AndrewYoung

PCC, Thanks for that. It helps when guys like you, Bill, Jobi, HB and Gorp have looked at the photos and provided some positives. Makes me feel a lot better having experience say so it looks good. Of course, I am looking forward to six months from now, hopefully hearing the same things. I heard back from the patient director today and she forwarded my message on to Pauls to give me all the answers that B had been asking. She mentioned that Doc had two smaller procedures and a couple follow ups going today, so it might be tomorrow before I hear back. Can't wait to know what the final count was!

This may sound odd, but I am hoping a lot of the front ones don't hang on too long. I would prefer they shed and then come back in over time so it appears more natural regrowth. I am kinda nervous about walking into the office after two weeks and having a five o'clock shadow on the front of my new head. ALready trying to figure out a new hair cut to blend it a bit.

Here's something I've always wondered. If the first few rows are singles and behind that we have mutliples, coupled with the fact that we have all been receding for some time, aren't we naturally back in the rows that have twos and threes with our recession? I know my doc did a few 'rows' of singles up front too but wouldn't it actually add to the natural slight recession look if there were twos or threes up front? Also, say I want to go in for a second HT to lower my line a bit. If there are a few rows deep with the singles and then when the line is brought down, do some further twos and threes get mixed in to that original line? Otherwise, don't I have a few rows of singles?

Chromer, I received 3524 grafts last week - crown middle top and brought the hairline down about an inch - borderline NW4. Including everything, more than $11 k but also a good bit under $12k. Of course factor in the maintenance, Propecia or whatever when you are considering the cost but, heck, I wish I would have started that years ago. Looking back, I think knowing Propecia would run $60 or $70 a month didn't appeal to me. Course I didn't know about generic finesteride and the ability to cut the tabs. The cool thing is this is covered under my plan and only cost me $20 for 30 pills (a 120 day supply). To think, I could have saved more hair for $0.20 a day about kills me now. Perhaps I wouldn't have needed 3500 grafts or could have had even greater coverage with the grafts they did harvest. While you are considering the HT, I would go ahead and get on a regimen for saving what you have (and perhaps even reversing some of what you are losing).

I posted this over on the meds board but wanted to ask this here as this side seems to get more current responses: Okay, a question that I can't seen to find an answer to after looking around. Would there be any benefit to an increased amount of finestaride initially? Since I am using the generic and cutting the tablets, would there be any known advantage to taking a double dose or would this in fact be detrimental and caused increased shedding or perhaps worse? I am just thinking that since there isn't any in my system to start, it might actually help bring the DHT level down quickly ya know, kinda like when you first have to take an anabiotic they ask you to double up the first few days? I don't hear of any docs recommending a higher dosage initially so my guess is no but I thought I'd throw that out. The thing that kinda sucks is the shedding that it sounds like Propecia/Proscar initially causes. I've experienced some shock, which I expected since my hair was pretty weak and sick on top from the views I saw of it up close before my procedure , but dang, I don't like the shed. I was kinda hoping to keep more of my hairs to 'cover' more of the new growth areas but with the shedding, I am devising ways to stay out of work longer to allow some regrowth LOL. So, I am grasping at straws trying to figure out a way to get the original hairs to stick around a bit.

Sorry I am posting so late in the eve but I am on some weird sleep schedule since the procedure. Jobi, I am 72 hours out and I want the revised version. I want the 12 Days of HT. Here's my short version thus far. Day 1 - Wow, I can't believe I did this? I look really bizarre with this new hairline and crown. How am I going to keep this from everyone this Easter Sunday when the family gets together. Day 2 - I can't sleep well and all I am thinking about is taking my antibiotics, putting cream, spraying the crap out my hair to keep it clean, etc. Am I really going to look normal enough to go back to work in a week to ten days without anyone knowing? Day 3 - Holy crap, is that a graft that I see floating in the water? What if they all fall out? Okay 72 hours, the rest should be set in place right? etc.... cause that's where I am at right now and I want to know what the next few days and weeks are going to be like. It's the experience of the board that provides my support system on this whole new world to me so, please, give me your expert guidance. I should give some further background and say that when I decided I wanted an HT that I was going to initially TRY and not tell anyone except my wife and my two daughters (who I had a long sit down talk with about how this was just something Dad has wanted to do for a long time, explained everything to them in detail, and how I didn't want them to talk about this in front of others). Of course, I am not niave and think that people aren't going to notice and figure that out. But besides the fact that I kept my head covered, went upstairs to let it breathe about 10 minutes every hour the relatives were here, I think noone knows yet. Oh, and besides my 7 year old whispering in my ear that wasn't it time for me to go up and spray my hair, the girls did great! Man, am I paranoid or what? LOL

Bill, I like that. 'A recovering NW6'. Kinda like AA. I think I am going to use it if you don't mind me stealing it. Although I am a 'recovering NW3v bordering 4' so that is kinda long. I think its probably just better to go with 'Recovering NW4' so I think I'm going with that on my profile! In fact, I am hoping perhaps more would adopt that so I wouldn't have to guess or look over at their blog page to see where they started. I also like how B Spot, Gorpy and others post the hair breakdowns as well. As Pat says, Count Hairs not Grafts (i.e. More slices doesn't make the pizza bigger). I am working on getting my final count and hopefully will have my answer on Monday to add to my posts.

