Datsun213

Awesome results, liking the wavy hairline.

2 month post FUE.  

On Dutasteride 0.5mg/day, Rogaine morning and evening, biotin 5000mcg/day, 2 prp sessions.  

The donor side looks patchy and moth eaten.  I hope it's due to shock loss.  

It is still very itchy and I constantly scratch the donor area.  Has anyone experienced this 1 month post op?

Here is the recipient area:

I think what is mostly seen is native hairs.  I have had minimal shedding and I'm not sure if I've experienced shock loss yet.  Hopefully the ugly duckling phase starts sooner rather than later.

Easier said than done.  I worry because if the hairs do come out at a different angle, is there anything (aside from a transplant repair) that could be done to improve it.  I found some information and pictures of hair angulation gone wrong on this forum and on the internet but not much on other alternatives.  

You're right though, I will do more research and save money to fix this bad decision in the future.

30 minutes ago, Melvin-Moderator said:

I agree. However, it’s best to wait and see how the results pan out before seeking repair. Give it at least 10 months.

Got it, thanks.

Sure, here are the pics of both left and ride side a couple days after surgery...

This is the same two sides two weeks later

I'm definitely worried after seeing how straight the hairline is, and also because I can see some 2's already in the hairline with some 3's not too far behind.  I hope it all turns out well since I can't do anything about it now (unless there is a possibility to add some singles to create some irregularities, but I don't know of any surgeons who would be willing to do it so early).

So far I'm not impressed by the doctors artistic style, even though I asked to make it look as natural as possible, it doesn't seem like I'll be getting those results.  Do you guys think it's too early to start looking for repair surgeons?

Hello, 

I am two weeks post op and I have a couple questions regarding my hairline and how it looks so far.  Based on the picture:

1) Is there a certain distance that 2's and 3's should begin behind the hairline of singles?  Because you can see, they appear to start sort of close the hairline, never mind the a couple 2's that can be spotted (red circle) along the hairline.

2) Notice that towards the widows peak, my natural hairs shift to the right, however, the angulation of the implanted hairs are going straight up.  Will this be corrected over time or can the hair be trained (night cap) to give the proper angulation once fully grown?

3) Lastly, can the two's in the hairline be removed by laser or punched to prevent it from looking pluggy earlier in the waiting game, since it's already known it shouldn't be there?

Thanks in advance for any advice

7 minutes ago, JohnAC71 said:

Your concerns seems valid. Personally I cannot see a adequate amount density had been done. And i can’t see the quoted 1500 grafts to be honest. 
This isn’t refined work, and I sorry to agree with you. The hairline should indeed have been designed and executed better. 
Focusing on the positive they have not wasted too much of your donor area. Out of curiosity what made you choose this particular clinic/Dr ? 

Their location, availability, price, and before and after photos were a big part in my decision.  Hopefully he can address some of my concerns when I have my follow up with him in a couple of weeks, instead of just telling me to wait and see.  

Hello everyone, 

Here is my FUE journey with Dr. Pablo Fok and his associate doctors Julian and Acosta who are surgeons at TJ Hair Clinic in Tijuana Mexico.  

About me: NW3, 39 years old, Brown Hair, chose this clinic based on a friends recommendation, affordability, and close to where I live in San Diego.

Meds and post fue care: Dutasteride 0.5mg 1/day, Minoxidil 5% spray 2x/day, Biotin 5000mcg/day, PRP sessions 1x/month

HT: 1500 grafts, Dr. Fok/Acosta did left recipient area.  Dr. Julian right recipient area as well as the donor site.  Used 0.8 punch, manual technique.  Nurse techs separated follicles.

Concerns so far (up to week 2): Hairline is too straight (no micro irregularities), density on left side seems lacking, a couple double hairs in hairline, and angulation on hairs.

Note: I wanted to keep my widows peak which is why the hairline on the right has a slight curve.

I have a follow up appointment in 2 weeks, and wanted to bring up these issues, are my concerns validated by looking at the following pictures?

Thank you for any advice in advance!

Design day 1

After the HT

Day 2

Day 2 donor area

Week 1

Week 2

Week 2 Donor

Overall, the staff was very friendly and answered my questions.  Dr. Pablo Fok spent a lot of time designing the hairline by taking necessary measurements and asking how I wanted my hairline to be.  I told him, to make his artwork as natural as possible.  I can see that by his straight-line technique, I will not have the soft natural look I was going for, based on the information on this forum, but I don't want to discredit his work just yet.

