young and curious

[Guest]

hello. im 17 and my hair is extremely thin over the top of my scalp. im getting very self conscience. i was wandering if anyone could tell me if a hair transplant helped. college is starting soon and if im going to get one i should be over the summer.

[Guest]

hello. im 17 and my hair is extremely thin over the top of my scalp. im getting very self conscience. i was wandering if anyone could tell me if a hair transplant helped. college is starting soon and if im going to get one i should be over the summer.

[Guest]

Losing hair sucks - but at your age - the last thing you want to do is get an HT. It's not a perfect solution, and there is always a good chance you will look worse than before. First thing you should try is medication. The good news is - you are still young and are very likely to see great results if you start early. Go to your dermatologist and ask him about Propecia. It helps keeping what you already have, and losing more hair. May take a year to see the results. (You think you are self-conscious of your hair now? - wait till you get an HT). Definitely give medication a chance first, and don't even think about getting an HT until you're twenty something.

 

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic''. Arthur C. Clarke

[Mr T]

Micropose is right -- start with the medications as soon as possible to save what you have.

 

Second thing is READ, READ, READ everything you can here and on some of the other hair loss sites. HT's aren't for everyone. Many of us have learned that the hard way and you can benefit from our experiences.

 

If you want to see the aftermath of a HT done when I thought my hair was just thinning and then it all fell out later on, you can view my before pictures here:

 

http://www.hair-restoration-info.com/groupee/forums?a=tpc&s=5696015661&f=2566060861&m=2886099282

 

Mr. T

[Manko]

Micropose,

 

The only thing I don't agree with in your comment is mentioning that there is "a good chance you will look worse than before". That actually scares the hell out of me, and it makes someone wonder why anyone would get an HT. Otherwise, I completely agree 17 is too young for HT, but should respond well to propecia/rogaine.

 

Manko

[Guest]

I stand by my comment. Many people end up looking worse after HT, than before. You minimize the chances by picking a great doctor (and there are very few of those out there), but most people just go for it, not doing any research past the infomertial they just watched.

 

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic''. Arthur C. Clarke

[Manko]

Micropose,

 

That is the only way I could agree with your comment, and I considered it when I was reading what you wrote. Statistically, you're probably right, assuming that most people won't go to a top doc, and instead will go to an MHR or Bosley. My instant fear was I thought the message you were sending was that regardless of which doc you picked, you would likely wind up looking worse. Now I understand that you meant that most people still go to a mill, and in that case I definitely agree with your point.

 

I do think 17 year old Jon is already way ahead of the game by having found this site. Unfortunately, probably the only people that would give Jon an HT at this age would be one of the mills and it would likely produce a disappointing result.

 

Good luck Jon, listen to this site, and be real skeptical of a doc who says you would be a good candidate.

 

Manko

[Mr T]

I think another way you could look worse is to have shock loss in the area where the grafts are placed. You could have less hair/density than when you started.

 

Mr. T

[NW]

Very good point Mr-T, it is not the best idea planting grafts in areas of exsisting hair - quite risky actually.

 

I would wait for some true recession before putting in grafts.

 

NW

[Stanley]

Micro,

 

I hope you were being sarcastic when you said, "Just wait to see how self-conscious you are AFTER an HT!" Do you mean directly after when the grafts are still growing or for the rest of your life? I definitely don't want to be MORE self-conscious than I am now! The whole point of an HT is for your hair to be a non-issue, right? It will hopefully stop me from looking in the mirror every ten seconds to cover up the receding hairline. Being more self-conscious and paranoid would kind of defeat the purpose, in my opinion. Can you please clarify what you meant?

[Guest]

I was talking the first few months after the procedure, at least. Add possible shock loss to it (which may or may not be temporary), and you'll see what I mean. Of course, if you end up with bad results, then you're in for life (or until you get it fixed - if even possible). Be really careful - about thinking that once you get an HT - hair will no longer be an issue. In many cases, it's when hair really starts to become an issue - especially if your hairline IS receding.

 

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic''. Arthur C. Clarke

[vocor1]

Stanley:

I can't speak for Micro, but I think I know what he is getting at. Arfy has said it too: people think they'll get an HT and all their hair problems and self-confidence issues are gone. That is generally not true.

There are some cases, where the improvement is so great compared to the before case, that in a matter of speaking, your life is changed unmistakenly for the better.

Many hope and pray for that, but do not get it.

Why?

Either substandard work by the doctor or unrealistic expectations by the patient.

You get an HT at 17 and at 20 and 24 and 28 when you need more work, will you be as will to go into the chair knowing that your supply is dwindling?

These are difficult questions to answer. I sure as hell couldn't answer them at 22 more or less 17 and still struggle with them at 29.

In my case, the HT changed my life. I could write a 100 pages on it and still couldn't explain it all.

And still, I would like a little more work. Catch my drift?

You'll still be self-conscious of your hair, but still, at least in my case, the new hair is so much better.

HT isn't a problem solver. It can, however, help some people achieve some of their goals.

Perfect hair should NOT be one of those goals. Much better hair certainly can be.

 

vocor1

Knowledge is Power

If the worst question is the one never asked, then the worst answer is the one never shared.

[arfy]

Stanley

You are asking good questions.

 

Some of the big factors for success are

 

-picking an excellent doctor

 

-having realistic expectations

 

-planning for the long-term

 

-not assuming that drugs or cloning will "save" you later

 

-being the "right guy" for the surgery (being a good candidate).

 

As I said in your other thread, I think you are in that grey area, where you may or may not be right for a transplant (yet). In other words, you may want to wait a bit, as you still have a decent amount of hair left (based on your fuzzy photos). On the other hand, when I say grey I mean it could go either way... there is no obvious "yes" or "no" there, as far as you being a candidate. Obviously, seeing you in person would be more informative, as your pics are kind of poor.

 

As always, think things over carefully.

 

I don't recall how long you've been on Propecia, but if it has not been a year yet, that might be an indication to wait as well.

 

There are many times when there is no obvious answer to be had, and it is up to you to weigh the pros and cons. Personally, I feel like if there is any doubts about whether or not you should get the surgery, you should hold off and continue to think things over.

 

There is no penalty for getting a transplant later, however there is sometimes a penalty for getting a transplant too soon.

 

To address your other question, if you are self-conscious about having thinning hair, there is no guarantee that you won't be self-conscious about having a hair transplant.

 

[This message was edited by arfy on June 20, 2003 at 04:15 PM.]