Robert_

"What is MSM originally used for? The reason for asking is I may be able to get it from my Dr. for free depending what it's original use is for." And that is why I sometimes think I should have retired from the military. (Well, in another 12 years...)

That sucks, but I feel for ya, I was almost exactly there at 20. Get on Finasteride (Proscar or Propecia) and Minoxidil IMMEDIATELY and DO NOT do what I did and stop. KEEP WITH IT> Ive heard many many many good things about Dr. Epstien. Dr. Glenn Charles is also not far away. Good luck , buddy

I've been doing taxes for around 7 years for friends, family and professionally. Im also an accounting and finance major. Of course, tax laws change form year to year, but it has been my experience that foriegn sales tax CAN be deducted. Go to the IRS website for further info. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE make sure that you have a reputable tax preparer or accountant do this or at least double check this for you with current tax software. But I will clarify the U.S. Governements way of thinking on this. When you recieve your paycheck, it has been taxed. When you use these post-tax dollars to spend over seas, you have now paid their sales tax. Hense, the tax break. Like I said, check with the IRS website. (I, naturally wont post it here, but type IRS into google, youll find it. Most times, you can even get a live representative to "chat" real time with you, though this may take some time)

The only advise I can offer is that Dr. Feller is in NY I think. Hes been posting regularly on here as of late and he seems to do good work, but dont take my word on it. Also, before everyone else tells you the same thing, dont choose a doctor on geographic location or price. No HT is better than a bad HT anyday. Also, you should have posted this on the "post your own topics" up in the HT-related forums...not down here in the "HT alternatives" forums. Youll get a better response that way. Hope this helps.

The balding looks doctored to me, but thats just one mans opinion. I never trust those papers.

I would say a #4 is PLENTY to cover the stitches. The length that I had was about 2 weeks out from a #2 guard on the back and from day 1 one could only see a line back there. Youll be fine. Even if the line was detectable with the hat off, a hat will cover it comfortably, as long as its loose enough those first 2 days.

Dr. Cooley sent me this pic taken in the office exactly 1 week post op on 6/25/04. You can see how fair skinned I am (Ive been staying out of the sun to protect the graphs, perhaps to overkill, but oh well) and you can see that there is hardly any (really, if at all) redness. Getting the stitches out friday. Ill have more pics to post then.

I asked about this very same issue in my consult with Dr. Cooley. This was one thing I was very concerned with, as I read somewhere on the internet (whether it was legit or not, i dont know) that a guy got nerve damage so badly that he couldnt take the pain and committed suicide. I was, to say the least, apprehensive. Dr. Cooley assured me that a case like this would be one in a million with even the worst doctors, though numbness can happen on rare occassions. Seeing how the back of my head isnt necessarily an "errogeonous zone" for me anyway, i could deal with some numbness. Im almost 2 weeks out and i have only the SLIGHTEST amount of numbness in the recipient area. this is only noticeable when i lightly comb the hair over it.

Would love to see how that turned out.

sadboy17, i have NO idea if the cost will ever drop. I had been saving for months as a college student (which definitely isnt easy) when I found out about the essay contest, and was EXTREMELY fortunate enough to become the first winner. Something you should look into if money is a factor for you.

I got that too. I disregarded it as spam and deleted it before I gave it a second look.

Sadboy, have you looked into concealers? I wear a "high-and-tight" and keep my hair up top at about 1 inch or so. a combination of Couvre' and Toppik works wonders for this length

dammit, Buster! Its so much easier to dislike you when I dont agree with you!!! haha! just kidding! but seriously, that is true, many companies will refund money just to get you "out of thier face" and to not raise a stink, it just depends on how aggressive and how much of a "pain-in-the-ass" you are to them. Good luck!

Simple answer= it cant hurt. Plus, it may help with new growth on the crown. But you are right, proscar (and propecia) is much more effective on younger guys just starting to lose hair.

Well, when A whole lot of saline is used, it has to dissipate somewhere, and 500 mL is quite alot, so it naturally will run down the forehead and into the face area before being absorbed. This is the cause of that swollen face look a lot of patients have after an HT.

I posted this on another discussion thread: "The best source of Omega-3 fatty acids are in fish and fish oil. For Omega-6 fatty acids, the source is plant and plant oils. Your body CANNOT produce these fats and they are essential. They are used in cell membranes and the and the production of substances that help regulate blood pressure and blood clotting. You HAVE to get them from food. An Omega-6 fat called linoleic acid is found in sunflower oil, walnuts, red meats, and poultry. An Omega-3 fat called linolenic acid is found in fatty cold-water fish like tuna and salmon as well as in flaxseed oil. All the information that I gave above is not just off the top of my head. I got it from a study that basically studies good vs. bad fats. (I hope that I didnt plagorize it too much! heh heh) Just remember as a general rule of thumb: if its good for your heart, liver, and skin, its probably good for your hair (through circulation, etc.) though I have read that diet contributes to less than 3% of all documented hair loss cases. (Dont quote me on that, I am going by memory on that part)" Im a firm believer in a good diet. After all, how can one expect a healthy body after chowing down on crap day after day?

I didnt experience any swelling. I asked about this and Dr. Cooley said that heavy swelling can come from Docs using amounts of saline in the 500mL area. He told me that he used approx. 30 to 50mL in most of his procedures, so it actually dissipates very fast.

I think I see what Eastcoast is talking about, and I think it stems from the graphs at the hailine maybe looking a little too widely spaced. Other than that, it looks fine. Homeboy, should definitely reconsider his haircut though...hahaha, but hey, its his hair, bought and paid for, he can do what he wants. Im not going to critisize Eastcoast for being overly critical. Im pretty sure hes the kind of guy that looks at everyones hairline as I find myself doing. When you do this, you become painfully aware of things that NOONE with hair loss problem will ever know (unless theyre a HT doc or tech, of course). That being said, this looks to me (in my very humble opinion) to be great work and Dr. Feller should be applauded for posting this interesting video.

Look at the picture of a non-balding guy and you see that on the side the hairs dont go "up", but to the side? Its really hard to pinpoint accurate terminology, but if you look,, youll see it. A hairline without the lateral slit technique used properly in this area will apear very unnatural, even some times like a rug.

I really believe that due to the different texture that body hair would have, the crown would be the only viable place to put it. Doesnt it seem a little coarse to put at the hairline?

WOW. Great progress for 8 months! Congrats!

Thanks, Altair. Yeah, I was his only patient that day. Thats another good thing about them: they only do 1 patient per day. I get my stitches out this coming friday (2 weeks post op). I know that he offers the stitches and likes to use them as he says they make for a less noticeable scar. He also offers the disolvable sutures, which brianK got. I dont know if he offers staples or not. I didnt ask. Im fairly certain that he can offer you some good news, as Ive seen some pretty atrocious "before" pictures in his album and the "after" pictures were certainly exceptional. Good luck with the consult!

HBT, i think those pics are decieving with the wet hair concerning shock loss. My hair is pretty fine so it always looked very thin wet. Ill post another pic of it when dry. I know that I have some, but i dont think its been a whole hell of alot. At least not yet.

Too damn funny....

Maybe so. I cant say for sure. Im not too worried about it though, since Im definite that the end will justify the means. (Yeah, upon reading this again, I saw that it DID need to be changed...hahhahaha)