EvoXOhio

1 minute ago, Melvin-Moderator said:

I'm not exactly sure, maybe @EvoXOhio could chime in, he just got his done.

My clinic advised me to avoid swearing, water (including hair washing), and touching for 4 full days. On the fifth day you can wash it and sweat normally. They advised waiting 10 days for excessive sweating. So I think that means avoid working out for 10 days. 
 

after my first session, it was really dark and the dots were really announced. On my part and near my hairline it had me concerned. But after washing it on day 5, the dots and the color were substantially reduced, making it much more natural looking. By day 8 when I got my second session, I couldn’t even notice dots near my hairline because they had blended in naturally. 
 

they told me it takes about two months for 100% full healing/fading, and in that time you need to be religious about applying sunscreen when you’re out side, to prevent unnecessary fading. Even beyond two months you still want to apply sunscreen to avoid premature fading. But that being said, I think about a week after your SMP you’ll have a pretty good idea of final results, with the true final results being about two months later. It’s kind of like a tattoo - after a week all the scabbing/flaming is done and you see your true tattoo as it’s going to look, but the ink will still Settle and the skin will continue to heal for about two months. 
 

me personally I am avoiding rogaine until two weeks post SMP. Vaseline I can’t speak for because I don’t use it, but I was advised I could use lotion around day 5 if it was dry and itchy. 
 

do you have any before and after pics? Would love to see the results. I shared my before pics and after my first session in my thread, and I’ll share final results from second session here  in a few days. 

Holy moly what a mop of hair! Results are fantastic. 

Everyone is different. I was a super early grower and my hairline was completely in by 5 months. But I’ve seen others whose HT almost looked like it was a failure until around 9 months on, at which point growth really started. @Melvin-Moderatorhas a great video about slow growers and how long results can take. 
 

it would help if you post pictures before your HT, immediately post op, as well as today. That way we can compare them all. 

2 hours ago, Aftermath said:

Yep, every time, adds better body to the hair for styling, can look a bit limp if you don’t 

What’s crazy for me is I see so many guys say this. But I’ve tried blow drying my hair so many times and it always ends up leaving my hair so much more lifeless and flat compared to towel drying. I don’t know if I’m doing it wrong or it’s just something about my hair type (I have very coarse, wiry, wavy hair.)

21 minutes ago, Aftermath said:

No worries, I did talk about it in my thread. I’ve only ever used the same brand for the last 5 years of so which is Aveda. Pics of the products in my thread. 
 

basically I get out the shower, comb my hair to the parting then blow dry roughly, I then use rogain foam, rub that in and let it dry, then dampen my hair with water, comb it through, add Aveda gel, comb that through, then blow dry to the style, then add the grooming clay with slight damp hands then use the hair spray to hold 

Awesome thanks so much for reposting this!

59 minutes ago, Aftermath said:

They’re better than “good enough” but one thing I’d say if that’s your main concern is that the ugly duckling stage its nowhere near as bad the second time due to the strong transplanted hairs already there. Just make sure you go to a skilled surgeon since going between existing grafts is far harder and more technique sensitive than putting hair where there was none 

Makes sense. If I get a second HT it will likely be in 5-10 years if I suffer any additional hair loss by then. Yeah even before seeing your results I had already decided I’d go to H&W if I ever got another HT. You’re just seals the deal on that. 
 

Also @Aftermath can you tell us your hair styling routine and products? I go back and forth between several products and they all seem to add density, but my hair doesn’t look as smooth and manageable as yours does. I’d be curious to know exactly what you do post hair wash (e.g. air dry versus towel dry versus blow dry, then what products you use and how do you apply them.)

Just now, Aftermath said:

Just to put it in perspective fo you mate, this was me after a 2000 graft procedure in the U.K. before finding H&W, now look how great yours looks compared to that mess 😂

 

Yeah I’ve gone through your whole thread a few times. Yours was definitely a journey. I couldn’t be happier with what I got from one HT, and I know a second would probably alleviate any issues I have but the 6 months of healing/ugly duckling is the worst. I have the “good enough” results I guess. 

1 hour ago, Aftermath said:

Checked out your thread your SMP looks great with the HT 👌

Thanks! Overall I’m happy with it but then whenever I see your hair I feel like George Constanza. 

Man I knew this would be Aftermath before I opened the link lol. I’m super thrilled with my HT but then I see his results and want to shave my hair off. 😂

7 minutes ago, Melvin-Moderator said:

He was being facetious. 

Ok I was hoping that was the case. 

On 4/28/2021 at 8:07 PM, rj. said:

and just to keep things on topic, 80% is the customary SMP tip. 

Surely you’re joking? My first SMP session cost $1250 and I was out of there in an hour. $1250 an hour of work for someone to put dots on your head is a ton of money. Even for artists who take longer they’d still be making $300-$400 an hour or more. Nobody in there right mind would tip 80% on top of that. 

4 minutes ago, Curious25 said:

Looks amazing, well done ! 
 

A few questions if you don’t mind . . 
 

1) How long does it last, and are you required to have top ups? 
 

2) Are there any angles/lights that make it look noticeable ? 
 

3) If you were to shave down, would it look out of place, or is it executed just as shaven SMP is (small dots mimicking hair stubble) ? 
 

4) Does it hurt ? 
 