Theres nothing I can do now but wait and see, perhaps start saving for a repair in the near future.  

What if it the 2nd FUE was to touch up to a problem that was evident immediately after the 1st hair transplant?  

For example, an initial hairline procedure that had grafts implanted in a straight-line with no micro iregularities in the front.  Would it be ok to add some singles and create some mircro irregularities so to make the hairline softer and more natural.  By six months, I would assume it would be evident to tell if the hairs in the very front of the hairline are singles vs twos, and threes too, as well as their direction/angles.  

I'm not talking about doing a 2nd fue to add density at 6 months, or repairing any other areas such as the crown, but adding some singles to a hairline to make it look more natural.

Are you on any medications to help combat this, such as Fin or Dut? I wonder if that would've helped since day 1 post HT.

Looks very nice.  You're design and amount of grafts look very similar to mine and we got the surgery around the same time.  I like how your surgeon made the hairline a little more jagged than mine.  Mine seems to too straight to be honest and I'm starting to worry about my future results.  Best of luck to the both of us!

On 12/1/2020 at 4:02 PM, Melvin-Moderator said:

 

Great video on the different concealers Melvin.  

I'm trying to be proactive and think 5 months down the road, and my FUE I know will still be in the growing phase.  For someone who is 5 months in from FUE (hair probably still really short) and there is still not enough density in the hairline area.  Would you recommend the Toppik layers or a spray to cover the FUE transplant line?  Did you have to use any of these products while you were waiting for the final results?  And which one did you like best?

On 2/20/2021 at 5:33 PM, pkipling said:

Hey @Datsun213 What is the above photo of exactly? Is that post-op and if so, how many months out? I ask because I don't see visible evidence of a hair transplant procedure, no harsh red line, no clear recession, and nothing visually alarming. The photo is a little pixelated and shadowed, so perhaps that's why - but based on the photo, I'm unclear on what your situation is. 

The picture was my receding hairline with long hair before my FUE transplant (which I moved to a new topic "My FUE Journey at TJ Hair Clinic".  I was saying that I hope within 5-8 months, I can get close to similar height and hair curvature again just without the exaggerated receding hairline.  I sure hope I don't have any visible transplant procedure or harsh red line at that time, which is why I even followed the same angle on my right side and tried to leave my widows peak.  I'm hoping it looks natural.  

28 minutes ago, Melvin-Moderator said:

Nothing can really speed up hair growth for sure. Minoxidil can help, MSM, maybe even PRP, but ultimately you just have to give it 12 months.

Thanks for the advice!  

Do you know if MSM is proven to be more effective than Biotin supplements?  

I think I have my game plan, which is to use Minoxidil, MSM (or Biotin), finasteride along with Dutasteride (topical) and maybe a PRP injection in 2 months.  

Hopefully this plan helps prevent some shock loss and increase growth rate.  I'll post some picks to see if this combination was effective or not in the future.

On 2/14/2021 at 11:35 AM, EvoXOhio said:

Does this apply to topical DUT as well? Or just oral? 

I have this same question as well.  I read that from a member on here that the topical DUT gave him less side effects.

I'm also interested in Dutasteride since Finasteride seems like it would take a while to begin showing results in prevention of hair loss (in particular shock loss after FUE).  what would you say is a good dose to begin with (topical) for someone who is new to Dutasteride and just had an FUE?

56 minutes ago, DrTBarghouthi said:

May I ask how many grafts did you have planned? 

About 1500 grafts planned

3 hours ago, Westview said:

PRP can be an excellent treatment if your hairloss is at its beginning  stages and not very noticable yet.

Keep in mind you have return for additional treatments every 4 months or so, otherwise hair starts falling out again

Would it help with growth if a person were to get another PRP treatment after about a month from their FUE HT that included PRP?

Wow awesome results at 3 months.  I hope my hairline looks anywhere close to that.  I just had my FUE to fill in my receding hairline and I'm worried my hair follicles won't grow that quickly.  How long after your transplant did you wait to start Finasteride?  My doctor told me they did PRP injections before implanting the grafts, do you think it would it help to go for another PRP session in a month or so to speed up the growth? 

