Time to do something

I agree! Of the three companies I'm looking at in my opinion HIS had the least natural looking hairlines. They looked too severe. The other two I'm looking at appear to have the faded hairline down. NHI and GLI have produced some great faded hairlines from what I've seen. I've seen a few guys in person who were products of GLI. I do agree that one must be very careful with the hairline. NHI is supervised by a doctor and the doctor who did my hair transplant said he would supervise if I had it done at GLI since it is close to him.

Just as important, if you have seen individuals with SMP which facility did it? That can make a huge difference. I agree some look fake and terrible. However there are a handful of companies out there providing a very natural look.

BHT are far riskier in my opinion with an even lower yield that traditional hair transplants. My question still stands, how many individuals have you seen in person who have had SMP? Thanks

How many individuals have you seen in person who have had it done? Were they individuals with or without hair? I've seen several with and without hair and in my opinion unless I was told they had it done I'd have never known. Hair transplant doctors are now recommending it for patients with limited donor supply that want to beef up the apperance of density.

If you follow my previous posts you will understand. I don't have cosmetically acceptable density due to the terrible results from the first two surgeries with the first doctor. I need something to lessen the contrast between scalp and hair to make it look fuller and SMP won't wash out while swimming and need to be applied daily. I don't beleive my scar is too bad. I just need the appearance of more density. I only need it in the top/front 2/3 of my scalp.

As much as I’d like a trip to Italy that is not in my budget. If this is the person in Milan I’ve already heard about her and I’m sure she does beautiful work. If the ink she is using is superior any thoughts on why facilities here in the U.S. aren’t using it? Golden Eye doesn’t sound like an Italian Company so I'm guessing she gets her pigments from here. I wonder if they are so much better if a facility state side would consider using pigments from that company? I’m told the places I contacted don’t use inks that change colors either. They may fade but don’t turn an odd color.

My understanding is the process was done deeper under the skin in the past than it is now so damaging the follicle should not be a problem. Shockloss wouldn't prevent me from having SMP however, I'd like to know if that is a possibility so I'm prepared for it and know what is going on. Are there any other questions you beleive I should ask?

Scar5-I'd love to to know what the gems were you learned about. This may help me make up my mind whether I want to go through with this and if so which facility. Please private message me if you'd rather communicate that way. I haven't really formed an opinion of any of the three I requested information from. I will say from the examples I saw on HIS website the hairlines looked a little severe to me. I'll post the questions I sent them below. 1. Approximately how long will the ink last before a touch up is needed? 2. If the ink fades does it just lighten or does it turn a different color? 3. If it fades will it stay sharp or does it blur? 4. Will the ink bleed? 5. Is detail given to the hairline to taper and feather it so it is not a harsh hairline which looks like an ink helmet? 6. Will the dots be small and far enough apart to look natural? 7. Can a 3D effect be accomplished so it doesn’t look flat and one dimensional? 8. Will care be taken to place the dots between the hair and not on it or close enough to it to damage a hair follicle? 9. Will this procedure cause shock loss? 10. Can gray be sprinkled in with it? 11. I have hair and won’t require as many dots as a bald individual and I’m only covering a small area- ? of the front top of my scalp, will the procedure be priced accordingly vs. a full head procedure? 12. What would I need to do to prep for this procedure? 13. What would the approximate cost be? 14. Will the color be matched to my own hair? 15. Will more than one session be required and if so how far apart? 16. How much do touch ups cost?

Testosterone will help sexual issues. It can help libido. It is somewhat effective for ED but ED medication is probably better for that. I'm not a big fan of Propecia either. We have DHT in our bodies for a reason. It is the most potent form of testosterone which gives male charactaristics. You don't want it too high but you also don't want it low. Medium range is best. Terrible results from Epstein and I receive private messages from others saying the same thing. Stopping testosterone would most likely lower your DHT but if you are low in testosterone you probably don't want to go off HRT. Many studies have shown men who have higher levels of testosterone live longer, have lower rates of heart disease and stroke. At one time it was thought testosterone caused prostate cancer but there is no evidence to support that anywhere. In fact current thinking is that high levels of estrogen may cause it. As we age our testosterone declines and our estogen rises. Men are not designed to have high levels of estrogen in their bodies. I think you should stay on HRT and maybe try a low dose of Propecia to get your DHT to a level you are comfortable with. That's my two cents.

