shouldIdoit

TC, with all due respect, "hair mills that perform many surgeries a day" is a subjective statement. H&W seems to do many surgeries a day, but probably no where near what a "chain" as large as Bosley OR MHR does, yet again they (H&W) seem to do a large # of operations per day and they are consistently recognized on this forum as one of the best. I don't know if the number of procedures done by one office in a day is an immediate black mark against any HT doctor OR office. I'm in no way saying MHR is bad (because I know nothing about them other then Wade Boggs does their commercials) nor am I saying H&W is bad since all I know about them is what I have read on this site + talking with Jotronic on the phone. I just don't think "many surgeries a day" is a disqualifier in and of itself ANTWIS, relative to my level of hair loss you should be thrilled at where you are, but HT is ultimately a personal vanity issue, and if your hairloss makes you feel "down" then you should keep looking into (and creating more) options for yourself. Take advantage of all the options that are out there!! It's always best to have more options, so go out and talk to multiple top doctors and DO NOT make a move until you know you have the best doc for you (or perhaps you choose not to do it at all). Hope this helps a little

That 30 grand is staying in cash right now....I'm in Charlotte and expect that after Wells Fargo lays off 10000 bankers in January I get get 2-3 Porches for a total of 30 grand.

Well, my question of "should I do it" has been answered. And because I'm an NW7, and the type of coverage I'd like to achieve just isn't really achievable, I'm not making the move to do HT and instead will keep the buzz cut. I have to call out Jotronic because I can vouch for him being at least one straight shooter who works in the world of HT. We had a long 2+ hour talk the other night (That may be the first time in my life I was on the phone for 2+ hours)and I sent him pics today. About 2 hours after I sent the pics he called and (sorry I'm from NY)had the balls to tell me "we can help you, but I know what you want to achieve if you go forward with this and I would say it's not worth it for you to move forward. You have a great donor area, but you're a true NW7 and you just won't be able to get what you want so save your money". Maybe he did this because he's not on commission, I don't know. But how many sales guys would talk you out of a $20-30K discretionary spend? So Joe, you have proven (to me at least) that there is at least 1 "non-scam artist" in the HT world. This statement in no way is meant to insinuate that those working in the HT world are scammers, but we all know that is the broad perception of the HT providers/those associated with HT. Joe, all the best to you. You represented H&W very professionally and put the customer first....something that is very rare in today's world!! And I have to admit that 5 minutes after we got off the phone I bolted to my clippers and shaved this friggin ring from my dome....I had been growing it for the past 2 weeks because I was going to start doing consultations, and I can now get rid of it for good!!!! Thanks man.

Well, my question of "should I do it" has been answered. And because I'm an NW7, and the type of coverage I'd like to achieve just isn't really achievable, I'm not making the move to do HT and instead will keep the buzz cut. I have to call out Jotronic because I can vouch for him being at least one straight shooter who works in the world of HT. We had a long 2+ hour talk the other night (That may be the first time in my life I was on the phone for 2+ hours)and I sent him pics today. About 2 hours after I sent the pics he called and (sorry I'm from NY)had the balls to tell me "we can help you, but I know what you want to achieve if you go forward with this and I would say it's not worth it for you to move forward. You have a great donor area, but you're a true NW7 and you just won't be able to get what you want so save your money". Maybe he did this because he's not on commission, I don't know. But how many sales guys would talk you out of a $20-30K discretionary spend? So Joe, you have proven (to me at least) that there is at least 1 "non-scam artist" in the HT world. This statement in no way is meant to insinuate that those working in the HT world are scammers, but we all know that is the broad perception of the HT providers/those associated with HT. Joe, all the best to you. You represented H&W very professionally and put the customer first....something that is very rare in today's world!! And I have to admit that 5 minutes after we got off the phone I bolted to my clippers and shaved this friggin ring from my dome....I had been growing it for the past 2 weeks because I was going to start doing consultations, and I can now get rid of it for good!!!! Thanks man.

Predator I sincerely hope this turns around for you. I'm right now considering HT, and appreciate that you have the courage to share with us your current situation. I hope over the next 2-3 months your situation does a 180 and then you let out a HUGE sigh of relief, and say "OK....it was well worth it". Please keep us posted because your situation is certainly of importance to guys like me who are on the fence about whether or not this is an operation that is worth doing. Hang in there!!!!!!!!!!

It seems that the scar in the donor area is being treated well enough that between good healing + native hair in the given area, make the scar completely unseen by the naked eye. As such, why aren't Dr's performing more scalp reductions in the crown area and then doing adding more grafts to the small area (to cover that scar)? It seems that since the crown area has greater laxity then the back of the head, a greater amount of "open space" can be reduced (at least on patients who are very bald in the crown area). Just curious after looking at one of the recent "post surgery" threads.

