rja

On my first HT, I stayed at a small hotel called White Ivory Bed and Breakfast about 5 minutes walk from the clinic. It was clean, and simple and the breakfast was alright. They also speak English.

On my second HT, I booked an AirBnB about a 10-minute walk from the clinic. Breakfast was on me then, of course 

1 hour ago, Gatsby said:

Considering this is only 6.5 months @rja with HT number two just beginning this will be a great result. Give the donor time to thicken up and bounce back. I agree that combing it back looks the best IMHO. 👌

Thanks @Gatsby. Yeah, I know it's just waiting at this stage. I'm keeping up the positive thinking and looking forward to seeing myself with long hair again one day 🙏

8 hours ago, franklewis92 said:

Ffront line looks very natural. Congratulations!

Thanks @franklewis92

8 hours ago, Hairwolf said:

As i previously mentioned the front is looking good considering your starting point. You have enough to comb it back with an illusion of density and chance of some more thickening and maturation.

Thanks @Hairwolf. I'm hoping it will thicken and mature more in the next 6 months, but I like what I see in the mirror, so I can't really complain  

Hi guys,

Today is the 1-month mark for my second HT (6.5 months for the first).

I've taken a few photos to show the progress.

• I've started wearing my (front) hair combed backwards as can be seen in the photos. Frontal density is still lacking, but hopefully will improve with time.
• Started experiencing shedding from the new HT about 2 weeks ago
• Donor redness is gone (or unnoticeable)
• Lots of white hair on my sides

front:

front / top:

top:

back:

left:

right:

Ok, so here are some photos I took this morning at the 6-month mark.
Please note my hair was still slightly wet from the morning shower.

• Not a lot of change (in my opinion) for the front part, especially considering the photos from 2 weeks ago.
• From a quick conversation with Dr Laorwong, he told me that he thinks about 80% of my grafts have sprung, so he expects about a 20% improvement in density by the 1-year mark.
• Continuing on Min 5mg and added Fin 1.25mg (a 5mg tablet cut into 4) as of a week ago.
• My donor site is still a little sensitive and red but it mostly doesn't bother me.

In general, I look like a plucked rooster at this point 😜 but I know it's temporary...

On 4/13/2024 at 3:11 AM, Melvin- Admin said:

This is gonna be an incredible journey to follow 🙏

Thanks @Melvin- Admin  

Hello everyone.

So I've gone back to Dr Laorwong to do my mid-scalp and crown at the 5.5 months mark. When I scheduled it I didn't actually notice it was slightly before the 6 months mark but I guess that doesn't make too much of a difference now

Prior to the procedure I've spoken with him about his idea for the second part and sort-of agreed on a 2000-2500 grafts procedure to cover the remainder of my bald head.

The number was surprisingly the same one that I've been quoted by both Eugenix (I've had a consultation w/ Dr Erica) and Hairtran (I've consulted w/ Dr Patty), which made me feel more confident.

I'll save the details around the pre and post-op process as it was practically identical in both cases for me - I stayed for the same amount of time in Bangkok, had the same pre-op tests and medications, and the same post-op care for 5 days before I headed back home.

I had a pre-op consultation with Dr Laorwong the day before and he examined my donor and was (I believe) quite surprised. I think he didn't expect it to that good. I was telling him that I wanted to use as much beard hair as possible, and as far as I was concerned he could take out 100% of my beard if he can, but he said it might not be necessary.

I ended up with 3847 grafts taken from my scalp donor only and implanted into the bald part.

The extraction started at about 9 am (got there earlier to get a haircut, medications, etc) and the transplant ended at about 9:30 pm.

It was a more difficult session this time than the one I had before. For some reason, I had a lot of lower back pain and a more frequent need to go to the toilet which made them have to pause a couple more times during the whole day. I'm not sure if it was one of the medications they gave me or something else I've taken or eaten or something, but it was extremely annoying for me and I can only imagine it was the same for them.

I was also surprised (and a little bit disappointed) that they didn't use beard grafts. I was hoping to leverage beard hair and save scalp hair for the future, but perhaps it won't make a difference... time will tell I guess.

