EpilepticSceptic

Hairloss is the best thing that ever happened to me, and I truly mean this. Although I am not bald (NW3.5ish) at age 41, most all of the loss occured between ages 20-25. Before the hairloss I literally had to beat women off with a stick. I guess you could say my facial features and body type fit very well in the GQ model category.

Anyway, once the hairline receded I became acutely aware of just how superficial our society is. Something as utterly meaningless as a few thousand strands of keratin actually caused 99.9% of all the women who had previously chased me to suddenly look right through me as if I didn't exist. I went from an egocentric narcissistic pretty boy to a reclusive hermit literally overnight.

But guess what ? I actually became a much better person in the process. When I look back I wouldn't trade the hairloss for anything! It taught me to be more sensitive and less judgemental of others' appearence. Since that time I have met lifelong soulmate friends who are some of the most amazing, talented people and who have had tremendous impact on my life and identity. I know for sure I would never had met these people if I would have remained that narcisisstic superficial pretty boy.

I also realized that my personality thrives in the "underdog" role. Since I now had a cosmetic deficiency I was amazingly free from all of the superficial trappings of the beautiful people. I became an artist (piano player, singer)and have never looked back since! The hairloss actually gave me the courage to face audiences because I could no longer hide behind good looks, and people had to take me seriously.

I also realized that my former relationships with women were meaningless and shallow; they didn't even care who I was a person on the inside, and just saw me as a piece of meat out of a GQ magazine. I was objectified in the same way that gorgeous women complain men see them as sex objects.

Now that I'm older i can see all of this so clearly. The only people that truly matter in this world are those who can accept you and love you for who you are inside. Everybody else will just be a waste of your time and energy, whether you have hair or not!

I agree with Jotronic; and it's not just because I'm trying to justify using fin

I've recently seen some very convincing studies that provide compelling evidence proving that cell phones cause development of brain tumors.

How many here so worried about long term fin. effects are going to give up their cell phones ? Not too many I'd suppose. And yet it's highly likely that many more will die from this than from long term fin. usage. And I'd much rather have my hair than a cell phone glued to my ear 24/7 !!

What I find funny about Finasteride is that they try to label the actual effect of the drug as a "side effect". Since it significantly reduces DHT production which is a sex hormone, it seems logical to assume that the EFFECT of this drug is to reduce sex drive. So why do they try and label this as a "side effect" ? Well, obviously because it would be alot harder to market if they had to be bluntly honest about it! Face it people, if you want to keep your hair you're going to have to give up something. Losing hair (due to high DHT levels)is part of being a MAN and it has been that way for many thousands of years. It was only our pathetic feminized western culture that decided men would be more attractive if they looked like women, hence the obsession with hair!

If he had done that to me after taking that much money I am almost certain that I'd be serving a very long prison sentence right now, and that's not a joke!

What I don't understand is why it took so long for the superior techniques of today to arrive ? It's not rocket science by a long shot!

When you think about the fact that it took someone like Dr. Hasson to invent the custom blade cutting device just a decade ago to make the tiny graft-sized incisions, it makes one wonder just how pathetic of a scam this whole industry has been since its' inception.

Stereoscopic microscopes have been around for many years, and could easily have been used during the plug graft days. It's not like the industry had to wait for science and technology to advance in this regard. I just don't get why these surgeons weren't doing more refined grafts from the start back in the 60s ? The whole Unger punch graft method was a Frankenstein butchery approach from the very start! Dolls hair in symmetrical rows that look like corn ? How frickin stupid could somebody be to ever think this would be a cosmetic improvement for anyone ? They HAD to know they were disfiguring people for life when they were doing this!!! Imagine plastic surgeons who do nose jobs just taking a machete and hacking off somebody's nose and you pretty much have the same mentality here. Don't think surgeon's like that would have been able to stay in business long, but for some crazy reason in the HT industry they were able to THRIVE for years !! WTF ???

And furthermore, how in the hell did they market these procedures unless outright blatant trickery and deception was employed ? ANYBODY who knew the truth I'm sure would have run like hell and gladly left their deposit behind!