Dewayne I would certainly be willing to drive down to you.....do you think we could hook up sometime next week? I'd like to see Cooleys work before my consult on the 24th.

I'll be meeting with Dr. Cooley in 2 weeks and would love to meet any of his patients in person to see the post op results. I'm in Charlotte and would be willing to drive to you to see the good Dr.s work. Thanks in advance

I'll be meeting with Dr. Cooley in 2 weeks and would love to meet any of his patients in person to see the post op results. I'm in Charlotte and would be willing to drive to you to see the good Dr.s work. Thanks in advance

Dewayne would you be willing to hook up for lunch one day so I can see the results in person? I'm scheduled to meet with Dr. Cooley in 2 weeks, and would love to see a couple of his patients before I go to see him. I'm in Charlotte NC

I'm curious to know if the Dr's that are "endorsed" by this site in any way pay for the site, pay for their endorsement OR pay to be in the coalition? If no to all of the above, how does this site finance itself?

I'm curious to know if the Dr's that are "endorsed" by this site in any way pay for the site, pay for their endorsement OR pay to be in the coalition? If no to all of the above, how does this site finance itself?

Please Grow, I find your statement "there is no one better then Shapiro" very interesting, because just this morning I was saying to myself "there has to be a "BEST" Dr.". Of course it would be open to debate (like is Jordan better then Chamberlign, is Bonds better then Ruth), but at least if there is a debate as to who is "the best", we would then come up with a list of "these 3 are the best" and then we all debate as to which of these 3 is the best, and in that case we would know that if we went with any of these 3 we truly cannot go wrong. so, if we throw cost and location out the window, who is THE BEST HT Doctor? Hasson? Shapiro? Cooley? there has to be a "Best HT DR" based on the work they have done

Here's another question (having looked at MANY of the H&W videos on YouTube). While I see that many of the patients from H&W have what "seems" to be a full head of hair, it looks more like they have had the front filled in and then grow it long (to help cover the crown). Is this is a common approach for most that are in Phase 6/7? Is there partial "combover" that will need to be accepted by patients with such advanced hair loss?

John. I hear what you are saying and I believe many of us are truly disappointed to learn that you had an experience that ultimately made the situation worse (and of course your intent was to make it better). Your situation is a lesson to all of us who are considering getting a surgical procedure. Everyone needs to remember that on the whole, medicine/surgery is first and foremost a business, and the buyer needs to do their homework before they "buy" the service. I believe this goes for anything as serious to heart surgery OR something elective like hair transplants. Perhaps I'm simply a pessimist at heart (or perhaps just a realist) but I always expect that (a) people are just people, whether a Dr. or a janitor, I'm really not all that impressed by them until they prove to me they are something special. People always make empty claims and promises and I always challenge when someone makes a claim to me (whether personally or professionally) (b) I am my own judge and jury, which puts a TON of responsibility on me to learn all the facts to then make a verdict. Sometimes this is a painful way to live life because I can come across as argumentative or a "know it all", but in the end I trust myself more then I trust others (because I have no reason to cheat myself). While baldness effects all of us from a vanity and insecurity level, we have to not make the decision to move forward because Dr's (or their techs) tell us what we want to hear. If you do this you become prey. In this world, us bald guys have the power....if these Dr's cannot prove that they are capable of giving us what we want, then just be bald.....isn't it better to be bald VS. being butchered? John, again I sincerely hope you get your cosmetic appearance fixed so this is behind you and you can focus on more important things in life

John Thanks for the PM. I certainly understand why you are so pissed off, and you should certainly take any and all possible legal action against the Dr. who did the surgery to see if you can find any financial relief, because it does seem like you will have to incur further expense to get this situation sorted. I'm certainly no expert and hope for your sake the things others in this forum are saying about "repair" are true, so you can get your head fixed so as to make you satisfied. I just re-read your initial post and I really do have to question why you went forward with this surgeon. when you say "you had a 5-minute consult and then moved forward", why would a 5-minute consult be enough for you to approve such a major decision? Sorry, but this does not seem like a reasonable or rational state of mind. It seems like you went into this thing wanting to hear something, you heard it and you jumped in (IE Read, Fire, Aim). Also, unless I missed something I'm not seeing that prior to choosing Dr. Weiss, you visited other doctors. Lastly, I don't see you saying that prior to surgery you requested to see other patients (to verify this Dr.'s statement of providing quality work). It seems that you have spent more time looking into all this AFTER the surgery. Perhaps I'm wrong, but reading your post this is what I interpret. I expect this post will probably make you mad because it would seem that I am blaming you...and I do admit that based on what I have read, I do think you are part to blame because it does seem that prior to making your decision you did not perform due diligence on this surgeon and any other options you may have had. I do find your post and your story very helpful to any of us who are considering surgery as a way to combat hair loss, in that (a) you are showing us all that (unfortunately) there are still MANY Dr's who, despite a severe lack of skill at performing this surgery, are out there "selling" patients on abilities they don't actually have and as such we must ALL do extensive research on all Dr's (b) All of us must think carefully about whether or not surgery is the road/option we want to "buy into" because it is a very serious decision that should not be taken likely © there is no such thing as doing too much due-dilligence. Asking questions, lots of pointed in depth questions to each Dr. one visits is a must, and if the Dr's don't like the questions then walk out and go to the next Dr. I genuinely hope you get a legal settlement that is gratifying to you, and also hope you get your head fixed to a point where you are happy and this is all behind you.

