scar5

I agree 100% Everybody out there. Right now, it is a dangerous moment in HT land. BEWARE! Strip (FUT) has been torpedoed, and is lying limp in the waters. And a it is a ripe opportunity for FUE-come-lateleys (in other words, docs who are jumping on the FUE bandwagon) to exploit the "crisis". Not only through this inevitable awareness or consciousness-awareness among HT consumers that finally realise a strip scar is not a good idea for a young balding male, but also because of the US's laws which prohibit techs extracting follicles (I mean laws which can actually be brought before a court of law - unlike in some countries). So we have a wild-west scenario out there in FUE land. Beware!

Empirestate, I love your question and Gram, your answer is superb. It's unbeatable and perfect. I had my first surgery in 1988 and my last in 2013. Inbetween, I posted on Hairlosshelp for 500-600 tilmes (banned) and here for another 400-600 posts before my last surgery in 2013. I guess I am an "expert". How much time, money, emotionally charged wasted energy I have wasted in pursuit of truth and/or just blasting away recklessly at reps, evangalicals ec.,, and yet I got royally screwed in 2013 at the HT shop. So I have to say, alittle knowledge is good and bad- use your hunches wisely. I don't know whether I am beyond the bounds of rational usefulness or not, but I agree with Gram and yet I also agree with you only so far aa the short term. The key is that only those who have been burned enough post as 'victims' ...young guys inow all about it. They see victims everyday and already know what they do not wanna be. So just in case you are losing your hair at a young age, I just say, avoid a strip scar ifyu can. You will be better off in the long run.

Australia has produced many notable hair transplant physicians Dr. Richard Shiell, was once a notable and leading strip surgeon. Dr. W(cannot be mentioned by name) was the pioneer of FUE and arguably no single doctor has had more of an influence on the global HT industry than him, because against great odds FUE has finally arrived. Dr. Barry White, whilst not well known, was a member of this website and was a recommended surgeon. I would not recommend him. It seems to me that Australia was a leader in the pre-internet age, and then fell off the radar altogether there after. Aussie guys seem to be big head shavers too. However, now that the hipster look for young guys is into its fourth-fifth year (guessing as an old irrelevant guy) and bald it 'aint, so my guess is that the market for HT is Australia is going up. The Australian dollar is pretty good so, as you guys say, they'll travel, and it won't be to Hasson and Wong, but I'd say the FUE clinics of Turkey, India, Belgium and possibly Thailand, if they can finally get their FUE act together.

Tough call. FUE (different doc) would be safer given (perhaps) your wide strip scarring tendency Strip might get you more hair as well as thin the scar, but... I'd say a lot of research and independent judgment is needed here. It is a hard call. I went for strip in your situation and regretted it, but that was just my experience. Just on a few general points. So ; 1) You went to a clinic recommended by this website (ultra-refined) and ending up getting smallish to medium FUT and a strip scar bad enough it needs your hair grown to grade 4 - 5 to cover it? (Was that situation also the case before of after your FUE?) 2) Then you went to another clinic recommended and got a tiny FUE (850) which after 9 months you conclude has not worked. 3) Doctors/reps are giving you mixed messages about suitability for strip and FUE. Let me say this. Everybody is a candidate for both FUE - no exceptions. The degree to which it reflects a relatively better option than a strip (FUT) is based on the current situation at the clinic you ask. Basically, if they offer strip, 9 times out or 10, you will be a candidate for strip. And yes, having already got a wide strip scar, you may well be regardless of their agenda. If they offer just FUE, you will be a good candidate for FUE. It seems that you didn't choose the best docs. Can't blame you for that whatsover - happens to all of us. Taking FUE from immediately above your strip scar doesn't help you disguise the scar in many cases because you need that hair to shingle down over the scar. I wonder why they took hair from there? Perhaps you had thinned out below the scar? Anyway, don't base you decisions about the FUE based on this tiny operation. I would avoid the doc and be wary of recommended docs and reps in general. It could be quite possible that your strip scar could improve with another strip, however it is not only width of the scar that might be an issue. If the scar is flat you are quite lucky - sometimes scars can buckle and leave you with valleys and indentations that cause shadows which highlight the scar even more after revisions. Sometimes they are better. Now you know all about the BS people talk about when they say expert docs give premium scar results, because you have gone (supposedly) to the best and got a bad scar. It is unpredictable and every strip scar is a dice roll. Keep looking. Were the FUE extractions manual? Did they use a sharp or dull punch? Did techs extract the grafts? You have time too. Only 9 months post FUE. i'm not sure about the shaveless system but I would expect harvested areas to be significantly thinner permanently to some a degree and quite significantly for 12 months (shock loss too). But thinness in donor isn't so bad if you are thinning on top.

