Augustine72

9 Month update and settling in to super happy status. A lot of my coworkers and clients comment on my hair quite a bit and most of them didn't know I had the procedure. I stayed remote for 5 months until it started coming in so people have definitely noticed now that it is growing in pretty full. It's been a crazy journey but one that if you get the right surgeon, have realistic expectations on what can and can't be done it will be the best decision ever.

I was shocked that I didn't feel I looked that bad shaved, but I don't think I would ever shave it down to that again

I appreciate the kind words, overall I am very pleased. As I mentioned in the post I knew the crown wasn't going to be dense. They said I would need two procedures to get the crown density and to honest I'm not going to go through that again. It was definitely worth it for me on the first procedure but probably not a second.

I did cash as they were trying to charge something like 10% credit card fee. Yes it was nerve wracking to carry $10k in cash across the world. I bought one of those hidden pouches that go under your shirt around your waist. Worked out great

8 month update - very little difference from last month. The crown will continue to be thin as we just didn't have the grafts to get that density done. I did want to buzz the donor area to see how it looked, so for this months update I broke out the number 2 guard on the clippers. Happy with how the donor area looks but I will grow it back out for next months update.

Seven month update, not a lot of difference from last month. Just got first haircut and I think they cut little too much off so it might look actually a little thin on top in the crown area. But I know they had to do some trimming so it encourages growth.

I know right! The backgrounds look fake, but they are the Canadian Rockies. I am in Banff National Park right now. Heading back into the US this weekend to go to Glacier National Park. More hiking and mountain biking to do

Apologies on the delay in getting you guys some pics, I am traveling until October, living the van life. I took outside and inside. Obviously outside sunlight accentuates all flaws and highlights areas that don't have the density. Still have some work to do on the crown but I don't have huge expectations. Dr. Bicer said that I really needed two procedures to get the crown density were it needs to be. So she concentrated the 1st procedure on the front and sides then filled in the crown as best she could. I am undecided if I am going to go for a second round. I will assess after 12-16 months to see how it all comes in. So far I am very pleased with the progress.

Yes I am in St Augustine if you ever want to connect and discuss in further detail. Turkey was far away yes, but this was a one shot deal and wanted to choose the best.

It is growing in great, will post some pics tomorrow. I am currently in the Canadian Rockies hiking. Here are some outdoor pics from my hike yesterday. Tomorrow I will get some close up pics outside with the crown.

Thanks Melvin for that side by side comparison. Pretty crazy the progress and how different I am sure next months update will be.

5 month update Getting some good growth on the sides and crown area that started earlier this month. The hairs are short and will need to fill in fuller as time goes on, but going from shiny bald skin with zero hairs to something there has been exciting. I rarely wear hats out anymore and feel good when out in public. Each month should be getting better and better. Took a few shots outside in the full sun as well, which obviously highlights all the thin areas.

Couple shots of the donor area. It healed up perfectly and can't even tell.

And the 4 month update is finally starting to have some growth! It's been a long 2 months and thanks to this board I knew what to expect and was never really worried. I hope my journey can help others like the board did for me. When I run my fingers through my hair I can feel the stubble in the recipient areas including the crown which I wasn't expecting yet. Super happy right now and excited for the next 6 months. By end of year it should be stellar. The best advice I can give is to mentally figure on 6-8 months and then if it starts sooner its a bonus.

I paid $2.50 Euro per graft

Alright, the 3 month update isn't much different than the 2 month update. No new growth as expected at this point, but my original hair is getting longer. Not that I feel great about going out in public without a hat, but much better than month 2, for sure. Next month will be the 4 month mark, so hoping that I start seeing some growth then. I think the donor area healed up great. Wife said she can't tell anything is different on the sides or back hair.

2 Month Update: I know the next 2-4 months are not going to see any real progress outside of my original hair getting longer. But I did want to post pics once a month as promised. I will say one change in starting month 3 is that the tingling sensation on my entire scalp is finally gone which is so nice. I still have some redness in areas but that is improving. From weeks 5-8, I had itching and tingling when I would rub my scalp or wash my hair and I just wanted to scratch it so bad. Instead I would just lightly massage and it would go away. Now that has passed and I feel washing my hair and scalp feels completely normal and not sensitive to the touch. I do find myself once a week using my wife's magnifying mirror to check the front hairline hoping to see some hairs pop up even though I know full well that it is too early. But one can hope! Until next month my friends, good luck to all that are starting the journey or in the journey, or just come back to relive the journey and offer wisdom. This forum is so helpful to manage the various stages and emotions. From Straight on at a perfect angle, it almost looks normal

5 weeks post op and the shedding has started right at the 4th week and most all hairs have fallen out now. I did cut the donor area with clippers and a guard last week but Not the recipient area. There is a lot of mixed information on doing any hair cuts on the recipient areas using clippers and guards. I probably will not cut it at all and see what happens but the more that my existing hair grows out, the more it highlights the bald areas and looks stupid. It would be preferable that I cut it super close with a guard and then when the hairs start growing that they all start growing at the same starting point. Keeping it short hides the bald areas a little better. But I will keep researching. My scalp is still red in the recipient areas. My donor area does get times were it itches really bad. I know you never are supposed to scratch with your nails so I just lightly rub the area to try and get the tingling / itching to stop. We have aloe vera plants and that has really helped to use pure aloe on the red areas for healing. I did research that extensively and it was commonly approved to do. Now we wait and go through the ugly duckling phase. Sure hope that I am on the earlier side of the regrowth timeline and not waiting 4 months

