?

Thanks everyone! Yes, the waiting is the most painful part of the entire process.

Tommorow is the 5 month mark. Scar is almost invisible. All numbness is gone. Hair definately thickening in the recipient area. Last pic is my hairline before the procedure. I'm happy with the progress so far, just hoping for more density up front over the coming months. :rolleyes:

Hey ThinToWin... how goes the growth? You must be well into month 5... any pics to share?

Thanks ThinToWin... glad to hear your progress is going well!

Today is 4 months since my HT... check out the latest pics below. Just a tiny bit of redness and one small spot of slight numbness in the recipient site. Wow, the recipient hair has really started to sprout compared to month 3. I almost have a hairline once again. Its really exciting... still hoping much more to come! The incision is almost white with just a few spots of pink. You'd never know I had an incision looking at the hair on the back of my head.

Wow! What a great result. Congratulations.

Yesterday was the 11 week milestone since my HT... lots of pics below. 90% of the redness and numbness in the recipient site is gone. The incision is really starting to fade... just a little red on the right side and very little shock loss. You can't even tell I have an incision when you look at the pic showing the back of my head.

Much of the hair in my central hairline tuft has regrown... and I'm starting to see some really fine hairs grow in the areas to the right and left of it that had no hair before the transplant. The right side seems to be leading the way a little bit. I know its way early, but I'm excited for good things to come!

Looks fantastic! Congrats.

It will be 5 weeks since the HT this Friday. I have barely enough hair to cover the recipent area. Most of the transplanted hairs have been lost and the redness has really subsided. Its still kind of pink, but very light, except for two or three places that had some really bad scabbing which are still sort of red. The incision site is really looking good, imo.

Well, I just passed the 15 day mark.

All the scabs are off, except for a rather large one on the upper left side of my forehead. It bled pretty good the day of surgery... and it oozed all the way into day 5. The scab came off last night after some soaking and it was obvious there was a small "depression". It soon filled up with a new smaller and lighter scab... must have been some pretty good scalp trauma there... hope my hair grows there... anyone have any experience with something like this? :eek:

I got a sorely needed haircut today... you can see I have barely enough bangs left over from the "surgery day clipper attack" so that my recipient area is 90% hidden.

Scarline doing well... very little soreness. My hair hides this with no problem. The top of my skull still has some numbness, but even that appears to have diminished a bit in the past two weeks.

Attached are some pics showing the scar, my hair hiding the scar, the recipient area, and my bangs hiding the recipient area.

Long road ahead...

Thank you Spex!

Your initial assistance with helping me with my decision to go with Dr. Lindsey was much appreciated.

Thanks ThinToWin...

Yes... it is great when experiences line up with expectations... and the really comforting thing is that I have never heard anything but praise and appreciation for Dr. Lindsey's team and results.

How did the lifting feel... any tension in the scar area? Anything you avoided to be safe?

Best of luck this Friday on the scar check up... Dr. Lindsey gave me strict instructions "not to stretch his scar".

Best.