Mane Attraction

Hmmm. Tough decision, because the FUE approach is really appealing on account of its less invasive nature and the faster healing time in the donor area. But in the grand scheme of things, I think I'd still want to be getting as many grafts as possible from a second HT (and also attempting some scar revision). So I'd probably be leaning towards one more strip surgery session and saving FUE for the future. Actually, ten years ago, hair multiplication and cloning was supposed to be "just a few short years away", so I was hoping that would be ready before my next round. Alas, the wheels of scientific progress turn slowly in HT land.

Stellar results. You've broken out like a werewolf! AR-OOOOOO!

Sorry for the late reply. I had some computer hard drive issues, but all good now. Yeah, I've considered another round, but I'll probably hold off on it for a while yet. I'd prefer to wait and see if any more hair loss advances before pulling the trigger on a possible round 2. If I got another HT, I'd probably get it done in Thailand by Dr. Pathomvanich. I visit Thailand quite regularly, and it's a lot closer to me than Canada. I have also considered getting a scalp micropigmerntation tattoo into my wide-ish scar at some point to help conceal it. I'm not sure how effective that would be. But at the moment, I can't shave my head any shorter than a 3-guard without the scar being visible. Judging by results I've seen online, micropigmentation hides the donor scar very well, even with a buzz cut. Has anyone on this forum ever had it done? Thanks, Melvin! Seems like just yesterday when I was sitting in Rahal's chair. Time sure does fly when your luscious locks have been restored.

Wow! It's been a long time since I updated this bad boy. Just posted a 10 year post-op blog update here: https://www.hairtransplantnetwork.com/blog/journal.asp?CopyID=11222&WebID=1200&ProcID=3614

Hey guys! It's been a long time since I've been around these parts, but my ten year post-op HT anniversary was fast encroaching, so I figured I'd provide up update on how things are going. When I had my surgery back in 2009, there weren't many (if any) people who had posted photographs of how a modern HT looked ten years out, so I'm happy to be able to give back to this community that helped so much on this journey. I think you'll agree that the results, after a decade, do, indeed, stand the test of time, so hopefully this gives a boost of confidence to anyone new who's considering taking the plunge, but might be worried about how the results will look in the future. Dr. Rahal did a lot of pre-planning on my scalp, and he transplanted donor hairs between native hairs where he thought future baldness would occur, so I think this careful approach is a good thing to consider when picking a surgeon. After doing in-depth research for several months on these forums and consulting with knowledgeable members who previosuly had surgery, I committed to a date and locked in my HT for May 7th, 2009 with Dr. Rahal in Ottawa, Rahal ended up meticulously transplanting 3,481 grafts into the front and temple point areas of my scalp, all the way to the half-way point of my head. Here's an excerpt from my latest blog post: Suffice it to say, I am ecstatic with the long-lasting results. Dr. Rahal really did a top-notch job! Here are a couple of shots showing the sorry state of my scalp before surgery back in 2009: And here's how my Hair Transplant looks ten years down the track. (Photos with both long and short hair): I have posted a more detailed blog and more photos at the link here, if you'd like to check it out: https://www.hairtransplantnetwork.com/blog/journal.asp?CopyID=11222&WebID=1200&ProcID=3614 And Here is my original thread: https://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/topic/6198-manes-12-month-results-dr-rahal-3481-grafts/ Any questions, ask away!

I've reached 12-months! Check out my blog (the link's in my sig below) for both my 12 month grown-out photos (and my 'conclusion' write-up), as well as the pics of my new 'do'. And, nuts! There seems to be no way to edit the thread title anymore. Bill, if you read this... any way you could edit this thread title to reflect 12 months instead of 8-months? Thanks!

Thanks, guys! Yes, I'm quite pleased with the visual improvement and how far my hair has come. It's a rocky road at times, but one that's well worth it in the end. Hair_me_out: Yeah, I've been trying to grow my hair in the same style/length as when I was 21, simply for comparison's sake. I'm glad to hear that you think Rahal mimicked nature well. By the way, hair_me_out, I just took a look at your latest photos. My scar was a lot like yours at the 2 month mark. I had concerns for quite a while, but don't worry. It should improve a LOT over time.

