Bax

Hello gents!

Today marks 3 months since my procedure with Dr. Cinik!

Lots of growth in the past month, especially in the temple regions, which I’m super happy about! The right side of my head always seems to be a bit lagging behind, but it is catching up (slowly but surely!). Luckily, that damn blister is gone and will hopefully allow the hair follicles to come through and contribute to the density to the area.

Hoping to be able to start styling it again soon so it doesn’t look like a mop on the top of my head 😂

Otherwise, nothing else to report and still very satisfied with the growth in just 3 short months!

18 hours ago, 83mjs said:

Yeah I am currently on the “big 3” - 1mg finasteride and 5mg oral minoxidil every day, plus shampooing with Nizoral twice per week. 

I’ve used topical minoxidil in the past but adherence was always a problem for me. I’ve been monitoring my heart rate since starting on oral minoxidil and it has actually improved, so my resting heart rate is now mid 40s although this is due to getting back into running rather than anything else. Don’t seem to have any excessive fluid retention either, but I’ll monitor it of course!

Great to hear you haven’t experienced any side effects, especially with the oral minoxidil. I remember learning about the side effects of that medication when I was going through my schooling and as you mentioned in your post below - the list is extensive haha!

36 minutes ago, 83mjs said:

Hi @Bax thanks for stopping by!

Even though logically I know 3 months is nothing I look at it sometimes and convince myself it’s not worked. But then the next day I am full of positivity. Really the best thing is to just forget about it for another 8 or 12 weeks, but it’s impossible!

Your progress is looking good - you’re an early grower for sure. Dr Cinik is doing some great work on this forum 😎

Of course, man! I’ve loved following your progress, especially since I’m just a month behind you! It’s exciting to see us and other men in this forum regaining years of their youth!

And I hear ya, man! Some days I’m super happy and then other days, some harsh lighting hits it and I’m like... Damn 😂. But we’re still so early in the game!

And thank God for being an early grower!

Side note: I can’t remember if I saw in your forum, but are you taking anything during this time like Fin or Saw Palmetto? I know you had taken Fin in the past!

1 hour ago, rob7331 said:

I know this doesn't directly relate but after recommendations from users on here I've started looking into Eugenix - goodness gracious their results are amazing! I think that's exactly what I need - tight dense packing for my thinner blonde hair. Going to get in touch with them asap and see if after 12 months they can help me.

I wish they had more results for Caucasians though. Can't find much out there.

Awesome, man! Keep us posted on what you find out!

Looking great, man! Stellar progress so far!

And well said about staying level-headed and patient haha. Definitely easier said than done! I feel like since we both experienced great results so early, it’s very easy to become impatient and want the process to go faster!

Excited to see your next updates!

2 hours ago, SJB91 said:

Looking great, keep up the posting!

Thanks man! Will do!

2 hours ago, rob7331 said:

Thanks for the replies guys. Sorry about your experience Sean - sounds like a rough go. My hair loss has almost completely slowed or stopped (I'm 27, been on Fin for 4 years) and the donor is in good shape. Although I'll let the Doctor decide that when I go to a clinic. Here's some more pics.

In a perfect world my second transplant would be my last, and I'd get the following goals done;

- Increase density in frontal third (1st surgery area)

- Lower hairline slightly (0.5cm or less)

- Put whatever is left in the crown

It'll be a decent size job, I estimate about 3000 grafts. I'm looking at H&W, Rahal and Cinik to name a few. Still got a few months to wait but I like planning and getting peoples' opinions on this forum. As far as transecting previous work Dr. Rahal's rep said this is something they do on a normal basis and no problem at all.

If anyone else has input on the hairline let me know!

Hey Rob, excited to see that you are inquiring about different options and planning on going for another round to add some more density - you’re going to be very happy with your results!

