Digs49

@pullinyourleg Dr Pittella said I had average donor at best. My hair is just naturally thin. Donor feels great; doesnt feel or look like I had a HT unless you knew it (I think). It looks a little thinner but you can see the before and after photos for yourself to see if you can notice.

Hey @Melvin- Admin, things are going well. Been traveling a lot for work so haven’t had much time to post. I decided to mix it up and show some real time photos from the last few weeks. I’ll do my normal monthly post in a couple of weeks.

@bigtyivier2k2 I replied to your DM with answers. Bottom line, you cannot put anything on your head for 14 days, per Pittella’s order. You will just need to stay out of the sun for those 2 weeks. Reference the flight home, get yourself a good neck travel pillow and accept now that you just won’t sleep super comfortably for 2 weeks. Those first couple of weeks will be a distant memory when you have your new head of hair.

@Odysseus Reference the scabs & different clinics, I’m not entirely sure why but my guess would be that it comes down to the level of comfort each clinic/surgeon has regarding post-op care. That said, there are plenty of posts on here that discuss scabs & when/how they fall off or are safely removed. Dr Pittella does not want anyone doing really anything to their head within the first 14 days, including wearing a hat. Each clinic will have different post-op guidelines and how the patient manages his/her discipline in following those guidelines plays a role too. Some clinics advise safe scab removal after newly implanted grafts are secured while others suggest letting them fall off relatively naturally.

**8-month update Hey HRN Community! First of all, thanks for everyone who supported the competition @Melvin- Admin put on last month. That was fun and no surprise with @Gatsby’s big win (I’m coming for that title next year though!). Here are my 8-month photos. Still on oral fin & minox. Use regular shampoo & conditioner. These are pics with relatively messy hair after a long day…as always, feel free to send questions or comments.

Even at a NW6, I agree that your donor seems strong plus you appear to have decent beard hair (on the neck). I had advanced loss & also on fin and minox. We have similar start points so, for reference, I needed over 10k grafts as Melvin said. With the combination of beard neck hair, I had one procedure done by Dr Pittella. Feel free to check out my experience for comparison.

As @Melvin- Admin said, feel free to check out my post. I flew from the east coast and spent some time in Vitoria and Rio. I’ve gotten to know Dr. Pittella over the last year and he is truly as genuine of a human as he comes off. I can talk at length about him and would be more than willing to go direct and chat. Let me know.

Totally concur with Melvin, this is going to be an absolute homerun! The hair looks so densely packed. You will look like a new man no doubt. Remember…be patient during these next few months. That’s easier said than done but trust Dr. Pittella and put your mind more at ease.

@FSLONAL I edited my previous response above reference the packages. Pretty certain Dr. Pittella only has one package now (Premium). I know finances weigh heavily into this decision but keep in mind that this is a lifetime of changes. To @wembley’s point, Pittella has mastered large procedures and I’m hoping I won’t need another one in the future. I received some good advice from another HRN member who encouraged me to keep in mind that this is an investment & with Pittella, it’s a wise one. You’ll save time, stress, and even a bit of money in the long run with all the products and such you might use.

@FSLONAL thanks for the message, here are my responses: 1. I am fairly certain that Dr. Pittella only has one package (Premium) now. So, there’s only one price per graft. 2. I’ll answer this one on DM; bottom line though, this needs to be worked out with your bank(s) and the clinic. Again, this is very much a personal finances-related matter. 3. I don’t remember this exactly, maybe 3-4 months? Dr. Pittellas work gained significant attention over the last year or so my timeline wouldn’t matter much anyway. If you have life events in the way of surgery (ie, needing to get a sooner date), just tell the clinic and they should work with you. 4. I used thermal water until the scabs fell out then stopped. My scabs fell off around Day 12 post op. 5. Full, normal activity began for me around Day 30. You can probably do most things sooner but since you said swimming, I avoided that because I wasn’t sure what effects chlorine would have on the healing process. Thanks again for the message and totally love when I grow my beard out and don’t have to trim my neck anymore!

@baddecisions thanks! I’m no expert but my simple response is yes, they are fundamentally different hairs but not “very” different (at least for me). All that said, I believe that if you have a surgeon that knows how to strategically implant, he/she can place the beard grafts in areas that provide the appearance of density. I know that @Dr. Felipe Pittella only places beard grafts to ‘support’ or ‘augment’ the typical donor hairs to provide a denser appearance. Hope this helps.

@Melvin- Admin Haha, yeah - it’s my blessing but also weird at times for sure. People mostly compliment rather than ask what I did but I just say “I started taking care of me…lol.” Confidence is way up.

**7-month update Hey, here are my 7-month post-op photos. This is my hair after a haircut and combed after a shower. No fibers, still on fin & oral minox, and take biotin but not as frequent. Use a normal shampoo/conditioner. Send any questions!

Ahh, yes I did pause it. It was recommended that I stop taking meds prior to the surgery and for about a week post op. I’m sure fin is totally fine but I guess I played it extra cautious in my mind. I don’t know if there’s an actually medical reason but I also knew that pausing fin for a week or two wasn’t going to totally hurt me either. Hope this answers your question.

@secondtryuser hey, thanks a lot. Apologies if I eluded to that but I am still taking oral minox and fin.