jbny

Well, I have finally reached the 7 month mark. I did not post a 6 month update because I was very busy and really just never got around to it. I can hardly believe that 7 months have already passed, and I am completely honest when I say that this was one of the best decisions I have ever made. My life has changed drastically, and the results at 7 months have greatly surpassed my expectations. My friends who knew about the procedure are as stunned as I am. I am able to style my hair in ways that I have not been able to do in close to 8 years. I can use styling products again, and I never worry about going out on a windy day. I don't think that I have worn a hat in about 3 months, and I'm not sure I will ever wear one again. Before I used to spend nearly 30 minutes a day trying to get the "right" style so I could go out in public. Now I spend 5 minutes tops, and my just really looks great. My only concern was my left temple point not growing in as fast as my right, but I spoke with the Rahal clinic and he said not to worry, so I wont. I plan to visit them again next month for a follow up. I sent several pictures at the 6 month mark to Dr. Rahal's office, and the letter I recieved back from them made me feel even better than I already had. When your surgeon tells you that your results are "fantastic" for 6 months, it really makes you feel great, since there is still a lot of time for more growth and density. These pics were taken about 2 days ago, with absolutely no concealer. There is just a bit of hair putty that I use. As a reference I posted the last picture, which was taken right before the surgery. My how things have changed. Take a look, and feel free to ask me any questions or shoot me any comments.

Here are some photos after 5 months. Every week I am seeing more and more improvement and continue to be extremely happy with the result so far. 5 months is still early and I cant wait for the density to come through. I still see many new hairs popping out all the time. The first 4 photos are just after a shower with damp hair. The 5th photo is after my hair had dried and the last photo is me using a small amount of Xfusion hair fibers. The scar is still invisible so I did not take any photos of it. I would feel quite comfortable going out without any concealer on and I have done it, but it does help out a lot. Its amazing how much I have stopped stressing over what my hair looks like. Before, I used to spend 20-30 minutes just trying to make it look "right" by trying to cover up what wasnt there. Now, I spend about 5 minutes tops every day. Please feel free to ask questions or comment. Thanks!

There has been a lot of itching from day one, but I don't think its anything to worry about. Obviously you cant start scratching your head for quite a while but I look at the itching as a sign of healing and that new hairs are growing.

Alright, so I am finally at the 4 month mark and am being completely honest when I say that I am extremely happy with whats happening. I have seen a lot of new growth in the past month, and new hairs seem to be popping up all the time. Density isnt quite there yet but I know that there is still lots of time for that. I took these pictures after I just had a shower and a haircut so there is nothing in my hair at all. The last picture is how I style my hair with xfusion hair fibers before I go out just to give you guys an idea of how great the stuff is in the early stages. Its virtually undetectable and everyone is raving about how good my hair looks. Just the tiniest bit can add the look of so much density its crazy. Even if I did not experience any more growth I would still be very very happy with having this result that I have now. My life has changed, my confidence is back, and I cant wait to see what happens at 5 months and beyond. There is no pain left at all and all numbness is gone. The scar is still very hard to find. I was worried about my left temple point not keeping pace with my right, but now I can clearly see the outline of it cause it is filled with very small, fine, new hairs that are clearly growing. Please ask me any questions you might have. Thanks!

Thanks for the input. Thats why I said that I had some reservations about even mentioning my concern cause I know its very very early. I guess its cause my left side is off to such a good start that I was a little concerned about the right side lagging behind, but after hearing from you guys and the clinic itself I am really not concerned at all. I cant wait to see what month 4 will look like.

