thanatopsis_awry

Haha, ya....intimacy and the HT can be difficult enough -- no need to throw a heaping pile of dermmatch stains into the mix once the doldrums of a HT have already been dealt with.

I must say that I have a newfound perspective on hairloss/restoration as I've dealt with life and lived life post-HT; not a bad thing, just yet another new thing.

Btw, thanks to Balody for reminding me...I whipped out Magnum when need be and the date was a success.

Thanks for the support guys; really appreciated, truly, and helps a great deal.

I'm basically forcing myself to not over-analyze my hair in the moments leading up to going out -- which is tough to do for a hair geek .

Also doing what Mike mentioned and styling my hair forward a bit more just to make it "out of sight out of mind" for my own comfort.

We'll see *just* how good the dates go before I work on uploading pics, HairH...maybe can justify it by "showing a model of hairline density we all strive for"...

Aaron, gl man this weekend, as well, and keep posted. Wearing cool hats have gotten *really* popular and fashionable, so I'm sure you'll pull it off with aplomb and it'l all be good -- unless your blinddate has the personality of a rock and could play linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys, in which case insta-take the hat off, let your babies breathe, and RUN.

Great post, BadUK, really cool montage of pics!

The road of the HT has been long but mostly glorious; however, for the first time since my HT I'm battling with self-consciousness and fears over my hair.

When my hair was thoroughly died blonde the resulting scalp contrast did the trick, but in but a matter of weeks with the way my hair grows the effect has subsided.

I have a first date later today with a girl I think is really cool, but whom when we first met a bit ago my hairline/hair was stronger. I'm sweating bullets and scared to hell that she will identify me with having bad, thin hair.

I ordered dermmatch, which I think will do *just* the trick since I basically just require imroved contrast in the zone behind my hairline...but, the batch hasn't arrived and so I'm flying au naturale...

I'm pretty nervous as to how my hair will look tomorrow, and the effect it might have. I'm going to pull out all the stops from my patented grooming and styling manifesto, but even then....

Just had to get this off my chest. Hopefully, some see-thruness in my hairline won't look too off-kilter to her for a guy spiking/pushing up his hair....

I think what it boils down to, John, is basically what Bill said at the end. I'd also agree w/ hairthere that your pre-ops would indicate a "home run" result in the making; regardless, nothing concrete can be concluded right now.

If you're an early grower you can make bold declarations as to the actual result; but for everyone else, you really gotta wait things out a bit more before making a bold declaration as to what your *true result* is.

I think you realize this, it's just difficult to actually go through the process until you reach the points when your actual result shines through; and to date you've had what looks to be minimal growth, so only your worst fears are being stoked.

Everyone gets concerned and worried in your spot, even people earlier on in the process. But really the only option is to ride things out -- wait till you get the result you had figured/hoped to be getting, and if not then cross that bridge at that time. But to worry *to* much about that bridge right now, as if you're already crossing it when you really aren't, is just going to cause yourself *excessive* worry.

I think we all feel worried throughout the process at some point, and being in your shoes I think anyone would have worries; the thing is to just now allow excessive-worry until you really know truly what you've got.

As promised, here are the four pics, which John sent me to resize and upload for him:

John did send me his pics. I will be posting them shortly tonight.

It is difficult to analyze someone at 7months out; as BadHairUK, particularly, has noted, it is a long process for all, and a *very* long process for many.

I was a quick grower, and I basically had my "end" result in terms of density by ~7months, but even then 2+ years out and I'm experiencing changes.

I will post Johns pics shortly, and all can see -- he has clear density issues from what I can see, but can you really call it an issue when he is but 7months out. That is really what we're talking about.

My personal belief is that John will experience his primary growth boom from now through the end of the year. This is what I'd expect.

The first thing I thought when I saw Spex's pics was that you seemed almost identical to hairthere, even in the charachteristics of your hair, though you seem to be in an even better position if memory serves me. Good guy to compare yourself to, for sure.

Re: maturation..it's a looong process; I'm 2years post-op and in the recent months I have still experienced a further softening, and my hair has become much straighter.

Whether to get a HT or "simply" buzz your head is a tough call, and I think every young guy must try out the latter.

I honestly believe that a strategic FUE session to build the constructs of a hairline, etc., to then *buzz* down is extremely attractive.

I love being able to style my hair in cool ways, but the HT certainly complicates life, especially as you are forced to contemplate future surgeries (which I'm currently having to do).