When it comes to your hairline, what you should do is go and look back at old pictures of yourself when you had a full head of hair and see where your hairline naturally was. For example, I’ve always had a bigger forehead and therefore, when I had my HT done, I wanted to make sure it was a natural one for my face shape - so we decided on a slightly more curvilinear hairline. Also, it’s easy to perseverate about the hairline when your hair is so short because you can nit-pick at the minor details. But just remember that once the hair starts growing longer and you start styling it, it will be so hard to tell where the hairline actually starts. Just my perspective on it :)

3 hours ago, Suede said:

Hi Bax,

it really looks good and I am glad for your results so far and I am sure your final result will be brilliant!

Please keep us updated with your progress

Regarding the fin, are you planning on keeping taking it forever or do you have a plan for it?

Cheers!

Thanks man! Appreciate the kind words!

Will do!

And I haven’t decided yet! I don’t necessarily have a long term plan, but I think I’ll keep on taking it until I have any consistent side effects. Of course, there’s always the chance it could impact my reproductive ability when it comes to me trying to have kids, so I need to keep that in mind!

I’m also considering just taking Saw Palmetto once I finish this course of Fin. Less side effects and it seems like it is more or less the same effectiveness!

2 hours ago, yesplease said:

Looking good. 
 

how’s it going with the fin? Sounds like you started it a month before the procedure? 

Thanks man!

And it’s going well! I was taking 1mg tablets prior to my surgery (roughly a month and a half) and after with no issues or side effects, but Dr. Cinik’s clinic gave me a package of 5mg tablets. I decided to cut those ones in half (so roughly 2.5mg tablets) to see how that would go. I was definitely less... excitable with that dosage if you know what I mean 😂😅! So I cut those into fourths instead and have had no issues since! Everything is back up and running as it should, thank God hahaha!

6 hours ago, Sijac09 said:

I can see this being a good result. Have you got a before transplant photo?

For sure! I posted my before photos at the beginning of this thread if you wanted to check them out, but I’ll also attach them here for reference! 

10 hours ago, HTHope said:

Awesome it looks like you were able to hold onto a decent amount of grafts. How short did u go on the sides during your last cut?

Hey thanks man! Yeah, I feel super fortunate, especially since I was prepared for 100% full shock loss haha. But I am grateful to see most of the transplanted hairs continuing to grow!

And my sister cut my hair, but she didn’t use a guard on the razor, but rather used a comb to control the length of the hair as it was cut. I would say by eyeballing it, it’s probably around a 2 or 3 length! Prior to my hair transplant, I used to do a 1 on the back and sides!

Hey everyone! Hope you are all doing well!

Today marks exactly 2 months since I had my hair transplant with Dr. Cinik!

The photos above are both from today, before and after I had my haircut. I wanted to post both so you guys could see what it looked like before and after my haircut. The donor site looks completely normal and it’s crazy to thing that hair was actually ever taken from those areas 😱. 

Finally had a bit of shock loss occur, primarily around the temple region. This came in the form of 1-4 hairs/day that would come out whenever I showered - so definitely not bad! I feel as though things have more or less settled into the growth phase and will hopefully be seeing more density in the coming months!

Let me know your guys thoughts!

1 hour ago, bismarck said:

Are you sergen/isergen on the dutch forums?

Nope, I don’t know who that is haha

11 minutes ago, bismarck said:

Clean, clean work.

Thanks man! It’s actually great to hear that! I had the same thoughts when I saw the finished product, but it’s great to hear it from someone else!

49 minutes ago, bismarck said:

What I was getting at was trying to see the punch size and the pattern of harvesting at the donor, so post procedure but without bandaging is what I meant.You may not have these pics.

OHHH! Yes, I do have that haha! See below

9 minutes ago, bismarck said:

Thank you to you as well, you are certainly very conscientious with documentation.

Do you have pics of the donor at the time of surgery without bandaging?

My pleasure! I’m hoping that by sharing my experience authentically, I can help people decide if hair transplantation is something they wish to pursue! I know I spent hours and hours on this forum trying to find the right doctor for me and if I truly wanted to go through with the procedure. It’s such a great platform and I’m grateful for it!