It's almost like anybody with a nursing degree can call themselves a HT surgeon and just start hacking up human labrats to get practice and develop their skills. It makes me think of what the Nazis were doing in the concentration camps, but the only difference is that the HT industry victims actually PAID to be mangled and butchered like this. What a disgrace !!!

Jesus Christ brothers, I dunno what else to say! In 1993 I remember I had a $500 deposit with NuHart in PA, and I was 23 years old and had my surgery scheduled. I had only mild recession and was a NW2 thinking I could just chase my hairloss and conceal it as if nothing had ever happened. I remember their VERY DECEPTIVE video that I watched over and over again and was in a hypnotic trance; yet the video explained NOTHING about the procedure! The only thing that saved me from being a repair patient today (and having all of my 20s and 30s RUINED) was getting aggressive with the consultant on the phone and asking if a girl got up close and ran her fingers through my hair would it look unnatural. It was like pulling teeth, but he finally admitted it would be easily spottable.

YIKES, dodged a bullet for sure !!! That law school training in college really paid off big time for me in this case. TRUST NOBODY -- that was the motto!

Thanks brother!

Considering where you were pre-HT, I do think your growth yield was not particularly terrible. But I also feel I would not be content with the look of your hair if it was my head. I'd actually rather be completely bald and shave down than have to deal with combing the hair foreward or to the side to disguise the thinning look. If I were you I'd definitely consider a 2nd procedure, but I'd also be a little worried about further thinning (shockloss) in the donor area.

Did they say that you have good enough laxity for a 2nd procedure ? If so, then I'd probably do it. It's no suprise you will need a 2nd procedure for better density, because most all advanced Norwoods with decent outcomes have had at least 2, and often 3 to get it right.

Are you happier than you were with your overall look before the HT ? How has H & W responded, and does Dr. Wong consider your surgery to be less successful than he expected it to be ?

Hey Emporer,

I looked at your HT blog and was wondering if H & W told you what your donor density (FUs per sq. cm) and hair shaft diameter was in your donor area ? The reason I'm asking is because, looking at your photos, it appears that your entire donor area looks diffused and thin. To me it seems this is why the scar is more detectable than many other patients, and also may have something to do with your less than ideal result.

Also, concerning hairloss affecting confidence and social life I would say that for many it can also be a blessing. Why ? Because if you see the glass as half full (instead of half empty) you will actually become a more charismatic and driven person in order to overcome this cosmetic disadvantage handed to you by mother nature. I know this is personally how hairloss affected me, and so now I am likely much more successful than I would have been without hairloss starting in my early 20s. I know many other guys who were clubbing and partying at that time when I was getting an education and planning for my future; and now most of them (15 years later) are balding and working minimum wage jobs whilst I am a successful entrepeneur.

I'm only considering a HT now because miraculously I have remained at NW3.5 for nearly 15 years (age 41 now). But I can say with utmost confidence that I probably would have wasted all of my 20s clubbing had I not had the hairloss issue, and by now I might be bagging groceries thinking of the glory days of yore. But instead I've even got chicks in their early 20s who want to date me because I'm not that bad looking, and more importantly have $ and security to offer to them. But if I hadn't had the early hairloss I think I'd almost certainly be a bum by now. I see guys like this all time who still have hair but are now 40, and they are still stuck in trying to be a 20 year old. So much for how retaining your hair in your 20s will make it easier for you to succeed later in life; in many cases the opposite is actually true!

