Jump to content

21 w/Hair Lose: NEED ADVICE for Hair Transplant


Young1

Recommended Posts

Hey everyone. So I've been losing my hair now for about 2-3 years. It has bothered me every single day to the point that I've changed the way I live. I mostly am a Class 3 on the Norwood Scale. I mostly thought my hairline was receding from the corners but from some recent pictures I've seen, it's getting thin on the crown too. I'm 21 years old and WANT to do something about it now. I'm not sure what has accelerated my hair loss but I have gone through many episodes of physical and mental stress. I also have a bald spot where my mid hairline meets my sideburn. The bald spot and corner recession came on at the same time. I tried Rogaine for about 6 months on both areas with little to no results when I was 19. At the age of 20, I tried Propecia for about 6 months and felt worse with it whether through aesthetic appearance or physically. I have stopped as of a month ago and will not use it again.

 

I would like to get transplant surgery in the front to lower the corners and possibly and a little hair to the mid-front. Of course, this will be in addition to filling in the bald spot on the right side (about 1/2 inch). I recently saw 2 places. The first a private clinic. The doctor suggested I wait a year and stay on Propecia since they're not sure how much more it could recede. He said he'd be willing to do the surgery but was highly against it. The second was HAIR CLUB for men in Tysons Corner. I spoke to a "sales rep" for about 3 hours while we looked over my hair and options. Overall, she was very nice and seemed trustworthy and receptive but again, she was a sales rep. I asked for the surgery option with a 9th month treatment afterwards. Both places have offered FUT with the doctor quoting 1500 grafts while Hair club quoting 1000. The good thing about HC is that the do follow ups monthly with haircuts and have in home kits to help. I have saved money over the past couple of years and want to do something this summer since I have time to recover.

 

I need advice on what I should/could do. I want surgery since I can't regrow my hair in the receding areas and want to maintain what I already have. I know that people have been conned in the past but I need honest and straightforward advice and opinions.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Senior Member

If you want honest advise, I would tell you stay away from surgery for now. You need to get back on the meds- or at least on the mino & stay on it. You must give it a chance. You need 6-12 months on it to see any difference.

Did you try propecia every other day or half a tablet a day? Or half every other day?

It's so important maintaining what you have for now.

Losing hair so early on suggests it's likely you'll lose more by your 30th birthday without meds & an early op. You don't know which pattern you'll have.

Pics?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Senior Member

Hey there young1,

 

First of all welcome to the forum.

Reading over your post reminded me of myself years ago when I began to recede, it sucks I know. The fact you are aware of the required medications to maintain what your currently have on your head is a giant positive.

I see you cease to use Propecia, was this due to side effects?

Minox is something you may want to consider, you claim to only have tried it for 6 or so months, it takes far longer to see any real improvement. Often you may see none cosmetically yet the Minox is maintaining your current hair.

I would have a VERY strong second think about going in for a procedure at your age, the fact some of these clinics are agreeing to do any work on you question marks thier ethical stance.

I am 28 and have only recently had my first procedure, meaning all the years prior having to wait it out and remain on medication howevever I am very glad that I did hold on for my moment.

Many surgeons will advise you to get back on Propecia given your age etc. Do you have any current photos to share? This will give others more of a graps on where you stand. Hang in there dude!

Hair loss is horrible thing for some, we all know first hand.

 

Let me know if I can help in any way.

 

Mike.

"The road to success is always under construction"

 

:cool: I represent Dr Rahal and the associated clinic as a paid patient advisor.

 

I am also here to assist fellow Australian/NZ Hair Loss sufferers both on and off the forum.

 

Contact: mbhounslow@gmail.com - Mike.

Hair Transplant Surgery:

June 3rd 2011

2800 Grafts to frontal 1/3

By Dr Rahal in Ottawa, Canada

 

 

Current Hair Loss Arsenal:

Dutas .5mg every day 1.5 years and Proscar 5mg (Cut into 1/4): x1 Daily 10 years

 

Hair-A-Gain Generic Minox: x2 Daily 13 years

(Applied wet in mornings)

 

Other Random products put to use during my hair loss battle (not in use):

Spiro Cream 5mg

Minox 15%

Dr Proctor's Nano Shampoo

Various Herbal supplements

Toppik/ Nanogen

Saw Palmetto

Provillus - LOL

Nanogen Shampoo

Laser Treatments (Epic Fail)

 

10 long years of HT and general HL research.:cool:

 

*I am not a medical professional, I only offer my own advice from personal experiences and years of detailed research*

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the replies; I do appreciate your time.

 

@Dutch: I was using generic Propecia for 6 months w/ 1 tablet daily. I just didn't see the results I wanted and sort of felt worse taking it. I've read many studies about how it can cause prostate cancer and the negative side effects and don't want to cause any of those. My hair from the crown to mid frontal is fine. My problem areas are the edges and the small bald spot on my right sideburn that won't go away (I have even tried 4/5 steroid shots). As far as I know, Minox helps with crown and mid frontal but not the corners which I have permanently lost hair in. I feel using Rogaine worsened the condition there.

 

@MusolnOz: There weren't any large side effects. Sexually, everything was fine but I noticed weight gain and even worse hair condition. Thanks for sharing your story with me. Some doctors have told me that I'm too young but I feel surgery is the only way to regrow the hairs I have lost on my temples/corners and the bald spot on my right side. No drug/topical solution will bring those back regardless of how long I use it for.

 

I understand that I can lose even more hair than what I have now. I am willing to use products (such as rogaine) to maintain that area but again, isn't the only option surgery for my problem areas? I will attach a photo soon! Thank you.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Senior Member

No problems mate.

