Odysseus

Mildseven, how does payment work when they have to add more grafts (or less, for that matter) than were planned? I know that payment for a procedure must be sent in advance, so how do you come up with the extra money in the proper currency at the last minute and while out of your home country?

I would love to have Eugenix tackle my scars during my upcoming appointment, but I can't figure out how I will be able to sleep if I have to protect transplanted hair in the temples, front, top, crown, AND back of my head. The likelihood that I would lose some of the implanted hair under those circumstances just seems very high... So, I think it's prudent for me to handle the back of my head later. But I know that some folks have successfully managed to do it all at the same time, so I will ask Dr Das what she thinks when the time comes. I would rather fill in my scars than do my crown, to be honest. The finsteride and oral minoxidil might take care of my crown.

"Ive been an Anagen desynchroniser with my last 2 procedures normally around 10months so I’ll be under the gun over the next couple of months" Can you help me to understand this a little better, @Zoomster? I've seen comments and a video that mention it, but I'm not quite clear on whether this is a permanent phenomenon (hairs that were transplanted at the same time always phases in and out at the same time forever) or if, over time, they start to phase in and out in a staggered timeline like normal scalp hairs do.

Hey, Kordi, did you have your procedure as planned?

[As I read through the various accounts written by happy Eugenix patients, I was able to gather pieces of information here and there that answered many of my questions, but not all of them (especially my logistics questions). I hope to use my experience to capture as much as possible so that those considering Eugenix will know what to expect each step of the way.] The Expected Timeline and Results One thing that Eugenix has shown me repeatedly through our communications is that they want potential patients to understand the expected timeline and results of the hair restoration procedure. It's very important to them that their patients have a clear understanding of the process, which have been described as follows: After the hair restoration procedure, it typically takes 5 to 7 days for the donor and recipient areas to fully heal. Once the healing process is complete, it takes 8 to 10 months to see full results. Elsewhere, however, they say that, on average, it takes around 12 months for all the implanted hair to fully grow. I am just going to assume that the one-year mark is the point where what I have is what I'm going to get. Before that 8-to-10-month mark, some of the implanted hair will grow. But the density will be lower than desired because not all of the hair is growing yet. Eugenix lays out an approximate hair growth timeline that describes the percentage of implanted hair growth to expect at various points in time: First 4 weeks: During this period, most of the restored hair will remain and begin to grow in length. The scalp will appear denser, and patients generally feel extremely happy and satisfied with the procedure. 4th to 6th week: At this stage, the implanted hair may undergo shedding, which is commonly known as shock loss. It is normal to lose anywhere between 30% to 90% of the restored hair during this phase. It's important to note that this occurrence is a normal part of the healing process and does not indicate a failed procedure. Many individuals may become concerned and worry about the results, but there's no need. 8th week onwards: Starting from the 8th week, you will notice that the hair growth begins, and the density gradually increases every two weeks. The rough percentages of the implanted grafts during this period are as follows: 3 months: Approximately 30% grafts growth 4 months: Approximately 40% density 6th month: Approximately 60% density 10th month to 12th month: Full density They also advise that if beard hair was used for the restoration (as it will be in my case...extensively), it may grow more slowly and may take even longer to achieve full density. While there is no way to expedite the growth process or achieve faster results, some patients have found that Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) treatment was effective in stimulating hair growth at a faster rate.

[As I read through the various accounts written by happy Eugenix patients, I was able to gather pieces of information here and there that answered many of my questions, but not all of them (especially my logistics questions). I hope to use my experience to capture as much as possible so that those considering Eugenix will know what to expect each step of the way.] The Medical History Form After my call with Eugenix's medical counselor Rolston, I was sent a medical history form to fill out and send back to them. It was sent over WhatsApp, which is the main method of communication between Eugenix and me. As you can see below, there was nothing unexpected in the medical history form. Here’s what it covered: Name Age Gender Address Duration of baldness Date Email address Phone number Source (How I came to know about Eugenix) What medications and treatments I have taken/take, for how long, how I responded to them, and whether I had any adverse effects Whether I smoke or drink and, if so, how often Whether I have had any local anesthesia before and whether I had any trouble with bleeding Whether I have had any injury/wound which was sutured and whether there was any excessive growth at the suture site Whether I have diabetes, hypertension, a thyroid disorder, any neurological issues, and/or any skin diseases Whether I have any history of allergy to a drug or medicine Whether I have any history of allergy to any Consumables Whether I have any history of previous hair restoration surgery My family's health history My blood pressure measurement (fortunately I have my own cup and was able to take a reading as I was filling out the form) My expectations from the procedure When I plan to have my procedure I filled out the form and returned it.

