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I am 22 and getting a HT..Please Help!


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I am 22 yrs old with verry thin hair at the top. I am in the US and my cousin (37 yrs old) did a HT in Dominican Republic with Dr. Alba Reyes. He says she's good. So i scheduled an appointment for June 2nd and payed 20% of the cost to reserve a seat for the surgery. Now, howver, i am beginning to have drawbacks. My family is all against me getting one. They say i am too young and should wait. Also, they say that the pain is going to way too much. Now i am afraid. I was very excited, but now my emotions are crushed! I dont know what to do! Is the pain really that bad? What if i do the HT, and it doesnt work out for me. I am so confused and im only 2 wks away. Should i cancel? i need advice

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BTW..i did use Propecia (1mg) for more than a yr. No growth results. I used Procerin also, and Rogain. i used those drugs Religiously! i did not get the results i hoped for. Therefore, i am turning to Surgery. I met with a "Hair Club" consultant..They wanted me to pay 11,250$ for one session. Thats way too much. i am a student and dont have that kind of money. In D.R., they are charging me 4,250$ for FUE megasession

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Thin,

 

Your family is right in 1 aspect, You are to young! You dont know how your baldness is going to progress.

 

As far as Propecia, Its not meant for hair re-growth, "although it does grow in a small % of people" it's meant to stop/slow the hairloss. I would suggest you get back on it ASAP. Procerin is crap! Rogaine is also good to use!

 

As far as "PAIN" is concerned now adays that's not to much of an issue w/ a skilled surgeon. I've never heard of Dr. Alba Reyes, but that doesnt mean she's not good. Does your cousin have the same type of hairloss as you? Some people w/ minimal hairloss can have what they percieve as good results even if the doc isnt that good.

 

If the HT doesnt work it may have the potential to be even more devistating than just being bald.

 

To sum it up, 1) get on Propecia and Rogaine,

2) Wait a couple of years to see how your NW level progresses to and 3)try shaving your head for a while. You may like it

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Using the find button you can enter her name and do a search. Not much came out except for one patient who sounds like he is doing her promotion, he did not reply to the more pointed questions from our moderator. IMO you are young for a HT, stay on Propecia, the results may not be too obvious but there is a high probability it slowed down your hair loss. I would never consider doing a HT with a Dr who has not been fully audited by the experts on this Forum. Why take the chance? The consequences are not worth it. You could come up with an excuse and get your deposit back. The most important thing is to take your time, don't rush into this, take a few months to read and learn from this amazing Forum and you' see that you'll end up making the best decision. You could start by posting photos of your hair (no flash) and you'll get great feedback even from surgeons who frequent our site. Keep us posted.

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Hey TM123,

 

Everyone here can sure relate to your struggle. What you are growing through can be impactful and you are not alone.

 

I agree with the advice given. There's no need to rush to a decision, give yourself some time to think things through and valdate all the pros and cons. Consult with several coalition doctors so that you may get a good understanding of your level of loss and what you can and cannot accomplish. That is critical in order to set your expectations correctly. A good doc will explain your situation in detail. Once you are clear on what you can expect think it through, validate if this is acceptable and then plan for a procedure.

 

How long ago did your cousin have a procedure with Dr. Reyes? If under 1.5 yrs why don't you wait to see how that turns out? Also research some of the results of other patients here with similar loss as you.

 

All this will help keep you focused on your options and goals and less on panicking. There is no harm in postponing until you are ready to make an informed decision. That way you lesson the likelihood of "buyer's remorse". Most if not all of the docs here are not going anywhwere anytime soon and you have plenty of good choices.

 

Believe me we've all been there and most will probably agree that taking your time to make sure you are ready is better than rushing in or making a decision based on your emotions. You have options.

HIGA

2400 Grafts with Dr. Epstein 11/8/06

Nizoral 3X/week

Rogaine foam 2x/day

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thank you all for your respones..this is the doctors website http://www.albareyes.com/eng/inicio.aspx just in case anyone is wondering...I tried propecia for a little over a year..it stopped hairloss, but no regrowth. Also, it got too expensive for me...i need to get my money back and wait some more time..The only thing is once i paid, she sent me an email stating the amount i put down and it said NO REFUNDS..wut am i gonna do now..im screwed.