Thankyou very much, 

1. Depending on the person and how well you take care of it (like spray on sunblock to protect it), it will lighten somewhat over time and a touch up will be required every 5-10 years. A touch up is around $700 at my place. 
2. If I really look up close on my part in harsh lights I can see some dots. But keep in mind I’ve only had one treatment. The first treatment is more of a base, then the second treatment is a different size dot with different ink color and is used to layer and add density and naturalness. So I think after my second session it will be near perfect. Also keep in mind that it won’t be common for someone to be expecting your part up close in harsh lighting. 
3. It is small dots like normal SMP, but I suspect if I shaved it down they’d have to blend it to the rest of my hair with another session. I only got the scalp done. Also with long hair like mine it would be near impossible to blend it into existing stubble. 
4. I am heavily tattooed (2 full sleeves, chest, and full back piece) so I may not be the best judge. But it hurt quite a bit less than a normal tattoo. This is because they don’t go as deep. Also, my scalp still has reduced sensitivity from my HT, so on my crown I hardly felt anything. But in my mid scalp where I didn’t have an HT I felt it a bit more. 

6 minutes ago, Melvin-Moderator said:

Thanks for sharing this separately, hopefully you can share more pictures after the second session.

Absolutely. After the second treatment is done and healed, I’ll share a pic from the same angle but also with a middle part, damp hair, etc. Probably a video too of running my fingers through my hair. But just keep in mind I won’t have any before pictures/videos other than this for a frame of reference for the other pics and video. 

Just now, Melvin-Moderator said:

nice, I’ve considered doing this, but was discouraged when @hairthere said it wasn’t that viable for most guys. Can you share a picture of your hair parted down the middle. It might highlight the appearance of fullness better, or maybe with damp/wet hair.

I’ll do that once I have the second treatment done and it’s all healed, because that will be full density for me. Right now the dots are still sparse. 
 

but that being said I don’t have any before pictures of that so you won’t have a frame of reference. 

2 minutes ago, Gatsby said:

Did Michal or Scott do the work?

Mike did mine. I liked both of their work but ultimately I chose Mile because he has more client photos of density treatments whereas Scott only had a couple. Also Mike has been doing it way longer. 

3 minutes ago, hairman22 said:

good idea.

How long did it take to complete the 1st session?

Only 1 hour, which surprised me. 

Also worth noting is they did my entire scalp not just the crown. So even right behind my hairline and my my scalp where I have a fair amount of hair, but can see a bit of scalp in harsh lighting, I can no longer see any scalp there whatsoever. I didn’t post pics of that because it was hard to capture. 

Just now, Melvin-Moderator said:

Looks really good, where’d you go? How much did it cost? 

Hairline Ink in Chicago. It’s $2500 total for two sessions. If you need a third it’s $700 and that also includes a free touch up after if needed within the first year. 
 

The price was on par or a bit cheaper with all the other places I talked to. I went with this place because their results were by far the best. What surprised me was how fast it went. I thought they originally told me it would be about 3-4 hours but I was only there an hour. I am in the wrong line of work if it’s possible to make $1250 an hour putting dots on someone’s head, lol. And this guy is one of the best in the country, booked out for 1-2 months constantly, has awards, etc. 

1 minute ago, Gatsby said:

The first layer of SMP is just a light base layer. After your third and final session the density illusion will be brilliant! 

This particular place told me that for density treatments, most often it only requires two treatments. Considering it’s a 5 hour drive and an over night stay for each treatment, I hope that ends up being the case. But I’ll definitely get the third treatment if I need it. 

Here are my before and pics after one SMP session. Both are taken in the harshest light in my house. The first was before, and the second was from today which is 4 days after the SMPwas done, when all the extra ink and scabs have fallen out and everything is healed. Just from one treatment alone the change is dramatic. I think after the second session it will be near perfect. 

4 minutes ago, hairman22 said:

looks great.

some transformation you have made last few months

Thanks! Really hoping after my second SMP next week that I’m finally done worry about hair loss. 

Here are my before and pics after one SMP session. Both are taken in the harshest light in my house. The first was before, and the second was from today which is 4 days after the SMP was done, when all the extra ink and scabs have fallen out and everything is healed. Just from one treatment alone the change is dramatic. I think after the second session it will be near perfect. 

On 4/25/2021 at 2:27 PM, lexzeus said:

I just had the crown done with SMP , I have one more session to do. It has made a notable difference already. I would recommend it short them maybe? 

At some stage, I will get the crown filled in. I think its recommended that you wait until you're at least 35 years of age to do a transplant on the crown

Where did you go? I just had my entire scalp done. I’m posting pics after my second session and it all being healed. 

I hate to say it but there’s nowhere near that many grafts. Since each graft has a unique scab, it’s fairly easy to count. For example look at the crown, do you see anywhere close to 500 scabs? I concur with the person who said it looks more like 600 grafts. 

1 hour ago, Melvin-Moderator said:

I’m interested in seeing your smp experience. From what I gathered from

@hairthere it’s not as viable with long hair. But hopefully we’ll get a real life review to look at.

I think it all depends on how much hair the person still has. If you have a giant bald spot, SMP for density is going to look like crap. If your hair is pretty full (like mine) with some pieces of scalp sticking out, it’s going to fill in nicely. I’ve attached a couple examples of density SMP from the guy who will be doing mine. Their hair isn’t long but it’s long enough to see that it looks good.