imissthebarber

Clearly doctors accept that this can happen and is not just the product of over-scrutiny. I hope it works out for you hairtomorrow and you don't get any sides from hiking your dosage to this new level.

The Emp I'm sorry to hear that this hasn't worked out how you'd hoped. Have you consulted with any other docs? You haven't got anything to lose and it would be wise to make sure you are really comfortable with any forward steps before you take them. Like you said the down time can be really tough - much more than people expect before they hit the chair. Btw how old are you, and has your hair loss stabilised? I'm asking because I'm trying to figure whether FUE only might be a good policy for the future. Pro's are no risk of scar getting worse Con's are there might not be enough hair (this relates more to covering possible future loss rather than beefing up the frontal area.) Also some other docs don't require you to shave the recipient which would likely improve your experience of the downtime for strip (considerably) or FUE (after several weeks when the hair grows back to 1.5 inches needed to cover your current scar).

I think the usual arguments for doing FUT first are: <UL TYPE=SQUARE> <LI>cost <LI> getting a big session done first time - more applicable to higher NW's I think there could be a slight difference in your overall donor as discussed above if you did FUE then FUT rather than the other way around. However, I don't think it would be a huge difference. (This is because proportionately more grafts would likely be done via FUE if FUE is done first.) If and when FUT was done it would yield less grafts per cm/sq but you would have already used those grafts in FUE so they would not be wasted. Believe me having a strip scar is a big deal and I would avoid it if you can. It restricts your styling options severely even if the scar heals fine and doesn't stretch. If you want more grafts some docs do FUE over multiple days...

Although this is a big improvement I think the scar is still clearly detectable at this length (which is very short). The issue is not just that the hair is missing but the color of the scar does not match the surrounding skin. Some people have reported that the effect of this can be reduced but not removed by the use of products like bio-oil.

Dude I seriously think HT should be your last option as it is a big expense and you will be scarred (with FUE there are still scars just not as obvious as the strip scar.) What I'm saying is that you should trying shaving first, plenty of guys get comfortable with the natural shaved look. Don't rule it out until you've tried it at least.

Non-concealed photos would help, also ones that give a perspective of your face to illustrate how much it has receded. I think you could brush it up just at the hairline and use a product like fiber that doesn't have to detract from density like gel can. (Gel causes more of a wet look which is more see-through.) Thanatopsis_awry had a great post about styling transplanted hair a couple of months back, you should check it out: Styling transplanted hair

I wasn't able to properly view this photo, any one else having troubles? There is a natural hairloss pattern that leaves a frontal tuft as an island so what you are proposing could potentially work. However, a lot of people might ask how much of an improvement is that really? Also, once you start having any work done the risk is that it could potentially look unnatural which is not something you face right now. I would definitely discuss this with the doc and be frank about your financial situation. If it turns out you are not happy and you can't afford another procedure then you could end up worse off than you are.

That one made me laugh! I hope you didn't get hurt too bad.

If LMS has an "anti Hair-Transplant" agenda then let's not forget that this forum is funded by HT physicians. No one ever gets a last warning for being too much of a cheerleader.

I remember Mr Leboeuf from several years at Chelsea (a time when i didn't know about HT's) but I absolutely do not remember the scar. How old is the scar? If he had it when he was at Chelsea then perhaps it's a sign that ppl really don't notice. On the other hand although it is quite long, it doesn't rival the size of strips being taken now which would curve up and round the sides quite a lot further and likely be more noticable.

Mike - best of luck whatever you decide. However as I said in my previous post, and Dr Mohmand has confirmed in his post, you should proceed with caution. As you say yourself the crown is a luxury but if you have significant further loss as you get older then filling in other areas further forward may be a necessity not a luxury. As the doc says you are meds at the moment which masks the true progression of your hairloss but the meds could gradually wear off, or you might develop side effects which mean you have to stop taking them. Ultimately none of us can predict the future. Anyway, best of luck man.

I agree that the ideal situation is that the doc will remove the 1st scar in the 2nd surgery leaving just 1. However, you need to check with a doc whether this is possible in your case. From what I have read if the first scar is badly located (esp. below the ridge at the back of your head) this may not be the wisest course of action.

IMO you should not do the crown. As you've probably read on this site the crown is like a black hole. It just gets bigger and bigger. It can reach as far down as the top of the ears which for you would be exposing a vast new area. Also there is no natural pattern of male hair loss which leaves an island of hair in the middle of the crown. So if you start on the crown you are committed to it. The crown can reach 100cm2 or more so to get even thin density you are still looking at 3000+ grafts. You've already had 4350 with a stretched scar so the more you take the higher the risk or worse stretching. Hopefully the meds will hold the crown for you for a few years and when you're older more people your own age will be losing in the crown and it might not bother you so much. Also you won't be committed to a course of action which will compromise your donor area.