The grass is always greener on the other side, but I do wonder "what if" I did the above...would I have moved behind hairloss more than I otherwise have? What effect would this have had on me...

Still happy I went the route of the HT, all in all, and I suspect I'll be even happier after I bite the bullet on my next one.

Looks fine; though to tell where the grafts went, but looks fine. I hope you end up growing well, bro.

Are you joking? It's warped if you truly don't think his HT was a *monumental* success. Let's be real.

He chooses to have his hair look like that because he has the ability to do so, an ability granted by the HT.

If you don't think his HT was a huge success than I don't doubt that your HT was a failure, because *any* HT would be a failure with that mindset.

Look into a repair, man, do *your* research before you spew the foil to a shill hyping up a hack clinic. The point is to advance the HT and shine light on those who perform it the best; whether a hack is pumped up or a great doc is hacked down, it detracts from people actually getting quality advice to lead them to a positive decision and HT.

Should be a really robust result, def post an update or two!

Did Dr. Mohmand feel you were really secure to not "go bald" and actually experience MPB? It seems like you said that you simply right now have a "high hairline" and "temples" that runs in your family?

It's not your fault, John, but I don't even want to assign "fault" here, because regardless of what your result will be....you *will* improve from where you are, so nothing bad has happened; I would be beyond stunned if you did not improve in both density and naturalness.

Styling is underplayed and overplayed at the same time. It's importance is underplayed; but how tough it is to actually style it is overplayed. I'm not saying it's some perfect thing that you "must" style your hair to make it look good w/ a HT, but the steps to maximize your HT are the same steps that will make your hair look its best regardless, HT or no HT.

I'll PM you my email addy later tonight.

Look at it like this, though:

Bad Styling + No MPB = bad hair

Bad Styling + MPB + HT = bad hair x2

Good Styling + NO MPB = flawless hair

Good Styling + MPB + HT = good hair

Scissors touched on this, and I don't know if this applies to you necessarily, and I'm not faulting you if it does, but I get the sense that many guys go into the HT with the expectation of simply wanting to have hair where you formerly didn't, and specifically with the expectation in mind that the basic look of their hair in years past will be smoothly replicated in basic.

Unless you have minimal loss, and/or get a good chunk of grafts, this won't be the case -- you won't have the head of hair you had X years ago, and you won't have just a lush head of hair that you can do nothing to and it'l look 100% like it always did.

Don't panic, though, because your result is *NOT* in yet -- this is undeniable! Save up your panic for if you are 3, 4 more months down the road and you feel the same way. Right now, IMHO, you're just going to drive yourself crazy, unnecessarily so.

John, is your primary issue a lack of density or a lack of naturalness? What looks off-kilter that you can't see from pictures? Do you notice the negatives when you look in a mirror?

Even if you were an early grower, and it sounds like you definitely aren't, but if you were, your maturation process has *many* months to go in improving the "naturalness" of your HT. Since you pretty much aren't an early grower, you should expect impactful changes in density over the next several months, in tandem with maturation to come.

I'm pretty critical about HTs when I evaluate them -- post some pics or PM me if you want. I'll give you my honest take on what I'd expect your end result to look like, and how you currently match up with that expectation/goal.

I mean, I'm pretty elated with my HT, but if I couldn't or didn't style it in the various ways that I do I'd prolly feel pretty dissapointed.

More and more I think the majority of HTs performed by an elite doctor, assuming similiar graft/baldness ratios, could look equally excellent, and what seperates the "OMFGWOW" results from the people with some dissapointment is simply in how they go about styling their hair; which I think to be unfortunate since this doesn't mean you can't style your hair fashionably and it doesn't mean that it's difficult to do.

I guess I'll only be able to prove my hypothesis by opening up a HT salon and styling guys' HTs for them....

Ya, "catch up" may have been a bit premature, but Janna, as my wife, you surely must know I can be one to jump the gun on things.

It really is a cool idea to put up information on the technicians, though.

Looks really good, and he seems to be making the most out of his HT. Great solution with a nominal number of grafts.

Looks good, he's come a long way in but 1 session as he was truly balded pre-op.

I'd *strongly* encourage the patient to grow out his hair some, though. I think the length it is at now is *the* most brutal for a HT, and he isn't able to enjoy the benefits of a layering effect or the full surgical skill put into creating an illusion of density.

http://hair-restoration-info.c...21087683/m/742104854

I think this is what you're looking for in terms of the session size, baldness/cm being covered. This case might be a bit larger than what you need, and of a higher density, but I think it's roughly what you're seeking.