You can send me $300 now, and I promise I will recommend a suitable surgeon . Totally independent is an oxymoron, but Joe might give you the good oil anyway.

Tend to settle? Really? How so? When the railway line is drawn across the desert, how does it tend to settle? Sand blows over the line? Sounds like BS only an HT clinic rep could conjure to an agitated patient/client.

David Crosby ..prematurely balding, in 1969, sings, "Almost Cut My Hair" with almost religious and 'heavy man' hippy zeal. Davud Crosby .....2015.. .at 70 something, looking like Benjamin Franklin's grandfather, still sings it...and pretty well too. That is something that means stoic defiance to his fans and a generation, and at his age, younget people probably give him cudos. But there are millions of Crosby-wannabes, talented, that stay in the garage because their freak flag isn't working properly. Respect Voxman, foe not giving up. I guess yoi play through a vox amp, which makes u particularly 1960s and unbald.Cyril Jordan's wig isn't good, I suspect he knows it too.

So you have reconciled it..at least to a degree. The fact that you had an HT is very unrock-n-roll, but the fact you have hair is essential. The fact that you work in the vanity industry is unrock-n-roll but the fact that you work as a muso...is. I imagine you are pretty thick skinned. Those musos you list - almost all of them had hair as they were breaking through or even after they got big. I think many people even change their preference of music and their identification to the whole canon of popular culture based on their hair loss. Buzzing or shaving and a guitar do not go together. Once you decide you aint hip-hop, or drum 'n bass - both genres for which a buzzed head is acceptable you might go for incognito nobody who likes pop, which is fine as long as you don't want anybody to notice you. But if you wanna be Jack White, and especially now, seeming rock music is almost dead, you have to look cool. I adored 60s beat-mod culture when I was younger and I never saw a single icon of that era with hairloss. Hair transplants feed on the desperate hope we all have, that a better road might still lay ahead - you just can't sell yourself the brochure of living your dreams in rock-n-roll with a bald head. Just another reason that addiction to transplants is vicious and real. As Noel Gallagher of Oasis once said, "a skin-head just 'aint F'&&'n rock 'n roll" Unfortunately, i haven't found a musical genre that suits a buzzed head with giant hair transplant scars or a lame grown out look with a balding crown that the babes dig.

Muso, I'd love to hear your perspective about being- or wannabeing - a muso. l dunno if that is ur pic there, but I have to ask.,how do u think a young white guy can renconcile the self-image of rock and roll with balding. The Beatles and Elvis had lots of hair, nothing has changed. Bruce Willis ca n be mach, but never sexy-rock-n-roll cool,. I think the obsession wirh more hts to keep us rock n roll plausible is a dehabiltating curse- but it is what it is.

Yep, it can be a slippery slide, especially when u consider that no surgery is perfect, either because it fell slightly short of its aims or because its success only highlights other defects that could need doing. (Not to mention repairs and the repair industry)

Workouts cause increases in Testosterone. That at least, is an established fact. Make sure you take meds for your hair. Muscle growth requires hormones to act like switches, and buffers on varoius other hormones. When the body starts burning fat instead of muscle etc., hormones are implicated in changes to our body makeup. If whey is doing its job, and in your case snply replacing the meats, rather than adding to them, perhaps u canassume u r safe? But the test rise that accompanies weight training is inevitable and essential for getting more muscle. PS.. Always see balding guys bulking up in compensation- alwsts wonder if yhey know theirworkouts are helping them bald! So Id say finasteride isimportant.

I would run. Doctor knows it is illegal for him to be out, but by telling you, but by telling you like thus he is covering his ass- he is getting you to consent to it, thus letting him off the hook if something goes wrong,. You are paying big bucks, putting yourself on the line. It is not a giid way to start your relationship with this doc. You consent- you are weak and he will continue to treat yoi like this in future.. IMO. I would run, but I am also a pussy mys.

It is called strip, but it doesn't mean you are supposed to strip. Donor hair tends to be more curly if you engage during the first month, but the results do not manifest for about 3 months. You notice that buzzing feeling along the scar line as well as in the recipient due to dilation and pumping blood pressure - similar to all strenuous exercise undertaken in the first few months after strip.

Germany is a mysterious place for me as an old HT hands in English forums. (and out-of-touch possibly) But I know this, in 2015 it is still possible to get a manual-FUE from reputable places in Belgium - at a price of course, or else go for Turkey with mechanical tech extractions for cheap. Germany - well, I suspect you may get mechanical tech extraction done at manual doctor extraction prices so watch out! Check carefully - who will do the extractions. it is fine if the doc tells you, 'The techs do it' or 'we share it' , but make sure you are paying bottom dollar if that is the case. If you want quality, go to Belgium. If you know the score, go anywhere, but make sure you know the score first. PS. Oh..and beware, some German doctors slip into Belgium for business too.

