Most prohibitive factor in getting a HT.

[swayzedo]

I've noticed that a lot of hair surgeons and clinics seem to be under the impression that people are unsure about transplants because they are unsure of the procedure involved. They seem to constantly wish to reassure the patent (no bad thing of course) as if it is the only factor.

 

I don't know if this is the norm but for me it's the cost that is prohibitive and not the procedure itself. To my mind, anyone with internet access can learn about all the ins and outs of FUT, FUE, medication, non-surgical treatments etc. so to be unsure of the surgery itself seems a little odd.

 

Even if it is the surgeon that is in question a bit of carefull research goes a long way.

 

I know in my case if I could afford it I would be booking my appointment with my surgeon of choice (Farjo) today and would have it done tomorrow.

 

I'm interested in opinions about this subject. What is stopping you from going ahead with a transplant?

[chrisdav]

It is a very long process from start to finish swayzedo and far longer than most cosmetic procedures.

 

It is a bit of an emotional rollercoaster with nothing happening for 3 to 4 months, then the hair gradually coming in, developing and maturing as months pass with full result at 12-18 months.

 

It can also be difficult to find sufficient time to have off work and the down time, some patients worry about whether their transplant will be detectable to close friends and work colleagues.

 

The bad name the industry has in general doesn't help either.

[Shampoo]

to be unsure of the surgery itself seems a little odd.

 

Each person has their own set of concerns....your's is money...for other's it can be a variety of other things and/or money.

 

Many people have been concealing their baldness to some degree and when they have surgery they are shaved down and look like an "ugly duckling" for months. So they walk back into work and they worry about people having that shocked look "OMG WHAT HAPPENED?". The post-op is certainly a long journey to get back to normal....yeah it's easy to say "who cares what others think".....but that's part of the reason we are all getting a transplant is to look better....and who are we going to look better to?...MAINLY OTHERS!

 

Some would rather postpone the hassle. It's easy to look in the mirror and say "well I'll wait another day, week, another month, another year....to schedule my hair transplant surgery". No Pain/No Gain.

It's a bit why people put off dental appointments, exercise, or proper diet....ect......"tomorrow I'll do it".

 

Also people like me that have some anxiety/panic disorder may have

some concerns about being in a chair for 8-12 hours for a procedure.

 

Many need two procedures...so it appears like it's really going to be a long hassle/journey to get where they want to be....so they postpone or blow it off.

 

Have you seen many of the post-op pictures right after surgery?

The shave down....the staples/stitches/the swelling/the scalp bleeding/wounds/the bandages.

It's not pretty and can be a bit intimidating to some.

"Oh I think I will wait awhile"...shouldnt be a surprise....lol

 

People in general are afraid of surgery and any kind of pain/discomfort.

 

Others may be concerned on whether it's worth it? It costs a lot of money and some after pics show guys still showing signs of baldness....so people think "do I really want go through the cost and hassle and still have a slightly thinning/balding look?" even though it will be a less bald look. Will I be happy afterwards?

 

Some guys hold out for the baldness cure we always read is "right around the corner" and "should he available in about 5 years".

 

Some guys think FUE may come down in price and are holding out for a mega-FUE that they think will be much cheaper in a year or two as the technology evolves.

 

others can chime in with their concerns.....and I am sure there are many other reasons besides money as to why people hesitate.

Edited June 20, 2012 by Shampoo

[swayzedo]

Thanks for the reply's folks.

 

I wasn't implying that money is the only factor, I'm aware there is a lot of different feelings out there I was just stating that was my reason and perhaps it came out wrong. I could get it done tomorrow but I refuse to get in to debt so I am saving instead.

 

I suppose I am fortunate that I work from home and can afford to be 'out of sight' long enough for things to heal a little but the procedure itself has never frightened me at all. Even the shaving part I've prepared myself mentally for (and for a rocker like me who's had long hair since my early teens it was a big factor)

 

Scars and such don't concern me because if I was to get it done it would be FUE, no question. I want the freedom to shave my head at will if the fancy takes me and know I can grow it back (although I doubt I ever will)

 

But please keep on coming with your fears, reasons, holdbacks and whatever else may be standing in your way.

 

Thanks!

[Spanker]

Shampoo did a really good job listing the reasons.

 

One of my worries is the future. I am looking at a small case but I don't have a crystal ball. If I were to lose a lot of hair I would rather just shave down. Problem is, I am going for FUT, so that will no longer be an option.

 

I am booked for a little over a month from now, and I still feel sick thinking about it.

