round 2 with doctor rahal!- the touch up procedure

[Raphael84]

Azza, I have huge amounts of respect for you and your personal project. You have not had it easy by any means, considering your age, and also the elongated results of 2 HT's. Please dont take that as a negative. Looking back almost 2 years to the day and your first HT, you have come such a long way. This was obviously your expectations plus more, with 5000+ grafts over 2 years but comparing the photographs definately tells a positive story, and your new hair should last decades.

 

Hang in there my man, huge improvement! Im sure there is more to come!

[azza786]

thanks for the words guys,

 

Bill, i have been taking pics under the same lighting throughout the 2 year i have been going through this (notice the curtains in the back ground )

 

raphael, for sure i have come a long way..thas true....i will breath such a MASSIVE sigh of relief when this is all over...it probably is and will be the most toughest 2 years of my life i will ever remember...phew!

[azza786]

at the 10 month mark, i can say that there has been an improvement. the texture and quality of my hair has somewhat improved and i can feel the change upon touching it.

 

there are various areas still maturing given that im still at the 10 month mark but overall things are good.

[Raphael84]

Azza,

 

real pleased that you are feeling more positive over your current result. Things do look to have improved and as you are your harshest critic, its great that you see and feel this also. Good luck with further maturing. Your looking good!

[BANDIDO]

Azza, I am glad things have gotten better for you.

[azza786]

thanks guys, to be honest i dont know how much more growth i can expect with the number of grafts i recieved but im sure hoping that the maturing turns out to be good.

[azza786]

at 11 months, i cant say that there has been marked improvement since last month. it is more or less the same.

 

i could do with more thickening imo.

[Forrest Gump]

azza, sorry to hear that there hasn't been any marked improvement between months 10 and 11. I did go through your weblog, and yes, there is some "see-through" effect.

 

You can hope that you're one of those slow growers, and there'll be a spurt of growth from the 12th month onwards. Good luck! By the way, did you talk to your doctor? See what he has to say.

[Raphael84]

Azza,

 

In my HONEST opinion. Your lastest photos look great. I can obviously understand why you would want more thickness. But in the knowledge that you will keep this hair permanantly, that must feel good.

 

How are you feeling on a day to day basis? What are you current thoughts on your hair and what the future may hold? Ever consider concealers or like?

 

Youve come a long way over a good period of time. I think you look great!

[ShavedDethMonk]

Hi Azza,

 

I agree with those that say what an improvement your situation has come from pre-op. You being a NW5 there was likely never a chance of having a thick frontal third once transplanted. Lets face it NW5 and 6s use HT to give an illusion of coverage and actually dont have thick heads of haif on top, so I think what you have achieved is quite good.

 

Having said that Bill, our associate publisher, has a dense looking top but then again he has pumped out 7000+ grafts on top so you would have to add more grafts to get that level of density. And that is more committment. Perhaps you should enjoy what you have for now and wait 4-5 years before you put yourself through more of the same as it must be wearing on you mentally ... you probably just need a break and to enjoy life rather than be concentrating on your hair.

 

Best to you.

 

SDM

[Bill - Seemiller]

Azza,

 

5231 over 2 procedures is a great deal of grafts. But given the amount of hair loss you've had, it's understandable why you'd still have a see-through look. If we are playing the numbers game only (not factoring in hair characteristics or scalp/hair color ratio), in order to create an adequate illusion of density uniformly, you'd need approximately 11,500 to 13,500 follicular units over a Norwood 5A.

 

Keep in mind that at your very young age, you're definitely going to want to keep a good bit of donor in reserve in the event of future loss. Thus, be very careful if you're deciding to have more work done in order to add density. If anything, you'd probably only want to focus on the front next time to refine the hairline and thicken up behind it.

 

Overall, I'd say you have a great head of hair, much improved from prior to your procedures.

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill

[hairthere]

azza, i'd also try a more strategic haircut. perhaps shorter and spikier will add some layers and density to your look.

[azza786]

thanks for the words guys,

 

i did understand prior to the procedure that there would be areas of see throughness. however, the game plan was to have the frontal hairline the least seethrough but right now, it is the hairline area that is the most see through. the area behind it has improved and having said that i would rather have a decent frontal hairline area and maybe (if that is what was going to happen) a slightly see through behind area and then playing around and styling options etc would have been much easier for me.

 

but anyhow, what is done is done and what will happen will happen. this 2 year journey ha somewhat been a mission so i think i will hold off another possible surgery for atleast the next 3-5 years. hopefully by then there would be great strides made in this type of cosmetic surgery.

[azza786]

believe it or not it is 1 yr post op- HT2.

 

overall there has been some improvement from HT1 as expected which is good but the continual loss of native hair really hasnt helped the cause somewhat. so the gains have equally been matched with the loss so the results are so-so at this moment in time.

 

i think i am going to call it a day in terms of HT for the time being...its been 2 years of my life that i shall never forget lol..with all the ups, downs and experiences i have been through in many different ways in terms of the HT.

 

anyhow i have attached pics for you to have a look. for those who think that the pics are somewhat misleading sue to light and/or quality, i apologise, i have moved out since i have started a masters degree at university so living in one of the accoms there and i tried to find the best lighting i could in my room . anyhow hope you can atleast get an idea of my result thus far.

 

az!

[thanatopsis_awry]

Hey Azza,

 

Above all else, it is important to note that the combination of your positive yet realistic attitude, and continued commitment to your studies is what is going to have the biggest impact on your life -- regardless of any HT you've had or will have in the future.

 

As you well know, you were a very difficult case to begin with given your aggressive loss and pattern, and your first HT did not yield prime results. You have made a clear improvement nonetheless.

 

In cases of young guys with aggressive loss, the ability and will to *continue* having multiple procedures to combat your loss is what is truly required to get a "full", lasting look.

 

If I were you I'd style my hair forward, texturize it some with a good paste/wax, and if you want you're probably set for a light dashing of nanogen to get a pretty complete look, which you may or may not even want. Set it and forget it -- gl w/ your studies.

[azza786]

Hello everyone,

 

Some of you may have liaised with me on here and some may have not...im logging back in here after 9 years and gosh has it been some journey.

 

I came on this site as a young 20 year old seeking aid with the loss that I got so early on in my life and now on the other side of the 20s.., I will like to update everyone.

 

Firstly, in the course of 9 years, I have had 4 hts..thats right..4...2 which you can see on my profile and 2 I got done in India from a reputed surgeon.

 

Sadly, the investment I put into the 2 HTs from Canada did not bear fruit for 2 long. I am easily a NW7 now with dusting of hair over my scalp but there is clear recession/ loss in all areas.

 

I decided a few years ago that FUT hasnt quite worked and FUE- I wasnt too keen on. I decided to try our BHT thinking what have I got to lose- again, being optimistic and seeing that it can work.

 

2 years of back to back surgerys and even that didnt worked. My loss has sped well ahead of the race and it has been disappointing.

 

I understand that with fate deciding me to have this so early in my life, that there were talks of risks etc etc...but I decided to take a chances and had some hopes.

 

Everytime I got a HT, there were improvements but then natural loss kept spoiling everything. I gave it my best shot that I can but its clear that it hasnt worked for me at all- hell I would be just happy to be a NW3 now but I dont see that happening.

 

Its been tough, its been hard, its been testing but life has moved on.....

 

cheers

 

AZ

[KO]

Hey azza786, I remember your case, and I followed your surgeries back in the day...any photo updates? It would be interesting to see a long term evolution like yours.

Edited January 18, 2017 by KO