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Thinman123-

I agree with the suggestions/comments of all previous posters. Trust your instincts and your family. The commitment to go ahead with surgery is a significant one, and one that should NOT be entered into lightly. I strongly recommend that you avail yourself to the services of a known, well documented hair restoration surgeon. Geographical location should be given the least amount of "weight" in your decision; the cost of flying to point "x" will be a fraction of the total cost of the procedure, and many surgeons (myself included) offer "travel discounts" to offset that expense. You want to be COMFORTABLE with your commitment to a procedure which will produce virtually permanent results. There is a big, big difference between permanent "looks ok, but, not really natural..." and, permanent "man that's an amazing job- I wouldn't have guessed you have had a transplant". BIG difference.

Take your time. Continue to utilize the forum- it's an excellent resource.

Best of luck to you.

 

Sincerely,

 

Timothy Carman, MD

Timothy Carman, MD ABHRS

President, (ABHRS)
ABHRS Board of Directors
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Thinman123-

I just noted your last post. That fact right there- that the surgeon is that inflexible as to refuse to refund your deposit (and such a significant deposit at that)- THAT in and of itself is a red flag.....to me that speaks to ethics, specifically a lack of, in my humble opinion.

 

Timothy Carman, MD

Timothy Carman, MD ABHRS

President, (ABHRS)
ABHRS Board of Directors
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Thin,

 

Did you read my Post? Propecia propably wont regrow your hair. It stops hair loss.

 

she sent me an email stating the amount i put down and it said NO REFUNDS..wut am i gonna do now..im screwed
.

 

You're not screwed You may have lost a few bucks, but think about the guys who go ahead and get a HT and it doesnt work. Now you've got a huge scar and you've paid the full amount. That my friend is screwed!

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Originally posted by Dr. Timothy Carman:

That fact right there- that the surgeon is that inflexible as to refuse to refund your deposit (and such a significant deposit at that)- THAT in and of itself is a red flag.....to me that speaks to ethics, specifically a lack of, in my humble opinion.

 

There are several Drs in the recommended/coalition list here who require non refundable down payments, so while I don't like the idea of it, it seems to be at least somewhat of a standard practice.

 

Thinman,

since you already put a lot of money down and don't want to lose it, I'll give you advice if you do decide to have it done. I can't see your hairloss, so this is general advice considering your age. Go with a higher hairline than you'd like to have at your age. You'll be glad you did that later. Cover the front half and leave the back alone at this point. You can always go back a few years later for more when you get a better idea of how much loss you will have. Don't try to get dense packed with too many grafts because you want to make sure you have enough donor left over for possible future loss.

 

Take a look at Azza's blog on here. He had significant loss at a very young age and had a HT. It didn't turn out as thick as he would like, but it was the proper amount of coverage to both get an improvement and leave donor for later if his area of loss gets wider.

Al

Forum Moderator

(formerly BeHappy)

I am a forum moderator for hairrestorationnetwork.com. I am not a Dr. and I do not work for any particular Dr. My opinions are my own and may not reflect the opinions of other moderators or the owner of this site. I am also a hair transplant patient and repair patient. You can view some of my repair journey here.

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Originally posted by BeHappy:

 

There are several Drs in the recommended/coalition list here who require non refundable down payments, so while I don't like the idea of it, it seems to be at least somewhat of a standard practice.

BeHappy-

Yes, you are correct about the general principle and the non-refundable deposit being a standard practice. In our practice, however, if we are given reasonable prior notice (yes it is arguable whether or not two weeks is "reasonable prior notice") I do not have any issues with a patient who has second thoughts about going ahead with the procedure- especially when that patient is relatively young. But yes, that is my choice and it is up to the individual practitioner, so perhaps I AM being a bit harsh, so I guess I would be more appropriate by stating that, given the circumstances, I would in all likelihood refund this patients deposit. But I can see your view; point well taken.

