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A phantom's story: my HT experience and plan - Dr. Feller to remove my mask?


dhuge67

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  • Senior Member

Hello all, I'm sure you've heard my terrible HT story before so I won't bore you with it.

 

Okay, I'll bore you a little bit: 1,600 or so FUs (I'd like to say "FU" to my doc icon_wink.gif) in the hairline and temple area. Horrible placement, unnatural hairline, thin coverage. I'm pissed.

 

The recipient site was not shaved for the HT, and hence, some of the hair grows out from the scalp at strange angles. If I keep it cut short, this is not an issue, but even shaved and upon close inspection it looks pretty pluggy. Yikes!

 

Well, that's why my hat collection and I are still good friends. It's also why I've become fond of beard trimmers as a hair-styling device.

 

Bills comments about feeling like the Phantom of the Opera really hit home with me...really.

 

Anyway, I decided that since I'm a student and have not yet had to take out a loan, I decided to take the plunge. After all, the student loan payback period is great and interest rate is so low that you can't really beat it. Especially considering the University I attend has an average student debt of 28,000 dollars upon graduation, and I previously had ZERO, I felt sort of justified in my decision to take out a 9,000 dollar loan.

 

I'm fine with telling you all this. Hell, I'm 22 and in college. I'm not trying to sugar coat here. I want this situation fixed (at least from the front half of my head. Luckily, my crown still has good coverage but is thinner, for sure. Nothing a little toppik can't cure and then another HT down the road will probably take care of that.

 

I want the doctor I choose to approach me as if I am the baldest human imaginable (think James Carville except I'm not a goblin).

 

I want him to look at my situation as if everything except for the already-transplanted hair is gone, and then work around that.

 

It's my best bet for "success" in this repair/reconstruction case that I present.

 

I'm thinking that based on the procedure I had and the area it covered at the density it covered, I would need about 2,500 units in the same area previously worked on, with some support through the middle.

 

That should leave me looking comparatively "pretty" to where I am now. My donor area is pretty good and my hair is thick and wavy (when I let it grow).

 

I'm almost dead-set on setting something up with Doctor Feller, as I have seen comparable work but hardly any better. He also happens to be relatively close to me, as I am in Pennsylvania.

 

I made all of the classic mistakes the first go-round: I chose my doc based on proximity, didn't consult with the doctor first, and didn't fully understand HIS procedure before I went and dumped 6,500 dollars down the drain and received a weird hairline and permanent scar.

 

I don't want to be a phantom any more...

 

Chris

 

Photo%2012.jpg

 

Photo%2013.jpg

 

Photo%2015.jpg

 

Photo%2014.jpg

1,614 with Dr. Pistone on 2/3/06 in Marlton, NJ.

 

As long as the moon shall rise

As long as the rivers flow

As long as the sun shall shine

And the grass will grow

Let me listen, I will learn to speak

The old language

Yes, I yearn to bathe in blue skies

And fall apart from the world of machines

Regain my feet and my pounding heart

 

My Hair Loss Weblog

 

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  • Senior Member

Hello all, I'm sure you've heard my terrible HT story before so I won't bore you with it.

 

Okay, I'll bore you a little bit: 1,600 or so FUs (I'd like to say "FU" to my doc icon_wink.gif) in the hairline and temple area. Horrible placement, unnatural hairline, thin coverage. I'm pissed.

 

The recipient site was not shaved for the HT, and hence, some of the hair grows out from the scalp at strange angles. If I keep it cut short, this is not an issue, but even shaved and upon close inspection it looks pretty pluggy. Yikes!

 

Well, that's why my hat collection and I are still good friends. It's also why I've become fond of beard trimmers as a hair-styling device.

 

Bills comments about feeling like the Phantom of the Opera really hit home with me...really.

 

Anyway, I decided that since I'm a student and have not yet had to take out a loan, I decided to take the plunge. After all, the student loan payback period is great and interest rate is so low that you can't really beat it. Especially considering the University I attend has an average student debt of 28,000 dollars upon graduation, and I previously had ZERO, I felt sort of justified in my decision to take out a 9,000 dollar loan.

 

I'm fine with telling you all this. Hell, I'm 22 and in college. I'm not trying to sugar coat here. I want this situation fixed (at least from the front half of my head. Luckily, my crown still has good coverage but is thinner, for sure. Nothing a little toppik can't cure and then another HT down the road will probably take care of that.

 

I want the doctor I choose to approach me as if I am the baldest human imaginable (think James Carville except I'm not a goblin).

