JohnnyDrama

Embarrassingly good transformation Matt! Out of interest.......are you getting many questions or 'WTFs' from friends/colleagues/family.....seeing as you look so much better than you did a year ago?

It's difficult to say for sure without knowing more or seeing photos, but you should just give the medication a chance to work and see where you're at in 12 months or so. You should also get on Minoxidil too, and maybe try out some supplements like MSM and biotin. Every little helps, and even if they improved the calibre of your hair slightly, it would possibly make a noticeable cosmetic effect given your type of loss. It sounds like you may have diffuse pattern of loss, which is often more difficult to treat as patterns vary.

Hey London, you went with BHR too if I recall, ya? How'd it go?

Absolutely 100% start on meds now, and I say this as a diffuse thinner as well. You say you may look into a HT in 2-3 years. Well that's the perfect amount of time for you to find out what kind of lasting effects the meds will have on you, and both you and your future HT doc will be far more educated if you get on the meds now. I'd recommend starting on low dose Fin. 0.25mg or 0.5mg daily should be fine, or even every second day. You should also get on Minoxidil foam as it works well in conjunction with Fin. As a diffuser I would highly recommend you get on meds to give yourself a better chance of a better head of hair. I never took any tests pre Fin. I must note I have recently come off Fin and am trying out Nettle Root (a natural alternative).

How long are you on Fin? I'd suggest starting Regaine foam and the Nizoral as well, and maybe adding the likes of MSM or biotin to your regimen. You have a decent head of hair, so why not see what the meds do until you are 27-28 ,and then you and whatever doc you see fit to go to in future, will be in a much more educated position. Maybe then you could look at getting something like 1800-2000 grafts to lower the hairline a bit.

I had PRP only 3 days ago. My hair is still there. I had it in conjunction with surgery last August too, so it's impossible to tell for sure what impact it had on its own. It certainly didn't harm things and if anything, it may have helped my healing time.

Thanks sl, will do mate. I don't think it'll be a case of me noticing it working Bearded, more a case I'll begin to notice if it isn't, if you know what I mean. I just want it to maintain healthy hair for now, as opposed to me expecting to see any extra major regrowth etc. I guess time will tell if it as effective as Fin was etc. Re the Fin sides, it was basically reduced libido. I took the stuff for 2-2.5 years with no difference, then I began noticing things. This may have been a result of me being on Roaccutane too at the time. I reduced the dosage and it made things better, but for now I just want to give my body a break from the stuff.

Thanks hsrp10. I believe the idea with PRP is that it can have a positive impact on significantly weak follicles, as opposed to areas of complete baldness. It can strengthen the weak follicle and essentially make it look far healthier and fuller. There are one or two examples that SL actually posted where women used PRP solely and saw significant aesthetic improvements. It is also mentioned that it can possibly improve the healing process post surgery. Again, the fact that I had this in conjunction with actual surgery, it's difficult to say exactly how effective it has been for me, but it certainly has done no harm. I just wanted to add as much to my armoury against hairloss as possible. Essentially, yes, I believe the idea behind it is to use it as an alternative to Finasteride, but reportedly does not have the same kind of side effects as Fin. I've looked into it a little, but will research it more in due course.

I'd agree with hairthere. If I were you I'd cancel, research other clinics and send off your pics to maybe 6-7 of them and get a feel for how many grafts they would feel necessary. In my opinion you'd be looking at closer to 2,500-2,800. I think by coming on here and creating this topic, you could very well have saved yourself a lot of grief and hassle down the line.

So I was back with BHR and Dr Bisanga 3 days ago for a follow up session of PRP, a few days shy of my 7 month mark. This day last year was when I was in Brussels doing my consultation visit to the clinic. Crazy! I was actually in Dortmund the day before with my dad, to watch Borussia Dortmund play (for anybody with any interest in sports of any nature or big events, you have to go to a game in this stadium once in your lives - incredible experience). So decided to pencil in a trip to the clinic seeing as it's only a couple of hours away on the train. The visit went really well. Had some good chats with the guys and needless to say, they are very happy with the progress, if even a little surprised at where I'm at for 7 months. The nice girl on reception (I forget her name) began by taking some shots. She actually had to ask me where was the work done as everything looks the same, no obvious difference in colouring between recipient and native. We had a laugh about it as that's obviously the kind of question a patient wants to hear. The doc then came in and his eyes just opened up. He examined and said it was coming in great with obviously more to come. He then measured the donor area and said it could be still nearly regarded as a virgin scalp. Think he measured it 70-80-70. Obviously this is great to hear from a future point of view. The doc a year ago said I probably had a safe FUE bank of around 5,000, but thinks this could be closer to 6,000 now. I also told him I am currently off Fin due to sides and trying Nettle Root. He said this is obviously a factor and hopefully everything stays as it is. He also mentioned the possibility of Keratene so I may look at that soon. PRP then administered. Just something to note.......anesthetic is very much used! I certainly felt the jabs a lot more this time around......having valium etc in my system the last time certainly dulls the senses. Spoke with the doc for a bit on PRP in general. He said it can be hit or miss, so therefore they do not market it as a treatment as such. Some people react very well to it, whereas others might not. It is typically only used in conjunction with patients with diffused loss (me), and women make up a high percentage of this category. Spoke with one of the other ladies in the clinic as I was wrapping things up, telling her about the forum updates etc. She joked saying that patients like myself cause the clinic some problems. People see the early growth online, and end up ringing in at 4-5-6-7 month mark asking what the hell is going on (but obviously much more content closer to the 12 month mark). The last of these pics is with wet hair as well as being combed down, so obviously very harsh. It's a massive improvement on my wet hair pre op, and I now no longer mind getting caught in a rain shower etc.

