Vasilius

I've contacted Dr. Feller and gave him my personal info in good faith. The stress of all this is rapidly deteriorating my interest in this project though. My only stake in being here is to have better hair and support fellow members trying to do the same. The LLLT controversy is a big pile of crap I didn't mean to step into, and I'm trying to scrape it off my shoe. If anyone thinks they'd be interested in this experiment, let me know. Otherwise I'll just put my pics on a hair loss blog like everyone else and you can draw your own conclusions if you like. *Sigh* -AF1

Bill, Dr. F, et al, I am not in any way connected to the LLLT industry or any part of the hair replacement industry, nor is any of my family or friends. Furthermore, endorsing ANY product or service under the username, "AirForceOne" is patently illegal, since it implies endorsement of a commercial entity by the US Air Force. I agree that I need to include all of the facts for this to be relevant, including any advice by doctors and who those doctors are. They shouldn't be afraid of thoughtful scrutiny of their medical advice. Dr Feller is very zealous and aggressive, so of course I am apprehensive of putting anyone else on trial without at least letting them know. I'll talk to my doctor on Monday and if he isn't confident enough in what he says to put his name on the line, I will be more suspicious of his advice than anyone. If we can cool down and build a respectful rapport, I'll be less defensive. I think we're getting there. I've deleted my posts addressing Dr. Feller personally in an act of goodwill. I will reply to Dr Feller's message soon (my wife is nagging me about how much time I'm spending on this, give me a little time, it is Thanksgiving after all...) -AF1

This thread has gotten side-tracked, but I'll try to get back to the subject for anyone interested. I'm a hair restoration patient (just a patient, mind you) who is going to try a combination of medical and other non-surgical treatments to enhance the health and growth of my hair and scalp. I plan to share before/after pics with the forum for your feedback and discussion and contribute my opinions on the results as well. I plan on posting photos of my existing miniaturizing hair (mid-scalp) every 4 months to see if this treatment protocol has any effect on my hair. The treatments I'll use are in the first post on the thread, the only modification I've decided on for now is to delay use of LLLT for one year. After documenting/concluding these findings, I'll use that regimen as a control and introduce the laser and post pics every 4 months. In short, I'm trying to find if these treatments, used together for synergistic effect, have any health or cosmetic effect (positive or negative) on my hair/scalp. I know many of you out there may believe some or all of the treatments are not valid, and I know only fin/minox have been properly evaluated. Whatever your beliefs are, PLEASE do not throw me under the bus just for giving it a try. This is MY idea, I'm doing this to find something that works for ME, and I'm doing it under my doctor's wary supervision. If it makes anyone feel better, my wife happens to be a CRNA (nurse anesthetist) and the most skeptical person I've ever met. She wouldn't let me take generic finasteride for chrissakes. Trust me, she will take a very agnostic look at my results and keep me honest in spite of my optimism. I welcome everyone's feedback (please keep it polite) on my before/after pics once I post them. If you don't think this has any merit or interest, please ignore this thread. I AM NOT A SALESMAN or an advocate for anything. Just a guy who wants to have better hair and hopefully, through open sharing of ideas and discussion amongst us all, help others here do the same. HAPPY TURKEY DAY TO ALL =) -AF1

Whoa, lots of venom on this thread. Bill and I share a similar point of view on this issue. There is more to healthy hair growth than blocking DHT. Minoxodil's efficacy is believed to be related to increased blood/micronutrient supply to hair follicles, one of the suppositions behind LLLT. The therapy is not yet proven, but not discounted either IMHO. As to the argument over commerce, if nothing sold for financial gain is to be trusted, we'd all be living like cavemen. The computer I'm using was sold for profit, yet it obviously works. 'Nuff said. Cheers- AF1