As for pics of the donor area at the time of the surgery, I had not thought to take any. All I have is the pics from my first post and a picture of the screen at the clinic (see below). 
 

Hopefully this helps  

1 hour ago, bismarck said:

Clean aggressive work. Would love to see pics of the donor if possible. Happy growing.

Thanks man!

My donor site was the back of my head and a little bit on the sides just above my ears in the pictures above ! All of it looks completely normal and exactly like it did before the procedure!

Is there another angle that you are wanting to see the donor area?

2 minutes ago, LonelyGraft said:

did you get 3500 grafts? I think i missed the final graft count

I ended up having 3500 grafts!

40 minutes ago, LonelyGraft said:

its looking pretty good. seems like youve held onto a decent amount of the grafts. I remember shedding still continued til maybe 1.5 to 2 months but it hit hard around 2.5-3 weeks and began to taper. If the transplanted hairs are gaining length as fast as the natives then you're in for some fun times ahead. If they are kind of stagnant, then I would vigorously but carefully try to massage them and they might end up coming out.

Thanks for your insight and for sharing your experience!

I would say the transplanted hairs are growing at a reasonable pace considering it’s only been a month, but definitely slightly slower than the donor sites (which I suppose makes sense!)

It’ll be interesting to see what happens in the next month!

21 minutes ago, Suede said:

Looks really good Bax! I am happy for you and cross my fingers it will keep growing. 
 

How is your donor? Sore?

Thanks man, I appreciate it! Every day is a mystery and I’m loving it haha!

Donor area is totally fine! No soreness, numbness, or itchiness at all and it feels exactly like it did before the procedure

Hello everyone!

So, today marks exactly one month since I’ve had my procedure done!

It seems like I still have a lot of hair in the recipient area and it’s getting longer and longer each day, which has me really excited. But I’m not holding my breath because I know that shock loss can happen until around 2 months.

Slightly dry scalp, which is slowly becoming better and regaining its moisture each day. I’m still using the biotin shampoo and supplementing with biotin, saw palmetto, and taking 1mg Finasteride (I’m taking it again because I’ve never experienced any side effects)

Currently still not working so my patients are going to be very surprised when I return to work 😂. I’ve received so many kind and encouraging comments from people in my life and I already feel great about how things are looking. Each day it looks different! 

What do you guys think about the shock loss? Has anyone experienced (or know anyone) who didn’t have a significant amount of shock loss?

Also, I’m working out for the first time since the surgery because I’ve gotta get back into shape!

I’ll post more pics next month! Take care and be well! Looking forward to hearing what you guys think!

48 minutes ago, Pauls said:

Looking good mate. Are you happy with everything so far? 

Thanks man! I’m super happy with everything so far. It has definitely exceeded my expectations, so I’m looking forward to seeing what the rest of the journey will hold!

1 hour ago, Melvin-Moderator said:

Looking good man, how’s the quarantine?

Thanks man!

It’s actually been quite productive! Painted the entire upstairs of my house and a bunch of other odd jobs here and there that I had been meaning to do for awhile!

Work is also shut down for the time being except for emergency cases, so will be quarantined for even longer haha!

14 day update! Donor area growing back and looks completely normal! No more scabs on the recipient area - just a little bit of redness! Just hair, hair and more hair, which is growing!

So far so good!

2 hours ago, fabofly said:

Amazing man. I'm heading to cinik this summer as well. Hoping the Corona pandemic is settled by then. Is there a reason why he didnt do the mid scale area ?

Hey man!

Thanks, I appreciate it! I hope everything settles down too! I definitely got in under the radar before this whole thing blew up!

So, based on the pictures, it looks like I have hair loss in that mid scalp area is because I actually have good density there already . However, I have a very pointy head at the top of my skull so the razor cut down those hairs a lot closer to the skull. It’s growing back in normally now, though!