zenmu

10 minutes ago, HappyMan2021 said:

I really doubt meds alone are going to halt your hairloss. Guys who significantly start losing hair in their teenage years have a very very strong genetic predisposition to balding.

Get on the meds and wait until your late 20s for your 1st HT. In the meantime, learn to cope or better yet just try not to let baldness affect you (I know it is hard)

The silver lining to this is 7-10 years is a long time from now and you will have a different personality and life outlook than you do now

I am NOT saying you will feel definitely feel this way, but there is a chance you will get to your late 20s and not give a f*ck about baldness and you will save yourself a ton of time, money, and agony by not going down this road. 

I think that by living the next 5 years or so as a bald or receding dude, you may develop the life skills to not need a HT in order to feel happy. 

I do want to clarify that for all I know your late 20s will get here and your feelings may be unchanged or even worse 🤣. But what I am getting at is that hair transplants are always the last resort. Learning how to be happy and free and living naturally with MPB 

 

i truly wish i had the confidence to do that. unfortunately i feel very strongly towards keeping my hair, i don’t believe that will change. i plan on getting as much transplants as needed, i currently have enough saved away to be operated on by a reputable surgeon. my end game is transplants + smp tattoo with meds to maintain. i just hope it all works out. if nothing else, i’d rather have thin hair all over with smp tattoo and buzz my head to give the illusion of a full head of hair. 

2 hours ago, thetdog666 said:

Your stack is about as good as it gets. I take myself 5mg Oral min and 0.5mg avodart daily. 

Changing fin for avodart would be your next option if you feel like your still losing ground

thanks i appreciate this. i have seen so much horror stories around dutasteride sheds that was never regained, that i’m worried that at this point even if it doesn’t actually negatively impact my hair, ill have nocebo and it will. what’s your experience?

3 hours ago, A_4_Archan said:

Your concern about hair recession at a young age is evident in your pictures. While it's commendable that you're proactive about preserving your hair, considering a hair transplant is premature due to your age. It's advisable to consult an experienced doctor to develop a safe and tailored medication regimen rather than self-prescribing. Taking action is great, but it's crucial to involve a professional in your hair care journey.

i plan on getting a hair transplant around 23/24 or as soon as the reputable surgeon i have picked, approves so. i am prescribed by a doctor and i monitor my own vitals as well, i’m taking 2.5mg twice a day to minimize side effects. (have been on 2.5mg last six months with no issues, recently upped the dose) ive been on finasteride the past year and tolerate it well. 

i’m currently on 5mg (2.5mg twice a day) of oral minoxidil and 1mg oral finasteride.

i’ve attached photos of my hair. i’m really scared of losing all of my hair and i plan on getting a transplant (or as much as needed) but i also want to be on the best hair loss stack possible for a young person with aggressive loss, i also want to prevent my donor and existing hair from thinning as much as possible before my transplant(s).

dermaroller? vitamins? looking into anything that will help preserve my hair. 

7 minutes ago, A_4_Archan said:

Refrain from using an excessive amount of minoxidil..its a potent drug brother. It's crucial to consult with a hair transplant surgeon to develop a proper medication regimen, taking into account potential side effects. Overdosing offers no additional benefits and may result in adverse effects. Imho you should halt usage until you've consulted with a good doctor.

I hope this helps.

i’ve already stopped all topicals so i’m now on just 2.5mg. considering going to 2.5mg two times a day though. i don’t plan on getting back on the topicals nor increasing beyond 5mg. and your advice is sound regarding a doctor, unfortunately it’s hard for me to go into a physical location to do check with a doctor. i am monitoring my own vitals though, and it is prescribed through an online pharmacy with a doctor.

16 minutes ago, Shadman said:

Did you consult any surgeons before starting this protocol ? I've never heard anyone using this much of minoxidil

no i never did, ig i never really thought of it i just started with the topical then kinda went crazy from there. simply 5mg a day would be better right?

as far as minoxidil is concerned, i’m taking:
- 2.5mg oral minoxidil once a day
- 15% topical minoxidil 2x a day on hairline
- 5% topical minoxidil 2x a day on ENTIRE scalp (including back of head)

to put this into perspective, i’m using 6 months of topical kirkland 5% foam in a little over a month. 

i want to switch simply to 5mg and forget about the topicals. but i’m scared of side effects, yet i’m already using so much topical minoxidil and some of it goes systemic so wouldnt i be okay? (i have been on topicals routine for a year and 2.5 oral minoxidil for 6 months)

wondering if this would be a good idea.

2 hours ago, jjalay said:

If you want to maximize your donor and you dont mind having a linear scar on the back of your head then yes fut is the way to go with it. The healing phase for the first to weeks after surgery is i would say the same regardless fut or fue. The most crucial part is making the right decision on the doctor who is gonna operate on you too.