 

I want him to look at my situation as if everything except for the already-transplanted hair is gone, and then work around that.

 

It's my best bet for "success" in this repair/reconstruction case that I present.

 

I'm thinking that based on the procedure I had and the area it covered at the density it covered, I would need about 2,500 units in the same area previously worked on, with some support through the middle.

 

That should leave me looking comparatively "pretty" to where I am now. My donor area is pretty good and my hair is thick and wavy (when I let it grow).

 

I'm almost dead-set on setting something up with Doctor Feller, as I have seen comparable work but hardly any better. He also happens to be relatively close to me, as I am in Pennsylvania.

 

I made all of the classic mistakes the first go-round: I chose my doc based on proximity, didn't consult with the doctor first, and didn't fully understand HIS procedure before I went and dumped 6,500 dollars down the drain and received a weird hairline and permanent scar.

 

I don't want to be a phantom any more...

 

Chris

 

Photo%2012.jpg

 

Photo%2013.jpg

 

Photo%2015.jpg

 

Photo%2014.jpg

1,614 with Dr. Pistone on 2/3/06 in Marlton, NJ.

 

As long as the moon shall rise

As long as the rivers flow

As long as the sun shall shine

And the grass will grow

Let me listen, I will learn to speak

The old language

Yes, I yearn to bathe in blue skies

And fall apart from the world of machines

Regain my feet and my pounding heart

 

My Hair Loss Weblog

 

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  • Senior Member

any thoughts on my current hair-pics?

1,614 with Dr. Pistone on 2/3/06 in Marlton, NJ.

 

As long as the moon shall rise

As long as the rivers flow

As long as the sun shall shine

And the grass will grow

Let me listen, I will learn to speak

The old language

Yes, I yearn to bathe in blue skies

And fall apart from the world of machines

Regain my feet and my pounding heart

 

My Hair Loss Weblog

 

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  • Senior Member

your story: man that sucks...Its too bad you went through with it so young too. Well, can't change that now. Moving forward: I would definitelly move forward with your plan, provided that you go to a top notch doc and heed his advice; and primarily that you don't waste too many grafts all up front in the hair line. I think one of the biggest downsides here is that your "bad" surgery focused all on hair line placement, correct? Coupled with the fact that your very young and that your primary goal is to hide the bad hairline you have a problem on your hands to the extent that you do not want to waste too many grafts on a low hairline and then end up chasing your hair loss later in life.

 

I would def. do as much research as possible prior to comiting to any additional surgery. Go to a top notch doc (regardless of the price) and heed his advice. A top notch doc is going to take into account your age, future loss, and hair line placement/graft use.

 

I think I remember your picture and a bit of your story. Maybe not though because I thought you were the guy that went to the military and you just said your in school. Same guy or am I mixing you up?

 

One more thing to consider is excising the poor grafts out of the hair line, recycling them into a better one with a top notch doc and getting more new grafts from the donor area. But, I believe this poses a host of new and more complicated problems such as excessive trauma and scarring to the scalp. Not too sure. There was a guy with a similar case as yours on here recently and I think he too went to Feller. He had a poor pluggy hair line and was faced with this very same dilemna: recycle the grafts or try and cover them up. His advantage over your case is that he was much older than you and had stablized his hair loss. Which is quite a considerable advantage.

 

Have you tried any meds? They work wonders for some people.

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Dhuge,

 

Thank you for sharing your story with us.

 

How you are feeling about yourself certainly resonates with me, maybe not because of a bad hair transplant like in your case, but due to my hair loss condition overall. The phantom of the opera image fits so well for how I felt. Knowing the anguish it caused me, my heart goes out to you knowing you feel the same way.

 

I certainly believe there is hope for you through hair transplant repair. The good news is, your scar (at least from the picture) looks pretty good - though on second glance, it might be kind of high (hard to tell from your picture).

 

How many grafts you will need will depend on your donor density, donor laxity, how many grafts will be required to camoflauge your old hairline. Planning for the liklihood of future hair loss is also extremely important. If you are not currently on Propecia and/or Rogaine, I strongly recommend it to help stabilize your hair loss (I can't remember if you are on hair loss medication or not).

 

One of the problems I see is that Dr. Pistone gave you a very liberal hairline. Due to your age and the potential of future hair loss, it's quite a risk to lower your hairline to that level (or even lower) to conceal your current hairline. Extraction of the old grafts becomes a possibility but will leave scarring. Discuss all your options with Dr. Feller if he is who you have chosen to perform your corrective surgery. As you have seen, Dr. Feller has a stellar reputation for performing state of the art hair transplantation.

