My FUE With Dr. Rahal 3000+ Grafts (Large Procedure)

[Sean]

Updates of donor, extraction areas, and recipient areas from my July 2014 Repair. Pretty much this repair looks to focus on same recipient zones as last time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lets see how things turn out folks. As of right now, I got serious shockloss in donor and some parts of recipient. So, I am hoping this use of precious grafts for this repair takes care of ALL original restoration concerns mentioned from the first procedure starting from the beginning of this thread.

[Rawkerboi]

How is the new Rahal's clinic and his famous Amberwood Guesthouse?

And did Dr.Rahal did the Implanting?

Cheers

Edited November 13, 2014 by Rawkerboi

[Sean]

Had phone appointment with Dr. RAHAL today at 3:30pm. Doctor/Clinic Called me at 4:14pm as they were busy with other patient consults and apologized for delay. Talked to Doctor briefly and he agreed to see me sometime in January to address my concerns with this repair, as nothing has changed much and donor shockloss exists. I still got some large forehead comments, balding comments, and comments pertaining to what is wrong with the back of my head. Waiting and hoping for all goals to be met so i can live in peace. trying to be patient after paying so much money, but this is starting to be some bullshit.

[Sean]

How is the new Rahal's clinic and his famous Amberwood Guesthouse?

And did Dr.Rahal did the Implanting?

Cheers

 

Hey Rawkerboi, i didnt stay at his new guesthouse. I stayed and paid for a hotel few minutes from his clinic. His new clinic is very big with multiple operating rooms, lots of space versua the old one. Dr. Rahal didnt implant, he created recipient sites. His techs implanted.

[britboy]

I wonder why the hair line is so low, you have a good head of hair, Unlike me you have lots of good original hair on your head I would have thought it much more sensible to strengthen the existing hair line and save donors for future use... you will need them as you get older. I think Rahal should not have proceeded with this with such a low hairline...especially with FUE when donor grafts can be used selectively.

 

1st FUE:

-most extractions were done by a lead technician, who was very new to FUE extractions/learning, some were done by the doctor

This is worrying....

 

I wish you well with your procedure.

Edited November 24, 2014 by britboy

[britboy]

if you need 3000 grafts for a hairline it proves you that when you get 1500 grafts or 2000 grafts for a transplant you won't get much coverage or density...not to sur about getting a transplant anymore,Rahal would still be my choice.

 

Don't give up yet...there is always hope, just Check my link, Maral does a great job too... Im in for another session Feb 2015

[Sean]

I wonder why the hair line is so low, you have a good head of hair, Unlike me you have lots of good original hair on your head I would have thought it much more sensible to strengthen the existing hair line and save donors for future use... you will need them as you get older. I think Rahal should not have proceeded with this with such a low hairline...especially with FUE when donor grafts can be used selectively.

 

1st FUE:

-most extractions were done by a lead technician, who was very new to FUE extractions/learning, some were done by the doctor

This is worrying....

 

I wish you well with your procedure.

 

trust me, the hairline isnt low. it wasnt really lowered based on preop discussions/emails. nor was my temples brought forward as i suggested to the doc from first procedure to this one it seems. thats why i had marked native hairs in my previous photos for thorough documentation. grafts were placed in and around my native hairs. in order to have a low hairline, it should be from nose point to chin. if you can fit 4 fingers or more, its not low. the hairline elevates as it goes towards the sides. i still have native temporal hairs in front of areas the doctor has placed so i know i havent lost native hairs.

 

what is kind of aggrivating me is I told 2 folks i had a hair transplant today whom i see almost daily, they said the doc should have at least brought temples forward to lessen the width of forehead a little. this is the same stuff I told the doc before i had any surgery. he said he can do it. i pay the deposit, i pay the money, time comes to see him, he draws his own hairline and suggests it instead and the insists it. the first transplant, the hairline comes out jacked up and uneven and elevated from one side, the temples are uneven, limited density all over, so i go ī for repair. now, i am still waiting for growth but irritated with the comments i recieved and this is precisely the areas i told the doc to look into via disciussions and emails. this hairline he drew for repair, i told him to do what you gotta do to fix it, you have my emails, you know what i wanted.