I just posted some day 2 pics with some help from the wife. I shouldn't be amazed that the woman I married is so supportive of me. She told me she was fine with the way I looked but that if this was something I wanted to do for myself, then I should go for it. I think deep down, she knows how much this has bothered me for such a long time. Anyway, hopefully, with her help, I was able to post better day 2 photos. I'll get back to B Spot and others about the graft/hair breakdown, suture line size and all but I would value any thoughts anyone has from the initial photos. I know it's early but is there anything I should have concern about? HB, a shout out to you. Thanks for the spot of confidence! You guys are sure cheaper than a psych! LOL

Okay, a question that I can't seen to find an answer to after looking around. Would there be any benefit to an increased amount of finestaride initially? Since I am using the generic and cutting the tablets, would there be any known advantage to taking a double dose or would this in fact be detrimental and caused increased shedding or perhaps worse? I am just thinking that since there isn't any in my system to start, it might actually help bring the DHT level down quickly ya know, kinda like when you first have to take an anabiotic they ask you to double up the first few days? I don't hear of any docs recommending a higher dosage initially so my guess is no but I thought I'd throw that out. The thing that kinda sucks is the shedding that it sounds like Propecia/Proscar initially causes. I've experienced some shock, which I expected since my hair was pretty weak and sick on top from the views I saw of it up close before my procedure , but dang, I don't like the trend. I was kinda hoping to keep more of my hairs to 'cover' more of the new growth areas but with the shedding, I am devising ways to stay out of work longer to allow some regrowth LOL. So, I am grasping at straws trying to figure out a way to get the original hairs to stick around a bit.

Not that B Spot has asked but, for the record, I am married, straight as an arrow and have no intention of kissing any of you! LOL

B Spot, No hard feelings here. I posted on another thread about my comments so I thought I'd just copy a couple of them over here. I do understand the skepticism toward MHR in general here and as I said somewhere, any chain is going to have its good and bad. I am sure if you took a group of 30 or 40 docs, put them togehther into some cohesive grouping, you are sure to find the same thing within that population. So, if I sometimes come off as a bit defensive that is probably why.I felt like I had a great experience. All the things that you and others have mentioned here were part of my procedure by my Doc, the staff was knowledgeable, I felt completely at ease with her approach, careful attention to detail and really didn't see anything different than what others have said about some of the top docs mentioned here. She placed a good number of grafts herself, the techs that worked on me seemed very professional and my experience was no different than what many have said about some of the top docs here. I did get to meet a couple of past patients and I was really impressed with the results I saw in person. The true test, of course, is time. Healing, how the final outcome looks etc but so far so good. I've also heard others address the hairmill issue. I was the only surgery scheduled the day I went, which was nice given that I had all the techs and the Docs full attention from 8 until after 5 pm. I do know from talking with them that they do sometimes schedule two a day but this is normally when the procedures are only 1000 to 1500 per patient. I even saw the board and from the three times I went in to talk to them before my HT, I only saw glimpses of one other patient in process. So, at least here in Denver, I don't think the hairmill comment applies. I plan on keeping my blog updated - for good or bad. Just as you and some of the other regular contributors here I want this to be education and if there is a good doc or a bad doc, I think people need to know.

