azn_guy

Illusion is key! I noticed even with normal full hair, after I gel my hair, the scalp is see through. I personally anticipate this to be the case with me and I will make it a point to gel my hair (if anyone says anything, I will blame it on the hair style )

As far as mirrors go, I constantly look at the mirror and check out my hairline to see if anything has sprouted. I think I'm obsessed

Dr Rosanelli didn't do my HT, but I had a complimentary Followup Check, and both himself and his staff were very good. Kudos to Dr Rosanelli

Captain,

I agree with everyone here. While I want to be optimistic and expect awesome growth at the 3 month mark, I am in the same boat as you and actually still have hairs that have not shed. I will continue to wait at least until the 5 month mark and if things have not progressed I will make a point to discuss this with my HT.

Thanks Dakota, lets just wait and see shall we?

I agree with Sparky, some do keep a number or hairs and never shed.

If by my 3rd month the placed grafts have not started forcing the existing hair to shed, is this something I should start worrying about? When would a person need to start being concerned?

sorry, that is what I meant, I meant "hair" not the graft

Does anyone know if this will cause ingrown hairs? it would make sense that if the new hair cannot push the old hair out, then it may result in ingrown hairs, just a thought.

Hey guys,

I noticed that after 10 weeks, I still have quite a bit of grafts in the recipient hair. They never did shed and they currently are not growing.

while they are securely in place, I was able to take some tweezers and pull a graft out. I did not pull hard (I did not pluck the hair out), but I pulled slightly enough to remove it. What I noticed is the graft was only secured by the upper layer of my skin. (if that makes any sense)

After I pulled a graft out, it looked EXACTLY like the shedded grafts from 6-7 weeks ago.

I'm curious to know why this is the case. Is this normal?

I'm guessing the new hair should theoretically force the graft out eventually when the new hair starts growing

Man Jotronic, it looks so good!

I have a question for you though, and this is for a HT patient like you where you've had quite a few grafts placed.

Based on the photos, I personally would like to know how "easy" would it be for you to not disguise your MPB

So what I'm referring to is, what does your hair look like when

- you get right out of bed?

- you literally comb your hair forward?

- you comb your hair forward when wet?

- you part it right down the middle?

So rather than trying to make it look good, try to make it look bad. I know this a weird question!

Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't Diffused Pattern Baldness Candidates, BAD candidates?

Maybe it's based on what you've said Christine, "becoming a NW6"

I guess as long as he isn't losing his hair in his donor area, it'll be good

ps: I am simply asking for curiosity and my own education, I am 110% sure Dr. Arocha knows what he's doing

I plan on having my hair short and gelled again like a did 5 years ago. I stopped doing it because of the recession of my hairline.

When I gelled my hair, it made my forehead look really BIG

I didnt read many of the responses on here, but this is what I know

- New Technicians will do the slivering

- Experienced Tech's will do the inserting of grafts

- Many Technicians say that if the HT does the inserting it would take forever

- If a Technician is going to learn to place grafts he/she will do a few with the Experienced Technician and will gradually do more and more

I personally asked some of the Technicians what their thought of a HT doctor placing grafts and many said it's a lot faster and more efficient (in most cases) for the Technicians to do it

Originally posted by maxzor:

Hi azn_guy,

 

First of all your transplant looks very good and you are right on track. Growth will soon start.

However based on your pictures I would say a surgery for you was not necessary, especially a surgery of 3000 grafts.

Hey Maxzor, Thank you for the compliment and glad that many experienced people on this site think that it's a good HT, which is very assuring for me.

As far as getting a Transplant, It was a difficult decision because of my existing hair. I think the way the photos are portrayed it's very deceiving based on the angles. I went to 3 well respected HT doctors and they all said I was a NW3 Vertex on the verge of potentially going to a NW5/6 in the future.

Asian hair is very different to Caucasian hair (as an example), once you start losing it, it's very very obvious due to our hair characteristics. I think that is one of the reasons I'm trying to be an advocate for fellow Asians (Not from India as they have different hair characteristics) and post my experiences and results.

Rather than waiting for more hair loss to occur, I decided to go and enjoy the next 10-15 years without having to think about this.

I asked my HT doctor if I had made the right decision to be proactive, he said "this will produce very good results and you won't have to worry about this for at least another 10 year, and that is me speaking conservatively"

It was definitely hard decision as I really kept on saying to myself that "I have hair"

Luckily I had the money to do the procedure and I'm at least 30 years of age

Obviously there will be advances in the HT industry, FUE could get cheaper, it could get more efficient, etc... PRP could eventually become an effective alternative method to Surgery. Instead I went with the tried and tested FUT. Could I have waited and reaped the benefits of better solutions? Probably yes, but I'm at a state in my life where I'm going to happy hours, going to parties, meeting new people. It's hard to enjoy being social when you're paranoid that someone is staring at your head. (noticed I said paranoid, I know sometimes we over project and make mountains out of mole hills)

I sometimes still tell myself, was this the right thing to do? I'll ask myself this same question in 8-12 months.

ps: Will I have another HT? Yes, But now the more important question is "When will my 2nd one be?" Hopefully not for another 15 years...*crossing fingers*

Dakota3, thanks for the feedback

Originally posted by Megatron:

azn_guy

 

No, I don't think I used any acne or bacteria preventative medications post op. I remember just pain killers and sleeping aids, but I could be wrong.