Princylucks,

LISTEN TO ME !!!! I AM trying to dissuade you from going to Dr. Madhu. I don't know if he is good or not, but you are too emotional about this which is a big problem!! You are 25 years old and already are at NW6. This means that by age 35 you will LIKELY be an advanced NW6/7 !! You have maybe a 10% chance of NOT ending up a NW6/7. This means that the most you can ever get from a HT is a "combover" look which will make you look like a 70 year old man!!!! People everywhere you go will KNOW that you had a HT, and you will look like a FREAK !!! You are depressed now about being bald, but look on this forum (and HLH forum) and you will discover that it's MUCH WORSE to have a detectable HT on a NW6 head!! There are MANY guys who got HT at your age and then lost lots more hair and ended up NW6 or NW7. They now CANNOT HIDE that they got a HT. They would give 1 million dollars just to be bald again, because they look like FREAKS now !!! They live forever under hats now, and stay inside most of the time. They do not want to meet women or have girlfriends/wives because if they get too close the girl WILL SEE the FREAKISH looking HT that CANNOT be hidden!!!! Do YOU want to end up like this ?

You don't want to come back to this thread you started in 1 or 2 years from now and realize that you did not take the advice given to you here !!! You will feel like you let yourself make the WORST MISTAKE OF YOUR LIFE because you did not listen to the warnings given!! You did the RIGHT THING by posting your photos here BEFORE going to Dr. Madhu. You still have a chance to not have your entire life ruined by just backing out of this NOW !!!!!!

I am not saying to never get a HT!! I'm just saying to THINK LONGER ABOUT THIS !!!!!!!! You need to fly to Canada or the USA to meet with ONLY the bEST docs and GET EVALUATED !!! If Dr. Hasson, Dr. Feller, or Dr. Shapiro tell you that you are NOT a good HT cantidate, then they will be SAVING YOU FROM THE WORST MISTAKE OF YOUR ENTIRE LIFE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But if they tell you they can help you, then (and ONLY then) should you go ahead and do this !!

YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hey TakingThePlunge,

While I agree that your growth yield was less than satisfactory, I must state that after seeing your pre-op condition I believe your doc was way too conservative in his 2500 graft estimate. Unless your laxity was very poor, it seems you should have been going for a 4000-5000 FU surgery if you really wanted a significant cosmetic improvement. My hairloss pattern is somewhat similar to yours, but my front forelock is still healthy and my mid scalp is much thicker than yours over a broader area. I'm between a NW3v and NW4 I would think, but the hair where I still have it on top is close to normal density. Your pre-op photos show an very thinned out top, bordering on a NW5 and heading to a NW6 in my opinion. So to expect great results from 2500 grafts is just not anywhere near realistic IMO. Even though I have alot more hair up top than you do I feel i will need at least 4000 grafts to acheieve my goal -- which is a mature, slightly receeded NW 2 look. I think your expectations going into this with only 2500 grafts was pretty unrealistically high. The doc should have known this # wasn't sufficient in your case!

Originally posted by TakingThePlunge:

Oh man! All this time I thought I coined the term "X Factor." I need to start reading more! Anyway, as a victim of the x factor I am sure curious about this phenomenon. My poor density is the stuff of legend by now. Before my HT, all the indicators pointed to a speedy and successful outcome. By 10 months it was obvious something was amiss.

 

Funny thing is that a couple of years ago I had orthognathic and recovered from that so fast that my doctor was blown away a week later at my lack of swelling and pain. I guess success in one type of surgery doesn't necessarily translate to other types of surgery but I'd hoped it was a sign of robust physiology.

Ted,

I agree with your many points! Where is you HT blog ? I'd LOVE to see your HT results and pre-HT pictures !!!

Originally posted by TedGroves:

Originally posted by HairQless:

Could it be that confidence to a woman is sexier than hair?

It would be nice to think so, and in exceptions it certainly happens, but it is not the norm.

I was as confident as it gets even while losing hair, but it still did little good. Sure, any confident guy will eventually land a woman because it's a numbers game. If he's confident enough to hit on 50 women, chances are he'll end up getting something off one or two. That's where the confidence factor comes in -- simply having the willingness to persevere.

THere are plenty of bald/balding men who simply don't have the energy or the confidence to even try, so their chances of success are nil. And it's not their fault, that's just what hair loss does to you, much the same as being overweight, having bad teeth, etc. affects someone.

The old adage that women smell confidence and react positively to it is just a load of crap. Women SEE first and worry about the inner stuff later.