Added 8 Month photos to my blog! I'm really pleased with my results to date. Rahal did a fine job. Any comments/questions, let me know!

Yup. I'm still around. The last update I posted was a 5 Month photo gallery here: http://hair-restoration-info.c...66060861/m/857109534 Since then, things have been going pretty well. I shaved my hair to a 3 guard on the sides, and the scar isn't visible at all, which is a big relief! I'll be 7 months post-op on December the 7th and I can still feel new stubble coming through. I probably won't post another photo update 'til I get a few more months progress underway, though.

Raphael: Thanks for the feedback! Yes, it's certainly a game of patience waiting for the maturation process to kick in. From reading many of the patient blogs on this site prior to having my HT, I knew exactly what to expect on a month-by-month basis, so I know I'm where I should be -- but that doesn't make the waiting game any easier! Byehair: Cheers! I'm glad you approve and share all of my sentiments. Any comments/feedback on the wide section of my donor scar would be appreciated. Is it likely to improve in the coming months? And have there been any other cases of donor scar stretching being confined to only one section of the scar?

That's a nice amount of hairs used to refine your hairline, M&M. I expect that you'll have fantastic results! Keep on growing.

Looks like good progress so far, Drew. The waiting can be rough, and coming from such an advanced stage of loss, I guess your 'doldrums' stage is significantly extended. But as others have mentioned, this early growth is a good indication of things to come. It'll be most interesting to watch things pan out for you!

Well, I finally managed to get the album posted. In case anyone else asks, it seems that you cannot type text that's too lengthy in the fields beneath the captions. If your text description for any photo goes over 2 lines, it appears to give the error message. Also, organizing the order of your photos can be problematic. I found that the best strategy is to upload all files individually (9 at a time) in the precise order you want them to appear in the album, so that no further shuffling is required later on. Then just go ahead and post the album with no captions or comments. After the album appears on the forum, go back and edit it to add captions and comments to all the photos, making certain that each one is under the 2 line limit that the space above the photos allows. Hope this is of assistance.

I'm attempting a photo gallery update this time, so that I can include more detailed photographs! Month 5 has arrived and I have seen a healthy amount of thickening. Exciting times indeed, which makes the whole doldrums a worthwhile sacrifice! Every week sees subtle changes in the behaviour of the transplanted hairs as they continue to determine their growth pattern and direction. When examined closely, my hairline doesn't yet seem to be growing as densely-packed as the grafts were transplanted. In photos it looks fine, but in real life, it's still a bit transparent. Although, when running my fingers across the entire front of my hairline, I can actually feel fresh stubble, which indicates that new hairs are continuing to break through the skin all the time. My hairline has continued to thicken since month 4, and now looks pretty sturdy when viewed from straight ahead (well, from a reasonable distance) and looks great in photographs, which I'm very pleased about! Behind enemy lines, there are a few patches that haven't seen much growth yet. So I've got my fingers and toes double-crossed in hopes that those areas will fill-in, given more time. I'm still in relatively early stages, so I know that more patience is required! It's rough though -- even when hair is growing well, we'd still like to fast-track those optimal results that lie just out of reach! Aside from the nice growth spurt, I'm still battling numbness across the entire recipient area, although the donor area continues to improve, gaining a little more sensation month-by-month. The recipient area is still discolored pink and is shinier than the rest of my skin (this is more noticeable under fluorescent lighting and in close-up flash photography). Minor dimples in my skin are visible where the hairs were transplanted. But I guess all of these things will smooth over as more healing takes place and as the hairs get further in their maturation process. Due to popular demand, I have included pictures of the stretched scar on the left side of my head this time. The width of the scar and the hairs growing through it don't seem to be improving, but at least the redness has faded a bit more since last month. The scar on the right side of my head seems fine. I have steered away from shaving the sides of my head due to this stretched part of the scar. Normally, I would have shaved down several months ago, but I wanted to give this trouble-spot maximum healing time before I shave down to a #3 guard to see how it looks. Overall, I'm very happy with my progress at month five. I anticipate more hairline thickening as well as further growth in the patches that are still lagging behind in the month ahead!