 

so, im waiting now to see how it looks, but if i am getting feedback face to face which is real and honest and it didnt address my issue by goign to this forums top doc, then obviously i would be upset. the whole idea was to lower my hairline and bring my temples forward to reduce my forehead which was the big concern out of all of this. i didnt want to do scalp reduction or etc so i opted for this procedure via fue.

 

so, if i was a norwood three before, then after all these grafts what am i, i hope someone can tell me that. what the hell am i now?

 

i am looking at these other docs and they are framing the face without an issue. why did i get an in person suggestion regarding hairline placement, temporal placement? i dont know and this isnt the first time either.

 

it is better to get honest feedback, then to sugar coat anything, because it screws you in person and a person can get confused with the situation. at my 9 month mark from my first procedure, when i went to see the doc in New York, the doc said it looks amazing, the hair is coming out all good and will grow more and things are on track. i knew something was wrong, it didnt look like that stand out result. if it wasnt for some honest folk realizing it wasnt working a few threads back when they saw my high density pic, then it would have probably not prompted the doctor to tell me to take that photo off the forum a few threads back, and that he will take care of me. there were other patients that advised me not to go back and go elsewhere, but again I wanted this doc to redeem himself and again gave him my trust he will take care of me.

 

honestlly, i am as patient as can be, but if you go through surgery, listen to advice of this forum, including moderators on who to go to, and then it doesnt work out after you paid so much, so you go back, paying your own travel /lodging expenses for repair, use up any paid time you have from work which is taken away from your wife and kid, and still possibly facing issues, then that's pretty screwed up.

 

there are surgeons even on here that happily wanted to take me on as patient to repair, but this doc said he will repair, so i gave him benefit of doubt after paying him thousands. i even waited quite some time between my first procedure and this repair procedure to see if those 'so called' grafts that have yet to grow after 18 months grew, but non extra did and there was no difference in density. not only that then i had issues at getting any time off work, leaving me with more rude comments in person, which still exist now.

 

I am hoping for the best outcome, but what can you do?

 

The doc wants to see me sometime in January, but he said he will be in north western new york. which will be about an hour to an hour an a half drive for me. he wanted to see me when he was in NYC, but thats like 3 hours away from me one way. so lets see how this goes. to this day, i havent screwed anyone over and naturally really dont expect anyone to screw anyone over.m i stick to my word, honest, and about integrity, so i would expect the same from anyone.

 

Being a war Veteran, I am also hoping for some peace and that folks keep their word. I really am hoping for the best.

[Sean]

 

I wish you well with your procedure.

 

Thanks for wishing me well and i wish you the best. You've posted some great feedback throughout the forum, as well as, keeping folks hopes up. thanks

[britboy]

Thanks for wishing me well and i wish you the best. You've posted some great feedback throughout the forum, as well as, keeping folks hopes up. thanks

 

You are welcome and I want you and everyone who has had a HT to be happy and get great results, after all that's why we have had HT and this forum has helped me find the right surgeon. I'm far from being an expert and have made mistakes along the way, my personal opinion is that the hairline is too low, but if you are happy that's all that counts...as you say 'be honest', even recently with the madness of SMP in London I made a big mistake out of stupidity, so we seem continuously to live and learn.

 

I think that if there are no signs of grafts after 12 months unlikely to have any more grow....maybe even 9 months, this is my experience...though some do advise to wait longer, but waiting longer I think allows the hair to thicken rather than new hairs to grow...

 

3 hours is nothing regarding travelling to a doctor, I travelled to USA from UK on more than one occasion to have corrective surgery, and again to Istanbul so, travelling for me is not at all a concern, so long as I get the desired results.

 

I do wish I had your donors though:-) you have plenty by the looks of it... I hope everything works out the way you want it...

 

Don't be afraid of using another surgeon if you need, don't rest on your laurels or pride, go to the surgeon you think can deliver the goods. Given my limited donors I am satisfied with results so far from my recent procedure after doing a lot of research to find the right surgeon. I don't believe anyone could have done better, and for sure, many could do worse.