Quiff, you're looking at this entirely the wrong way mate. You're just over 4 months right. Those have probably been amongst the toughest 4 months of your life maybe? The ONLY way to look at this as of today/tomorrow/next week........is that from today on, everything gets better, and I mean everything. I'm at 7 months, so obviously 3 months ahead of you. I promised myself that I would not begin to over-analyse things until at least the 8-9 month mark. Now I've been lucky in that I've been an early grower and I still have a long way to go, but I have done a good job at not worrying about it too much at the early stages. It genuinely is not worth over-thinking it at this point, you're doing yourself no favours at all. I just buzzed my hair every 2 weeks or so for the first 4 months, and that helped just not think about my hair for a while. No gel, no shape, no fuzz, just buzz it and avoid as many mirrors as possible. Dr Hakans patients seem to get very good outcomes, so as hard it this might be to do......just CHILL. It should all be worth it, but only in another 3-4-5-6-12 months. Not right now, so put your energy into other things! I've seen many guys at 5 months who were seriously not sure of things, but by month 7 and 8 were in a much better place. You are most likely to be the same, so don't feel down about it at this stage, certainly not after the last 3-4 months. It will only get better from here.

Incredible.

Would it be possible Travolta got previous, unsuccessful work done, and may no longer be a decent candidate? This is the impression I always had to be honest.

I'd also be interested to hear exactly what you mean. 1 week ago you posted this which sounds quite the opposite to what you are feeling now. What has changed since?

At 5 weeks, there should be no risk in trimming. I think my first visit to the barber was 5 weeks post op.

Hey swayzedo, as hairshopeing mentioned, I've met both docs and I'm now 6.5 months post OP from Dr Bisanga. I can entirely see why you're torn as I was in the very same position (granted I needed a different area of the scalp worked on). You've probably come across my thread regarding my consultation process......if not it's well worth a read given what you are looking into. http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/169664-blitzing-belgium-2-days-4-top-docs-bisanga-feriduni-de-reys-mwamba.html It is possible to arrange consultations with these clinics withing a day or two of each other, but you have to be quite lucky to do so too and luck was on my side. I had a confirmed date with BHR set, so wanted to then arrange the consultations of 3 other docs around this. When I rang the Feriduni clinic (and I would recommend actually calling them once you have a date in mind) the girl said that the doc had surgery on the date I was looking for, as well as other consultations and that it was not possible. It turned out Dr Feriduni was beside her at the time and told her to go ahead and book me in anyway. Very lucky, seeing as there can be a 5-6 month waiting list at times! I would strongly recommend you do actually meet the docs in person. After meeting both, your gut feeling will point you in the direction you're most comfortable with. Meeting 4 docs for me over a 3 day period was pretty tiring as there was a lot of trains, taxis and planes involved, but it's one of the best decisions I've ever made because you learn so much. Regarding my own situation, I'm a rare enough case where I did not want any hairline work done, or indeed crown work. I needed my severely thinned midscalp/forelock thickened. I appreciate this is different to what you are looking at. Not surprisingly, my in-person consultations match up with what many others have found. To give you a very brief summary of the graft counts each of the 4 docs I met up with suggested, in the order in which I met them throughout the weekend: Dr Bisanga: 2,000 Dr De Reys: 1,500 Dr Feriduni: 2,800-3,000 Dr Mwamba: 1,800 - 2,200 So you can see by the above alone, Dr Feriduni was by far the most aggressive in terms of the overall goal. I think he wanted to sprinkle several hundred thoughout my own hairline (zone 1), whereas the other docs were just happy to strengthen behind this and into the midscalp (zones 2,3,4). Even this morning when I look into the mirror, I'm not too sure where the extra 800 or so would have gone. The 'YOLO' expression Rootz used in his post is actually what I thought myself at the time! It was in the days after the consultations is where I went with my gut. I turned 31 last month. Taking this into account, I wasn't entirely comfortable with the idea of using up so much of my FUE bank at a relatively young age. I'm very aware that in several years I may want to address further loss etc, and may want to do so again in my 40s, who knows. Given the above, on top of me being very impressed with the yield I had seen in recent midscalp cases of Dr Bisanga, I was happy to go with BHR. All 4 docs I met had their own strengths and charms, and I wouldn't question anyone going whatever way. While in my ugly duckling period, I put myself very briefly in the shoes of someone looking for just hairline work (as I may need it myself in years to come). There is a particular case on this site that blew me away for a small amount of grafts - Aj29 was the poster and he got 1,300 from Dr Bisanga with a brilliant final result. Granted your age like you said plays into your hands and if you feel you are not likely to see too much more hairloss down the line, this could entitle you to a bigger graft count. Maybe if Dr Bisanga met you, and assessed everything, he might be more open to going more aggressive. Then again he might not, but this is where meeting the docs in person is invaluable. It means there are little or no surprises on the morning you actually turn up for your HT, because you would have seen them several months prior and and plan put in place. If I were in your shoes mate I'd pick up the phone and call both clinics. It may take several calls to each to eventually syncronise consultations, but it would be worth it. I feel only then will you be at ease with your decision. I certainly haven't been left with any 'what if's' after meeting 4 docs in two days!

