22 Year Old Receded Hair line and Thining Crown

[calley7]

Hi all,

 

So I've been loosing my hair for about 4 years now, and its recently stabilized. I havn't tried any meds to assist in the hair loss (too many mixed reviews) but have for the last year searched HT's extensively.

 

I've weighed the pro's and con's of both FUE and FUSS and because I tend to wear my hair shorter I'm really leaning towards FUE, plus if I loose more hair later in life and don't want to have another HT I won't have a scar ristricting me from shaving it all the way down.

 

I've had one consult and they do FUSS and explained I would need between 8000-10000 hairs or something like 3000 grafts. I have another consult with Dr.Rahal (in Ottawa) in a couple of weeks as he's the closest Dr that does FUE.

 

I don't believe I have unrealistic goals, I'm not planning on lowering my hair line or creating something fake. I'm just at a time in life where image is everything and I want to be like the rest of my friends. So I want to restore the hairline and crown.

 

I'm just looking for opinions from other members. And I know alot of people will probably comment that 22 is too young for a HT but perhaps once you see the pictures you'll realize I'm not some 22 year old that has minimal recession and am being a baby.

 

And for anyone wondering MPB is in my family, my father is probably a norwood 5.

 

Thanks for any insight guys!

Edited March 28, 2011 by calley7

[nemo.shark]

are you trying dht blockers first before a ht?

[calley7]

No I havn't; at one point I did look into it but never did anything about it, I would be willing to try some though. So what do people recommend?

[RCWest]

I would have started a dht blocker when you first noticed thinning. That's fairly aggressive loss for only a 4 year span and at age 22. I would get on Finasteride and wait a year or two before I did surgery. Your plenty young enough to where medication can go a long ways in regrowing some hair or at least halt the loss. And since you wear your hair short I'd also suggest Minoxidil foam. It would be a breeze to apply for you. Good luck!

[nemo.shark]

good advice above! also look in to topical caffeine as a dht blocker and also vit b6 and high dose zinc, you need to take copper also if you supplement with zinc as they interact negatively when either are supplemented alone, there are also a few more ways to block or inhibit dht that im aware of. be aware of the sexual side effects with the drugs though! but also be aware that the earlier you start with that kind of treatment the more lasting the out come will be in a positive way!

[nemo.shark]

also i have an idea you can try for increasing the trans dermal effects of the topical dht blocker previously mentioned in to your scalp that you may want to try, its using one of these rollers that people use for their face to increase collagen which have small needles on them which will deliver the dht blockers in the skin more effectivley.

 

Microneedle MTS Skin Roller (0.2mm-2.0 mm), , MTS Roller

 

this may not be the perfect example of what im talking about if you search you will find a better one, look for the ones with tiny metal needles.

[hairthere]

Nemo, the roller you are referring to was being used by one of the docs practicing scalp prp --I think. If you do a search for prp you might find it.

 

Caley, so what happens if after you get an ht you lose nore hair? You realize you will be stuck with a very odd hair pattern and will need further surgery, right?

[calley7]

To answer your question, I do understand that restoring hair is an ongoing adventure and is practically impossible to predict when, if ever, it will stop.

 

This is why I am considering the FUE approach rather than FUSS. As it is my understanding that the FUE does not leave such a noticable scar (or any?). Which would enable me to shave my head completely at a later stage in life should I continue to loose more hair. I don't mind the option of shaving my head when I'm 30 something, but not now at 22. Because of my age it's difficult to be the "bald" guy in the group, I'm a confident person but hairloss has always been a sore spot, so I want to find out my options for now and at a later stage in life.

 

I have been researching for atleast a year and am not just going to wake up one morning make a call and have it done. It's a big decision and one that could haunt me for the rest of my life, or one that could change my life, so I want to be as educated about HT's as possible before making a decision. Not to mention it's not every day someone spends this kind of money.

Edited March 28, 2011 by calley7

[hairthere]

Fue does leave scarring. Instead of a linear scar they will be tint white dot scars. They will be noticable if you try to shave completely bare.

 

I am glad to hear you are not rushing into things. If I were in your shoes i'd get on the meds asap and wait a few more years. In the meantime, continue researching, and see some hts up close. But don't let this consume your life. It looks like you're pulling off the buzzed look just fine.

Edited March 28, 2011 by hairthere

[nemo.shark]

heres a tip, sure fue will leave a scar of sorts where you will have hypopigmentation that is visible when you shave your head and especially if you are someone that tans easily and is exposed to sunlight they will be very noticeable! but my tip is this you can look into tattooing the hypo pigmented dots on your head with a natural colour ink or color ink if you are American that will blend in with your skin tone, this will very much reduce the visibility of the scars when your hair is cut short.