 

I really do wish you well to get your results

 

aside...

I keep getting corruptions on posts, there are some technical issues with this sight that never seem to get resolved.Anyone else have problems posting? Always corrupted content errors....

Edited December 6, 2014 by britboy

[Sean]

You are welcome and I want you and everyone who has had a HT to be happy and get great results, after all that's why we have had HT and this forum has helped me find the right surgeon. I'm far from being an expert and have made mistakes along the way, my personal opinion is that the hairline is too low, but if you are happy that's all that counts...as you say 'be honest', even recently with the madness of SMP in London I made a big mistake out of stupidity, so we seem continuously to live and learn.

 

I think that if there are no signs of grafts after 12 months unlikely to have any more grow....maybe even 9 months, this is my experience...though some do advise to wait longer, but waiting longer I think allows the hair to thicken rather than new hairs to grow...

 

3 hours is nothing regarding travelling to a doctor, I travelled to USA from UK on more than one occasion to have corrective surgery, and again to Istanbul so, travelling for me is not at all a concern, so long as I get the desired results.

 

I do wish I had your donors though:-) you have plenty by the looks of it... I hope everything works out the way you want it...

 

Don't be afraid of using another surgeon if you need, don't rest on your laurels or pride, go to the surgeon you think can deliver the goods. Given my limited donors I am satisfied with results so far from my recent procedure after doing a lot of research to find the right surgeon. I don't believe anyone could have done better, and for sure, many could do worse.

 

I really do wish you well to get your results

 

aside...

I keep getting corruptions on posts, there are some technical issues with this sight that never seem to get resolved.Anyone else have problems posting? Always corrupted content errors....

 

thanks again Britboy. I appreciate the motivation and well wishes. I agree, within 12 months growth should be distinct.

 

your right, driving an hour or two each way may not be much, but it does take time away from family. ive already driven 2-3 times prior o see the doc 2 hours away during my first procedure consult and post op checkups. ive also driven 6 hours each way for surgery twice, once for first procedure and the other for the repair procedure. Looks like i will have to do follow up and see doc again in January due to issues once he or his clinic contacts me to set up a meeting date, as he told me from last phone call.

 

I've had the corruption on posts error a few times as well, so I am guessing it is a forum issue.

 

 

wish you the best and hope you have an outstanding outcome.

[Rawkerboi]

Hey Sean, any update?

Hope everything is normal

good luck

[harryforreal]

Time, time, time...You'll have to wait, Sean, to form a proper opinion, as I'm sure you would ultimately agree. I am glad to see your update. I have been occasionally popping in to see your results. As far as the height of the hairline, I don't think it looks too low per se; that is to say, for a young guy, it's a reasonable hairline. Whether it's age appropriate is another question; of course most of us don't like our "age appropriate" hair line and that's why we went in for a HT. So, I think it kind of depends on what "hairline age" you're aiming for. I also don't think your temples look unnatural - especially when you consider that when the hairs at the temple do grow, they will naturally provide some forward coverage. Just be patient. I know how difficult that is. Merry Christmas - thanks for your military service, and most importantly, all things being equal, you have a wife and kids who love you. There are always challenges in life, but you're still doing great.

 

- Harry

[Sean]

Hey Sean, any update?

Hope everything is normal

good luck

 

Thanks for the wishes Rawker. I really apppreciate it. I will update soon and when i can. Its been hectic but i am hoping too.

 

Time, time, time...You'll have to wait, Sean, to form a proper opinion, as I'm sure you would ultimately agree. I am glad to see your update. I have been occasionally popping in to see your results. As far as the height of the hairline, I don't think it looks too low per se; that is to say, for a young guy, it's a reasonable hairline. Whether it's age appropriate is another question; of course most of us don't like our "age appropriate" hair line and that's why we went in for a HT. So, I think it kind of depends on what "hairline age" you're aiming for. I also don't think your temples look unnatural - especially when you consider that when the hairs at the temple do grow, they will naturally provide some forward coverage. Just be patient. I know how difficult that is. Merry Christmas - thanks for your military service, and most importantly, all things being equal, you have a wife and kids who love you. There are always challenges in life, but you're still doing great.