At this age and with this type of hair it is waaaaay toooooo early even thinking about having a hairtransplant. The best thing that you can do right now is staying on medication and try topreserve your hair for as long as you can. After the age of 25 would be the earliest to think about hairtransplant but the most important thing is to get a hairtransplant at the point where you have stabilised your hairloss or developed the final pattern of your hairloss.

If at the age of 25 your hair still look like this then its also too early to get a ahirtransplant. What i am trying to say is that you have to postpone it and preserve your hair for as long as you can with medication.

i understand that but at this point, i’m willing to take my chances. my hair line has roughly been like this since 14 and i honestly just want to be able to have a nice hairline and be able to actually have a hairstyle i want without worrying about it exposing my hairline. so at that age i plan on getting a transplant and if in the years to come it turns out bad, i’ll do as much transplants as i can to save it, and then ultimately opt for smp if it doesn’t work. i appreciate your comment, and that makes me feel better about getting fut. if i do get it, i will likely get smp on the scar, to hide it. along with any small scars i would also get from fue as i want to maximize the appearance of full thick hair

i’m currently 19 years old, on minoxidil and finasteride for prevention. i’ve attached pictures of both my hairline and donor area. i plan on getting a hair transplant around the ages 23/24. wondering if i should get an FUT or FUE, i’m particularly nervous about the operation and healing times with an FUT but was wondering, is the results difference that big of a deal between FUT and FUE? i want to maximize the amount of grafts in my donor i’ll be able to use long term, so would an FUT then future FUEs be a good idea? however, if the result difference between FUE and FUT is hardly noticeable, i’d likely go with an FUE.

anyone have any input or personal experiences? 

i have a few questions regarding having both a hair transplant and scalp micro pigmentation.

it seems like smp to fill in areas that look thinner along with having a transplant seems like a really good idea, giving your hair a more dense look. in the future if you get a another transplant per say and need to go over smp areas, will the transplanted hair grow in fine? will there be any complications with putting grafts into an area that has smp?

is there anyone that has gone this route? getting both smp and a transplant? perhaps you could smp the scars that get left behind from a transplant aswell, to ensure it remains looking dense. 

also, is it hard at all for smp artists to tattoo around existing hair? 

1 hour ago, Gatsby said:

You won’t have a problem or rather I never have. It’s when you bring more than 100mls of liquid that you cannot bring on a plane. 

even without a prescription? also, 100mls per bottle or 100mls total? one can of topical foam minoxidil, which i also use, is 60mL. id assume id need two cans of it

medications that can be bought from websites like alldaychemist, inhousechemist, etc. which do not require a prescription, can they be brought on a plan? i’ve attached attached an image of what they look like. they do not have a name on it, etc.

On 9/18/2023 at 4:01 PM, DomTransplant said:

Thanks - good question re: redness. I've definitely seen a reduction in redness from weeks 10-12. However, it still is slightly red on both sides. Still of the view that I'll see where everything is month 6 (think it's the best mentally or I'd just forever worry).

i look forward to more updates 

23 minutes ago, Melvin- Moderator said:

No one’s hair is destined to look like this, everyone would stare at you, and not in a good way. 
 

Make no mistake, this is completely unnatural. 

I’m positive this guy would give anything to look like this

 

Part of the problem with having a hair transplant at this age, you can’t grasp the reality of the ramifications of a bad HT. If you’re slightly insecure about a V shape hairline. You would be absolutely destroyed if you looked like this. Which is very possible before 30. 
 

damn, that is a bad case. since i plan on going to a reputable surgeon regardless, realistically i expect to get a transplant around 23+ as i think they would be more willing to work with me as the hair loss pattern will be more evident, or to show it has stabilized. i appreciate the responses, you’re actually pretty impressive for responding to so much posts and topics. thanks again

4 hours ago, Melvin- Moderator said:

Trust me, that is WAY worse than a receded hairline. Just imagine how you feel about your baldness. Now compound that with still being bald and having an obvious botched HT that all your peers talk about behind your back. Really envision it. 

i can understand that but i feel like if your hair is destined to be pretty similar to that anyways, you can see how the  entire scalp is see through, would one hair transplant really mean that much difference long term? it seems like you would like to enjoy a solid hairline at least for awhile until it comes to that point. but i haven’t experienced that so i don’t know exactly 

1 hour ago, Turkhair said:

I think using finasteride is way too early for you to be using at 19. Maybe topical minox at best. 
 

I don’t think there’s anything wrong with getting a hair transplant even if you are in your teens. As long as you choose a good clinic but it’s an issue even when you’re old. 

 

You’re expected to have hairs in your teens and you look out of place to be sporting even a NW2 at that age. I don’t agree with the idea that you should suffer until you’re in your 20s then get a HT. 

 

So yeah man, go crazy. Enjoy your youth because it’s never coming back. You WILL care about your hairs till you’re like in your 90s but people’s expectations of you do change and people aren’t so judgemental when you’re bald at old age versus when you’re in your teens. 