Originally posted by SJD:

I just dont like the situation im in right now, because you want your hair when your young and active, if i were 40 years old and had the head of hair that i have i dont think i would really care.

Well, you're dead wrong on the age issue! Trust me, from age 25 to age 40 is a mere 15 years that will seem more like 15 minutes when you look back on it -- ESPECIALLY when you're balding and spend every one of those days obsessing about hairloss and looking in the mirror, staying inside and living your life under a baseball cap and PRAYING that an answer will come tomorrow (which never happens, and most likely never will). When you're 40 you will only feel WORSE than you do right now about your hairloss. Why ? Because they'll still be saying the same thing about HM being a few years away, but you'll soon realize that YOU are no longer one of the lucky ones who was "born at the right time" to benefit when it does become available. By then you'll be an old bald fart and it really won't matter anymore anyway cause you'll be in some old folks home after never getting laid your entire life except by hookers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Princylucks,

Just shave and move on brother !!! You WILL BE a NW7 whether you take meds or not. You are a terrible HT cantidate, and all you will be able to achieve is a combover which will make you look MUCH worse than just shaving and being bald!

Trust me on this one brother!! To have this much loss at age 25 means that mother nature intended for you to be a NW7 by age 30. You are just way too young to have a thin combover hairstyle, and people will only laugh at you and you will look worse.

Shave it down and learn to accept your new look. Some people are just meant to be bald, until HM comes along !!

The good news is that HM WILL probably happen in your lifetime. Then you can have as much hair as you want, and no stupid combover that will make you look even older than just simply shaving and being a young bald guy.

What were your side effects from the propecia ?

What did it make you feel ? Can you be more specific ?

baldingboy,

I would already be living in Argentina if my career opportunities were not located here right now in the USA. I might even decide to pass it all up and move there anyway. I am driven by music and the need to communicate a positive, life affirming message to my fellow human brothers and sisters. It's just that I have already had some success that most musicians would feel is significant, being promoted by 2 different large indie labels. But now (according to my manager) several major labels have heard my latest record and want to put alot of money behind the promotion. I could really reach a worldwide audience, but my "look" is something that will need a major overhaul according to her. She is excited for me because she knows I have great facial features and will look very attractive with solid NW2 hair. She even recommended a hair system, but that is FAKE and I would never consider it in a million years! I am not a fake person, so this is a real hard thing for me brother!! But a HT is your real hair just relocated from the back, so it's a pill much easier for me to swallow. I told her I could just shave my head if the "balding" look is so terrible; but she said that the shaved head trend is going out soon and that the 80s hair days are coming back. I feel like it's disgusting that I even have to think about any of this crap!!

Anyway, finpecia I have taken before and it's the same thing as Merck. You shouldn't have to pay any more than $35 for 30 5mg pills of finasteride. That's all I pay, and I get it from my local pharmacy now. Cut it into fourths and take 1 piece every other day. If you respond well to it then your hair will thicken up alot. From your photos I think your hair looks pretty good man, so stop stressing about it too much. Get away from the mirror and just start living; it's pathetic the way so many guys spend so much time in front of mirrors, such a waste of precious life !! If you feel insecure inside then that will project out from you onto to other people and they will be less attracted to you. It's really a mental thing; the more confident you feel about yourself (not conceit, but confidence in who you are) the more people will treat you better and overlook your hairloss. Although many women in the USA (and the UK too) will probably still reject you because of it, but trust me they are mostly worthless and would not love you even if you had Brad Pitts hair anyway. They will use you and move on to the next guy because these type women are so superficial that they see men as objects for sexual exploitation; they are mentally ill, so do yourself a favor and avoid them.

If you can afford the plane ticket i would get down to Argentina ASAP and have some real fun. Go to Cordoba and you will be well received, and you might just meet the love of your life there. She will not care that you are losing some hair either! The women there are the sweetest and most genuine women I have ever met in my life!!

First of all, you are NOT a Norwood 3V. You are a Norwood 2 who is heading to a NW 3. I know because I am NW3v and I've had 2 respected HT docs look at my head close-up, and my hairloss is much worse than yours -- but I am also 16 years your senior!