Thanks Dr. Lindsey :-) I appreciate your interest in my humble experiment, and please keep in mind that I'm only trying to explore approaches to healthy skin and hair, and that I'm sharing this in a spirit of, "this protocol worked for me in this specific way, it may work for you if you duplicate it." I wish I could contribute more than that, but I'm not qualified. To make for as valid a comparison as possible, I will take before/after photos of ungrafted areas of my scalp where I am experiencing some miniaturization of hair follicles (mid-scalp). I'm thinking a 4-month interval is sufficient to document my findings and recalibrate my regimen accordingly. I would be very interested in any advice you could give though. As for LLLT, I'm currently undergoing weekly therapy to enhance post-op healing from a 2,456 graft session I had a week ago, but my last LLLT session is on Dec 1 and I will discontinue after that. I don't want to exclude any of the other components I mentioned in my previous post, because the synergistic/compounding effect these components may have toward hair growth is part of my hypothesis, and I don't think that an all-in-one non-surgical solution exists or is necessary. I'll take your suggestion and hold off on LLLT until I feel I have concluded my findings on the rest of the protocol without it. I know LLLT is a controversial treatment so it would be more interesting to try it while using the rest of the protocol as a control element. Thanks again doctor, I'll be posting the initial pics soon :-) Cheers, AF1

IAGSM, The vast majority of patients never lose the hair that was transplanted. Google "donor dominance" and you'll find several sites that thoroughly explain why transplanted hair follicles remain while the native hair follicles around them do not. Keep in mind though, that hair transplanted into an area with a fair amount of native (non-transplanted) hair will appear thin once the native hair sheds or miniaturizes as baldness progresses, so a subsequent transplant may be needed to improve density or cover new areas of baldness. Rogaine/Propecia can slow this process down, especially in the back (vertex) of the head. Good luck~ AF1

Dude, we all know what you're going through. Hang in there. Good news: like Bill said, you might get good results from meds, but they take 6 mos - 1 yr to show effect and it's a life-long commitment. Also good news: like Swagger said, shaving your head might even make you look better. Yep, I said it. Vin Diesel, Andre Agassi, even many young dudes with no hair loss wear a shaved head with style and no loss of sex appeal today. A shaved head is masculine, and it's a choice - balding isn't. I would try the meds for a year AND in the meantime try a shave. Let your hair grow back after a year and see if it made a difference, and if you're not happy with a shaved head, look into transplants - CAREFULLY, with the advice of this forum (PLEASE, seriously). I was in my late teens when I started losing my hair. It still affects me at age 34. No medicine, surgery or treatment in the world works better for beating the hair loss blues than taking good care of yourself physically, mentally and spiritually, achieving success in life, pursuing the things that excite you, and surrounding yourself with awesome people. My two cents worth. Best wishes- AF1

I've heard many on this forum and others like it bash this or that hair loss treatment. While I appreciate and share skepticism of anything and everything, I try to strike a balance between skepticism and discovery in everything I try. There are several unproven treatments that I'm trying or will try soon, among them: MSM Saw Palmetto LLLT (laser therapy) copper peptides Nizoral In addition, I'll be using the 2 FDA-approved drugs that offer varying degrees of efficacy in preventing further loss/enhancing existing hair (finasteride & minoxodil). I know it's not a proper experiment, but I'm not doing this for true research. All of the above treatments have been shown to have a positive effect on the scalp or hair follicles (increased blood supply, faster cell repair, protection from DHT, healthier skin cells, etc) that MAY contribute to healthier hair. Is "hair count" the only indicator of a good-looking head of hair? Not in my book. I believe quality (shaft thickness, pigmentation, texture, fullness, and healthy scalp underneath) is as important as the quantity and density of hair. Who wants hair that looks like brittle, raggedy pubes on their head anyway? There are a lot of men with receded hairlines but their hair still looks GREAT because it's healthy, shiny, and full. So what if such-and-such isn't FDA-approved to increase the individual number of peach-fuzz hairs barely clinging to my scalp? If some have tried it and it made their hair look better in their opinion, and the cost won't hurt my budget, and I can accept the risk of side effects - why the hell not try it myself? Now, I'm not telling everyone who reads this to blow $500 on a laser comb instead of buying groceries. If $10 a month for generic minoxodil at Costco is going to keep food out of your kids' mouths or is just ridiculous in principle for you, then do without. It's not gonna "change your life" either way. But if you can even consider $10,000+ for a transplant, you must be doing pretty well in life and a $500 laser comb isn't stupid if YOU are willing to give it a go. That's not for me to tell you though - and not for you to tell me. I'm just sharing my experiment with you, fellow travelers...I'll keep you posted. Peace and chicken grease~ ~AF1

