NW

Mike, Nice account of what happened....I had to laugh pretty hard when you said "I was worried about having to take my hat off when going through security at the airport"... I too had that fear when in BC Canada...LOL, it is funny how the little things can bother us. They did NOT ask me to take off my hat either....whew!!! Out of curiosity ???? Do you take Propecia/Proscar or have any opinions of it ??? I am 41 and had great results as far as "holding" onto my hair, but since I am a bit older, I only take 1/2 dose (.5 mg daily)....what is your opinion ?? Thanks !! & Great story. NW

Meelak, Evaluate for yourself exactly what will make you happy, it sounds as though you may not have the donor hair to gain strong density up front & on top. For max density plan on min 2 procedures. I like "Figsy's" approach, he understood how much improvement was possible and decided to go for coverage & perhaps a 2nd HT for some added density, excellent planning, and todays FU procedures look pretty natural, Thinner isnt always bad..it beats bald and beats a wig, if hairloss bothers you. But: My opinion, dont do a HT...if you are not going to take measures to halt your hairloss, I am 41 and had the same concerns w/Propecia, so I take 1/2 MG daily, for me it has been effective and I have no negative side effects. Propecia will NOT bring back enough hair (already lost) to make you smile in the mirror, but it does have great holding strength of exsisting hair. The other hair products avaiable are all garabage. over 5 years I must have tried them all twice. It sucks that hairloss causes so much thought. I wish you luck !! NW

Dr Feller, Very nice work ! Excellent clarity on the pics.

David, great story, congrats ! I have never worn a hair-piece, but have had 2 HT procedures. Looking back I fully agree with David on how to "plan" for 2 Procedures. I would strongly suggest to get the majority of your needs corrected on surgery #1, it is true surgery #2 is far less traumatic (cosmetically) due to the exsisting coverage. A 3000 graft+ session is very realistic today. re: HT #2 For me at 6+ weeks I look exactly as I did "prior to" HT #2, Far less shedding, and to my knowledege zero shedding of grafts from HT #1. Additionally the "sunburned" look is covered by pre-exsisting hair/grafts. I guess my point is; do your mega-session 1st, the greatest amount of trauma will then be out of the way, then HT #2 focus of fine tuning, you will not have nearly the inconvenience later. BTW after my 1st HT I shed fairly bad and wore a hat for 3 months, the shed hair all pretty much grew back later....but happy its done !!!. (whew!) I am not needing a hat after HT #2. Do your mega-session 1st !! NW

John, If its Poison oak/Poison Ivy I recommend you get in to a Dr. soon, preferably a dermatologist. I have never heard of Propecia or Proscar causing a rash. Poison Oak runs rampant in the Northwest, it sucks !!

Ibraham, Hanging onto your hair is job #1, I suggest Propecia. For me..Rogaine did nothing but take my $$$$,remember a HT is impossible if you have no hair ?, so hang onto it while you can. Propecia can take up to a year to really work. Re: HT, you may be very surprised how much of an improvement you can see when you put new hair grafts on the top scalp...this new hair grows much better and healthier, and will cover your temple area quite well when grown out...so "if" you ever do get a HT...you dont need to go to a real low hairline to get great results. Be careful, at 23 you could mess up your future with a teenage hairline and no hair (later) to fill in the top...it can get ugly. I am not saying get a HT..I would say wait 5 years, But I also know guys do what they want...your reading up 1st, great step. Good Luck !! NW

Hi Mark, My opinion k ?, I agree w/Dr Bernstein as to the nicest most "hassle free" result in the long run and under the right Dr's direction, is an "undetectable" FU HT. A conservative "hairline" of modest coverage still frames your face nicely. Here is my observations about Hairpieces, in all honesty I went to "Hair Club for Men" after my 1st HT, but only because I needed a trim after getting stitches out (from HT), I figured the hairdressers have seen many a scalp, and they helped me get a nice trim without having to explain the HT stuff...it's exhausting to have to go through that with a hairdresser, they were great, BUT In the lobby, every single man that walked in had "Elvis" thick hair, honestly they all looked absolutely stupid (3 diff. guys)...I have been told guys that are used to "Elvis" thick hairpieces would be disapointed with a nice and natural (albeit a bit thinner)HT. I am not saying this is your situation, your plan sounds like it has worked great for a long time...but, you heard it here 1st, you cannot get the hairpiece density most are used to, but you can come close and look great when swimming or in the wind etc.. Sorry for saying too much, but you have a great ally in Dr. Bernstein, he is said to be amongst the best group in the business. I have had 2 HT procedures, they do work, and they work great with the right Dr...I would do it all over again in a heartbeat. Good Luck !!! NW

1st time I have even heard of him in the last 2 years..?..He is on Pats list.