DO NOT DO THIS! I'm not sure where to begin with saying how bad an idea this is. FUE is not scar-less so you will end up with lots of tiny dot scars in areas which are not in the safe zone. I think the combined weird looking ness of the stripped out, FUE'd out area plus these dot scars will leave you very unhappy. Additionally, it is a waste of money to transplant non-safe hairs. I would imagine that the attrition rate for these hairs could well be higher as well. dermmatch and toppik are a big hassle to do all the time. tattoo dots fade to unnatural colours even if they do manage to make them look natural to begin with. Plus God forbid you ever need chemo what will you do then with the scar, moth eaten look, dot scars out of the safe zone plus tattoo dots?

Assuming that this is your first strip surgery then the best advice is that you should be starting a couple of months before and doing a few minutes every day. Don't freak out if you miss a day but the biggest benefits come with doing it regularly (like a lot of exercises). Jotronic has a video about this which illustrates how to do it. The main thing is that you can feel the scalp moving. If you've had a strip surgery before you should wait at least 6 months (I found I needed 10). When you start make sure you aren't stretching the old scar. If you're going for FUE then my understanding is that you don't need to do the exercises. Scalp exercises mean that <UL TYPE=SQUARE> <LI> more grafts can be extracted or, <LI> the same number of grafts can be extracted and the scar closed with less tension. Option 2 gives a better chance for the scar healing as thin as possible. Often in practice the result will be a combination of the 2.

Think of this as a what if you should ask yourself if you are considering surgery (especially strip). If you look at this video you'll get a good idea of how small a donor area can get and how big a potential recipient area can be (donor section around 0:24s to 0:28s). Hopefully everyone can see that the potential recipient area includes the top, crown and large areas on the sides and there is no way that the limited donor area could provide adequate coverage for all of that. Someone already advanced to this stage would probably be better off not bothering with a HT. If hair loss really bothers them then considering a system would likely be a better option. If they have to have surgery then it should be extremely conservative with a very recessed hairline & leave the crown. If you're thinking "my hair loss is not that bad". Can you be certain that you won't recess to that point? Propecia can wear off after a while and it doesn't work for everyone. If you have an aggresive surgery now will there be enough to fill down the sides towards the ears? Can you be sure it will look natural? Also bear in mind that if the donor area looks narrow now it will look a heck of a lot narrower after 3cm has been taken out. (This would provide around 7200 grafts, assuming density 80/cm2, strip 30cm long) This would likely be over 2 or 3 sessions. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8291327.stm I don't think this guy's donor is unusually narrow. I do think that we can kid ourselves that things would never reach this stage.

Glad to read you are so happy with your results - I know what a tough journey it has been for you mate. The photos do show what a change has taken place. Nice one.

It looks like you can get the creme at the uk version of amazon. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samy-Fat-Hair-Creme-Thickening/dp/B001GRTHK0 Thana - thanks for the informative post, I'm sure plenty of guys will be giving these products a try!

I agree that talking to a counsellor would be a good idea. I'm pretty sure that they wouldn't laugh at you and ask if you are serious. If they did then IMO it is the sort of thing for which they could face serious disciplinary action. Clearly this has come as a big shock to you and most guys on here have gone through the pain of MPB. Everything might seem pretty bleak right now but there are lots of options for what you can do about it. This is both in terms of 1. how it actually looks and 2. in terms of how you deal with the negative feelings you have about that. You'll get through this one way or another dude. Mike

Back in the mid 90's when there was a phase when lots of guys bleached their hair I tried that and I think if anything the hair ended up coarser. That was pre-MPB for me though! I definitely agree that it would lessen contrast to light-coloured skin. Blond hair catches the eye more - most guys and girls probably know this instinctively but it has been scientifically proven that the eye recognises yellow colours more quickly. So people may give your hair a little more attention without even realising that they are doing it.

Isn't that the same thing that is used to remove hairs altogether? How can you be sure you are thinning them out not killing them altogether? Also do they grow back thicker again in later cycles, in other words, do you need repeated treatments?

You should discuss this in detail with a surgeon. Ask them (and satisfy yourself) whether this plan will look natural: a) from all angles b) in all lighting c) with further hair loss d) with different hairstyles and any combination of a-d If there is further hair loss the pattern you have drawn might be overbalanced toward the front and if so people are likely to notice that.

Emp - 4500 will definitely cause significant tension. I'm surprised that your reaction to this seemed negative though. Over time laxity returns to the surrounding area, so if you had a scar excision, IMO the scar would definitely be closed with a lot less tension and therefore there is a high probability that it could be improved. Also keep an eye out for developments in the use of extracellular matrix in scar healing over the next few years. Re-reading your post I see where you are coming from, I guess most folks on this path want more grafts. You could always do some in-person consults to assess how many grafts you could get for a follow up. You may need to plan for a further scar excision/repair 12-18 months after your next HT if you go that way.

You might want to consider FUE to establish the shadow in the front area and then shave to a#3 or #2 if possible or if you're very lucky a #1 if the FUE doesn't show in the donor area at those lengths. IMO your situation now is a LOT better than it would be if you had to deal with a scar showing or even the anxiety that it might show. You have to remember that it must look natural and with those numbers and that area to cover this is something that would take a lot of skill and possibly a little luck as well. If it doesn't look natural again you will be a LOT worse off than you are now.

Sounds like a good idea. Are you a tech in disguise?