Teddw2ds

Thanks for getting off-topic Vocor. That actually reminds me of a tale I have been meaning to relay and have just kept forgetting. I was in Dallas a couple of weeks ago, and at one of the bars I went to, our bartender had such an obvious HT, I almost wanted to give him Dr. Rose's number and suggest he get it fixed. But I know that would be mean and he probably doesn't even think it's that bad if he's going out in public like that. But he had very short hair, so the donor scar was quite apparent... even in dark bar lighting. The hairline was dense and solid, and all too straight, thining out as it moved back towards the crown. The placement had no irregularity to it at all, and that's just not the way God puts hairs in our heads. I pointed it out to the friend that was with me, because he knows about mine, and I was shocked... he asked me how I could tell!!! I guess only those of us who have been through the process or are considering it are so eagle-eyed. Perhaps that's why so many bad ones seem passable. Who knows. But on this guy, I thought it was painfully obvious.

Man, I gave up on this thread days ago, figuring it had become hopelessly absurd and not worth my time anymore. I'm glad I gave it another shot. Little did I know just how amuzing it had become. I got a good chuckle out of this. Vocor, I'm guessing you're in some sort of marketing profession, huh? Good stuff! I'm ready to buy!

I don't know about him. I looked through publicity stills from his films going back several years at www.imdb.com and he seems to have a pretty consistent progression of his hairline. I don't think he's had anything done. Do you have photos that would suggest otherwise. The side by side of Matt M. sure removed all doubt!

Yes, Dennis Miller has openly admitted on HBO to having a hair transplant. He was asked how he spent his hiatus, and he replied that he used the downtime to get a HT. No secret about it. And I think his looks pretty good too.

Yes, it's normal and nothing to be concerned about. It's called folliculitis, and they will normally go away on their own... or you can pop them. The only thing to worry about is if they get really infected. If they are very large, very red or very tender, you may want to see a doctor. If they are left untreated in that condition, it can cause some scarring.

Consider Rose also. He did a great job with me, and he is a member of the Shapiro group, one of the most respected in the HT industry. He is now also performing FUE, and goes to Europe as well. I know he was in Greece back in July, but I'm not sure if he goes elsewhere in Europe or not. Tedd

At a week and a half, you're certainly safe. The new hairs are as firmly rooted as the native ones.

RUN!!!! Don't even consider going somewhere that will not show you pictures of previous work, nor allow you to meet patients. Any reputable doctor will allow you to meet past patients, and confidentiality is not an issue. The doctor simply makes contact with the patient on your behalf and arranges the meeting. The patient never has to have direct contact with you until they agree to waive confidentiality. My guess is that Gho simply doesn't want you to see his previous work, and there's a reason for that. If you don't want to travel all the way to the US, you may try to find out when some of the better doctors will be in Europe. I know my doc, Paul Rose, travels to Europe for procedures from time to time, and I know that others do as well. Tedd

Todd I agree with JohnH. At least consider strip surgery. Unless you think the day will come when you want to shave your head completely, the scarline will be insignificant if you go to a top surgeon. I chose Dr. Rose in Tampa, FL, and I too was a Norwood 3. I had 1535 grafts to reconstruct my frontal hairline. I went fairly conservative, so I am wondering what kind of aesthetic result you would get with only 500 - 1000 grafts at a NW3. My results are just now starting to come in at the 2 months mark, but as for my scar line... it's getting hard to find at all, and I know exactly where to look for it. The scar is not a big issue if you go with a good surgeon. Tedd

Hang in there. I am at the 2 month mark right now, and I've started to see the first signs of growth. It was definitely hard to see the newly transplanted stubble shedding, but it sure is fun watching it come back, and the wait is not that hard. It's gone by quicker than I thought.