Please be more specific. If you cannot /do not prefer to post photos please tell us by what you mean by straight line. a) Do you mean your hairline is too straight? b) Do you mean the dots appear as lines in parallel rows and therefore unnatural? If a), then welcome to SMP. If b), I suspect the lines will blur due to fading characteristics. SMP operators will tell you, 'Don't worry, it will settle down' which is part truth and part BS. You will fade 30% within a month. The super dark sharp stuff will quickly shed away. What you maybe left with is a blunt hairline and a vague blurry and blueish interior area. SMP operators cannot, as a rule, bother to find the time to perfect a faded hairline. There is just too much time to waste, too much money down the drain and a loss of momentum in their business. They experienced guys are slowly getting better, using customers for practise, but more beginners join their ranks everyday. You are just beginning the journey. Good news is that you can improve it, bad news is that it takes a bit of research and sometimes some travel. But who knows. What is the actual problem?

Some clinics chop the top of the graft off on the cuttig board. All the epidermal layers must be gone. I don't know why they do this, but it results in skin cells that have never seen the light of day suddenly exposed in the most vulnerable ways to UV. I think that is why the docs warn us, but they don't wanna sew the seeds of panic about skin cancer among us - neurotic and suspicious aswe already are. I suspect the grafts themselves, once seated, are pretty robust. Speaking as the expert (not) as always.

STOP IMMEDIATELY!! DO NOT PASS GO!! You have eloquently paraphrased the expression, "Recipe for Disaster" You have lost a huge amount of hair. You are losing more. You are not on meds. You are worried about not being able to shave later in your life you are asking about options to hide the scar later AND A lovely 'Well-Respected' US based surgeon has suggested a big strip (FUT) for you on the basis that 'We know you are going bald" This is a devastatingly shocking and should be a powerful reminder to all considering HT surgery in the US and Canada at this time. This is how desperate these US docs are now getting. They are willing to give this guy a strip scar - with all that he said. Unbelievable. They are really stooping low now. First) Medications, rather medication. Fin or Propecia (same thing). You can buy in generically online very cheaply. If you don't like its effects you can quit. Minixidil may help with your crown a little - it may also give you a bit of a bloated and wrinkly face, but I think guys confuse aging with minox too. But definitely fin. Try fincar and chop it into quarters, take one quarter a day. Second) I suggest you get to a place where technicians can perform FUE extractions like India or Turkey and be very diligent in your research. They can exploit your fear of a strip scar! On teh other hand, they can help you in ways you will not regret later. Third) If you insist on not taking meds or have an adverse reaction to them, I would consider resigning yourself to being bald - perhaps shaving, (have your tried) or a low density FUE plus a bit of SMP. YOUr darker skin might help but they are pirates so beware! Key Fact Unfortunately, technicians cannot extract FUE grafts in the US making FUE unprofitable and unsustainable for most surgeons there. Hence- strip survives, but I have no words for this doctor who wants to slice your head open.

Just as long as you don't kill yourself through depression aggravated by a strip scar!

I'll throw in one warning for you, (take it as you will) Doctors based in the states prefer to do strip and the more hair you need, the more they prefer to do with strip. (I won't go into details other than to say) This is because of economic, health (their health), exposure to risk, and the unfortunate fact that technicians cannot legally extract follicles from your head. When it comes to 'bang for buck' strip wins - but it is the doc, rather than you - that is the real winner. It takes anywhere from 10 to 40 minutes to cut and suture the strip that yields 4000 follicles. It takes several long physically and mentally taxing days to achieve the same with FUE, all for a weaker yield. But that is where it ends. 10 days out of FUE you are on your way. You can live your lifestyle like you could pre-op. And here is the thing, everyday you live herein, you can know that whatever happens to you in the future, you have the option of retreating from the HT with dignity by buzzing your head. if you do a strip, your worries might takes several years (even decades) to surface. Think carefully. Docs in Canada, Australia and the US as well as docs performing strip and FUE everywhere around the world prefer to do strip. you look like you have already lost a fair amount of hair. This makes you a candidate for spin along the lines of "Strip suits big jobs and FUE suits small jobs" If technicians could extract legally in the United States, you might be hearing a very, very different story. That is all I'll say and best of luck to you.