Monty, If you dont mind my asking who did your HT and how painful was it ? With all due respect, each patient has differing pain tolerence, with me I DID NOT experience any pain on surgery day, nor did I need any pain meds after ? ..Yes I have some numbness and a bit of tightness..both going away gradually (am at 3 weeks post-op), but no pain at all, I am not a Dr. and have no incentive to lie...but truthfully I had no pain? I would also be curious as to how long ago you had your procedure ? Thanks !! NW

Dizzle, You brought up a very great question re: steroids and hair loss solutions, So Finastiride does interupt the steroid activity ?? I am very much a fan of great HT work, but really down the road you will run out of hair if your hairloss is accelerating. I am 42, and for me the loss has stopped, (but with Propecia), in fact I am able to take (effectively) .5 mg a day as oppossed to 1 mg daily. If you hear of method to help other guys in your situation, let us know. Perhaps with the help of a physician you can find a nice balance. Maybe we need to develop a topical Propecia ? if there isnt one already. BTW for "me", topical Minox was a complete waste of time, gave it 2 years...and...absolutely nothing. Good Luck !!! NW

Steroids, It seems steroid use is a vote towards phsysic, understandibly widespread in a society such as ours, But it seems you may need to make a choice here. Perhaps a Dr. could sound off on this one, Will Finastiride still be effective with steroid use? It seems a parallel would be taking a sleeping pill to counteract 2 thermos fulls of coffee ?? or a "back and forth" scenario in your system. I bring up finastiride because HT is not really a long term solution at a young age but merely a patch. After 2 transplants I agree HT is not something anyone would hope for..especially not where you can correct the problem ?? and Steroids "IS" definately going to hurt your natural hair from what I have read, some guys may genetically get lucky, but it certainly cant help.. Any Dr's care to comment ??

jfo, FU's would have been cut/trimmed under a microscope and normally a Dr. or Clinic will clearly state thier methods when using all FU's, often micro/mini clinics will beat around the bush when asked... But.. If you had good work and are happy that is the main goal..frontal hairline mini's could be a bigger disaster than crown mini's, I had some crown mini's (and am happy) then followed up with an all FU session..admitedly my FU's look far more natural under close inspection, but it all worked. Good Luck !!

Dork, You sound far too impatient, rest your mind and wait like we all have to do after any HT, admitedly its no fun, but if you read this site often or listen to your Doc, you will know the obvious..4-6 months wait is typical, often it takes longer.

Ibrahim, I agree w/Gary, dont stop Propecia, you are young enough to save a lot of Follicles. I experimented with stopping Propecia/Proscar after 2 years of continual use.. Here is the problem: For me, everytime I have strayed from the regular usage of Propecia..I then have to "re-start" the drug..(out of my own common sense..duh..me!)..and sure enough, it seems my hair growth cycle is temporarily interupted (upon restaring), and I get initial shedding for 4-6 weeks, then later back to better hair growth then without the drug. So, I have decided to commit and wait for info from early users of "Dutustiride" (proper spelling-not sure). I would at least commit to a smaller dose of Propecia, but stay on the drug to aviod any re-shedding when you go back to it later. BTW, "IF" Propecia had been around when I was say 28 or so, I may not be reading this forum !! No offense "Pat" youre the greatest host out there, and your HT observations helped me get my hair back !!!...but you know we all try to help one another, and a pill a day is not so bad. Good luck !!

Arfy, Thanks for the update, like yourself I am a very hard sell, but remain very open minded. I would encourage the "Woods" procedure "if" in fact it proves the best method. In time it may be the method of choice ?..I am very happy however with my decision and excellent scar healing. Please keep us all posted..much appreciated !!! NW

Arpma, I did have really bad shedding with my HT, in fact even some shedding occured in my vertex area, which was not even a recipient area. I did have 6-10 weeks appx. of looking thinner than pre-surgery. At appx 12 weeks I started to get new growth and am very happy now. I cannot tell you how much returning hair was "grafts" or "prior exsisiting hair" because the grafts blend very nicely. Prior to ht surgery I could not grow my frontal/temple area hair very long because it was weak and thin and just wouldnt grow longer at all. Now I have the abilty to grow frontal hair long..its a nice feeling. If I were you I would not quite panic about your shedding, give it 6 months. You had prior hair and this happens.