Bill, Thank you for that. I am not skeptical, I just made the incorrect assumption that since the Doc I used wasn't on the list of recommended that perhaps the blog wasn't open to me. I appreciate the welcome I've received from you and hairbank. You two, along with Mrjb have been very friendly in your comments and I've read a lot of comments by both of you and indeed found everything you said very helpful. It is truly nice to have a community that provides good, accurate feedback. I was taken aback just a bit by B Spots commments about the MHR thread. I was simply responding to someone that was asking about Dr. Pauls and felt like his response was a bit disingenuine without knowing anything about my procedure. I found it interesting that he mentioned the number of grafts, which is what most people write within their signature or comments and not the number of hairs. Still, I've asked those questions and hope to update with a response I get from them on Monday. I do understand the skepticism toward MHR in general here and as I said somewhere, any chain is going to have its good and bad. I am sure if you took a group of 30 or 40 docs, put them togehther into some cohesive grouping, you are sure to find the same thing within that population. So, if I sometimes come off as a bit defensive that is probably why.I felt like I had a great experience. All the things that you and others have mentioned here were part of my procedure by my Doc, the staff was knowledgeable, I felt completely at ease with her approach, careful attention to detail and really didn't see anything different than what others have said about some of the top docs mentioned here. She placed a good number of grafts herself, the techs that worked on me seemed very professional and my experience was no different than what many have said about some of the top docs here. The true test, of course, is time. Healing, how the final outcome looks etc but so far so good. I think the comments Starz was making weren't really addressed to me specifically. He was more just blasting people like you. I think he mentioned not trusting anyone that has more postings than hairs replaced which I think is a completely ludicrous and ingnorant statement. It is people like you that take a great deal of your valuable time to help people like me that I really appreciate. I know you aren't compensated, but dang, you should be for the work you put into this board. I plan on staying around for awhile. I am a big believer in giving back what you've received and this board was a big help to me in preparing me for a the big day and continues to help me post op. Whether good or bad, I am not running away. I simply want to provide honest feedback to my experience. If someone thinks I got a bad deal, that's there opinion. Finally, just another comment about why I didn't go to Harris. It was really a personal decision. He is more into the FUE methods and I wasn't real comfortable with that. I know he'll do the strip though. Say what you will, but I kinda liked the idea of a younger doc (6 yrs) that I felt was experienced enough to know the good from the bad, up to date on current technology, and to be honest, a woman. I just somehow felt that a woman would have a better idea of what looked good to other women. I know this is probably more fiction than fact but that was what my gut told me. Also, it wasn't more costly. In fact, I mentioned that I received a bit of bonus thanks to my close groupings they were able to pull an additional 500+ out of the small piece they took and I wasn't charged for the extra. Others haven't really talked about cost and I won't either unless someone wants to private message me but I will say I spent no more than what Harris would have assessed. I've also heard others address the hairmill issue. I was the only surgery scheduled the day I went, which was nice given that I had all the techs and the Docs full attention from 8 until after 5 pm. I do know from talking with them that they do sometimes schedule two a day but this is normally when the procedures are only 1000 to 1500 per patient. I even saw the board and from the three times I went in to talk to them before my HT, I only saw glimpses of one other patient in process. So, at least here in Denver, I don't think the hairmill comment applies. I've rambled here way too long but I just wanted to again thank you for your welcome and your efforts. I've posted some initial photos and I do truly appreciate any feedback and I while I said I get defensive at times, you'll find I also have a pretty thick skin so if there is any constructive criticisms, I can honestly would appreciate it. I know I am only beginning my path and I am here to continue to learn just like everyone else and I would like to help. My Hair Loss Blog

Sorry, new here, two days in now and I keep forgetting to link to my blog. It's on my profile in case you're interested in looking. For some reason Mrjb, your posts are showing up on my responses twice! My Hair Loss Blog

Don't get me wrong, I am jealous of the guys that have a bit of curl and some thickness. Hopefully, the finesteride will bring some of the weaklings back to life and thicken them up a bit.

Dang B, I was feeling fairly welcome until I read your scalding of me. I can at least appreciate what hairbank is saying and agree. I've been to some good Outback steakhouses and I've also been to some crappy ones. I'll be the first to admit, I was apprehensive about them from quietly following this forum for the previous few months before my HT. I have posted some pics- keep in mind I am a terrible photographer, the 3524 number was grafts, not hairs. Sitting there all day listening to the radio, instead of watching a movie or doing something else, I didn't count but I believe the 3524. In fact, they originally had 3000 incisions and Pauls came back in to make the remaining 500. Most of mine were groups of 2's and 3's with a good number 4's - I'll get the exact breakdown of the number of hairs for you when I get back with them - I know they told me that day but I was too tired and ready to go home to write the exact number down. I'll also get the donor strip dimensions - I do know that it was a fairly thin one at least from what they were used to and from what they said. Apparently, I had a real good donor area as far as number of grafts but my hair is pretty fine. As I've said, I posted some day 1 pics that I took tonight and I'll be sure to post the more professional ones they took when I get the disc at my suture removal. I was merely responding to someone asking about Pauls (this was the original query right?), hairbank informed me of my error in reviving an old post (sorry, new to posting just about anywhere) but thank you for making me feel so welcome. My Hair Loss Blog

If you cut the Propecia into quarters, aren't you only getting 0.25 mgs? Not enough right? The Proscar is a 5 mg tablet and cutting it into quarters gives you 1.25 mg - 0.25 more than the Propecia. I had no idea until Bill said something about 72 hours. I am going to stick with the every day for at least a year, it's my money, right? lol. Besides, it's comforting to know that if I forget one day, it's still in me until I remember the next day. Plus, as others have pointed out, the almost hexagonal pills are hard to exactly cut into fourths so one day, I might only be getting 1 mg, and another 1.5 mg. Doesn't sound as if that's a problem since it stays there for 72 hours. By the way, finesterine generic is much, much cheaper than the patented name Propecia. Why would anyone pay for Propecia when they can get the same exact pill 5 times as large, invest a few dollars in a cutter and save a ton of money?