[michaeljames]

Each person has their own set of concerns....your's is money...for other's it can be a variety of other things and/or money.

 

Many people have been concealing their baldness to some degree and when they have surgery they are shaved down and look like an "ugly duckling" for months. So they walk back into work and they worry about people having that shocked look "OMG WHAT HAPPENED?". The post-op is certainly a long journey to get back to normal....yeah it's easy to say "who cares what others think".....but that's part of the reason we are all getting a transplant is to look better....and who are we going to look better to?...MAINLY OTHERS!

 

Some would rather postpone the hassle. It's easy to look in the mirror and say "well I'll wait another day, week, another month, another year....to schedule my hair transplant surgery". No Pain/No Gain It's a bit why people put off dental appointments, exercise, or proper diet....ect......"tomorrow I'll do it".

 

Also people like me that have some anxiety/panic disorder may have

some concerns about being in a chair for 8-12 hours for a procedure.

 

Many need two procedures...so it appears like it's really going to be a long hassle/journey to get where they want to be....so they postpone or blow it off.

 

Have you seen many of the post-op pictures right after surgery?

The shave down....the staples/stitches/the swelling/the scalp bleeding/wounds/the bandages.

It's not pretty and can be a bit intimidating to some.

"Oh I think I will wait awhile"...shouldnt be a surprise....lol

 

People in general are afraid of surgery and any kind of pain/discomfort.

 

Others may be concerned on whether it's worth it? It costs a lot of money and some after pics show guys still showing signs of baldness....so people think "do I really want go through the cost and hassle and still have a slightly thinning/balding look?" even though it will be a less bald look. Will I be happy afterwards?

 

Some guys hold out for the baldness cure we always read is "right around the corner" and "should he available in about 5 years".

 

Some guys think FUE may come down in price and are holding out for a mega-FUE that they think will be much cheaper in a year or two as the technology evolves.

 

others can chime in with their concerns.....and I am sure there are many other reasons besides money as to why people hesitate.

 

Hey Mate,

 

You make valid points throughout. Cost is a factor in all aspects of life. Surely in this economy allocation of resources is paramount for most people. In our practice we have come up with some innovative ways in which to bring the costs of HT within the range of many people and it keeps our practice thriving. I guess as within anything in life discretionary income ultimately gets spent on what we value most. Family men often put their needs second. There is no easy answer as there is a relationship to quality and costs. Just think an eight hour surgery with a highly skilled medical doctor. That in of itself is a good four figures of the cost at a modest professional hourly rate. Then add five highly trained medical techs on average per surgery that's another four figures there. When you factor overhead and costs, hair transplant in Los Angeles and Beverly Hills are reasonably price. I am not sure elsewhere. We do have a global scale clientele. Innovative payment concepts like being used in many industries will hopefully continue to make HT more affordable to many. All the Best, Michael

[mattj]

Hey there Ace Rimmer,

 

The cost is obviously a big factor for many or most patients. Unfortunately there's not much that can be done by the doctor or their staff to help with that. The doctor can only strive to ensure that a patient is educated about the procedure itself. Believe me, lots of patients don't make as much use of the internet for this purpose as they should do!

[Dr. Michael Beehner]

I would add one more important reason that I think a lot of men don't have hair transplantation done, and that is that many don't have the courage to make a change in their appearance. They are afraid what their family, co-workers, and friends will think of them to have the nerve to change something in how they look. This is especially true for macho, male professions and work places, such as prison correction officers, police men, etc, where I get reports that the ribbing these men receive is merciless if they should have a HT. I think many men, especially those who are very bald, would love to have their face framed with hair on top, but just feel it is too bold of a move for them to make and face the world with.

A lot of times it takes something, such as a divorce, to push them to make that change.

Mike Beehner, M.D.

[MoeyK]

The main thing stopping me at the moment is my age (23) and the post-op process. I attend university and I also work so it would be hard for me to be able to rest for a few weeks. But whenever I can get a few weeks to spare I will be in that seat!

Money is also a huge factor, I mean one surgeon for example would have a price of 8000$ for a procedure and another would have 18000$ for same procedure.

[aim4hair]

Money is not a factor for me nor the procedure or the post op process.

My main concern is the SCAR (both strip scar or even white dots FUE scars), right now im shaving my head no guards with a trimmer, cause i really hate the look of thinning hair, the thing i hate about that there is almost no hairline so i really wanna do something about it, but the problem is that if i go for an HT i will lose that option forever, even with FUE you cant shave with no guards. And nobody knows what the future is holding, im 29 right now and i might go nw6 or 7 in the future that means no future HTs will ever satisfy me, so if that happens i would like to shave and move on.