 

Please keep us posted on your hair restoration decision. If there is anything I can do for you, feel free to PM me.

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill

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I'd be interested to know what Dr. Feller has suggested. Do you have any pictures of your head not shaved? I'd like to see what you look like with your hair grown out.

 

I made the same mistake, more than once, and I am just now hoping like hell it can be fixed, its a question of donor hair available at this point and doctor ineptitude no longer is my concern (actually, it was not when I first got butchered, either, but should have been)

 

I'd say you are surely repairable and would be looking just fine after Dr. Feller properly camoflauged your previous work. Thats what I'm trying to have done and at the hairline it can probably be fixed, past that it will come down to creative styling.

 

I would definitely get on Propecia and Rogaine as Bill suggestged because another HT could lead to shockloss if you dont. And let us know what Dr. Feller suggests is your best bet, I'd like to know.

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About the Marine Corps: I went to OCS this past Summer and broke my right foot halfway through training. I'll be back at it in the Fall of 2008, once school is finished.

 

Thanks for remembering me.

1,614 with Dr. Pistone on 2/3/06 in Marlton, NJ.

 

As long as the moon shall rise

As long as the rivers flow

As long as the sun shall shine

And the grass will grow

Let me listen, I will learn to speak

The old language

Yes, I yearn to bathe in blue skies

And fall apart from the world of machines

Regain my feet and my pounding heart

 

My Hair Loss Weblog

 

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Also, I don't currently take Propecia because it gave me sexual side effects (lack of sex drive, trouble urinating - YEAH, wow). So I got off that.

 

I was considering getting back on Rogaine, which I did use concurrently with Propecia for over a year but neither of them ever seemed to do much. I might have not lost a lot more hair, but it didn't regrow any. I would rather get it fixed through surgery than rely on iffy medications that don't seem to provide any real benefit for me, one of which causes sexual/prostate (haha i'm 22 talking about PROSTATE issues)/hormonal issues.

1,614 with Dr. Pistone on 2/3/06 in Marlton, NJ.

 

As long as the moon shall rise

As long as the rivers flow

As long as the sun shall shine

And the grass will grow

Let me listen, I will learn to speak

The old language

Yes, I yearn to bathe in blue skies

And fall apart from the world of machines

Regain my feet and my pounding heart

 

My Hair Loss Weblog

 

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Dhuge,

 

I look forward to hearing Dr. Feller's assessment of your situation. I hope you or he will report back to what he feels is the best plan of action for you.

 

Your age and liberal hair line concern me at this point, especially since you can't be on Propecia.

 

Though I am not typically an advocate of herbal remedies simply because there isn't much evidence to suggest they really work - if Propecia is completely out for you, you might want to consider Saw Palmetto. Now don't everyone throw stones at me for suggesting this. Those that know me and have seen my articles on it, know that I don't advocate it because it hasn't been truly clinically tested and dosage at best is a guess. But it's cheap and if Propecia is out of the question, it might be worth a try as an adjunct treatment with Rogaine and Ketoconazole shampoo such as Revita or Nizoral.

 

Keep us posted.

 

Bill

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what can i do about the hair line issue? I know my father and brothers are all thinning. My older brother patrick is totally bald through the top, but one constant in our family is we all have the "sides" intact. Hopefully this remains true with me.

1,614 with Dr. Pistone on 2/3/06 in Marlton, NJ.

 

As long as the moon shall rise

As long as the rivers flow

As long as the sun shall shine

And the grass will grow

Let me listen, I will learn to speak

The old language

Yes, I yearn to bathe in blue skies

And fall apart from the world of machines

Regain my feet and my pounding heart

 

My Hair Loss Weblog

 

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Originally posted by dhuge67:

I would rather get it fixed through surgery than rely on iffy medications that don't seem to provide any real benefit for me, one of which causes sexual/prostate (haha i'm 22 talking about PROSTATE issues)/hormonal issues.

 

Well, you can ditch the Propecia if it has side effects, byt dont rule out Rogaine not working, if it keeps what you got, its working, and once its gone in the crown, its gone. So keep that and it will always help a denser hairline looking as it should, and maybe try the foam (I have no problem applying liquid once a day and I think thats all the more applications necessary)

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Good to see you D!

 

Glad your getting to take care of your situation my man!!!

 

Dr. Feller will fix you up--- put some density behind that hairline and correct it for you.

 

Keep in touch!!!!

 

Jason

Go Cubs!