I had mine done two days ago as well. I remember all sorts of fear about it. I even ran downstairs and checked the BBB (can't believe I hadn't done this earlier) to see if there were any complaints filed in the last three years. I told myself that if there was even one, I was going to cancel! I remember even feeling unsure on the way there (an hour and a half drive) and almost turning to my wife and telling her I am turning around. After the doc calmed my fears and I talked to all the techs asking them a lot of questions, I felt much better. At 11 a.m. sitting in the chair, the back of my head sutured back up, I remember feeling this overwhelming satisfaction (okay, I am sure some of this was the Vicodin) that I actually had the courage to do this for myself. I was overjoyed when they were putting my grafts in telling me how well my hair was working out and that I could have broken the record for number of grafts in one sitting (I had 3524 and the record was just over 3800). The coolest part, I only had to pay for the 3000. Talk about bonus! My Hair Loss Blog

Hmm, I a bit baffled by the 1000 followed by another 1000. What would be the reason? I had pretty much the same crown and was told of my 3500 plus that more would be used on the crown. Doc said that even with 2000, it wouldn't be as full as the rest of the back of my head but was good with me as I could possibly thicken some of the existing with Proscar and I wanted to use some of the grafts to get some coverage up front. I can't imagine 1000 would have done much at all for me. Is there some plausable reason, besides wanting him to come back in for a second session? Not being critical, just baffled at that approach.

hairbank, Thanks for looking out for me. I just finished my first HT and I was just so excited to finally post! I'll watch that in the future and try not to reactive such old threads. Thanks again.

I do, well sorta. Still waiting to get the photos taken at the clinic - will do so when I get my sutures out in 10 days. I've posted a photo of me that was part of a family photo over a year ago so it progressed a bit more since. I have some day 1 photos but I am not much a photographer. Also, I am a bit scared to touch any of the existing hairs cause I don't want to move any of the grafts so my hair is pretty messy. Hopefully, you can see the grafts that wer placed behind my hairline somewhat. I'll try to figure out how to link my blog, by the way it's Arocky824 on the blog page. Not sure how long they'll let me keep it up though since I used another doc (not one listed). My Hair Loss Blog

While I didn't take the financing, and personally, I think you should have the money saved before looking at financing something like this (what better motivation to save!), MHR offered financing options. If I recall the consult, they were offering 0% for three months. Now, as a former banker, I can tell you, most don't pay off in three months and if you don't the interest rate (typically not cheap) reverts back to day one. It's basically no different than the sofa store or used car offers. I don't think this is necessarily a negative reflection on any doctor that provides this option - it's usually just a convenience item that perhaps gets you into them quicker than you would have and actually probably costs the doc something if you do pay it off in the 0% financing period. Just check the fine print and know what you are getting, or better yet, start the Propecia and start saving.

My hair is a fine, light brown and doc says this is the best against the skin. In talking to the techs, dark, curly hair is the hardest as the grafts tend to curl right out of the gate. They loved working with my straight fine hairs!

I had 3524 grafts and about 2000 were used on the front and in the thinning top frontal areas. The rest went into the crown area. I had my hairline (a Norwood 3, bordering on 4) moved down about an inch to inch and a half across the whole front.

I just had my procedure done today and while most of my grafts were placed by three technicians (as mentioned one on each side, and one in the back) my doc, Dr Pauls, popped in and placed a number of them on my crown and in the front. She didn't do them all but I am guessing she definitely did 10 to 20% on my crown and hairline. To be honest, she wasn't as quick as one of the real experienced techs but meticulous, yes. She did, as Bill pointed out: remove the donor strip, give all anesthetic, make the recipient incisions and supervise the techs that were make the incisions. As my procedure was winding down, she inspected the 3,524 grafts that had been placed for at least 45 minutes. There were even a few left grafts left at that point that she completed. I have complete confidence that she was overseeing every part of the procedure and did the difficult parts.

Proscar is 5 mg of finesteride. It is prescribed for enlarged prostates but it is indeed the exact same thing as Propecia in a larger dose. If you are willing to cut it into quarters (kinda hard to do it in fifths!), you will find that you save about eight times the amount of money. Side benefit - although I am not a doctor, perhaps if you are susceptible to an enlargening of the prostrate, the lower dosage just might help with that too!