Here we are 14 days post surgery. I think all of the scabs are gone and I can still see a little bit of pink/reddish in the recipient areas but all feels really good. My donor area skin still tingles somewhat but is getting better each day. I sure wish it stayed like this for the next 3 months but I know the shedding is on it's way. I just hope it stays like this to April 5 for a large fundraising event my wife and I go to. Black tie and I can't hide behind a hat. But that would be right at 5 weeks and I don't have high hopes.

Days 8 and 9, healing up nicely.

I am on neither of those medications. I took finasteride for 5 years. I may consult with my physician back home and potentially restart taking the medication. But I am very hesitant to take medications of any kind for personal reasons.

I wanted to clarify that Dr Bicer does all the extractions with a micro motor not the techs. The counting and separating of grafts are done by the nurses. Yes it was a one day procedure, the max she will do is 3800-4000 in a day. We did have a little bit more than 4000 and they were super nice to stay and complete everything that evening.

Hello Everyone, my name is Andrew and I reside in the US in Florida. I am currently in a hotel in Istanbul Turkey post surgery and getting ready to fly home tomorrow. I wanted to share my experience with Dr. Bicer and some photos. I will continue to update once a month so others can see the crucial milestones for the next 12 months. Like most on this forum, this has been a long journey to get to the point of doing something about it. 15+ years of gradual hair loss and finally coming to grips that my bad combover I have been managing the past 5 years has finally come to the point that I needed to either shave my head or fix it. Thankfully a coworker had a great experience in Turkey last year with a different surgeon and I followed his progress in person and was able to talk to someone that I personally knew and trusted his opinion. I was very hesitant before due to so many photoshopped pictures and misinformation on the internet. This forum has been a great resource that I have been following for the past year before I finally decided to make the appointment with Dr Bicer. I won't spend too much time on the decision process. I researched for about a year, and narrowed it down to 3 and had video consults with 2. I really like Dr. Bicer and made the call to go with her and her team. Yesterday Feb 27th was my procedure, so I am one day post op. Here was my day yesterday: I arrived at 9am to meet with Dr. Bicer and her fantastic assistant Ozen. Dr Bicer drew my hairline, we discussed further questions, we took before pictures.Dr. Bicer was unsure if she could cover my entire donor area and there was the possibility of a second procedure in 12 months. We were shooting for 3800 - 4000 grafts for this session. An assistant shaved my head, Dr Bicer made further adjustments on the hairline once all was clear and we agreed on the plan, took more pictures. She spent alot of time on the hairline, measuring my face, and discussing what she thought best for my face shape, etc. We took some blood, and then went upstairs for phase 1: Harvesting grafts. I'm not going to sugarcoat this. I usually don't mind needles but the bald areas of my scalp are super sensitive and those started to really hurt after awhile. But once the anesthesia kicked in my head was completely numb and they were actually able to harvest 4200. My final count was 4130. This was performed by Dr. Bicer and her assistant. Phase 2: Incisions were completely handled by Dr Bicer alone. We discussed in the morning the importance of the hair angles and she took her time in doing these. Phase 3: was the longest period and this was handled by three technicians and placing the grafts in the incisions. Phase 4: bandage the donor area, take more pictures, go over medicines, how to sleep. I left around 8pm that evening and ate dinner at the hotel with room service as I didn't really want to sit in a restaurant with bloody bandages. My thoughts on the day. Laying / sitting really still for that long took a toll on my back and neck. I am 50 years old and I consider myself to be in good physical shape from the gym and outdoor activities. But my body was sore from that process. I got very little sleep last night trying to sleep sitting up with a neck pillow. I think most likely the 8 hour time change as well as me being super sensitive to not wanting to damage any of the grafts just kept me up most of the night. Hope to have better sleep tonight. Today Feb 28th - Post op Dr. Bicer was very excited that she covered the area with the density she wanted and was really happy with how the donor area looked and the grafts today. I have very little pain and am taking the medications as prescribed. I did find a pharmacy to get smaller travel bottles as the shampoo they gave me is too large of a container in the US and I didn't want it taken at the airport. Here are some pictures before from last month, post op on the Feb 27th and some from today Feb 28th after removing the bandages. You can see when brushed forward the exposed areas were really bad, but with some creative combing I was able to minimize the look unless you were looking down on my head. But outside of work I almost exclusively wore a hat and if it was windy it would blow my long combover hair and that was pretty embarrassing. I will update in two weeks and then once a month. Thank you to this forum for all the support and knowledge. I hope my journey helps others. Initial Verdict: I am extremely pleased with Dr Bicer and her team. They are very supportive and communicate well and said they will be available and following my progress for the next 12 months. She spent all the time that I needed answering my questions and reassuring me that I had a great donor area and the thickness of those grafts were really good. She has full confidence this will turn out really well. . 1 hour Post op Feb 27th Feb 28th after bandage removal