DZ For me, "every time" I have stopped and retarted Propecia I go through some growth cycle interruption..hence some intial shedding, I notice it most in the vertex area. Perhaps just keep the Propecia going at 1/2 dose for the initial 1st month then kick up to 1 mg per day. HT is a valuable resource and honestly porpecia is really only a "holding onto hair" power. At times propecia may not be enough to satisfy your hair goals. I really am an advocate of staying on Propecia, aftar a full year you will not see any shedding and the initial hair will return. I believe a hair cycle can be 3-6 months minimum. Good Luck

DZ, I too, have noticed shedding either when I stop or re-start Propecia...it seems, it does change your hair cycle temporarily when you start. In 4 years of talking with others I have never heard of any "long term" "hair loss" with the drug, I think medically it could not harm your hair..perhaps more Dr's will comment on this..??? I suggest you give it at least a full year. FYI I felt new hair nubs after the 1st month upon starting the drug...so those shed hairs will return.

Hi JoeBlow, In my case, I shed real bad because I transplanted into an area of exsisting hair...so in full honesty I looked thinner on top until about the 10-12 week point, it was then that my resident hair and new grafts started filling back in gradually. Many say 2 weeks is enough, this is not true in "EVERY" case., you could have 3 months of hell waiting. I will also point out that I would do the HT again in a hearbeat..it was well worth the wait.

donor scar and hair, A buzz-cut will definately even out the donor area hair, however you may see the un-healed scar, So depends on personal choice. In my case it took a few scissor style hair cuts (over a few weeks time..) to even the hair length in the back. I chose to keep my HT confidential. I think as time goes on HT will be perceived as an acceptable norm, and perhaps people will not have to "worry" about being detected. Sure beats bein' bald !!

Your surgery sounds awsome !! I am sure you will have excellent results too. My question is....How short did Dr. Shapiro want the front of your hair ...pre-op ??... I have heard some docs want a Buzz cut to go plant between previous grafts. Thanks for sharing your story !!!!!

Ditto what Mike said. The "hair club" hairdressers were very friendly, and perhaps they were just baiting me a bit, commented "this natural hair looks so much nicer than a rug". I would be very careful to "not" cut the back very short till the short hair surrounding the scar grows out...the hair "shelf" still looks better than a visable scar, unless of course you have told your friends etc..or dont care. Once it healed it was very hard to find my scar. Once my HT grew out, nobody had a clue as to my having any HT work performed and I go to my "old" regular hairdresser, or if in a hurry, one of the quickie places such as Supercuts.

Frederick, Excellent story, it is actually truly amazing at the results a veteren HT Dr. can achieve, without a doubt a confidence builder for men that care about thier hair. Just having a frontal hairline to frame your face (even a thin one) makes an impact. Society is gradually catching on to newer HT procedures, older plug surgeries were sure a rough way to start the clock ticking. Cheers !

Sharp, You will get differing answers on that question, Surgeon skill, amount of scalp stretch/elasticity, # of procedures are all factors. I have only had 1 HT appx 2 years ago, my scar has faded to match my flesh coloring and is very very hard to find, I personally would have no problem with a 2nd procedure - if I were basing the scar damage on my 1st HT. Some guys have had as many as 5-6 procedures or more, naturally the odds increase with quantity of surgeries as to scar damage. Do you have dense donor area hair ? I think overall "any" possible HT patient needs to get several opinions on donor supply vs. coverage expected. If your ratio of (hair) supply/demand is good, and you get a veteran Physician...you join the pro-HT group. If you have poor donor supply and unrealistically big expectations for coverage....you get the increased scarring and unsatisfying results. Then when you run out of donor hair, life sucks !! You become a whiner and blamer. So be careful up front. Good Luck !!

Arpma, Your experiencing "hair shock" and it happens quite commonly with HT, it did to me too !!, after 6 weeks - 12 weeks following HT you can look worse !!, in my case it all grew back by 6 months. Anyone transplanting into areas that currently has pre-exsisting hair...beware this happens. Its as if the hair "jumps ship" during the healing process, after the ship heals the hair jumps back aboard !! If your pre-exsisting hair is really weak and/or ready to fall out anyways..it may not come back. Originally, I freaked out too, but all is well now. Good Luck !