zepruska

Starting to look good! This is more or less what I'm going to ask for in my second procedure with Dr. Nader so I'll be watching this thread closely...

This is what is usually referred to as the "ugly duckling" part of hair transplant recovery and happens in almost every case. It's alarming and frustrating but don't worry! They'll grow back 🙂

Progress is definitely noticeable! And your donor is looking good again, I'm sure you're relieved. 😁

I've also gone through quite the shed in September and October after getting my HT in February. It is shedding in both the recipient areas and areas that were not operated on however so I'm guessing (hoping!) that it's just due to stress and will bounce back soon.

That hairline is gonna look awesome!

You were definitely blessed with a terrific donor area but also the works looks impeccably clean, congratulations!

I came here to say this. IMO 1200 grafts is not nearly enough to justify a FUT. OP, can you elaborate on this part a little bit?

The results he's been posting here have been impressive, no doubt. I wish we had more in-depth patient reviews of him though!

OK, I took a couple better photos with more consistent lighting and hair length. As you can see, things are once again lookin thin at the hairline and slightly before it. This is about 7.5 months after my initial procedure. I asked Dr. Nader about this, and here's what he said: "Some patients will notice some synchronized shedding, but it always grows back. You are correct in the anagen synchronization causing shedding in a certain area of the scalp. If the hair loss would have been caused by other factors, there would be a more generalized hair loss, and overall thinning, which is not the case. I am almost certain that the hair will grow back. Suggested treatments involve oral multivitamins with biotin, a good healthy diet, and topical treatments such as minoxidil and nizoral shampoo. Any of these or a combination of them should help you regain density slightly faster." I am doing all of this, including an increased dosage of oral minoxidil and MSM capsules. Thanks again guys for pointing out angen synchronization because Dr. Nader seemed to agree that this was the culprit. I guess I'll just keep on keeping on! 👍

Completely normal as far as I know. It took at least 3 months for me to truly start gaining ground after my procedure.

Good luck dude! He is very transparent about his own methods and values so I'm sure if you bring up all of these concerns to him during the pre-procedure consultation he'll give you an honest and measured take.

Hey man, thanks for the fast reply. Someone on Reddit shared the same video with me so I'm glad to hear this isn't totally unheard of. Re: the lighting, I know it's different. Those are the photos I sent to Dr. Nader specifically so I could explain my concerns to him. Thank you for the tips though, I appreciate it!

Seven months post-up OK, things were going great for a while. My hairline and crown were both filling in slowly but surely, the redness on my hairline had dissipated, and the nodular acne on my donor area was no longer an issue. Here's my progress from August (six months): I have, however, been losing ground since around the beginning of September or so. My hairline and crown have thinned considerably, and there's also a thinner spot above one of my temples that wasn't there before. Here are a couple of photos from today, and I think you'll agree that they are not as good as the ones from last month: I texted Dr. Nader about this, and he said that sometimes he sees delayed shedding in transplant patients due to hair growth cycles and that it should regrow in a few months. He also told me to keep up my regimen of dutasteride, oral minoxidil, MSM, biotin, and multivitamins, and to try to reduce the amount of stress in my everyday life. I know that you can't truly judge a transplant until about a year after the procedure, which is totally reasonable. I am just a little concerned that I was seeing steady, linear progress as of last month, and now it feels like I'm heading backwards. Any advice or reassurance would be greatly appreciated. 🙃

Five months post-op Apologies for skipping my fourth month update, but there wasn't much happening. Now there is! I'm attaching two photos; the first is from early June and the second is from early July. I'm definitely noticing increased density in the hairline area, and while there is still a long way to go, I am noticeably above baseline now. As you can see, the redness is also starting to go away. Progress is a little slower on my crown though so I am holding off on posting a photo of that so as not to clutter the thread too much.

Three months post-op I've been back at baseline for a while now, maybe even below. As you can see, the transplanted hairs have completely fallen out, with skin redness the only clue that they were ever there at all. I have been continuing my regimen of dutasteride, oral minoxidil, biotin, and MSM, and while it was a little frustrating at first to watch my density fade, I have no choice but to continue being patient and hope things kick into high gear sometime within the next three months. Also, I have been getting nodular acne on my donor area, which was easily addressed with acne scrub (salicylic acid) from Walmart. Applying it every other day in the shower seems to do the trick. I have not gotten any acne on the transplant area.