I have tried to use fibers (and I'm currently trying again), but I haven't been able to match my hair color. Medium Blonde is too dark and Light Blonde is too light. Both are obvious if I apply them to my head. I am considering mixing the two as some have advised...but what a pain in the neck that will be. I have also tried the "shoe polish"-type products, but with the same issue (color). In fact, I just bought Caboki's version of that sort of thing (and their fibers, btw) and tried it this morning and it was way too dark. I actually had the most luck with an eye shadow and brush...but the company stopped making the shade that looked best. Uuugh. 🤦‍♂️ I haven't been able to find a really good replacement. So, I have been using a bad replacement because it's better than nothing. I will try to make this log of my Eugenix experience as information packed as possible for you and others and post the answers to questions I had as I was reading through other guys' experiences. Hopefully that will help you with your decision. 👍

Here are various angles of my current situation. Honestly, if Dr. Sethi had told me the best Eugenix could do for me is to add some density to what I already have so I could achieve a more natural looking thinning, I would have been ecstatic. However, he also said they would improve my hairline and temple points...so I don't know what word to use to describe how I received that news! What's a stronger word than "ecstatic"? Whatever it is, that's what I was. 😄

Here's a photo that shows the problem more clearly. Because of a bright light directly overhead, it's much easier to see the unnatural appearance of those early implants that are about an inch or so behind my hairline. As my non-HT hair has thinned more over the years, it has gotten harder and harder to hide those grafts. They have made it impossible to avoid some degree of paranoia about my appearance in bright sunlight and under fluorescent lights. I would much rather have had a natural looking thinning appearance all these years than those unnatural looking groupings of hair. I look forward to finally putting an end to this issue.

Like KSA91 said, wait until the 12-month mark before you start to worry. Like Seneca said, "We suffer more often in imagination than reality." Or, as Mark Twain put it, "I've lived through some terrible things in my life, some of which actually happened.” Don't suffer before you know you have reason to. Otherwise you will have suffered for no reason. Just wait. ...and I know that's easy for me to say. But it's also the right thing to do. Based on all the posts I have read of guys worrying and then things turning out fine months later, my bet is that everything will turn out fine for you, too.

Pretty much any hair you see in my hairline and front is transplanted hair. As for the pluggy Bosley grafts, the fact that they don't stand out like a sore thumb is a testament to how well Dr. C*** hid them behind 1000 very well-placed hairs that formed a natural looking (albeit thin) hairline. I can't say enough positive things about how much he helped me with the first procedure I had with him. That's primarily why I can't bring myself to get as angry as I would otherwise be about how he handled the mistake made during my second procedure with him. In the photo below I have put red lines around where the Bosely grafts are. You can see that the hair is slightly denser there. That's because of the larger grafts. In the wet-haired photo you can see the density difference much more clearly. I hope that Eugenix can remove those 150 grafts and divide them into more natural looking FUEs. But they might just choose to pack enough hair around them to make their unnaturalness invisible. We'll see.