So to sum things up. The only thing stopping me from going for an HT is the scars. That's why im kinda considering HST since the tool they use is 0.5 to 0.6 mm and the donor regrow with no scars (even if it does not grow again 0.5 or 0.6 will make huage diffrence than 0.75 to 0.9mm... Just like 0.75 to 0.9mm makes huge diffrence than 1.0mm or more. Another option i have is to wait for Dr. wesley scarless procedure but nobody knows if this even gonna be available.

 

 

EDIT: i forgot to mention that im not gonna use propecia, so for sure im gonna loser more hair in future (unless if rogaine works by itself) so avoiding scars is needed for future planning

[Sean]

I've noticed that a lot of hair surgeons and clinics seem to be under the impression that people are unsure about transplants because they are unsure of the procedure involved. They seem to constantly wish to reassure the patent (no bad thing of course) as if it is the only factor.

 

I don't know if this is the norm but for me it's the cost that is prohibitive and not the procedure itself. To my mind, anyone with internet access can learn about all the ins and outs of FUT, FUE, medication, non-surgical treatments etc. so to be unsure of the surgery itself seems a little odd.

 

Even if it is the surgeon that is in question a bit of carefull research goes a long way.

 

I know in my case if I could afford it I would be booking my appointment with my surgeon of choice (Farjo) today and would have it done tomorrow.

 

I'm interested in opinions about this subject. What is stopping you from going ahead with a transplant?

 

 

I could have done this sooner. I think I had a couple of things in mind before I went for my procedure that were preventing me before. Just some of the things were:

 

1) The first time I realized I am going downhill with my hair was I think around age 19-20. I was initially thinning and my temples were receding. It made my forehead look very large, even a little hint of what I thought was initial maturing impacted my face due to the physiology of my head. My crown wasn't so bad back then but started to play games with me a year or two later, slowly just fading. Everything was getting harder and harder to style, getting ready to go out was taking forever, and etc. Hair transplantation really hit home with me as a needed necessity around age 25+ based on the type of hairloss I had. I think it wasn't until ages 27-28, I started to classify myself as a Norwood 3V. At age 29, I went for the procedure. No other medical conditions exist, so that's the age I settled for.

 

2) I was extremely scared if my outcome/goal will be reached by the physician working on me and had a hard time filtering through my lists of doctor choices. One result good, another something else, and then another doctor would come in during my research and showcase a mind blowing result. It kept going on like that and it kept throwing me off as I wanted to research more and more.

 

3) The cost. Yes, even till the end I have a hard time with this. Very very hard for me to save up and had to make some financial decisions to try to gather the funds. (included selling a car+ other things, to get it all done)

 

4) Worries of any possible visible scarring if I buzz my head or do a skin tight fade on the sides and donor areas. The worries were also due to what happened to my uncle. He ended up with hideous scars from Bosley that have altered his emotional state to a great degree. Completely changed him from semi-depressed guy losing his hair to very depressed guy with minimal work and a couple of visible scars who is still suffering. He got financially screwed with the 3 surgeries Bosely did. They kept saying they will repair him but screwed him each time with new scars. Out of desperation and no knowledge of forums at the time, he went for it and suffers. So, that's one reason I held back till the very end. I started to fear scars based on the type of hairstyle I want in the long run. Based on that, I waited a little longer to see any more pleasant FUE results, and they came, so that assured me I can go for it. However, I do see WOW results with strip and minimal scarring, but that scarring wont support me still with clip 1/2 fades still, which is what I want.

 

5) The worries of long term use of medications was another thing. But it will be a reality in order to maximize my procedure outcome for the long run. Worries of further progression still exist if the medications wear out over time, but I have my hopes of up for fast changing technologies.

 

After the procedure, I did realize another thing, the post op care was very important and demanding for me. I constantly monitored everything. I stayed away from the sun. I had to find a way to somehow conceal the hair and make up excuses for things I couldn't conceal after the procedure. I monitored all possible constraints that may cause me harm and followed everything to the core. I understand I may need future procedures but now only time can tell.

 

So, once you go for it, you may find peace, but it wont be completely fulfilled unless you completely restore your hair from the front to the back/or based on your hair loss levels. I still know my crown needs to get taken care of and maybe other areas, so it bugs me, but I think if I did it once, I can do it again. Just to maintain and to keep up with everything. It's definitely a long term investment for most people. For very few people, it is a one hit homerun type procedure. For me, once the journey is all over, I'll consider myself completely free.