Concerning all the older men (40+) getting HTs, go to the Hasson & Wong site (photos section) and you will be fully confirmed that this ratwheel of insecurity with appearence and aging is a never ending phenomenon for most. It's basically the same psychology as bolemia is for women; most people are simply not happy to accept who they are and are constantly and obsessively evalutating themselves and focusing on their material faults. This is why the Zen masters from Tibet all shave their heads, because being concerned about hair and physical appearence GUARUNTEES that you WILL NOT be able to reach a higher state of consciousness. People in this state of mind are locked down in the material reality, and they will only become more miserable and desperate as they age. The ONLY reason why any of us are traumatized by hairloss is because SOCIETY places the emphasis on "having hair" as being attractive. It's really that simple! If you woke up tomorrow and turned on the TV and suddenly it was in vogue to be a bald guy, then you would actually feel lucky that you were losing your hair.

The reason I feel hairloss was one of the best things that ever happened to me was because it helped me to become a real person and seek real meaning in life. If you can just stay in the clubs all through your 20s and have meaningless relationships with women then YOU WILL !! It's the nature of the beast, and losing hair will actually force you to become a man much earlier in life. Most of the young guys on here getting HTs are doing so because they feel "robbed of their youth", which really means they feel robbed of being able to live an easy, superficial life free of hardships.

Now you may ask, why am I here on this forum if I really don't give a rats arse about all this ? Well, I'm a musician/songwriter who composes original music. I have also made some groundbreaking recordings as of late and am being offered publishing contracts from several major music labels. But my manager (a woman) who is very well connected in the business insists that being a balding guy will probably deny me a contract. I am a singer and she feels I have amazing talent, but the biz is VERY critical of appearence and they will pick a person with very little talent who looks good over a person with major talent who doesn't. It's disgusting, but it is very true and I'm having to learn it the hard way.

I really could care less about being a balding guy, because my heart and soul is pure and I have found something in life that very few people ever come close to finding. But I feel it would be a crime for my music not to reach a larger audience just because of DISCRIMINATION against balding guys. On the Hasson and Wong site (video section) you will find 2 actors (Gemini twins) who recently had a HT. Why ? Because it was limiting their careers. Again, it's DISGUSTING but it is very true!

On another note, I have been down to South America (Argentina) and the culture there is VERY different. You will see bald guys there who are totally happy and totally not concerned in the least with being bald. And they have beautiful wives and girlfriends who are also NOT concerned about their husbands/boyfriends being bald! You really have to be there and witness it to believe it, real people treating each other with dignity and respect and accepting them for who they are inside. I met a guy there (one of MANY) who is 45 years old and a Norwood 6, and his wife from Sweden is 22 and very sweet. They also have a child and are a very happy family. She can care less that he is older and bald. But here in America this guy wouldn't stand a chance and would probably become a miserable introvert living under a hat.

END OF RANT ! Sorry it was so long.

Dude, you're too young for a HT !!

Do a search and look in the "repair" sections of sites like this one. You will find a significant # of guys your age who were happy with their HT until a few years later when the rest of the hair fell out behind the hairline.

You MUST be prepared to go back for additional surgeries in the future, which means you MUST KNOW that you will have the $$ put aside for this !! Otherwise, being bald will seem like a hallowed lost birthright compared to looking like a FREAK of nature!!!

Others may disagree with me, but I believe anybody under 30 is definitely NOT a good cantidate for a HT. Why ? Because for a LARGE % of guys who become Norwood 6/7 the major period of loss occurs from age 25-35.

Get your donor examined by a top HT doc and see how many FUs you have in the donor bank BEFORE you go any further into this. If you have 7000-9000 FUs back there and your scalp laxity is good enough, then (and ONLY then)should you start considering a HT!!

All I can say is that I am absolutely speechless !!

And I know what doc it will be working on my head now too !!