I have an appointment for a Eugenix procedure with Dr Das later this year (sooner if I can make that happen). For the benefit of folks here, I will follow the great example of others on the forum and keep a record of how things go throughout the process. I hope my experience will help others the way those Eugenix veterans' posts have helped me. --- I first heard about Eugenix when I stumbled on this website. I don’t remember exactly what led me here, but what has kept me here was seeing the almost miraculous work Eugenix has done for others who appeared to have very little donor hair for the coverage they needed. My Long Hair War PAST HAIR TRANSPLANTS - I have had 4 previous hair transplants and need a doctor who can make the most of a limited donor supply. Here’s my HT history: 1. In the early 1990s, I saw an ad for Bosley in a Muscle and Fitness magazine. Despite the fact that I couldn’t afford it, I set up a procedure and got about 150 4 to 6 hair grafts placed in a too high, crooked hairline. The only thing this procedure accomplished for me was to give me a handful of doll-like plugs, a huge scar across the back of my head, and to trap me on the hair transplant road. 2. A couple of years later, I read that NHI did better work, so I went to them. They did do better work…but that was a pretty low bar for them to hurdle. I think I got about 300 grafts from them, but I’m not sure. 3. In the early 2000s, I somehow found Dr C*** (I saw someone else here spell his name that way, so I figured I would, too, until I find out why 😊 🤷‍♂️). He did much, much better work. I think he put about 1000 grafts in my hairline/front area. It was a strip procedure so he could cut out my thicker scar and give me a thinner one - which he did very well. The scar I was left with was very thin and an enormous improvement. 4. About 10 years later I went back and asked him to use FUE to fill in all of my donor scars (the major one across the back of my head and five small, short ones that had been created when the various HT doctor(s) were harvesting finer hair). I wanted this so I could buzz my hair short, which looks better on guys with diffusely thinning hair. Maybe he misread the instructions or maybe the person who wrote them down wrote them wrong or maybe someone else in the office did something wrong, but he packed all 1000+ grafts into my major donor scar and completely ignored my smaller ones…which meant I couldn’t buzz my hair short, the only purpose for the appointment. I didn’t discover the error until I got home (I live in a different state hours away). When I notified his office of the screw up, he offered to let me come back on Halloween (which was in a few days) to fill in the smaller scars. I couldn’t make that date work and he didn’t offer any other. I previously had a very high opinion of Dr C***, but that opinion took a hit after that. I don’t hate they guy or anything, but that’s not the way I would have handled a situation where the fault was entirely mine or my employee’s. FINASTERIDE AND DUTASTERIDE - I also tried Finasteride in the early 2000s and seemed to be one of the people who didn’t respond to it except to have the dreaded low libido side effect. So I abandoned it for Dutasteride at the earliest opportunity. Dutasteride seemed to do a better job so I have been on it ever since. However, I’ve learned a lot in the last 20 years and don’t think I gave Finasteride enough time to work. I am going to give it another chance. MINOXIDIL - I have also used topical minoxidil for decades, but only once a day (at night) because I couldn’t make my hair look good after applying it. I am going to start oral minoxidil soon and hope for a great response. PERSONAL DETAILS - I am in my late 50s and have, I think, a Norwood 6A pattern with the equivalent of roughly 1500 grafts in the hairline/front of my scalp. My Eugenix experience so far SCHEDULING THE CONSULTATION - After seeing the amazing Eugenix results here and reading the great praise heaped on them by patients in this forum, I went to the Eugenix webpage and saw that they were going to be in the US doing consultations soon. I set up an appointment in Chicago, which is about a 6 hour drive from where I live. I was originally given a date of July 8th, so I made a reservation to stay in the same hotel where the consultations will happen so I could get up in the morning and already be there. Then, a few days later Eugenix called and left a voicemail saying my appointment had been moved to the following day (July 9th). Fortunately, that wasn’t an big deal. I simply changed my hotel reservation and made different arrangements with the person who was going to feed my pet while I was away. Within 30 minutes of changing the reservation, Eugenix sent me a WhatsApp message saying the new appointment was on July 10th. Before calling the hotel yet again and changing the reservation, I responded to Eugenix and pointed out that I had been told it was moved to the 9th, not the 10th. A few minutes later they replied that the 9th was correct and that the 10th was a typo. 