 

I understand your concerns, I really do however you need to understand that surgery at your age really is not the best idea. It sounds ideal but the negatives will outweigh the positives. Minox won't maintain your existing hair it is not designed for that. Your hair may have gone through a rough patch whilst on fin because that is what it does sometimes. You may have experienced a shed or the hair may have been adjusting to the medications, you honestly did not give it enough time.

 

Posting photos will definitely help assess where you are currently at but I will stand by the no surgery route for now due to your age mate. Trust me when I say you will regret it later down the line if things progress. You will have a very hard time finding a good surgeon to do the work you desire.

The places you have listed above are quite questionable in both ethics and skill.

 

Keep up the research my friend.

 

Mike.

"The road to success is always under construction"

 

:cool: I represent Dr Rahal and the associated clinic as a paid patient advisor.

 

I am also here to assist fellow Australian/NZ Hair Loss sufferers both on and off the forum.

 

Contact: mbhounslow@gmail.com - Mike.

Hair Transplant Surgery:

June 3rd 2011

2800 Grafts to frontal 1/3

By Dr Rahal in Ottawa, Canada

 

 

Current Hair Loss Arsenal:

Dutas .5mg every day 1.5 years and Proscar 5mg (Cut into 1/4): x1 Daily 10 years

 

Hair-A-Gain Generic Minox: x2 Daily 13 years

(Applied wet in mornings)

 

Other Random products put to use during my hair loss battle (not in use):

Spiro Cream 5mg

Minox 15%

Dr Proctor's Nano Shampoo

Various Herbal supplements

Toppik/ Nanogen

Saw Palmetto

Provillus - LOL

Nanogen Shampoo

Laser Treatments (Epic Fail)

 

10 long years of HT and general HL research.:cool:

 

*I am not a medical professional, I only offer my own advice from personal experiences and years of detailed research*

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the reply. What are the negatives of getting a FUT? What if I only do it for the bald spot on the right? Would FUE be better for that? I'll post a pic below.

 

Also, is Propecia the ONLY way to maintain what I have? Thanks again.

5b32ce43e861e_Screenshot2011-06-20at12_01_15PM.png.995b2ef678567476ab71e63afa9ceaaf.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Senior Member

Propecia & mino are the only two approved meds to combat hair loss. If you can't use propecia everyday, take half a day or even half every other day like mentioned earlier.

Mino does work on the front & propecia more on the back to maintain what you have.

The thinning in the side burn is a bit of alopecia & thinning there is common.

You could have FUE if you have the financial means, but losing hair at a young age is likely to mean this is only the beginning. Let's say you add 1k grafts in to sort the corners then you lose another inch then another. Always playing catch up

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Regular Member

Young1,

 

Before you do anything you should get a scalp biopsy performed on your right sideburn/temple area.

You mentioned 4-5 steroid injections. Was there any improvement?

Before any hair is transplanted into the right temple/sideburn, tissue/cytology analysis should be performed ruling out any auto immune condition. You do not want to have a transplant and then have your immune system destroy those hair follicles.

 

I suggest you ask the doctor who you felt comfortable with about the suitability of this diagnostic test.

 

This should help you make a more definitive decision as to how to move forward.

Good Luck Y1

"Opinions and expressions are solely my own!"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Senior Member

After looking at the photo I'm not even sure where this bald spot is, and you aren't a NW3.

 

Your hairline looks damn good to me. It's hard to tell if you've even lost any hair really. Minoxidil and Propecia both require more time than you gave them to work, and both can be effective at the temples. You basically quit before you gave them a chance, and at the point where patients are often at their worst due to the temporary shedding which is a common effect of the drug.

 

I am always honest with patients and hairloss sufferers, so I like it when someone comes along and I can honestly and enthusiastically tell them that their hairloss is so minor or non-existent that they should just get on with life. You could possibly benefit from the treatments and they could prevent you from losing more hair, but as you are now your own worries about your hair are totally out of whack with how others will see you.

I am a patient and representative of Dr Rahal.

 

My FUE Procedure With Dr Rahal - Awesome Hairline Result

 

I can be contacted for advice: matt@rahalhairline.com

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Senior Member

Totally agree with the above statements.

 

Your hair looks great from the picture alone. IF you are worried that much stick to the proven medications. If worried about Finasteride take a lower dosage as suggested previously.

Surgery at this point would only result in playing the catch up game as previously stated. If I had taken the surgery route I would have had 4 surgeries by now catching my temples, not something I would be keen on and very damaging to the donor region. I know this is not what you want to hear, as Matt said, you are your own worse critic...we all are.

No ethical surgeon would perform work on you at this point, I think I can safely say that.

 

 

Mike.

"The road to success is always under construction"

 

:cool: I represent Dr Rahal and the associated clinic as a paid patient advisor.

 

I am also here to assist fellow Australian/NZ Hair Loss sufferers both on and off the forum.

 

Contact: mbhounslow@gmail.com - Mike.

Hair Transplant Surgery:

June 3rd 2011

2800 Grafts to frontal 1/3

By Dr Rahal in Ottawa, Canada

 

 

Current Hair Loss Arsenal:

Dutas .5mg every day 1.5 years and Proscar 5mg (Cut into 1/4): x1 Daily 10 years

 

Hair-A-Gain Generic Minox: x2 Daily 13 years

(Applied wet in mornings)

 

Other Random products put to use during my hair loss battle (not in use):

Spiro Cream 5mg

Minox 15%

Dr Proctor's Nano Shampoo

Various Herbal supplements

Toppik/ Nanogen

Saw Palmetto

Provillus - LOL

Nanogen Shampoo

Laser Treatments (Epic Fail)

 

10 long years of HT and general HL research.:cool:

 

*I am not a medical professional, I only offer my own advice from personal experiences and years of detailed research*

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...