 

Dr. Simmons explained that he normally won't try to protect against acne immediately post op. The logic is that acne is impossible to predict, antibiotics aren't good for you and it ultimately shouldn't impact the final result. That said, now that we know I'm prone to CRAZY ACNE, we'll use it immediately after my next HT (assuming I have another one for my top scalp, temples and/or crown). I agree with that approach and honestly couldn't care less about my infection & acne so long as it doesn't impact my result.

 

Crunch time is coming up for us azn_guy! I think the best HT results usually start to see signs of growth in their 3 month pics. I know, I know, everyone's different and no one should get too worked up this early in the game. But, I can't help but point out that's what I've observed in the hundreds of blogs out there.

 

I'm excited and anxious about what's on the horizon for us. Can you relate or are you just chillin' about the whole thing?

Interesting, I guess it's really up to the HT doctor. Dr. Cooley by default puts his patients on cephalexin because he doesn't want to risk infection so I guess it was more of a proactive measure.

I did point out to him that I am prone to acne so I'm sure he took that into consideration. But based on his pre-op instructions, I think this antibiotic is a default drug for him including valium and a few others.

Yes! I think this is our month to start seeing some growth. While this is not a set in stone scenario. I like generalities so hopefully we'll see good things happen this month.

As far as being anxious versus being laid back. I look at my hairline every day dissecting it

I am very anxious and excited

Hey Dakota, thanks for the comments

you may be correct and I may be a rare case, lets hope so, haha...

Megatron,

Yes I am 100% sure that the hairs have no grown, I have 3 on my hairline (I can take a photo if guys want) that have been around since the beginning and I've paid close attention to them.

I also can touch my scalp and I can feel hundreds or even thousands? that are short and prickly versus my grown out existing hair.

Weird isn't it? I'll keep everyone posted.

I will not worry yet, but I hope these new grafts don't just sit there forever. That would be really odd.

looking good megatron

Right after your HT, were you not already on Cephalexin? When I had my HT, my HT doctor asked me to take Cephalexin the first 10 days to prevent bacteria.

But compared to Week 7 photos, your month 2 photos are looking good Lets see how your 3 month post-op looks

Megatron, no. They are not growing.

This makes me now wonder if this is something I need to be concerned about

I will pay close attention to these specific grafts because they are quite obvious (they are short compared to the existing hair that is growing)

One thing to note, I still have 50-70% of my placed grafts in my head (this is a complete guesstimate)

The Placed Grafts are just sitting there.

Any idea what's going on with these grafts?

I'm expecting this month that more of the grafts will shed, but I haven't had any shedding in almost 3 weeks.

For those interested, I've updated my 2nd month post op photos

you can find them on my weblog

A few notes from the 2nd Month

- Donor Scar feels a lot better. Pain level is now a 1/10, I expect to not feel anything at all at my 3rd month post op

- Pimples have been seen around the hairline, I am also getting them in my Donor Scar, very minimal though

- Recipient Growth has not started, I did see a sprout of 1 hair in the hairline, it was curly

- Donor Scar is red I can't tell if it has stretched but if I touch the Scar, there is definitely a ridge.

My expectations for Month 3 post op

- Donor Scar should feel no pain

- Recipient Growth

- Donor Scar Redness to fade

- Another haircut

Thanks hair_me_out,

How obvious was this for you?

I hear it's quite easy. Without naming names, I know a tech that simply applied via Craigslist (I would like to point out that this tech was not part of Dr. Cooley's team)

It's a bit sketchy in my opinion.

Keep in mind that the placement of graft in the recipient area is left for the most experienced technicians, while the slicing of FU's are left to the not so experienced.

It's been 2 months and I'm starting to see growth. One thing I noticed is the hair that is growing in is not thin and wispy at all. I am sure it's normal but wanted to see who else here has experienced non-wispy growth.

I've read several post where it is expected to have baby/wispy hair first, then thickness. So I'm surprised this is happening.

Megatron, keep fighting through it, I expect things to get better soon

I also have prone to acne even at my current age. I'm currently on a daily dose of minocycline due to acne. Prior to my HT, I made it clear to Dr. Cooley (my HT surgeon) about my medical history.

What you are experiencing is something I personally was worried about.

One thing for sure is these Doctors know what they're doing Good Luck! You'll hopefully be clear in no time

Wow, I was pretty amazed at this especially with only 2400 grafts. I'm very impressed

You know what's worse is when you have a Dad and an older brother who have no signs of any balding.

Both my grandfathers died at a very young age so I personally have no family history to use.

BUT, I do have some uncles that are NW4/5 though but they are all in their late 50's and 60's now

(So I guess I can use them as family history)

Not sure how to take all of this into account with me!

mahhjong, check out http://www.baldingblog.com

Dr. Rassman is a big promoter of "miniaturization mapping test"

He likes to use this to help predict MPB on a specific individual.

While some HT doctors are not a fan of this method due to MPB being unpredictable, I personally think it can't hurt to have this done.

understood hdude, not asking about crystal balls though

I know my mpb will be different from everyone else, but it's nice to get a feeling what other folks experiences are.

maybe this is too general of a topic?