Davy do you have any pics? I'm still not convinced I'm going to do this, but if I do make the move I'm right now leaning hard to either Cooley or H&W based on the pics I've seen and the comments I've read. I would really LOVE to meet people who had the procedure by either Wong, Cooley or Hasson so I can see the results for myself. This (+ the consult I have with each DR.) will be the determining factor of whether or not I do this. I'm now scheduled to meet with Cooley later this month and this coming week will set up a consult with H&W. From the pics I see on the H&W site I'm blown away. there are 4 Hasson patients (on their site) that seem to have the same amount of baldness as do I, and the results (6000-10000 grafts) is incredible. I understand that every patient situation is different (donor hair, hair color, etc, etc) but every time I go back to their site and see these patients I get excited about the prospect of what they can do. I'm again extending an invite to any Charlotte based patients (so I can see the results)--lunch is on me.

JW do you have any pics? Are any of you "Cooley guys" in Charlotte? I would be interested to meet some of you guys (lunch is on me) so I can see Dr. Cooley's work in person. I have a first consult scheduled for the 26th of this month.

Thanks all for the feedback. Just when I thought I felt ready to reach out and make a few appointments, something inside has caused me to think about not moving forward. I've been looking at the pics on Dr. Cooley and Dr. Wongs respective sites, and it's just hard for me to understand how someone like myself (who is in stage 7 hair loss) can actually get a "full head of hair" again. When looking at the relatively small donor area, it's hard to believe that little bit of hair can successfully be transplanted into my expansive dome and give me a natural looking head of hair. From looking at the pics on the Dr's sites it looks to me that most of the guys who are in my stage of hair loss don't have such natural looking, full heads of hair and many have grown their hair long to "fill in the open spots". Maybe it's normal to have such reservations, and obviously I'm thinking (and sharing the reservations) out loud here.... Carl, I read your blog and appreciate the "full disclosure" commentary regarding the pain you were feeling at the 12 day mark....have you entirely overcome the pain you were feeling?

I've been reading this forum for a few months, and after looking at many profiles I have at least convinced myself to meet with Dr's. Based on what I've read in these forums it seems that Dr. Cooley and Dr. Wong are amongst the best (at least according to those who have posted on this site). I want to go with "the best". From the pics on each respective Dr.'s website, there are more patients on Hasson and Wong who show AMAZING success. Is that in and of itself enough to verify what I'm reading on these boards? I ask because their practice is a good 5 hours away and while a "virtual consulatation" is an option, I want to hear from those who may have had these 2 Dr.'s on their shortlist (to hear which of the 2 they chose, why they chose that Dr. and if they feel they made the correct decision). I expect most any responses to this post will tell me to visit both Dr.'s and then decide (and I may do that) but I also want to reach out to and hear from as many actual patients as possible. The one thing that you rarely (if every) hear from the Dr's themselves are the "bad results" performed in their office....and as much as I want to hear about the positive results, I'm also interested to hear of any negative results OR "not quite as good as I expected" results you may have experienced from either Dr. Cooley or Dr. Wong. Thanks in advance

I've been reading this forum for a few months, and after looking at many profiles I have at least convinced myself to meet with Dr's. Based on what I've read in these forums it seems that Dr. Cooley and Dr. Wong are amongst the best (at least according to those who have posted on this site). I want to go with "the best". From the pics on each respective Dr.'s website, there are more patients on Hasson and Wong who show AMAZING success. Is that in and of itself enough to verify what I'm reading on these boards? I ask because their practice is a good 5 hours away and while a "virtual consulatation" is an option, I want to hear from those who may have had these 2 Dr.'s on their shortlist (to hear which of the 2 they chose, why they chose that Dr. and if they feel they made the correct decision). I expect most any responses to this post will tell me to visit both Dr.'s and then decide (and I may do that) but I also want to reach out to and hear from as many actual patients as possible. The one thing that you rarely (if every) hear from the Dr's themselves are the "bad results" performed in their office....and as much as I want to hear about the positive results, I'm also interested to hear of any negative results OR "not quite as good as I expected" results you may have experienced from either Dr. Cooley or Dr. Wong. Thanks in advance