I've heard many on this forum and others like it bash this or that hair loss treatment. While I appreciate and share skepticism of anything and everything, I try to strike a balance between skepticism and discovery in everything I try. There are several unproven treatments that I'm trying or will try soon, among them: MSM Saw Palmetto LLLT (laser therapy) copper peptides Nizoral In addition, I'll be using the 2 FDA-approved drugs that offer varying degrees of efficacy in preventing further loss/enhancing existing hair (finasteride & minoxodil). I know it's not a proper experiment, but I'm not doing this for true research. All of the above treatments have been shown to have a positive effect on the scalp or hair follicles (increased blood supply, faster cell repair, protection from DHT, healthier skin cells, etc) that MAY contribute to healthier hair. Is "hair count" the only indicator of a good-looking head of hair? Not in my book. I believe quality (shaft thickness, pigmentation, texture, fullness, and healthy scalp underneath) is as important as the quantity and density of hair. Who wants hair that looks like brittle, raggedy pubes on their head anyway? There are a lot of men with receded hairlines but their hair still looks GREAT because it's healthy, shiny, and full. So what if such-and-such isn't FDA-approved to increase the individual number of peach-fuzz hairs barely clinging to my scalp? If some have tried it and it made their hair look better in their opinion, and the cost won't hurt my budget, and I can accept the risk of side effects - why the hell not try it myself? Now, I'm not telling everyone who reads this to blow $500 on a laser comb instead of buying groceries. If $10 a month for generic minoxodil at Costco is going to keep food out of your kids' mouths or is just ridiculous in principle for you, then do without. It's not gonna "change your life" either way. But if you can even consider $10,000+ for a transplant, you must be doing pretty well in life and a $500 laser comb isn't stupid if YOU are willing to give it a go. That's not for me to tell you though - and not for you to tell me. I'm just sharing my experiment with you, fellow travelers...I'll keep you posted. Peace and chicken grease~ ~AF1

John, I would feel the way you do if I were in your shoes, it makes me mad as hell that a hack doctor took advantage of you, and undoubtedly many others. I hope you find justice and some peace from this soon. As for those who blame you for choosing the wrong doc, I'll say this: it could have happened to many of us. A lot of people who have lost their hair (and have the psychological damage that goes with hair loss) are vulnerable to unethical transplant surgeons. Think about it: if you care enough about restoring SOME of your hair (impossible to restore all of it with current technology) to undergo expensive SURGERY, take medicines for the rest of your life, apply concealers daily, things that most of us in this forum do, then there is a deep psychological need that drives us to do these things. The industry eases our natural skepticism of transplant surgeons with their marketing. Most surgeons advertise transplant surgery as noninvasive, low-risk, "go back to work the next day like nothing happened" surgery. This is almost true - if you have a GREAT surgeon. It takes an elite surgeon with patient empathy and artistic ability to make a great transplant surgeon. These are few and far between, as the rest of the forum will tell you. Some of these surgeons' patients (i.e., the members of this forum) did their homework; many were lucky they picked a good doc. You were unlucky, but not truly to blame for your situation. Doctors, as a profession, are in a position of public trust, no less than police officers or the military. Docs that abuse that trust for money are despicable and should lose their licenses. I'm with some of the others in this forum who have recommended repair work by a qualified, reputable surgeon. I don't blame you for being gun-shy after your last experience, but there are a couple of good docs out there who could vastly improve your appearance. I know money is an issue though and having been poor most of my life I empathize. You seem to be an intelligent dude though, and you very well may be in a better position to afford it in the future. I wish you well brother. -AF1