Deciding with rush for a FUE procedure

[menosmolas]

Hi there,

 

first, thanks to everyone contributing to this forum which is helping so much. I'm 39 years old, I've been progressively losing hair since my early twenties, but at a slow pace thanks to the meds (I guess).

 

Now, as the time has passed, I already have a recessed hairline and my first third of the scalp is a 'see through'. In one year or so from now I will marry, so I would like to undergo a surgery to correct it. However, I was not familar with the intervention and I ignored that full results are achieved at 8-12 months. So I'm in a hurry now!

 

I have been diving in hundreds of posts to make my doctor short list (Lorenzo, Erdogan, Lupunzula, Ferudini, de Reys & Bisanga), and I start emailing them some days ago. However, the only one that answered me so far is Lupunzula. Moreover, he seems to have a last minute cancellation, so I could use it, but I have to decide (literally) now.

 

Again, I checked many posts (both from clinics and patients) and it seems this doc is top in both results and patient's care. I have to skype with him, but I do not think I am going to have more insights about him (everyone says he's a nice guy) or the procedure (about 3400 grafts; note my hair is quite thin, light brown).

 

So, I'm feeling terribly anxious about undergoing the decision, since I think the clinic and the doc are good and if I'm not going now, I will not make it for the wedding. However, it sounds a bit rush to me to go there without any consultation with the other surgeons.

 

Any recommendation from you guys would be much appreciated!

[gillenator]

Welcome to this community and your first post.

 

It sounds like you have a diffused thinning pattern and so one of the risks is shock loss to the recipient area. If that does happen, you would not only have to wait for the regrowth of the grafts to take place but also for any diffused hair to grow back to an adequate length.

 

What I am saying is that it is possible you could look even thinner by the time of your wedding.

 

Do you have any photos that you could post to see how advanced your diffused loss is right now?

 

That would help to make a better assessment otherwise it's just guessing on our part.

 

Oh, and before I forget, "Congrats on your upcoming wedding!"

[menosmolas]

thanks gillenator for your answer, I was looking forward for one!

 

I attach some photos, some of the ones I sent to the doctor (I did not have a physical interview with him but email evaluation; tomorrow I will have a skype, since --as I said-- everything is happening quite fast). The quality of the photos is far from good, but I have only an old mobile with me. Note that my goal is a conservative hair restoration plus increase density of the first 1/3.

 

To which extent the shock loss is a real possibility if I'm in hands of a good doctor? and if this happen, and crossing fingers is temporal, one year should be not in the safe side for growth of grafts + recovery of 'shocked' hair?

 

thanks a bunch for the reply, I'm quite anxious.

best

[gillenator]

meno,

 

You're very welcome. Thanks for the pics, they were helpful to help address your situation.

 

I was expecting to see more native hair volume in the frontal third so the risk of shock loss is not as great because there is not as much hair to shock out. What is there is more on the risky side of things only because it appears very diffused. The more advanced the stage of diffusion, the more likely that it won't come back. And even if the doctor is top notch, keep in mind that shock loss is more related to how the scalp responds to the level of trauma from the incisions and how advanced the state of diffusion is.

 

But here's the positive side. You're going to have a decent size procedure and that amount of grafts into the frontal third will make all of the difference in the world, visually speaking. You will look remarkably different and younger.

 

If you have 12 months before the big day, most of the regrowth will have taken place. That's the other positive. The length of the hair may not be real long but you should have at least 3 inches of length in 12 months. I think you will be fine my friend...

 

How is your donor supply?

[menosmolas]

hi Gillenator,

 

thank you again for your answer, it means a lot to me. The bad thing of my story is that everything is going quite fast, which I perfectly know is not the best way to proceed and is putting me under a lot of anxiety; I'm pretty sure that the surgeon has good hands and he seems to have a good reputation too; but I have had no time to really understand all the pros and cons of the procedure and discuss them with the doctor. Neither the opportunity of a life assessment of my donor area. The doctor saw a photo and said that it seems in good shape, that's all. Cross fingers!

