johndoe1

No noticeable difference

Correct

Sorry too busy over the next few weeks to take/upload new pics, but my 6-month post further above pretty much syncs up with this 2-yr assessment. Pros - My hairline is low and looks youthful - No one has any idea I had a HT. That includes the donor area. Cons - Density IMHO really should be 2x. I shave my hair short so it hides the density issue. But if I had longer hair I think one could definitely tell where the balding area is. Overall still very happy though. When I look back at pre-HT pics, I wince at my high hairline in em

I did a 1500 graft FUE with Diep about 18 months ago. Click on my name and you will see a post where I detail it. The guy is legit..I looked at 2 other docs and picked him. In my posts, I esp detail the first few weeks. Yes, your hair will fall out with the crusts still on it. This is expected. And even the existing hair will fall out from shock loss. So for a few weeks you likely will look *worse* then before. In my case I think it was between 1-2 months where things started getting better then the "before"...so be patient. Fast forward to today and I am very happy with his work.

Ok, here is my 180 day/6 month update. Bottom line is that I am very happy with the procedure. See attached pic with the first being a “before” and the rest being now. My hairline before was 3 inches above my eyebrows and even then the first inch above this was very sparse. Now the hairline starts around 2.25 inches and looks full, knocking 5-10 yrs off my appearance easy. People at work ask if I have done something diff with my hair, my friends know something has changed with my appearance but can’t put a finger on it, and I definitely get more attention from the ladies...which I’m not complaining about Also, no lingering numbness or redness. It’s not all perfect though. One con is that the density could be thicker. I would estimate the density in the recipient areas is like 30-50% that of the donor area. Pic 2 is what my hair looks like in very bright light if you are inches from it. But in other lighting and if you are at more of a distance, it looks more like pic 3. Also, I cut my hair at around razor length 1 so this lack of density is not really noticeable, but if I went to razor level 2/3 you would be able to tell the hair in the front is less dense. But to be clear today is still a MAJOR improvement over where I was before. So net-net I am very happy. Now when I see pics of myself I smile at my new/youthful hairline…instead of wincing at my slowly receding hairline!

Didn't mean to imply Pak has left NHI...just that Rassman is no longer working Rassman was a pioneer in fue and many fue docs today were trained by him (incl Diep who did my fue in NorCal). That's why when I was researching good fue docs in California, Rassman was on my short list. I did a phone consultation with Rassman and for what it is worth he did say at least 40% of his procedures are FUE. And he has done thousands of FUEs over the years. I would encourage the original poster to do more research on this forum (and other forums) on Pak and his fue abilities. If it comes back positive, a phone consultation can't hurt...

The pills probably were Propecia (active ingredient is finasteride). Please do some online research on this for yourself to learn the facts around it. While Propecia can have negative side effects, this happens to a small % of users (one data point....I have been on it for ~15 years with no issue I also use Rogaine. And I got a 1500 graft FUE done a few months ago so for sure I am not stopping the medications) Assuming you take this medication, then the real question is it worth getting a FUE? If you have accelerated hair loss AND thin hair you may very well find that your first FUE works for a few years...then you lose more hair....then need another FUE...then you lose more hair...then you need another FUE...you get the point. You eventually run out of donor hair and you are worse off then when you started b/c you have small FUE scars everywhere and your wallet is lighter. My advice would be try the medication first to see how you react to it. If no side effects and it stops/slows the hair loss, then a FUE is a feasible option and proceed with that.

Umar and Pak in SoCal both have excellent reputations. Pak worked with and was trained by Rassman who is a pioneer of FUEs

+1 to what others said. Avoid Bosley. In NorCal Diep is good (I did 1500 FUE with him..click on my name to see my thread with pics so far). Umar and Rassman in SoCal are very very good as well. Rassman actually trained Diep Also I am fairly certain Rassman is now retired, but his colleague Pak is supposedly top notch...

I remember looking at your pics way back at the "ugly duckling" stage. Daaaang...what a massive improvement since then!! Congrats!

Wow - what a difference from month 3 - congrats! And ya still have ~7 months to go

what would be helpful is if you shared the # of hairs. Anyhow there are plenty of pics of the donor area right after HT. See the link I sent you for my own pics. The donor area can be large, even for 1500 hairs, so I highly doubt you can somehow cover it all up with longer/existing hair. See my day 1 pics - a pic is worth a thousand words. Also I would NOT put Toppix or any other chemicals on the recipient area. Google Toppix ingredients and you will see plenty of chemicals in it. Before my FUE I read the "post op directions" for at least 10 different, trusted docs and as a rule of thumb, they all say to keep the transplant area free of harsh chemicals/dyes for at least 30 days. For the first 2 weeks really only indirect saline/water. *Maybe* at say day 14 when all the wounds have fully closed. I would say toppix is okay. Trust me when I say this....a HT is a large investment in time, pain, and $. You do NOT want to take a chance of hurting hair growth during the critical first 10-14 days by putting chemicals on the open wounds. Be conservative here....treat each transplanted hair like it is the most precious thing on earth

Just reading this now. Glad it worked out for ya. I was going to suggest you NOT put the Neosporin on the transplant area. I researched a ton before my FUE and all the docs said Neosporin/Bactrin only on the donor area. Transplant area was just saline/indirect water esp because they are essentially open wounds and you want to keep lotions off of them. But again, it looks like Neosporin worked for ya, so congrats

You can look at my "story" below. I also was receding in the front...like a Norwood 2/3. I did 3 consultations with very good FUE docs (recommended on this forum) and consensus was 1500 grafts. That said, def stick with Rogaine and Propecia. I did that starting at 24 and it held my hair in check until now...I am 40. I agree with others that you should hold off for now esp until you get a better feel for how the meds are working (or not working) .... http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/174273-1500-fue-grafts-dr-diep.html

Try Rogaine also. Anecdotal evidence indicates it may work in the frontal area..worth a shot. Agree with other posters. Do NOT rush out and get a HT now. Lets the meds run their course and also see what your hair loss is like after a few years. If it is very aggressive, it is not worth getting a HT b/c you will inevitably have to shave your head at some point and you will regret the tiny FUE scars. I am 40 and just now got my first HT (1500 FUE). As others said, you will care about your hair past 35 Also some docs in the US do "micrografts" which are smaller procedures of like 500 hairs to fill in small bald areas. But again, do not even do this yet...