Sounds good. Swelling started for me later tonight or tomorrow. Stephen probably mentioned it but I would HIGHLY recommend doing the forehead exercises e.g. massaging the fluid out towards your temples. I did this literally every 30-60 mins over a 2 day period or thereabouts. It meant my eyes avoided any fluid, so no horrible swollen eyeballs like i've seen on other. Granted the side of your face won't look the best, but a small price to pay for vision. Oh and stay away from the whiskey for another while yet. The first week I stuck religiously to the post op document, and think it helped greatly. Get as much Saline solution as you can off the clinic as this came in very handy after my initial bottle (would have ran out after day 3 i'd say). I had a balcony in my room and used it for as much fresh air to my head (no sunlight mind) as possible, and again I think this went a long way to me healing quickly.

Sounds good mate. You're lucky to have gotten to 42 and then only needing a moderate amount of grafts. How did today go?

I've never heard of them. Is there a particular reason you are in contact with this clinic? There are several other top notch clinics whom people on here have had very positive experiences with. Have you considered them?

Thanks for the comments guys. Wow, great to hear mate, best of luck - you're in good hands. I might bring up the topic of commission when in BHR in a few weeks. Much like other individuals threads had a big influence on me, it really is fantastic to hear it has gone full circle. Actually, I've just realised you would have been in the chair today........how did it go? What kind of procedure? (p.s. - if you'd prefer, send me a PM, but i'd be very interested to hear either way).

6 Month Update Cannot believe half a year has passed. Flown by! So much faster than the 6 months pre op that's for sure! I'll post 2 sets of pics. This first set is how I look right now as I have not cut my hair in 2 months. The first few are with no product and the rest have some gel/wax for a bit of shape. The second set will be after a haircut. Needless to say I'm still very happy with progress for 6 months. Getting lots of comments and questions from mates whom are fascinated in how much stronger everything looks. My 7 month update will be taken by BHR themselves as I am visiting them for a second round of PRP and a review of things in general. Looking forward to being in there with a much bigger smile on my face this time!

Personally, I'm a very big fan of the work I am seeing from Dr Koray Erdogan. I also think Dr Hakan Doganay is a great option. I think it's Dr Muttilap Keser.

Mircea, at 3 months, you are at around 20-30% of your final result. I actually think you look remarkably GOOD for only 3 months, and think this has the makings of a very good HT. Regarding the medication, I think you should certainly try the Finasteride. It can only help your hair from a future loss point of view. IF you ever experience sides, then you can come off it. Even start with a smaller dose. There are very few side effects with the Rogaine foam so best to keep using that. I use MSM and Biotin as supplements as they are believed to possibly help in either improving hair calibre or possibly increasing the rate of growth. Regarding your case in general.....I usually get a bit nervous when I see somebody posting that they've just got a HT with a doc I've never heard of, but I'm impressed with the post OP photos and your current state.

Wow BT you've turned some corner mate. The difference like you say is huge from pre-op. As you know I'm at the same point as you and feel very similar......couldn't be happier with the decision so far. Also can't believe how quickly the time has flown....half a year! 6 months is regarded, generally, as 50-60% so it's great to know there's still quite a bit to come in! Looking forward to your high res pics.

Just seeing this now Chris.......excellent result......you've a serious head of hair now!