Good question, solid, and a funny answer, I think. It looks so completely natural that even I can't tell the native hair from the transplanted hair, except that now I have hair in areas that were previously completely smooth bald! It's really amazing, and at this point (7.5 weeks out), it's been long enough that I am starting to forget exactly where my natural hairline was, and it gets harder to remember with each day as new hairs keep populating this once barren field. But the skin in that area looks absolutely no different than it did prior to surgery... and no one on Earth has examined it as closely as I have. It just amazes me that I can't even tell the difference on my own head!

Hey Joe, I can answer that also. I've been on Propecia (or Proscar, which is the same active ingredient) for almost 4 years now. I experienced no shedding phase whatsoever. Some people don't. In fact, I don't even think this is a common side effect. I did experience some diminished libido, but this didn't last very long at all... maybe a month at most. That's about the only side effect I experienced and that was very minor. So much so that I can't conclusive attribute it to the medication. It may have just been coincidental. But it was right about the time I started taking Propecia. Tedd

I chose Capital One's Cosmetic Fee Plan, which had a huge doctor membership, including all of my top picks. I ended up going with Dr. Paul Rose, and he happened to be on the list as well. The whole transaction went very smoothly.

Good call uncjim. That's a pretty solid hairline for what would appear to otherwise be a definite NW6 pattern. At least his looks a little better than Biden's (although he's obviously had some repair work done lately). Schumer's just doesn't appear like a naturally random hairline, but it doesn't seem to be pluggy like Biden's was.

Wow, I just saw Joe Biden on CNN this afternoon, and it's obvious that he's had some repair work done! A couple years ago, his HT looked so awful, and it was among the easiest to spot. Today, though, it looked softened up quite a bit. The hairline was much more natural looking, and I think he's not dying it anymore, and that helps, too. But mostly what I noticed is that the plugs are gone, and the stark contrast between the transplanted area and the almost nonexistant bald patches just behind the hairline is now repaired. he actually looks decent these days.

Even though there's not a whole lot new to tell, I thought it was time for an update, since tomorrow will mark the 7-week mark. God, it's hard to believe it's been that long already. I remember thinking every single day of the first week seemed so looooonnnnggg, but now the weeks are just flying by. I started seeing some signs of new growth at the 5 week mark, and I know now that I wasn't just seeing things. Two weeks later, I am definintely seeing new sprouts all the time. They are thin and curly (REALLY odd, since my hair has always been as straight as it gets), but they are straightening out as they grow in. I am far from having any sort of coverage, but I can now count a few dozen, rather than just a handful. The downside is that I've also experienced some folliculitis as well. I've had four pimples, and I just popped those without any consequence. My slight case of shock loss seems to have ended, remaining VERY mild (thank God!). Immediately after surgery, I (like most HT patients, I assume) spend endless hours staring into the mirror. After the transplanted hairs shed, there really wasn't much to look at... until now. Since they started coming back in, the love affair with my mirror is back in full bloom. I love hunting down new sprouts and checking the length of those that have been around for a while. Who says watching grass grow is not exciting?!?!

Paul That is an interesting theory, but one that I have a hard time buying. I think it's probably just the skill (or lack thereof) of the makeup artist for that show. I've seen him in other shows (Oz on HBO for example) and his hair looked thin, but decent. I'm not sure something like hair concealers would be used as a character device. It's just not something that most viewers are going to be paying attention to.

My concern with such an approach is this... how can some device that automates the placement process possibly match the artistic mastery of a skilled surgeon in placing grafts. This key difference is what distinguishes an outstanding HT from a mediocre or even bad HT!