 

6721 transplanted grafts

13,906 hairs

Performed by Dr. Ron Shapiro

 

Dr. Ron Shapiro and Dr. Paul Shapiro are members of the Coalition of Independent Hair Restoration Physicians.

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Damn B, looks like you got your second procedure done! Hope all is well.

 

Appreciate the kind words...

 

Does my shaved head look really bad? icon_frown.gif

1,614 with Dr. Pistone on 2/3/06 in Marlton, NJ.

 

As long as the moon shall rise

As long as the rivers flow

As long as the sun shall shine

And the grass will grow

Let me listen, I will learn to speak

The old language

Yes, I yearn to bathe in blue skies

And fall apart from the world of machines

Regain my feet and my pounding heart

 

My Hair Loss Weblog

 

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  • Senior Member

Dhuge67,

 

You look good brother so don't fret. With the muscles you got who's looking at your head?

 

I really want to see you get some resolve with things. I know that Dr. Feller is great at what he does and is a super candidate, but I am a little concerned about the hairline. It is hard to tell from your photos but it appears that Dr. Pistone gave you a pretty low hairline. I rather doubt that Dr. Feller could conceal by putting grafts in front but likely at equal height or even densely packed behind is another technique as it limits the contrast of hairs in front. Also there is always the idea of removing and retransplanting but I know that this is costly and time consuming.

 

Either way, there is hope for you. We all will be in your corner if you need support or have any question. Take care.

NN

 

Dr.Cole,1989. ??graftcount

Dr. Ron Shapiro. Aug., 2007

Total graft count 2862

Total hairs 5495

1hairs--916

2hairs--1349

3hairs--507

4hairs--90

 

 

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Thanks for the support guys...it means more than you know.

 

I am wondering about the hairline issue, too, and there is one piece of information I've left out: my head is not big. It's not small either, but it isn't huge. I don't know how well head-size comes across in the pic. I'm hoping that my overall surface area isn't that large and may aid in this being more easily fixed.

 

I hope it can be fixed. :/

 

I definitely don't know enough to know if removing/retransplanting the hair in the front is a good idea. I'm sure the doctor would know and be able to zero in on a good strategy.

 

From my perspective, I'd like to be able to have the existing hair there and have the doctor work around it, but that's just best-case scenario and wishful thinking. Whatever the decision, I'll go with the doctor(s), of course.

 

As far as WHEN? I should have the HT consult early next year, hopefully in February, and then a procedure in the beginning of June or earlier.

 

It depends on how things play out. I might be able to do things sooner than that, but the above is my most realistic financial timetable.

 

I started using Nizoral tonight, by the way. I bought a 6-month supply of Rogaine...but how bad would it be if I were on it for 6-8 months and then had to go cold-turkey because of OCS? Is it even worth using if I do that?

1,614 with Dr. Pistone on 2/3/06 in Marlton, NJ.

 

As long as the moon shall rise

As long as the rivers flow

As long as the sun shall shine

And the grass will grow

Let me listen, I will learn to speak

The old language

Yes, I yearn to bathe in blue skies

And fall apart from the world of machines

Regain my feet and my pounding heart

 

My Hair Loss Weblog

 

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Hi D

 

Good to hear from you again! Your situation looks very treatable and we have all seen far worse repairs on this site. If I were you I might try maybe 1/2 a pill of propecia . At this point you just want to stabilize the loss.

 

I won't throw stones at Bill although I am not a fan of Saw Palmetto as I really don't believe it works ( I took Procerin for 2 years without results). Anyway, maybe you should do the Rogaine thing as well..

 

your scar doesnt look too bad either and maybe it is a bit high but we have seen coalition docs so this as well .

 

You look ok though and everything will be ok .

JOBI

 

1417 FUT - Dr. True

1476 FUT - Dr. True

2124 FUT - Dr. True

604 FUE - Dr. True

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My views are based on my personal experiences, research and objective observations. I am not a doctor.

 

Total - 5621 FU's uncut!

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Well, one thing's for sure...it looks better when it's really shaved than when i let that crazy transplant grow. I only wish I could walk around with an American flag backdrop at all times. hahah

 

n9302560_44093089_5124.jpg

1,614 with Dr. Pistone on 2/3/06 in Marlton, NJ.

 

As long as the moon shall rise

As long as the rivers flow

As long as the sun shall shine

And the grass will grow

Let me listen, I will learn to speak

The old language

Yes, I yearn to bathe in blue skies

And fall apart from the world of machines

Regain my feet and my pounding heart

 

My Hair Loss Weblog

 

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Originally posted by Mrjb:

Hi D

 

Good to hear from you again! Your situation looks very treatable and we have all seen far worse repairs on this site. If I were you I might try maybe 1/2 a pill of propecia . At this point you just want to stabilize the loss.