2 hours ago, Isamu said:

Hi

at 3.5months post op I’m realizing that I shed about 10 hairs from the recipient area daily 
some are very tiny, some are about 1inch long. 

I am aware that transplanted hair are supposed to shed during the first two months and that’s what happened for me, I lost maybe 90% of them but what I’m seeing now is newly growing hair. 

I’ve never read anything like that before so Im wondering if it happened to anyone else here .  
clinic isn’t really helpful, they  said it can happen and I shouldn’t worry but I’m not sure it’s genuine. 
thanks 
 

 

From my understanding is that you can still experience shock loss from weaker follicles up until 5 months, but I could be wrong.  Have you tried medications such as Minoxidil or Finasteride to help strengthen your hair and prevent hair loss?  I was even considering PRP and low level laser therapy to help combat this second wave of shedding, but I haven't seen enough convincing results from any members yet.

1 hour ago, Rachmunas said:

I’ve been using Fin 1mg for 4 months now. I’m looking to add Kirkland Minoxidil 5% to my routine. Is foam or liquid more convenient for a receding hairline? I might be slightly losing hair bridging in to the middle from the left temple as well. I was thinking it might be best to use the liquid on all areas and foam at the hairline so it doesn’t drip over my face? I keep my hair about a 3-4 on the side and a little longer on top. Thank you!

I used both foam and liquid in the past with finasteride 1mg too, however, I only used it on my receding hairline.  I preferred the foam because the liquid tended to messy and harder to apply in my opinion.  The foam would leave white streaks though so make sure to clean off any excess.  My best results came after using it day and night for about 6 months, but only a couple of fuzzy hairs.  I believe you have to keep at it for about a year to see any kind of result.  Later, I found out that it doesn't too well receding hairlines and that it's better for the crown area.  Best of luck

I first want to make it clear that I know it's all about patience and that at 5-6 months is when 30 - 50% growth will occur and it takes about a year to see the full length and thickness.

Having said that, my hair length, styled, is about 1.5 inches.  Given a 5 month period I want to do everything I can in the correct sequence to improve my chances of reaching such length.  If I don't reach it, no big deal, perhaps 1 inch is fine, I just want to do my best and learn from the experts if there is anything I could do to reach that goal.

Hopefully my native hair will continue to grow at its regular rate unless it experiences shock loss in which case I would be sh&t out of luck, but to help prevent this, this is what I have learned from this forum and other sources.

Please correct me if I'm wrong or provide any advice/info so that I can incorporate into my plan for the next 5 months.

Step 1: After initial shock loss (2-4) weeks, begin taking finasteride to help maintain the native and newly implanted hairs in place

Step 2: After a month, begin using Minoxidil 5% foam morning and night in the recipient area to help increase the amount of hair

Step 3: Take biotin supplements daily to increase the rate of follicle growth.

Step 4: After a month, begin to massage the recipient area gently to distribute blood around entire site 3 times per week.

Step 5: Do PRP session after month 3 to help increase the chances of hair growth (I know there's been mixed opinion about this)

Is there anything I may have missed from the above steps that will help increase the rate of growth?

Thank you for your advice and recommendations in advance.

Great information on here.  

I knew from the start that I wasn't going to have the length of hair I have here in 5 months.

However, I just wanted to reduce the receding hairline so I went for it because if anything I was hoping to at least cover/blend in the shorter hair from the new transplant once my native hairs begin to grow at their normal pace (my hair tends to grow fast).  

When I asked my surgeon what I could do to speed things up, he mentioned finasteride and Rogaine.  Hopefully that combination will help.  I will also look into PRP injections after month three if nothing seems to help.

Nice video, I didn't know that the ingrown hairs can resolve on their own, I thought it was ok to pop the pimple so the hair can come out.  Thanks for the video.

I know it's hard to tell (at least for me) from the picture below if all looks normal but... 

Do you guys think that the right side of my forehead seems more dense than the left?  I realize that's where my receding hairline is farther hence more follicles are needed, however, my left side seems like they're spaced out farther apart, meaning I'll have a less dense result. 

Maybe it's because of all that blood crust on top of the left side.  

I did have two different surgeons and I believe the surgeon who worked on my right side did a better job, spacing, no bleeding and it didn't hurt at all.

Which brings me to my next question.  Does more red clotting mean that the surgeon did a poorer job?

Here is my left side

here is the right side