IMO, if you think that you have matured enough to answer this question -"Am I willing to have a bald crown with hair in all the other places?" then you can make a rationale decision. I certainly was never (and still struggle) to make that decision. You lose more hair as you age, with or without meds (but especially and devastatingly so without them) With a strip scar you need to grow the horse shoe so if you lose the crown you're out of luck. But many guys I know in their 40s and 50s look quite dignified with their bald crowns. I suspect it is bluff, and that they hate it, but they look like they are cool on the outside. The strip scar messes with your head psychologically too. You lose perspective sometimes. So it is about maturity and a dose of luck. All the sales talk is mostly spin based on economics and laws - these dictate the way the industry has gone in The States and created an off shore market.

Didn't care for VH. They were just hair-rock fools. Trashy mall music. Later I realized, "Wait a minute, thede guys are gettting laid, paid and generally haaving ball" So I swiftly revised my judgment. Nowaday, DLR comes across as a sparkiling and intelligent guy and I would listen to him talk. I think he has a pretty - to borrow a word from our recent FUE converts- "evolved" opinion about HT surgery and its consequences. Despite, his big brain, he is no match for the screwball effect that a strip transpant gives a thinking man ovee time. His HT looks great- everthinh you want, thick, conservative, natural hairline, grown out to create the illusion. And yet, I bet his crown waa going, and that throws you in a spin. How rock n roll is abalding crown and picture-perfect frontal pic? Unfortunately, the strip scar also scars your,mind set.,You want to figjt it, defy it. You can sabotage yourself. Any normal human would tell him, just let it grow and comb ovee the crown. Who kniws, with FUE he might let it be. But the damn scar switches on your "fight switch". Anyway, bless DLR. You now look older and uglier, but I bet you feel younger and better.

Perhaps he would be, but I'd be willing to bet he wouldn't always be. There would be hopeful moments mixed with vague uncertainty and downright self-disgust. It's a horrible place to be, and many of us have dwelt there for too long. Poor bugger. So I'd love to know, what was the giveaway?? Can you tell us how you knew, the more detail, the better.

When you are doing research, think about color. The color(s) of your skin. Your skin tone can make a huge difference even to most expertly applied SMP. When the providers say something like,... "Don't worry, we can perfectly match our ink tone to your skin tone" ..be suspicious. There are four kinds of SMP. a) Black shade temp (?) b) Color temp (Milena Versions, Nicole) c) Black shade permanent* (HIS, NHI, etc. Matt? etc.) d) Color permanent* (whole bunch) * nothing stays the same forever Operators and proprietors seem very sure of themselves but they are notorious for being vague about specifics such as color, ink ingredients and techniques they use. They know ways to wiggle out of pesky questions like this so you must establish the color situation. Black tones can look bad of pinky-white faces, especially if you have a rounded puffy face. The sharp contours of SMP can stand out, as does the tone mismatch. Yet black can be erased with laser without complications if it is of a certain kind. Some colors do not take kindly to laser. See what I'm saying here - not to get you unnecessarily worried, but there are traps and these guys know how to spin it. They only have to once to get you in, and they do it for a living - bless their souls. Sometimes they tell you they will match the color but they mean they will choose a shade of grey, because they have no colors. On the other hand, color can be very tricky as some colors fade faster than others. Black fades too. Your skin tone could make of break the deal. Your hair color is also important, not only to match the ink, but more importantly, if you have a low color contrast between skin and hair, you might be better off just shaving it (that is not to say you wouldn't be better shaving even if you didn't) Think carefully about color

User, I know it is so cool to tell another person to 'just chill out' or something like, 'Hey, dude, you are being way too sensitive" - it is such a power trip. That said, I've got two things to say; 1) 1800 grafts will not weaken the visual impact of the back of your head. Nor will 3800! Who gives a damn if your comb doesn't get caught? I know you are probably saying, 'tip of iceberg' or some thing like that, but no! Your donor is fine and your donor will be fine even if you repeated the same operation three times IMO 2) in people like me with fine hair, beard hair are like parking a Cadillac in a parking lot full of VW Beetles, but in your case - you seem to be a steel brush - they may not be as obvious. They are usually worth 2-4 normal hairs in density but they can stand out. Plus you may like your beard. In short, I know you want a solution, but don't pull out beard hairs at this stage. The misplaced hairs can be extracted and placed elsewhere. They can also be shaven off or bleached. Pity to zap them with laser no?

The laws themselves are one thing, the relative exposure to risk of prosecution is another. The states are so libel friendly, tech, extraction is too much of a risk, no? But just to clarify - In States (correct me if I'm wrong) For non-medically certified people (i.e. all non-doctors, or docs off the register) 1) Piercing the skin is legal> tattoos, injections, piercings, creating incision sites. 2) Chopping up living tissue is legal> slithering the strip on the bench 3) Putting chunks of living tissue back into the body is legal>implanting 4) Taking detached chunks of living tissue out of the body is legal>plucking out follicles once they have been cut 5) Carving out pieces of tissue whilst still in the body is illegal> cutting the extraction