jj2000

Thanks for the tip...just ordered a pill with Biotin and MSM. Also ordered some minox as I want to give it another shot

@HTSoon yea, I'm still on finasteride. As for biotin and msm, no I haven't included them (honestly, not even sure what they are). I'm planning on picking up minox again, but unclear whether I should go with perfect hair or rogaine.

Month 8 Update Bit more of the same, although it feels like the front portion of my hair (hairline) has gotten thinner, and the texture of the hair has changed. It's wavier and just feels different (I struggle to describe it). I did notice about 2-3 weeks ago that some hair was falling out, but haven't seen any fall out since, so maybe I was going through a cycle or something? I took a few different pictures, some styled (and wet), some bedhead, and some with just pat drying it after the shower. Apologies for the poor quality...one day I'll have someone take some better quality pics.

Month 7 Update Slow but steady progress. I cut the sides of my hair at a half guard but forgot to take some pictures, so this is maybe 2-3 weeks after that haircut. The hair on top is slightly longer than usual which makes it wavy. Still some bald spots, but I do notice the growth. The feeling of the recipient area still feels numb at times, or hyper sensitive compared to the rest of my scalp. It comes and goes. And the donor area pops a ingrown hair or pimple every week or so.

Is that different than Rogaine? I do think I'll try it again, but I'll most likely wait a few months.

Month 6 Update I've included more pictures this time. Some bed head shots with my hair all messed up, some with it wet and styled straight out of the shower, and a few with it dry and styled. I do notice some additional growth, but nothing too crazy...slow and steady progress! One lowlight is that I decided to give Lipogaine another shot after a really bad reaction a few months ago since I had a bunch of things going on and wasn't sure if the reaction was specific to Lipogaine or not. Unfortunately I had a negative reaction again, after only one application! My scalp, ears and forehead got itchy and rashy (although more to the touch as opposed to look), and my face slightly swelled up. I didn't need to take any medication as it went away after a few days (took a full week to recover), but everything is back to normal. I'm still not sure if the reaction is specific to minoxidil or Lipogaine, but I don't think I'd try a different product (e.g. Rogaine) for a while to play it safe.

Not using minoxidil since I had a bad reaction a few months ago, but I think I'm gonna give it another shot since I'm not sure it was the min that caused it. Will take some pics of the hair dry soon.

Month 5 Update Really quick update as there's been no change (as expected). The good news is that emotionally I'm past the "oh shit...things have gotten worse" stage as most/all of the shock loss has returned. The recipient area still feels numb/awkward at times, but it's pretty infrequent. Also, I got a haircut with a 1/2 guard on the side and the donor area looked pretty good. Will try and take a picture next time. Sorry for the low quality pictures, but they aren't much different from the previous month.

Thanks...I'm honestly way less concerned/frustrated with the ugly duckling stage as I feel I've turned the corner

Month 4 Update Finally got a haircut I cut the sides/back of my hair with a half guard and I'm pleasantly surprised that it doesn't look that thin back there (at least not the trained eye) and no redness. I was worried that the donor area would end up rather thin and awkward looking when I cut my hair short. Otherwise, no major updates. No new hair growth (which is expected), but the odd nerve regrowth feeling has subdued. I still get some awkward goose bump feelings, but not as frequently as before. The recipient area still gets red after I comb it (e.g. easily irritable), but otherwise my head doesn't bother me anywhere near as much as before. Basically feels like I'm back to my pre-op days, except for some addd hair loss as a result of the shock loss. I took these pictures right after I got out of the shower and after I put in hair product, but before I combed my hair. The product unfortunately clumped the hair together a bit, but also makes it easier to see my scalp

Thanks for the support...I know I'm psyching myself out to a certain extent..crazy how much patience is involved in this The current hair loss is definitely worse than it was before. I feel like I'm taking some pretty shit pictures, but I'm just trying not to focus on it too much (hence the reason I haven't gotten a haircut). One interesting thing to note is my forehead and head is much more oily than normal, even though I shampoo daily (just head & shoulders). Whereas in the past, I used to shampoo every few days (unless I worked out) as the oil buildup was very minimal and I liked the feeling. But it seems like either I'm producing more oil or the product I'm using (Garnier Surf Wax) is causing more oil buildup. Also, it literally takes every inch of will power not to pop those pimples!

Month 3 Update No change really. Still haven't gotten a much needed haircut, and of course no new growth (as expected). I did get some rather large pimples a few weeks ago (3-4 of them) on the recipient area and Dr. Diep prescribed antibiotics as a precaution. It went away, but interestingly enough, a new one just popped up. Otherwise most of the same sensations. Really awkward and intense goose bump feelings in the recipient area, and of course the mental game wondering if the skin irritations caused permanent damage and if the hair will ever grow back or if you'll end up worse off as a result of the shock loss :eek: (I know it's too early to expect anything, but the mind tends to wander)

I actually wear my hair pretty short (usually a 1 or 1/2 blade on the sides and somewhere between a 5-6 on top). The pre-op pics aren't representative as to how I usually wear my hair, I was just in a mood to grow it out at that point in time

Month 2 pics (a few weeks late). No real updates, so just posting for posterity. Still in the ugly duckling stage, although the shock loss has stopped (but it was a significant amount). Other small updates: Noticed that I got (and still get) a few pimples in the donor area The recipient area is still nearly tender and sensitive to touch (even a brush on it hurts) Thinning in the donor area isn't as bad as I thought it'd be Nerve regrowth continues and I occasionally get awkward tingling sensations throughout my entire recipient area (almost like a pulse or wave running over the top of my head).

Makes sense...I was just surprised to see this stubble growing. That being said, it hasn't grown much beyond stubble at this point.