 

Timothy Carman, MD

Timothy Carman, MD ABHRS

President, (ABHRS)
ABHRS Board of Directors
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I agree with everyone that i am very young, but my hair looks like a middle aged man. It's thin. On her site she mentions that age is not a factor. I mean, i am not bald, but i am Balding. Its very visible. I use a hair concealer, Dermmatch, every single day and its been over a year already. I dont know guys, i am at the point where i either buy my ticket to go D.R. or lose 900$...i am so confused..Inside me says go for it, but then another part of me says dont. Ive waited and waited for a HT, but now that i have actually scheduled an appointment and put money down, i am actually scared.

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Thats it...I am doing it..I just purchased my ticket. I had a burst of energy and instinct all of sudden and felt like thats it. I have been waiting for this day for a looooong time. Now i must ask..How "painful" is the procedure? I would like to know how a patient feels during and after the procedure. Please let me know

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Thinman,

 

Good luck with your procedure. I do not know anything about the surgeon, but if your cousin is happy and you have seen his results, then that may be enough for you to move forward.

 

You mentioned you have difuse thinning. HTs are not a panacea and typically do not restore native density, just the appearance of coverage.

 

There are cases where the best surgeons transplant a difuse thinner and its a zero-sum gain because native hair loss is accelerated by the transplant. THe only consolation is that the HT hair is permanent.

 

Please have realistic expectations and realize that your look may not improve, but you may be able to hold the line depending on how many grafts you get.

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Good luck with your procedure. I disagree that someone is too young to get a hair transplant! (Assuming you dont use 3000 grafts on your hairline lol) You obviously are very concerned with your appearance, and your hair-loss is affecting your life, right? I see nothing wrong with having a procedure done. You must understand that you will very likely need an additional surgery or two to keep pace with the progression of your hairloss as you age. You are on finasteride right? That should help your results tremendously and slow/halt your progression. However, I am slighty concerned with your choice to have the procedure done in the Dominican Republic. I understand you are paying much less but a hair transplant is not something you want to seek a bargain on. You get what you pay for. Also Health code and ethics in the DRup are questionable.

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[quoteOriginally posted by HT55

]You have severe hair loss, VERY severe for 22 years old and I sure wouldn't let anyone from the Dominican work on you as it will most likely just cause you more problems and $$$$$$$$$$$$ a couple years from now

 

I completley agree w/ HT55. You are more likley to hate your procedure from the D.R than you are to love it. PLEASE RECONSIDER!!! If you are gonna do it, do it right man.

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im sorry you don't understand why i made that comment. I am young and i am having an HT this Wednesday. Although i am 25 and only a NW2. This kid is 22 years old and it must be devastating to have to deal with this kind of loss. Some of the doctors on this site have performed HT's on teenagers. Everyones situation is different, so who are you to say he's not a candidate? Unless your a doctor with a specialization in hair restoration surgery your opinion carries just as much weight as mine. I will say his situation is difficult but i still believe something can be done for him. Also, as i mentioned before, i would recommend not having the surgery done in the Dominican Republic.

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I feel that cases can be made for younger hair loss sufferers having hair transplant surgery, but they MUST be aware of all the risks involved including the need for subsequent hair transplant surgeries. Working with a physician and obtaining a long term hair restoration plan is vital and making good use of a finite donor hair supply is critical.

 

See Am I Too Young for a Hair Transplant?

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill

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Originally posted by hatrick

This kid is 22 years old and it must be devastating to have to deal with this kind of loss. Some of the doctors on this site have performed HT's on teenagers

 

How much more devestating will it be if he has a bad procedure done? On top of that now he's in debt and has a scar and now cant shave his head! All I'm trying to say is he really needs to reconsider it now, not in the future. And definatley dont do it in the D.R.

 

Now if he was telling me he was going to H&W or Feller or Alexander than I would feel more comfortable giving him the thumbs up KNOWING for sure he's in good hands!

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