Enjoy these last days of having decent hair while you can. Go to the beach, socialize and have fun before many more than just you (especially women) treat you like 1/2 the man you were before for no other reason than losing your hair. If you think that you're not as attractive now as you once were, then in a few short years you will feel the true feeling of what it means to be a "baldie" or "that balding guy" in the eyes of the cold, cruel material world.

On the positive side it might be the very best thing that ever happens to you if you want to become a real person free from the trappings of fake materialistic life. I know all too well the feeling of being considered an irresitably attractive guy, and then due to hairloss being almost completely invisible. It hurts, and you learn alot about the coldness and gross superficiality of most people -- especially the women in the USA! When I had all of my hair there were women chasing me everywhere I went because my looks were on the level of a GQ model. But once the hairline goes the same type women won't even make eye contact with you, and they just stare right through you as if you have lepracy or don't even exist. But what do they matter anyway in the grand scheme of things ?

One thing is for certain though: propecia is your only hope of retaining the hair that you have, even if it's just for a little while longer. Otherwise it will be 2 years from now (that seem like 2 minutes) and you will be staring in the mirror at an old man who looks 20 years older than he really is. Once MPB starts its' holocaust on your hair follicles that is pretty much a guaruntee!

So you feel that your HT is noticable because of how the new thicker hair stands out from the thinning hair on top ?

Any respectable HT surgeon who sees your state of loss is going to tell you to get on finasteride first and wait a year to see what happens. That is unless you can prove to them that your family history of loss does not progress beyond where you are right now, which is basically impossible to do 100%. Even guys like Jotronic and Bobman who were full blown NW 6s STILL take it just to maintain the little they had left and hopefully not progress to NW7. That should really tell you something bro!

At the very least I would think any doc would tell you to start taking it and see if you have any really bad sides. You sound so afraid of it that it makes me think you have tried it already and had ED, or know someone who had this experience. To get on it for a few months is not going to kill you or negatively impact your health at all. If you suffer the sides and feel you can't hang with it, then simply quit taking it and everything will return to normal.

It's really a win/win situation, so I cannot understand why you are so against even trying it ? You might have no sides at all and not ever need to think about having a HT again! I've been on it for over 10 years now, and the only side effect for me has been watery semen and reduced volume of ejaculate. Do I like it ? NO !! But the trade-off of keeping my existing hair has been well worth it in my opinion.

Look, I know it sucks to feel like you will need to take this pill for the rest of your life to maintain your hair, but chances are that it won't be that long. I know you want a permanent solution so you can move on and put this all behind you because that's what we all want here. But science and technology just hasn't reached that point yet, but it WILL !!

Thanks Phil for clarifying that !!! And I'll be throwing some more darts tonight at Bush's face for sure !! The nerve of that stupid SOB just never ceases to get my head boiling over. The ONLY reason he supported all that anti-stem cell mullarky was because his voting base was the conservative christian crowd. He obviously had no morals or issues with being responsible for the brutal murder of several hundred thousand innocent Iraqis so his oil buddies and private contractors could make the big score.

I know he was the worst president this country ever had in most people's minds; but the fact that he stood in the way of HM makes it a very personal issue with me, and I'll NEVER forgive him for it !!!

Originally posted by phil mascallpen:

Let's just stick with the facts:

 

Obama overturned an order signed by President Bush in 2001 that barred the National Institutes of Health from funding research on embryonic stem cells beyond using 60 cell lines that existed at that time.

 

Obama also signed a presidential memorandum establishing greater independence for federal science policies and programs.

 

No matter what you otherwise think of Bush and Obama these new policies clearly are more beneficial to organ and tissue cloning research.

Well, you said in a post on your other thread that a doc examined your head and said you have a good donor area, but also said you have straight and thin hair. That sort of sounds like a contradiction to me, so was this a respected HT doc ?

Keep in mind that an excellent donor area means several crucial things:

1) above average FU density per sq. cm. (mine is 90) What is yours ? Did the doc use a densometer machine to determine this ?