 

I won't throw stones at Bill although I am not a fan of Saw Palmetto as I really don't believe it works ( I took Procerin for 2 years without results). Anyway, maybe you should do the Rogaine thing as well..

 

your scar doesnt look too bad either and maybe it is a bit high but we have seen coalition docs so this as well .

 

You look ok though and everything will be ok .

Appreciate the reply and yes, I do think that there have been people with a lot worse of a situation than mine.

 

I'm going to fight this thing until it's right.

 

Until then, I have to go around looking like a fighter.

1,614 with Dr. Pistone on 2/3/06 in Marlton, NJ.

 

As long as the moon shall rise

As long as the rivers flow

As long as the sun shall shine

And the grass will grow

Let me listen, I will learn to speak

The old language

Yes, I yearn to bathe in blue skies

And fall apart from the world of machines

Regain my feet and my pounding heart

 

My Hair Loss Weblog

 

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Some more good news is that if you look at my pics in the first post, you can see that only one side of my hairline was lowered substantially.

1,614 with Dr. Pistone on 2/3/06 in Marlton, NJ.

 

As long as the moon shall rise

As long as the rivers flow

As long as the sun shall shine

And the grass will grow

Let me listen, I will learn to speak

The old language

Yes, I yearn to bathe in blue skies

And fall apart from the world of machines

Regain my feet and my pounding heart

 

My Hair Loss Weblog

 

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hey man,

the shaved head looks pretty good on you actually. I am like you and am lucky to have a pretty angular face and jaw (like Canadian ufc champ St Pierre, so my wife tells me...haha). meaning we have the face/head for shaving. a buddy of mine is loosing his hair and he does not have the head for shaving to say the least, so he will never have the option in his opinion to shave his head.

anyway, I am pretty confident your situation can be improved with the right doc.

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Originally posted by HTinthefuture:

hey man,

the shaved head looks pretty good on you actually. I am like you and am lucky to have a pretty angular face and jaw (like Canadian ufc champ St Pierre, so my wife tells me...haha). meaning we have the face/head for shaving. a buddy of mine is loosing his hair and he does not have the head for shaving to say the least, so he will never have the option in his opinion to shave his head.

anyway, I am pretty confident your situation can be improved with the right doc.

 

I have been likened to the following people in my life (with and without hair):

 

1. Georges St. Pierre

2. Padraig Harrington

3. Pete Sampras

4. Bas Rutten

5. Scott Ian

6. Robert Davi

 

hahahah

1,614 with Dr. Pistone on 2/3/06 in Marlton, NJ.

 

As long as the moon shall rise

As long as the rivers flow

As long as the sun shall shine

And the grass will grow

Let me listen, I will learn to speak

The old language

Yes, I yearn to bathe in blue skies

And fall apart from the world of machines

Regain my feet and my pounding heart

 

My Hair Loss Weblog

 

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Of course, I'm not an MMA professional or even in the military yet, but odds are that my future profession will be either military or in athletic training (a college football strength program).

1,614 with Dr. Pistone on 2/3/06 in Marlton, NJ.

 

As long as the moon shall rise

As long as the rivers flow

As long as the sun shall shine

And the grass will grow

Let me listen, I will learn to speak

The old language

Yes, I yearn to bathe in blue skies

And fall apart from the world of machines

Regain my feet and my pounding heart

 

My Hair Loss Weblog

 

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Hey D,

 

Nice hearing from you again. I dont' blame you for wanting to get the situation fixed.

 

I agree with Bill's earlier statement about the hairline, it's pretty low so no need to go any lower whatsoever. If it needs tweaking here and there, I'm sure Doc Feller can take care of you............I'm with you on his quality of work and think he's one of the best for sure.

 

Sorry to hear about your foot!

 

Take care,

Hairbank

 

1st HT 1-18-05 - 1200 FUT's

2nd HT 2-15-06 - 3886 FUT's Dr. Wong

3rd HT 4-24-08 - 2415 FUT's Dr. Wong

 

GRAND TOTAL: 7501 GRAFTS

 

current regimen: 1.25mg finasteride every other day

 

My Hair Loss Weblog

 

Disclaimer: I'm not a Doctor (and have never played one on TV ;) ) and have no medical training. Any information I share here is in an effort to help those who don't like hair loss.

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