😉 I’m glad I questioned the second message, but anyone can make a mistake. All of the Eugenix people I have communicated with have been very polite. MEETING DR PRADEEP SETHI - I met Dr Pradeep Sethi on July 9th at a little before 10 AM (via a WhatsApp message, they invited me to come 15 minutes before my appointment). The consultation was in his hotel room. Despite being jet-lagged and having suffered what appears to be a very badly twisted ankle that was giving him a great amount of pain, he was very friendly and welcoming. He had me sit on a couch with the bright morning light shining on my head. I had no idea my hair was that thin until he showed me the video he took. He noted the scars from my previous HTs and that my remaining donor hair on the back was thin, but that my sides were untouched and that I had "enough beard hair for all of Chicago." 😆 That was a relief to hear…but nothing compared to what he said next: 5000 to 5500 FUEs in a single session, addressing the hairline, temple peaks, top, and crown! Prior to the consultation, as a result of studying dozens of posts here (seriously, I have a spreadsheet on over 20 of you! Haha) and watching countless Eugenix YouTube videos, I had estimated that I would need 5200 FUEs to achieve the kind of incredible results I have seen here. So, hearing his estimate was very much like being told “Congratulations! You just wonder the lottery jackpot!” He also showed me a video of another patient whose hair was very similar to mine in color and texture. I think it was @Bandit90 , but I’m not 100% sure. If I can get a result like Bandit90’s, I will move to Hollywood and get into the movies. 😄 My scalp donor situation must really be dire. Dr Sethi is including 500 chest hairs in that 5500 total. I haven’t seen Eugenix use chest hair very often here on the forum…except for the legendary @Gatsby , of course! 😉 I watched Dr. Arika Bansal’s video about the different types of donor hair and know they prefer to avoid chest hair unless it is absolutely necessary. But my chest hair is very similar to my scalp hair in texture and color and straightness, so it avoids some of the usual pitfalls. But, of course, it’s still only one hair per FUE and transection is still a bigger risk… SCHEDULING THE PROCEDURE WITH ROLSTON – I decided I want the Premium Package with Dr Priyadarshini Das. After seeing her amazing work on @general-etwan and reading about her kindness and sense of humor when helping @messda (who wasn’t even her patient) when she replaced ONE GRAFT when he lost it, she seems like a fantastic choice for me. While she doesn't have as much experience as the founding doctors, I have complete confidence in her. For me, she is the right balance of skill and affordability. If money were no object, I would probably go with one of the founding doctors because of their greater experience and because my depleted donor area and scars will present some extra challenges. But, again, I have absolutely no reservations about having Dr. Das handle my case. Today (July 11, 2023) I received a call from Rolston. Great guy. He explained what is involved with scheduling the procedure, what they need me to do and not do before the procedure, the minimum booking cost, the procedure cost, that we can move the date up or back if necessary (I am currently waiting for my passport renewal. Ugh. I would schedule the procedure for next month if I could! I'm ready to get this done! 😉), etc. After the call, he sent me a couple of WhatsApp messages covering much of what we discussed. Despite the fact that I took notes during our call, I really appreciate what he sent. After my call with Rolston, I contacted my bank to let them know I was about to have a credit card charge (the minimum booking amount) going to India. In the past, the Fraud Prevention system has stopped payment until I clear an international charge, so I thought I'd let them know in advance and sidestep that headache. Rolston sent me a link to use to submit my booking payment. After clicking it and paying, I sent him a screenshot of the payment confirmation so he could see that I had gone through. And that's where things stand as of now. Currently, I expect to have a procedure with Dr. Priyadarshini Das on Nov 7th, 2023...unless circumstances allow me to get there sooner.