You won't see a lot of guys with cases totally paralelling yours...I don't think...if you do, it will be repeat HT guys who are in the same boat as you, which I think to be relatively atypical.

In a spot like this I think you're at a similar point as Balboa -- time to dig in deep with the clinics you have narrowed it down to, and ask them for cases similarly mirroring yours.

Being a young guy and getting a HT makes meds *such* an integral piece to the puzzle. I'd def agree that with that said, and your potential donor thinning, getting on meds, seeing how you react, then re-evaluating would be wise.

And a SMG FUE session would certainly be world-class, so you may want to consult with them anyways just to start familiarizing yourself with them early on.

Ya, true, I do agree with most of that. I honestly don't consider my hairline to be that low, though, but I could be wrong -- I've just never thought my hairline to be a low one or that bold. I think when I style it grown-out it looks bolder and lower than it actually is.

Someone else recently noted that my hairline seemed low, but I've honestly never compared my immed post-ops directly up against Jotronics or anyone elses to really determine.

Funny that I made a mental note earlier that I thought MikeTheDane had a lower/bolder hairline than me.

Like almost every other young guy who gets a HT I'm on meds -- so I do agree with you that the doomsday scenario likely won't be true, but this just reinforces why we (read: young guys) get HTs to begin with.

If I "advance to NW6" I will simply get another HT, and be extra-happy I had one in my early-youth so I'm ahead of the game.

The same could even likely be said if I were to go NW7 -- and let's not forget just how distant a chance this is.

**If my MPB were to go apecrap down the road and I went to some violent NW7+ with vastly lowered sides I'd just have to accept and deal with it at that age, if it were to happen.

But this very situation would be EQUALLY as negative if I squandered a decade of my youth and got a HT when I was 32, and this could likley be said even if I waited years longer down the road to end up stepping up to the plate to get a HT.

Just my opinion, of course, but this isn't even going into the severe destruction MPB wrecks on the very fabric of a young guy's life, and the value you have to place into simply defeating that by the act itself.

I really wish I remembered to save the thread, and I'll search for it some, but a poster took the time to write out a very simple, very effective breakdown on the logic (and logical fallacies) that are so often bandied about in generalizations on whether a young guy "should" or "shouldn't" get a HT. It's like breaking down a LSAT or SAT question and annoyingly difficult to do, but he did it really well, breaking down all the potential scenarios and their consequences.

If anyone remembers this and might know how to find it plz to be posting.

How is it overkill when I have plenty of hair to combat MPB *if* I happen to continue to bald at an aggressive rate? I had -- and have -- two routes and choices:

a) actually be a balded **freak** at 22 and force myself to be content with a lowered quality of life throughout my youth

**not that 'freak' is a perfectly apt description, but it's a helluva lot closer to the right definition than the fearmongering usage of "freak" for a guy who ends up not being able to get total coverage when he is in his older years because his donor couldn't beat his MPB end-game.

b) look like a normal guy throughout my youth; and, when I get older, and bald in a more *acceptable* fashion, return to beat MPB yet again and have super-normal, good hair as a guy going througout my middle age and older years.

What is wrong with "chasing" hairloss when you will be beating it each step of the way, *if* you even have to take future steps? "Chasing" hairloss is the name of the game.

Seriously, what's with this axiomatic fearmongering from yesteryear about people ending up like "freaks" when they are older and how they will "still care". Of course they would care if they look like freaks, yet how *exactly*, in actuality will they be looking like freaks?

In what possible permutation of scenario am I going to end up looking like a freak? Or the many other young guys who get HTs in a very similar fashion to myself.

Simply because a HT isn't a perfect solution doesn't mean it isn't the best solution.

The Farjo's are clearly a good clinic, but you really need to begin attacking individual clinics yourself and doing the actual consults at this point, I think -- asking them for a detailed prognosis on what they will be operating on you, getting transparent examples of their work that will be mirroring what you will be going in for, etc.

You need and deserve this 2nd surgery to make you mint, so you should be cautious; but be aggressive, as well, and after getting a list of quality, potential clinics, start narrowing down to 1 by way of detailed consults.

Hah, I actually have often thought that there's a certain allure to a HT tech. Back in my youth I think I even had a dream where I married Janna...

But ya, I think SMG's idea to include an informative and thus appreciative bio on their techs is a really good idea all-around, truly.

I know some wonderful, competitvely priced developers quite well so if anyone wants to start doing some HT website rennovations and catch up to SMG lemme know...