 

I had a skype with the doctor (so he saw my hair there too) few days ago before giving my ok to the procedure, which it is already planned to be done in 10 days (of course, after the life visit, which will be the day before). After reading many more posts during these last days --and actually thanks to your answer (thanks again!)-- I realize that it is highly likely that I will have a hair shock loss. Moreover, I'm freaking out with the fact that it is also possible that it will be permanent. *But** I asked to the doctor whether he is going to do the procedure assuming that my front 1/3 will be gone soon. And he answers that yes. I guess that that's why he estimates 2900-3400 grafts (and note that my hairline is going to be conservative).

 

So wrapping up, I try to curb my fears thinking that the hair shock loss, even if it's permanent, will be addressed by the graft. I also guess that is what you're answering me, right?

 

On the other hand, and after doing more research I'm realizing that I can be trapped in an unpleasant graft look if it does not look natural, or when I will lose the rest of my hair in my posterior scalp. Hope the later will happen later, although seems that Finasterida lost its efficacy on me.

 

Thanks again for the time you invest in answering people like me,

best

[pkipling]

Your situation is particularly tricky, because while I don't think it's ever a good idea to rush into something like a hair transplant, I do understand the urgency and wanting to get it done before the wedding.

 

Personally, I think your best approach is to slow down and take your time. Is there any way you can move the wedding back another 6 months or so, for example? It may be inconvenient, but the last thing I want you to do is to rush into something that you may not be ready for. While nerves and second guessing are quite normal before a procedure (no matter how much time you take to make your decision), it does seem to me like you're panicking more than what I would personally feel comfortable with.

 

All that being said, you seem to have done a decent amount of research and have found yourself heading in the right direction. You also seem to understand that there are risks involved. No procedure or surgeon can guarantee results, especially with diffused thinning. So be honest with yourself about your expectations, the potential risks, and how important it is to you that it be done now.

 

To be honest, the only thing you can do at this point is trust your gut. I made the decision to have my hair transplant fairly quickly as well, and while that's not necessarily the best route, I truly had a great, gut feeling about my decision and felt confident enough in my research to move forward - and it really worked out for me. So while this rushed approach is unconventional and not particularly ideal, it doesn't mean it's wrong. So be honest with yourself and trust your instincts - and I wish you nothing but the best with both your decision here and the wedding. Congratulations!

Edited October 16, 2016 by pkipling

[menosmolas]

Thanks pkipling four your time in answering me.

 

I'm indeed very nervous, but I really feel that I want to do something with my hair loss, since it reached a point in which it really affects my image and my self-steem. The hair transplant seems the only option now, since I am already under meds (finasteride) for a long long time. And I do not think that this is going to change in the next 6 months, so that s why to do it now also seems reasonable.

 

One risk of doing this in a rush is not to choose a good doctor. That's why I really did a lot (a lot!) of research till I made a short list. Now I think that this short list is likely to be quite universal, it seems to me that they are always the same names (at least in Europe). And one of them happens to have a last minute cancellation so I can undergo the procedure now instead of waiting 5-6 more months in their waiting list. I took it as a good luck event, and actually I've already paid the procedure and booked the flights and hotel, so ball is rolling.

 

What I think I need now (and your help will be very much appreciated) is to know better the different outcome scenarios. Besides some severe intervention related complication, I guess that the worse case scenario is not having a 'nice' result, which I hope it's minimized by the selection of a good doctor with good hands and good taste. But of course this is a bit of whishful thinking.

 

What is freaking me out lately (last days) is the issue of the diffuse thining. I assume that the bad thing of that is that these hair will never come back after the shock loss. But I do not have that much hair there (first 1/3) and it seems that the transplant is going to be deployed as I actually have nothing there. So how to have a diffused thining hair pattern there can be worse than having nothing, which is the other option?