wow, I am so excited for you Bluesman! I know exactly what you are feeling. I am only about 6 weeks post-op at this point, and after I had my procedure (with Dr. Rose), I was just elated and amazed at how simple and painless the whole thing was. I expected a considerable ordeal. It was nothing of the sort. As for numbness... yeah, I thought I had escaped that one also. In fact, for the first three days or so, I felt no side effects whatsoever, and I thought I had just really lucked out completely. But it was about the fourth day that my donor area started to get a little tender and sensitive, and I started feeling (or rather NOT feeling) numbness in the recipient area. It didn't last long, though. I would say a couple of weeks at the most. The tenderness in the donor area lasted only about a week. I did have some slight shock loss also, which I also was obviously hoping to miss out on, but that was not my fate. It seems to have abated now, though. Overall, my whole experience has been very much like yours... a lot simpler than I thought, a lot less painful than I thought, and I now wonder why in the world I was feeling any sort of hesitance. I should have done it a lot sooner! Tedd

That's great if your insurance will accept cosmetic surgery in your plan... but not all do. You have to read your policy very carefully, because if you don't spend it, you lose it. And if you can't spend it on a HT, you don't want to be socking money away in there that you'll end up losing. Read your policy carefully!!

And you're young, too! That can play a significant factor in designing your HT, especially if it's falling out at the rate you describe. Both of those factors would make future planning more challenging for any doctor. One thing that I noticed in your post that is a little troubling, though. You said you have been taking propecia or rogaine, but not both. It sounds like you are switching back and forth and not taking either very consistently. Am I reading this right, or is that just my interpretation? I would encourage you to get on both... and stay on both. The results will be most effective you they are taken regularly, and the two medications work by completely different mechanisms, so the combined effort will almost certainly be more effective than either one alone. Tedd

I know what you mean! I was really worried about that too. I thought, "What if I keep losing my hair? Isn't that going to make the transplanted hair look really weird?" Not really, as it turns out. I was thoroughly impressed with the skill of my surgeon, Dr. Paul Rose. He worked with me for a long time to come up with a HT pattern that I was comfortable with, but which would also look good even if I continued to lose more hair. I'm sure you've seen guys with thin, wispy hair on top, right? (Personally, I notice EVERY man's hair... I'm sure I'm not the only one that studies every hairline I see). While this may not be the most desireable outcome, it also does not look freakish. If I lose all the natural hair in my recipient area, this is what I'll likely end up with, because Dr. Rose has interspersed transplanted hairs among those areas where I still had hair, in addition to those areas where I'd already lost it all. So it will never look patchy. It may look thinner all throughout as I lose more, but in that case, I just have to decide if I want to go back for another HT. Do you have a link to that IAHRS article? I would be interested in reading that. From what I've read on here, most docs seem comfortable working on someone 30 and over, and some as young as 25, but any younger than that and you're starting to get into the "questionable ethics" realm, I think. But then again, I have seen guys who are a NW4 or NW5 at 23 or 24 years old! Hell, I went to high school with a guy who had lost more hair than I did before my HT. What a rough way do go through high school! Of course, I think he flunked out several years, so he was probably 30 by the time he graduated!!! Tedd

Yikes, Joe I've never worn a piece, but after hearing your tales of woe, I will heartily retract my previous suggestion. I don't think it's even worth considering as on option!! Just shave it and be done with it. I never thought of all the annoyance that a piece would bring, but hearing it from the voice of experience, it sure sounds like nothing I'd want any part of. Great post, Joe! Very informative. Thanks!

It is hard to tell, but it does appear to be very nearly the same to me.

As we all know, hair loss is so unique to each individual person, so it's hard to say really what is going on with your head. There are all different patterns and rates of loss. It's also hard to say if the laser comb is helping (or even hurting) your hair loss. I would definitely stay on the Proscar, though, and if your loss continues to progress rapidly, it wouldn't hurt to make an initial consultation with a good HT doc. He or she may be able to give you an estimate of what your ultimate stage of loss might be, and then you may want to consider a HT earlier than age 40. I'm 32 right now, and I was only at a NW 3 stage. I didn't want to wait until I had any more significant loss, because if I get it taken care of now, it will not be so noticeable that something is different. I plan to just keep up with it as I lose more (hoping that doesn't happen, but being realistic also). Tedd