All in all, I think I got good coverage now, even though the density might not be great, but as some of you have said in previous comments - compared to where I started from - there's no comparison!

Below are a few photos from different moments:

Pre-op before hair cut:

Pre-op after hair-cut and with Dr markings on my head (my scalp was red in many places with dry skin - I've had this happen every now and then - it comes and goes):

Next day after the first wash:

Last day (5th day) after the wash:

Other interesting (I think) details:

• I asked the Dr if I should continue with Min 5mg or cut down to 2.5mg - he suggested to continue with 5mg
• He also suggested to start taking Fin 1mg daily to preserve my hair. I've started taking it (been a week now) but I was surprised as to why he suggested it now and not the first time. He said he thinks I might still be losing hair (as in - my progression hasn't stabilised yet) so it's best to take it
• I also asked him how many grafts he believes I still have left in case I need them in the future and he said around 1000. Not sure if that's a good or a bad number to have, but I have a feeling that in a year or two, after both transplants have had time to mature and stabilise if I see that I need and decide to go for a third one for density, I'm going to insist on 100% beard grafts, so it won't make much difference.

I'll try to get some reasonable photos of my front in a couple of days and upload on the 6 months mark.

Thank you all for your support and for following up on my story here!

1 hour ago, EasyRoader said:

No, not full coverage. I'm looking at going back some time next year.

In my case, the rounds of alopecia have left some non-typical balding areas on the back of my head, so they'll need addressing.

As for the crown, there will still be some work needed, there but I won't know how much until I've seen how the new transplanted hair grows, and what sort of effect taking fin + min tablets has. Remember that I haven't taken either of these in the last decade, so I cautiously optimistic.

Dr Laorwong said I've got around 1500-2000 more grafts available, which may or may not be enough. So time will tell.

I talked with him about taking hairs from other parts of the body, as I have all this hair "going to waste"  on other parts of my body. He said that can be problems using hair from certain areas on the crown, such as chest hair, as they may grow differently from other hairs and probably go curly at some length, which would not give a good look. But the whole area of using hair from other parts of my body is something that I haven't researched seriously yet.

He mentioned that generally the next best source for head hair was from the beard.  Beard hair is different from scalp hair, and I'm one of those people that has a mutation in the MC1R gene, meaning that the colour of the hair on my beard, is a different colour than the hair on my scalp. In my case my beard is multi-coloured, so I'm not sure if that will be a possible source or not.

When I consult with Dr Laorwong next year, I'm expecting that I'll be going into a lot more detail than I did this time, and look at several different options.

Interesting what Laorwong said about chest hair - I have enough of it and would rather have that hair growing on my head. In my case, my hair is wavey and even curls at the edges when grown longer, so I would have no issue with the chest hair behaving similarly. Hell, I wouldn't care even if it grew straight while the rest remained wavey. I think of it as a problem I'd like to have

I was under the impression he only uses beard as a secondary source and so never actually discussed this with him. I'll see what he says when I see him.

Nice write-up, mate!

Did you achieve full coverage with this procedure or are you planning to go back again for a second round? 

Good morning,

Below is my 5-months progress update.

Not much improvement from the previous month.
I have ended up not cutting my hair after all and will probably leave it like this until my next procedure at this stage.

For the pictures below I've combed my hair to try and get a better degree of detail for density, however, I do not notice any visible improvement in density.
I know I still have a long time to go, but not seeing any noticeable improvements keeps me worried.

1 hour ago, Buffaloboy said:

Were these pictures taken after you shed a lot of hairs?

I ask because if you believe rudimentary software, these pictures shows about 3000-ish grafts. Not 5,500.

@Buffaloboy are you able to share more details on where can i get this software and how to run it on an image? I'd like to give it a try on my image(s). Thanks! 

Thanks guys. Excited to see what the next months gonna bring

I have my second surgery (crown + mid) scheduled for the beginning of April, hopefully, by then, progress will be even more noticeable!