 

- Harry

 

Harry, thanks for the wishes. I really appreciate it. I know the wait is brutal. Ive been waiting for quite some time. Just hoping for positive things and it is the new year, but i am still waiting. Thank you for recognizing my military service and wishing me and trying to keep me motivated. Just trying to remind myself of the good things in life including my family. I paid a lot for my initial procedure, even for "repair" i paid for lodging and travel out of pocket. I also paid with my priceless grafts that are unknown if they will grow as i havent really seen much change. Not to mention the caused shockloss which lingers a rectangular extraction halo pattern when my hair is cut with a clip 1 or 2 at the moment. Thousands of dollars spent and here i am. Hoping for a doctors update as doc rahal is suppose to see me sometime in january or have his team call me to somehow meet him this month. I am hoping for the best.

[FUE2014]

Good luck Sean.

 

So it appears Rahal does not do manual extraction?

 

What did he say about why the first surgery never took off as much as it should for 3000 grafts?

 

Do you think the fact he did it over one day instead of two had anything to do with it?

[Sean]

Good luck Sean.

 

So it appears Rahal does not do manual extraction?

 

What did he say about why the first surgery never took off as much as it should for 3000 grafts?

 

Do you think the fact he did it over one day instead of two had anything to do with it?

 

 

Hi FUE2014,

 

No, not manual extraction.

 

First surgery, i think he said something about native hair loss, but within that short period it wouldn't be likely. I responded well to medications as my documentation shows. I still have my native temporal and hairline hairs in front of the recipient zones worked, not sure if i was still to see these things as temples were to be pushed forward and hairline lowered based on goals mentioned.

 

As for my loss, Most other folks (even docs) thought likely shock loss, or grafts outside my body for a longer period of time, or a long time tech learning to fue, or the one new tech that was new planting in my recipient, or etc. there were several factors. Everyone for most part, was in agreement i probably lost more than half of grafts planted.

 

Honestly, he was supposed to do it in two days, but he suggested one when i got there. I was ready for two days and had scheduled my time in ottawa as such. He said his fut matched his fue, etc. kind of put me at assurance and ease at the time. There were other surgeries at the time, but definitely not as much staff in the clinic as he has now. I don't know what to think of it. I did lose more than half of my grafts from that first procedure. I do hope the grafts that did not grow were as a result of the tech missing the bulb, but this is just a hope as grafts are precious.

 

As of right now i am still waiting for this to meet my goals and hope all issues are resolved.

Im in NY but left my high def camera in NJ. Id rather not take any cellphone photos as they tend to pixelate the result making a result seem better than it is. Pixelations is where there is either a blur or pixels which looks like grains of salt/sand that amplify a result. It adds artificial density. So i will probably take photos with the crystal clear camera so you guys can zoom in and review yield and density and so forth. If you think the zone and number close to 4500 grafts equal the quality of work shown and so forth.

 

I still have shockloss issue or halo in donor.

 

Just trying to get through all of this patiently as i can. You hope for the best. After back and forth emails with the clinic, i will probably meet the doc at a later date when more grafts have hopefully grown? Because going to him now, with nothing to show, will not remedy my situation and hed want to have me back later for another review. I cant be making 5 hour round trips to get help or meet a doc if there are issues. My time and money and time away from my family is important, especially after ruining my vacation time twice for surgeries and more visiting the doctor in the city previously few times, then now doing it again in the future.

 

i really hope for something good soon

[RobertHa]

Thanks for the wishes Rawker. I really apppreciate it. I will update soon and when i can. Its been hectic but i am hoping too.