Here are some photos of where I am currently at. Today is Jan. 14th, so these photos are taken at the 3 month and four day mark. So far things seem to be going well. I have a few concerns but I dont think I should jump the gun until I farther along. In particular, my right frontal zone is lagging way behind the left. I kept a great deal of transplanted hairs that never fell out, most being on the left side, and it is clearly ahead of the other side. I have a small spot the size of a penny that is quite bare on my right side which concerns me. I am hoping that those were just hairs the fell out and havent come through yet. Also, my right temple point seems to be way ahead of my left, and the outline of it is clearly visible, while the left temple looks like it looked pre-HT. For 3 months Id say that I am satisfied but a little concerned about what I mentioned above.And when I say concerned I say with a lot of reservation knowing that it is still very early on. I look almost like I looked pre-HT, but now I have a CLEARLY visible hairline and many hairs where there was nothing before. I also have been using Xfusion keratin fibers so that I could stop wearing a hat. People are astonished when they see me and cant even tell that anything is in my hair. WIth the Xfusion, it looks like I have a full head of thick hair. The stuff really is incredible. Please feel free to comment and Ill post more at 4 months.

Before my surgery I was also trying to figure out where to stay because I had no idea what the guest house would be like. I decided to stay at Dr. Rahal's guest house after all, and it was clearly the best choice. It was phenomenal. If I had to stay in Ottawa again, I wouldn't think twice about staying there again. You pretty much have the entire house to yourself, and theres a great sense of community and comfort knowing that there are other patients staying with you. There were two other patients staying there when I was there, and we talked a lot and still keep in touch. Not to mention, you could probably throw a rock and hit the clinic from the guest house, which makes it very very convenient. The prices are completely reasonable for everything you get while staying there. My advice, book the guest house now, you will not regret it. Good luck!

I can hardly believe my surgery was 2 months ago. Lets hope the next few months go by just as fast. I took several photos today, and tried to get as much detail as I could. I guess I was one of lucky few who had a significant amount of the transplanted hairs not fall out. Its hard to see them all in the photos, but there are a lot that stayed in and started growing. Has anyone else experienced this? Clearly more hairs stayed in on my left frontal zone than my right, but I'm not complaining. I only included one photo of my donor area simply because there is nothing to see, the scar is nearly undetectable at this point which I am very happy about. I lost almost all of the transplanted hairs in my temples points so it is difficult to see the work that was done, but you can see it from my website. I have finer hair, and I am not a finasteride user. This makes me curious as to what the final result will be, but for now I can only speculate. I am well into the ugly phase, but am very optimistic. I still have some numbness in the recipient area, and some points along the scar are still tender. In fact, the only way for me to even locate the scar is from the minor pain I get now and then. Please feel free to ask me any questions Ill post again at 3 months... Til then, thanks everyone!

Things are going pretty well for me. Ive lost the majority of my grafted hairs but I have many that are refusing to fall out. Who knows, maybe they took root but I wont be surprised if they all fall out. I started using rogaine at the two week mark. It gives my head a nice tingling sensation. The scar is better than I could have hoped for. I had a haircut down to a # 2 two weeks ago and the scar is barely visible. I took the best pictures that I could by myself with my phone. There is still some soreness in the scar area but nothing bad at all. Recipient area is still quite numb but I can tell that a lot of the sensation is coming back. This month has flown by and now I have to settle in and look ugly for a few months, but I cant wait to see what happens. Until next time, here are some pictures.

Thanks for the replies. I am very excited about what is ahead and am very satisfied so far with what has been done. I got my stitches out today, a little discomfort but nothing bad at all. Here are some updated photos. I have lost quite a few hairs already from my first shower and also from massaging away some of the scabs. Unfortunate but I knew coming in that this is how it goes. The detail is also hard to see with my camera. The density looks a lot better in person. I will try to take some higher quality photos soon so you can get a better idea of what it looks like. Cheers!

I have been reading these forums for many years. I would like to thank everyone who has contributed for helping me to make my decision about my HT surgery. I hope that my website will be as helpful to others as many have been to me. I underwent surgery with Dr. Rahal on October 10, 2013. I am now one week post-op after receiving 3774 grafts via FUT. I am looking forward to sharing this experience with anyone who is interested. Please click the link in my signature to visit my hair loss website. Thanks!