Hey guys,

Here's my 4-month update - pictures taken this morning, a day after the 4 "month-versary". I haven't trimmed my donor hair since the last photos, but I intend to do it sometime today or tomorrow. I will not touch my transplanted hair under any circumstances

In all honesty, I do not see much difference between months 3 and 4. I have a feeling the hairs are getting slightly thicker, but I don't see new hairs for now - at least nothing that I could pick up on. It might all be my imagination or the fact that I see myself all the time - who knows...

I continue to take a daily 5mg oral min. Will discuss with Dr Laorwong when I see him if I should continue with this dosage or drop it down to 2.5mg.

Note: I'm aware my photos are not consistent, at least in terms of lighting. Melbourne weather doesn't corroborate at all and I live in a small apartment without a lot of natural light. Sorry about that.

Top view:

Back view:

Left side:

Right side:

Frontal-top view:

2 hours ago, MatthewDM111 said:

I don’t remember the exact breakdown but I think first surgery was around 3700 in the front and mid (all taken from my scalp donor area) and second surgery was around 2850 in the crown (800 coming from my chest and beard) and 300 in my temples. 

Thanks. Were you / Are you taking any medications pre/post op?

@MatthewDM111 your result looks amazing!

I'm particularly curious about it as it reminds me of my situation and (hopefully) future results - so I'm looking at it as a baseline

The first thing that caught my attention here was the fact you did front and mid in the first HT and left the mid/crown for the second. I might have missed it in your thread, but would you be able to share how many grafts were put in each one of the 2 HTs (I know a total of 6850 + 1000 from your past HT)?

The reason I'm asking is that I had about 4.5k done in my first HT and probably another 2.5k to be done in the second, so I want to know if I can expect a similar result in terms of overall density.

Thanks!

Hello,

I'm wondering how long you guys take Oral Min (if at all) after you've had an HT?

Is there a minimum recommended period and/or a maximum one after which taking it has little to no effect on the results?

What is the dosage that you take daily? 2.5mg or 5mg?

Keen to hear your thoughts and learn from your experience!

Cheers.

8 minutes ago, Adriam said:

okay makes sense! honestly nowadays SMP can fix pretty much most scars which is awesome i plan to get it done when i pull the trigger!

wishing you all the best, mate!

2 minutes ago, Adriam said:

lots of scars btw? im planning to go to laorwong and get a short hair style, buzz the sides / fade. maybe smp later on.

not sure about the scars. when i grow my hair a little i can certainly see a difference in density from where follicles where taken compared to where they weren't touched, but that's to be expected.

I intend to grow my hair long, chin-length or more, so i'm less worried about scars, personally, if there are/will be any.

2 hours ago, Adriam said:

hey man any update on your hair? how is it? i have a similar donor and i am also thinking about going with laorwong!? let me know please!

hey man. I'm waiting another 10 days to post my 4-month update (at the 4-month mark ), but I don't see a lot of change. I guess I'm also seeing myself in the mirror every day so I'm probably not a good person to judge either hehehe

Looking great, mate!

In a couple of months, it's gonna look so good you'll be able to say that you never had a hair transplant

Happy for you!!

8 hours ago, Gatsby said:

Wow. I paid $30 only a month or so ago when the supply of Loniten by Pfizer started again after shutting down for almost a year.

the cost of living having hair in Oz certainly increasing

49 minutes ago, Gatsby said:

What brand is it? I buy Loniten 10mg (I break the tablet in half). It’s actually quite cheap at $30 for one hundred tablets. 

Where are you buying for that price? Chemist Warehouse is selling for 50% more

On 1/16/2024 at 8:16 PM, Berba11 said:

You’re not supposed to have density at 3 months. You should start to see things begin to kick off in the next few weeks. 

I know. I was trying to say that I was worried something might have been wrong since I saw some hairs not shedding and growing longer but not any new hairs popping out. I guess I wasn't sure what to expect exactly, but I'm very much encouraged by all the replies I've read so far! Thanks for all the reassurance!

11 minutes ago, Gatsby said:

You can see your donor slowly bouncing back even at only 8 weeks. Wishing you all the best @rja 👌

Thanks, Adrian!

I'm planning to cut my hair short (except the top of course ) sometime this week to get a better view of how my donor is healing, but I agree, it does look like it's bouncing back 🙏