 

 

 

Harry, thanks for the wishes. I really appreciate it. I know the wait is brutal. Ive been waiting for quite some time. Just hoping for positive things and it is the new year, but i am still waiting. Thank you for recognizing my military service and wishing me and trying to keep me motivated. Just trying to remind myself of the good things in life including my family. I paid a lot for my initial procedure, even for "repair" i paid for lodging and travel out of pocket. I also paid with my priceless grafts that are unknown if they will grow as i havent really seen much change. Not to mention the caused shockloss which lingers a rectangular extraction halo pattern when my hair is cut with a clip 1 or 2 at the moment. Thousands of dollars spent and here i am. Hoping for a doctors update as doc rahal is suppose to see me sometime in january or have his team call me to somehow meet him this month. I am hoping for the best.

 

Hi Sean,

 

My name is Robert Ha and I'm a Senior Patient Advisor at Rahal Hair Clinic.

 

Has someone from our clinic been in touch with you?

 

Looking forward to your reply.

[RobertHa]

Hi Sean,

 

I've read your concerns and would love to address them.

 

Would we be able to setup a phone call?

 

Looking forward to hearing from you!

[Sean]

Hi Sean,

 

I've read your concerns and would love to address them.

 

Would we be able to setup a phone call?

 

Looking forward to hearing from you!

 

Robert,

 

I take it you are the new Rahal online representative.

 

I have had contact with one of the clinics patient care reps via email communication with questions and concerns. She is a nice person that is obviously trying to keep me motivated. Few emails ago she mentioned along the lines of, i am a repair patient and things may progress slower, i think this was around the 5-6 month mark. Concerns/issues are still there this month. The Last email on record from her was that she will coordinate a time for me to meet the doctor around or after the 9 month mark to see if any further grafts have grown/or issues resolved. By that time, hopefully, it can be a better time to assess how things may be headed. This may also save me the extra trip in seeing the doc now with concerns present/evident versus just seeing him months ahead to forecast this better.

 

She had requested photos in the last email for doc's record to track further progress when he sees me in the future at the unknown date+time/location. I just sent her those the other the other day, showcasing existing concerns.

 

Did not hear back from her yet, but we have gone back and fourth via email, especially for some moral support during this difficult time.

[mnbvcxz]

Sean,

 

I've been checking this thread every day. Thank you so much for reporting back so diligently. I genuinely, 100% hope that everything turns out great for you in the end, and I think that one way or another it will. You mentioned a meeting at the 9 month mark, is that in April then?

 

 

Robert,

 

Could you manage to get an official explanation from the doctor on this case? Rahal was my #1 choice but I am really, really wary now. I realize that sometimes things don't work out perfectly, but Sean mentioned the doctor changing, and insisting on, the hairline shape on the day of surgery; was that done? And if so, why?

 

Thanks Robert

[RobertHa]

Hi mnbvcxz,

 

Let me look into this for you and get back you.

 

More to come.

[RobertHa]

Hi Sean,

 

I'll follow up with our clinic team and inquire for you.

 

More to come.

[FUE2014]

More to come and then nothing. Kind of expected that. One way or another Rahal's clinic has come across in a pretty negative light in this thread....

[Rawkerboi]

More to come..... WHEN?

These Rahal representatives disappear after one post!

Wonder why?

[RobertHa]

Hi mnbvcxz,

 

Sorry for the delay. I was travelling. If you have any questions and I’m not around, feel free to give me a call or send an email. Happy to help.

 

1.877.712.4247 ext. 2511

robert@rahalhairline.com

 

Not specific to Sean, but hairline design is a discussion between the doctor and the patient prior to surgery.

 

It typically goes like this…

 

Dr. Rahal designs the hairline with a skin marker; the patient gives feedback on the design; Dr. Rahal tweaks based on this feedback. It's a process.

 

Only when the patient agrees on the design and location, does the procedure move forward.

 

Keep in mind that should the patient want a hairline that’s too low for example, Dr. Rahal will discuss why medically it's not possible and give recommendations based on his 20 years of experience.

[RobertHa]

Hi Rawkerboi & FUE2014,

 

Sean’s in communication with our clinic and with Dr. Rahal. Beyond that I can’t discuss his case due to patient confidentiality. I can say that we will do everything possible to make sure he is happy.

 

Same as above… if you guys have any questions, give me a call.

 

Always happy to help.