No Dr. Rassman's office never responded. I wouldn't be concerned about GLI not wanting to answer my questions in writting if I hadn't already had a phone consultation and a face to face meeting with the owner. These were just follow up questions.

WOW! Same here! I went on HRT a few years ago. I switched from topical to injectable and got seborrheic dermatitis around my nose. My understanding is with more testosterone there is more oil production which causes that condition. I put a cream on my nose that got rid of it. Go to a dermatologist and let them know you are on HRT. They can give you something that will take care of all of those conditions. I had two doctors who had exact opposite opinions on Propecia. I was left to decide on my own what to do. My decision was made when it did funky things to my libido. We need DHT for a reason. Maybe not high levels but we need it at certain levels. Maybe you could consider taking a low dose of Propecia to lower it a bit but not to levels low enough to cause libido issues.

My understanding is he is a very good doc.

For what it is worth I sent emails to Good Look Ink, New Hair Institute (Dr. Rassman) and HIS early last week with some questions about their procedure. None of them responded so I sent a second email asking what the typical turnaround time was for a response. The only one that has responded is Good Look Ink and they won’t answer questions in writing they want to answer it over the phone which raises an eyebrow. If I go through with this I hope the procedure is better than their customer service.

Bill-I understand your position and why you did what you did. We need to stick to facts. It breaks my heart that I still receive private messages from guys who have gone to Dr. Epstien and had poor results. Guys who have drained their bank accounts and 401K with nothing to show for it. He has offered them "repair" surgeries just like he did with me but no refund. This is so sad and tragic.

I must have missed some of his posts or not known there was misinformation in them. If that is the case then I understand. I’ve been honest about my results and not always a cheerleader for hair transplants and you never kicked me off. I can relate to him. He is bitter and devastated after what he went through. I hope everyone here sticks to facts though so everyone is getting a clear picture of the industry, good and bad.

We may not all agree with each other but I find it concerning that the Baldreality2012 was banned from here. How do we know we are getting all viewpoints if some are not allowed to speak?

Considering I do not look good with a shaved head, I don't have enough density to be cosmetically acceptable and I'm out of donor supply what would you suggest I do so I can remove my hair piece? I'm open to suggestions. The only thing I can think of is concealer and SMP. SMP won't come off while swimming like a concealer. After a lot of research the only negative I can find about SMP is that it can fade in three to four years. It doesn't turn some odd color but it simply fades

My experience has not been favorable either other than the fact I was offered two free surgeries from Dr. Shapiro. I have hair but look like a severely balding guy with very low density hair. I don't understand how that can be after 9000 grafts and only the front 2/3 of my scalp addressed. My only hope if I ever want to ditch the hair piece is SMP and concealer.

While I am not happy at the present time with the density of my hair transplants I need to say I've had four and my scar is minimal. I can't see it unless I look for it. I asked my stylist if she could see it and she said it was thin. I think the outcome depends on the individual and the surgeon involved. I do agree that I beleive the majority of patients are not happy with their results unless maybe they are low on the NW scale and those guys are usually young and their hair loss progresses further over time.

Evidently it did not capture the link but it is a doctor's Facebook page called {Link removed by moderator)

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Have you seen any in person? If so what is your opinion and where were they done?

I have seen two individuals in person who have had this. One with hair and one without. Both looked very good to me.

I feel your pain bro. I’ve been through hell with the hair transplant nightmare. I had two terrible ones from a highly recommended doctor on this site. Fortunately, Dr. Ron Shapiro heard about my case and stepped in and gave me two more surgeries for free. His did produce more results than the first two. My feelings about hair transplants are somewhat neutral. In my case and in the case of many other guys we never come close to achieving what would be considered cosmetically acceptable density. Take me for instance. I have hair where I didn’t before but it is nowhere near enough to look acceptable and if I go out in the sun or get it wet forget it. I am going to be forced to use a concealer and probably have scalp micro pigmentation. I do believe with those two extra items combined with the hair I now have up on the top it will look acceptable. I think most guys need to prepare themselves for the fact that the results they get from a hair transplant (unless they are very low on the NW scale) are going to be less than what they had expected. However, I do believe with SMP and concealer it will give the extra illusion of density to look good. If a guy goes into this with those expectations he should not be disappointed, but if he goes into it thinking he will have one surgery and have a nice dense head of hair he will be in for a major disappointment.

I wasn't aware this was Dr. Rassman. I must have missed that on the website. So he has an office in Los Angeles and Chicago?