2) medium to coarse hair shaft caliber. Medium is 70 microns. Coarse is 80 or higher I believe. So, if your hair shaft diameter is considered thin then it could be as low as 40 microns which means that somebody with coarse donor hair will need 1/2 as many grafts as you to get the same result.

3) hair texture is also a BIG factor. Mine is considered "slightly wavy". If yours is totally straight then it will require more grafts than someone with wavy hair to get the illusion of density.

4) contrast of hair color to scalp/skin color. Mine is auburn/brown to tan scalp, pretty decent. Yours looks to be really good. The worst is jet black straight hair on pale white skin (think of the average asian male).

5) scalp laxity. How loose is your scalp ? If it's really tight then they might only be able to get as little as 5000 FU grafts total before you're all stripped out.

It seems to me based on your description that you have several things working against you, but that does not mean you are not a good HT cantidate. I would say that if you do not know already all of the specifics I mentioned above then you should by all means get on a plane and visit a top doc and have him/her look at your head and give you a detailed assesment. Thin, straight donor hair needing to cover a NW6 head is not an easy thing to do.

One of the things that really bothers me about this site (and others) is that hardly anyone ever gives you all the specific details when you see a great result posted on someone who went from NW 5/6 to a NW 2 with 7000/8000 grafts. What was that person's hair caliber (microns), scalp laxity, and donor density ? I think it should be REQUIRED for this information to be presented along with the photos of the results !! For example, what was Bobman's hair shaft diameter and donor density ??? That guy went from advanced NW 6 to having ALOT more hair than me with 8000 grafts!! I WANT TO KNOW THE SPECIFICS of cases like this, but it's like pulling teeth to get them -- and it shouldn't have to be that way !!!

I've been following these boards closely as well (this one, HLH, Hairsite, etc.) and I have seen the threads from some of the posters you are talking about. I also found it strange that they did not post their photos yet went on endless tirades warning people not to get a modern HT. But if you spent enough time (like I did) reading between the lines of all the endless ranting they did, the one distinguishing trait they all had in common was that they were all guys in their 20s whose loss had progressed much further post-HT. They had a few good years of having the hair they wanted, only to discover that as time progressed they would have to face the issue of going for a second HT if they wanted to look natural. So they blamed the entire HT industry for allowing them to get a HT in the first place, which is a joke!! They were probably also bitter that they were heading to NW6 territory and finally realizing that they probably were not even good HT cantidates to begin with; but again, this was surely the doc's fault in their minds because he didn't have a crystal ball to see what was coming.

One guy actually did post a pic of his donor scar which was exceptional and one that most would pray to get! Yet, he was still extremely bitter about the whole experience and claimed that he was sold a bill of goods. Suspiciously, he also waited over 10 years to come to terms with how bad he felt about it -- another JOKE!! He only started feeling bad about it IMO when he realized he'd be heading to NW6 and had poor donor characteristics to begin with.

It was, however, thoroughly informing and educational to hear from the horses mouth all the reasons why these patients felt their modern HTs were the most horrible mistakes of their life. What I learned from them mostly is that if you are 30 or younger and think you may head to NW6 then you should NOT consider a HT until you see where you will end up. I'm 40 and still a solid NW3V, so all of their incessant ranting about the pitfalls are meaningless to me. But it was like pulling teeth to get the SPECIFICS out of them about their individual cases.

I also felt some of these guys were complete hypocrites to claim that they wish they had accepted themselves and went bald naturally. trust me, if HM came out tomorrow and they could afford it they would be the FIRST in line!!

Well, if you're psychic with a crystal ball and can see where your hairloss will be at in 10 years from now then you have nothing to fear with a HT. Just a few touchups to the hairline and thinning spots and you're good to go and a happy camper for life. Unfortunately in the real world things don't always turn out so peachy. I have seen guys go from minor thinning NW2 like you to diffuse NW 5/6 from age 30-35. Then there are guys like me who were NW3 by age 25 and have essentially remained that way 15.5 years later.