That argument suggests temple points are only important if a guy isn't attractive - and, in the case of the photo you posted, if he has a terrible haircut and a goofy look on his face. Another person could just as easily post a photo of an unattractive guy with a terrible haircut and a goofy look on his face with temple points as an example of how unimportant temple points are. 😉 I think Evans demonstrates that temple points are a great touch (the graphic artists even add them to his photos, sharp jawline notwithstanding), but they're not absolutely necessary to look great. I'm sure that's welcome news to guys who don't have the donor hair to get them.

That's what I'm afraid of. I may save my scars for their own dedicated procedure. For now I'll hide them with SMP and anything else that works.

This is a very interesting conversation. Especially since I have a consultation appointment with Eugenix in less than 48 hours and I'm curious to see whether the doctor thinks I need to build my temporal peaks out or leave them alone. As I have been looking at various actors and models to determine what I think would work for best me, I was very surprised to see that Chris Evans (aka Steve Rogers aka Captain America) somehow manages to look great despite the fact that he has no temporal peaks at all! Granted, he's wearing a hairpiece for the role, but that isn't really relevant to the fact that he looks good despite the fact that his hair is almost a straight line from his sideburns to his scalp. Thoughts? By the way, I've noticed in the promo images which a graphic artist has had a hand in, they have frequently added more of a temporal peak than he has in the films themselves.

Gatsby, you mentioned that in your second procedure you also had hair put into your donor scars. Your posts talk about the requirement to sleep elevated, but how were you able to sleep when you had grafts both in the top and the back? Thanks.

I have... - A thin linear scar that has 1000 grafts transplanted into it to camouflage it, but I have never cut it short enough to see what it looks like. I have circled it in this photo. The fact that it is visible in the photo is evidence that the camouflage wasn't a complete success... - 5 thin, short linear scars that are unfilled and are clearly visible if my hair is cut short (because the woman who cut my hair asked me about them when I went too short once. Uuuugh). I'm not able to capture any photos of them. They are well hidden in my hair. 🤷‍♂️ - I also possibly have about 1000 FUE "dot" scars, but maybe not. I have no idea how well they healed or how visible they will be against my pale head, so they might not be a big deal. I have my consultation with Dr Sethi this coming Sunday the 9th in Chicago. He'll be able to see things in all their glory before I do anything. Then the following Friday the 14th I have my first of two SMP appointments with Scalp Micro USA. I plan to follow the wise advice shared here and just have the donor camouflage work done for now. That might be all I ever do SMP-wise depending on whether Eugenix can do the sort of miraculous things for me that they've done for others here. I will record my experiences and share them on this site. Especially my experience with Eugenix, since I have benefitted so much from those who have shared their experiences there. And my case is a little different from most of their work that I have seen because I am blonde, have somewhat fine hair, and have pulled from my donor area multiple times. Working in my favor is a decent beard and the fact that my skin tone and hair color tends to make the scalp less noticeable than it would be if I had, say, dark hair with my pale skin. I also already have the equivalent of about 1500 FUs in the front third of my scalp, so they will be building on that.

Thanks, guys. I agree with you both. 👍 I'm getting ahead of myself. I'm overly anxious to put this hair thing behind me once and for all. I just need to exercise a little more patience.

I am 99% sure I am going to Eugenix for a HT procedure as soon as I can get in (I have an in-person consultation this weekend when I will learn more), but I am also going to get SMP put into my previous donor scars before that. Otherwise the scars will be very visible when my hair is shaved after the HT procedure. But I am also seriously considering having SMP on the top of my scalp prior to the HT, too, to add the appearance of density afterward. I am also leaning toward keeping my hair cut very close (1/8" or so) for the first 5 months post HT to get me through the inevitable shed phase. What do you HT and/or SMP veterans think of this approach? Is there any reason this is a bad idea other than the added expense? Does it matter to Eugenix if I have SMP and my hair is cut that short? Does it matter post-HT if I keep the hair cut that short for a few months?

Foxtrotwanderer, this is my first post on the site and I want to offer you some encouragement. When I compare where you are with where others in the forum were at the same point in their recovery, I think you are on track for a great result. 👍 You mentioned your SMP, which got my attention because my plan is to have SMP from a high quality provider prior to my appointment with Eugenix. I have thin strip scars that need to be hidden and I prefer not to risk trying to implant follicles into them and have them fail (which I have done before and it suuucks). SMP also allows me to transition from my current diffusely thinning longer hair look into the very close buzz cut I will have to sport immediately post-HT procedure - - which means any curiosity about it and desire to see the buzz cut will be dealt with at the time of the SMP (when it looks good) and gone by the time I actually have the HT (when it will look red and scabby for a couple of weeks and I'll have to hide it under a hat). I'm curious why you didn't just ride out the entire shedding phase with that SMP buzz cut look, then start letting your hair grow out at around the 6 month mark. That's my current plan. Is there a reason that wouldn't be a better option than living through the shedding turmoil? Thanks.