I really appreciate your responses man. and you’re right, I just want to look and feel my best during my youth and I wanted to try everything to achieve that while also considering the future. My hairline has been like this since the age of 13 so it’s been something I’ve been insecure about for awhile and when I found out about everything that I know now about hair transplants, etc. I was excited and wanted it, even at the age 16. But now I’ve gotten to a point where I don’t feel as needful or rushing into it, but want to do it as soon as possible, considering all factors 

4 hours ago, shiba1985 said:

At 20 you are considered an independent adult and allowed to make your own decisions. If you tell them you agree to sign an informed consent regarding risks of surgery at your age, and you comprehend that long term pattern is impossible to predict but you are willing to take that risk, then yes you will be able to get a reputable doctor to perform surgery. 

I appreciate the response, I honestly thought it was the case that doctors rarely took or even considered people under 25, but perhaps somewhere in between, 20-23 along with knowledge of how it may turn out in the future and its risk, will allow them to accept you.

3 hours ago, mr_peanutbutter said:

worst case scenario…

 

but since youre on meds id say go for it if yoi are stabilized

see the thing is, i’m okay with that. and if it gets to that stage i’d personally prefer slick bald or use toppik fibers, to the best extent i could. but who knows

1 hour ago, Rahal Hair Transplant said:

@zenmu,

To be honest with you, it really depends.   Everyone thinks age matters but in reality, each patient should be considered based on their individual circumstances. For example, let’s say a 20 year old went to a hair transplant clinic and is now in need of repair procedure. In a case like that, then it very well may be appropriate to operate on that individual in order to make their situation right.  There may also be other cases where operating on somebody younger is appropriate however, as a general rule, younger patients have higher expectations and are prone to panic at even the smallest signs of hair loss.  Since restoring a completely full head of densely packed hair is not possible, operating on a young patient under those conditions would be an appropriate.

The bottom line is, while age is certainly a consideration at our clinic in determining whether or not we will operate on them, their particular individual circumstances ultimately matter more.  That said, Dr. Rahal does and will turn patients down for surgery if operating on them is not in their best interest.   

I hope this helps.

Rahal Hair Transplant

I understand. Thanks for the in depth response, this is pretty much what I was told by another doctor I went to, to see what he thought.

24 minutes ago, Turkhair said:

You already have a conservative hairline. What you want is an aggressive hairline lol

I don’t think any surgeon is going to reject you based on your age. You can get your gender reassigned before even hitting puberty, HTs are just a small procedure. 
 

The only reason some top doctors would refuse is because of fear of you acting irrationally if the HT doesn’t grow well or regretting the decision, younger patients have unrealistic expectations/unpredictable.

oh i suppose you’re right i was thinking a hairline more similar to a U shape rather than a V. i’m more of a norwood 3? so like a norwood 2. and thank you for your response! i’m only curious because I was rejected for one at 19 and i’m hoping next year when I turn 20 it would be a more suitable age? I’ve expressed that I understand the risks but perhaps just a. few more years, or maybe 21 it’ll be better.

Outside of a hair mill, are there any of the more reputable doctors, throughout the U.S, Turkey, or else where that would do work on a 20 year old? It’s hairline work, about 1800 grafts give or take. Just curious, I have the money and as much as I want one as soon as possible I don’t want to go to a hair mill and get a bad job. I’m mainly looking to get a conservative hairline and in the future get further transplants if necessary. I’m on preventative meds, including both oral and topicals of minoxidil and finasteride. Are there any cases similar to mine? I’ve been doing research but can’t seem to find any.

Edit: added pictures of hair in case that is needed. the hairline pic is outdated but is roughly the same aside from the more miniaturized hairs being longer due to the meds. 

any updates! 🤞🏼🤞🏼

look forward to more updates 

8 hours ago, BaldGuy said:

US is very overpriced, while europe is much cheaper with better quality than US. Higher price doesnt mean better quality, but mostly depends on the particular location, the taxes, expenses, rents etc..So you pay more for the expenses,taxes, not for quality.
Its better to go to countries like Mexico, Brasil in which you could find great doctors at much lower prices than US.
In Turkey aldo you can find excellent doctors in affordable prices. Do your research.

appreciate the response, i’ll continue doing research. i don’t plane on getting a transplant for a few years so i’m gaining knowledge now

7 hours ago, A_4_Archan said:

Demography has nothing to do with skills...

If budget is non issue than look at dr munib ahmad who is producing excellent outcome ...his hairline work is very natural and he is an artist 

You mentioned that dr gabel quoted you 1600 grafts that means you just need a hairline work..and for that if you wanna look at the budget doctor thn you can consider dr de freitas ,pekiner,pinto,couto and ferreira ..those are the better budget options to consider..all are in between 3-5 euros per grafts...

thank you!! yes i’ll likely be traveling out of the US to get it done in this case.