And yes, HTs have advanced tremendously over the years; but that doesn't mean diddly squat concerning the issue of whether or not a guy in your situation should choose the HT option over proven medications like Finasteride. You make it seem like getting a HT is a walk in the park and carries less potential risks than taking a daily pill. You've obviously not done enough research on this yet to take this position.

If HM was already out, then your logic would make perfect sense and NONE of us would be taking fin. anymore. But keeping what you have is the MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR of all in 99.9% of potential HT cantidates' minds who wish to have a successful outcome, and you brush it off like it doesn't matter because HTs have come such a long way. Again, considering your level of loss it's easy to see WHY you can think this way about it. I sincerely hope that you hairloss doesn't progress any further and you remain one of the lucky few in this world who can avoid medications as a matter of principle.

Originally posted by illuminated:

Hi all,

 

Thanks for your replies so far.

 

Yes, of course, I must seem 'silly' to some on here for considering a HT when I have hair like I do which a lot on here would kill for. However, it's important to bear in mind that it has taken several years for HTs and associated techniques to have advanced to this level and a lot of people may have gone far up the Norwood scales to increasing levels of baldness in this time. It was only a few years ago that HTs were crude and a mess for a lot of people who tried them.

 

Given the above, even those experiencing mild pattern baldness now no longer need to live with the stress, strain and heartache that the condition causes - hair loss is still emotionally painful whether it is at an early or advanced stage. Therefore, if I can have a HT now to fill in my thinning areas I'd rather bite the bullet and have that as opposed to extra years of stress messing around with concealers and medication which might affect my life and reduce my confidence (which is already low) in other negative ways. This does not mean I am nonchalant, it means I don't want to try and fix one problem by creating another which may have more serious ramifications for me.

 

However, this does not mean that I am not willing to try pills or solutions which may block or reduce DHT and have little or no adverse side effects. For example, I have heard of Provilus - any opinions on this?

 

Has anyone with a similar hair loss to mine (or with similar hair to mine) gone through a HT.

 

Many thanks.

I know you'd really like to believe that you can chase your hairloss with HTs and make it seem as though nothing ever happened, but the harsh truth IMO is that young patients (30 and under)who still have alot of hair remaining and whose hairloss pattern has not fully matured are not good cantidates at all. No doc (even the best) has a crystal ball to look into the future and see exactly where you will end up; and especially at your age, there is a substantial amount of time left for MPB to do it's dirty work. From age 25 to 30 is probably the most damaging time for a large percentage of guys who end up NW6. And you've just been on propecia for 2 months, so you can't be sure what the effectiveness of it will be or how bad the side effects will be. Some guys have severe erectile dysfunction after 6 months and have to get off it. Imagine if youv'e already had your HT and then this happens ? You'll be between a rock and a hard place, and you'll be on the cosmetic surgery treadmill of just trying to look like a normal person again. And this isn't even factoring in the financial hardship you could be setting up for yourself.

Another major problem in your situation is the issue of figuring out how many grafts to place in the frontal hairline area, because if and when everything else behind it goes where will you be then ? It will look completely unnatural and the idea of being bald suddenly will seem like a hallowed lost birthright by comparison. If you don't believe me then spend some more time on the "repair section" of various hairloss sites (HLH, Hairsite, etc.) and you'll get a quick dose of reality from guys who took the plunge in their mid 20s and looked good for a couple years, then found themselves on the HT treadmill. If the level of loss you have right now bothers you to the point where you'd rather stay inside for NYE, then the aforementioned scenario would probably make you a complete hermit who lived under a hat at all times cursing the day you ever sat in that top doc's chair.

This may be just my opinion, but I don't consider anyone under 40 who thinks he will have significant further loss to be a good HT cantidate. On the other hand, guys who are 25 and already a NW 6 and have great donor characterisitics I believe can be good cantidates. Not knowing to what level your hairloss will progress (and when) is a terrible position to be in for considering a HT. They'll have to plant grafts in between existing semi-healthy native hairs, and when those fall out you will be left with a very unnatural look. Why ? Because normal balding does not look like that, with healthy terminal hairs spaced too far apart exiting the scalp.