 

I think that I'm missing some point, and that's what is increasing my anxiety. Is because the fact of having some 'natural' hair 'on their legs' it s going to make the deployment of the transplanted hair more difficult or less succesfull somehow? Or it's because there is a risk that the shock loss can affect also outside the grafted area and therefore it can make disappear forever the hair of the rest of my scalp?

 

Again, thank you everyone for your answers..

[robc]

Hi Meno,

 

The shock-loss risk they are talking about is with the natural/native hair you currently have in front. My frontal situation was similar to yours and I don't think I had much shock loss. You may lose a little, but 3k grafts is plenty to give you a great look.

If you talk to the doc and feel comfortable , just do it. You are going to still be anxious about it if you wait 6 months. I was anxious up till the time they started do the procedure. I"m really happy I did the HT, about 7 month in right now.

[KO]

What does getting married have to do with this? You can get an HT for after you get married, if this is a big deal. Each of those thing is stressful, why make it worse?

[menosmolas]

@robc thanks for your answer

 

@ko, I would like to 'enjoy' the results as soon as possible, but indeed I think it has been a non ideal approach to let everything go so fast

 

In any case, the ball is rolling now, I have the procedure next week (if the donor area is fine enough as checked in the review of the day before, which I hope yes). I will document the process, I'm really thankful to the forum and I owe to share the experience with the community.

[ndubya]

I think that is a Solid list of surgeons, you should be in good hands with any of them.

Good luck with your upcoming procedure, and congrats on the engagement and upcoming wedding.:cool:

[Ernie]

If you're getting married one year after your HT you should be fine, even if you get a brutal shock loss situation like I did. For me shock loss was over and done with, and transplanted hair was in full bloom by 5.5 months.

 

Good luck man.

[menosmolas]

thanks for your answer

 

I'm also a bit worried about to which extent this will look fine in the near future, since it seems that finasteride is stopping their effect one me (note that I have been taking it during about 12 years) and could head a NW 5 -6 quite soon. And I do not know if I have a good donor area yet, my interviews have been by skype, so I do not know to which extent I am covered for a potential second HT. Maybe I can try Durasteride, that's something that I will indeed need to explore.

 

The surgeon sounds a good one, though, so I hope that he will do a good plan for me.

[gillenator]

meno,

 

As long as your donor is suitable and the fact that you are selecting a good surgeon, there's really no reason to assume that the outcome would be poor. Yes there is always the patient's individual physiology as a factor but if you do not have any other medical issue that could negatively impact the final result, everything should turn out just fine.

 

Finasteride is pretty much limited ij its efficiency in the posterior area of the scalp. So you really can't conclude that its not still working. Remember, the meds never completely stop the progression of hair loss, they just slow it down dramatically in most men.

 

And remember, that's a good number of grafts in the frontal zone that you will be receiving and will look remarkably good 12 months from now. You'll see.

 

If you did not understand the risks and benefits and just beginning your research, then I would strongly recommend that you wait. But from your own words, it seems that you know what to expect and what could go wrong worse case. Still, I think the odds are in your favor.

 

Let us know how everything goes my friend...

[menosmolas]

thanks for the answer.

 

Yes, indeed the visit with the surgeon will be crucial to design a plan once we know the exact features of my donor area. I will have only one night to sleep on the possibilities before going for the actual procedure, though, but I hope that we will be able to design an appropriate strategy for my particular case.

 

I will create another post with the experience and the follow-up, if for any interest for the others here.

 

cross fingers!

 

thanks again

[aWidowsPeek]

Have you seen Lorenzo's videos on youtube? AMAZING

[gillenator]

Best wishes to you Meno and some follow-up pics would be great!...

[pkipling]

Echoing what the others said in that I'm looking forward to seeing how this turns out for you. I hope for the best and that you see quite significant results relatively early so you can have a positive, stress free, confident wedding day with the hair you're hoping for. The wedding is nearly a year away, so it's just enough time for you to (hopefully) see very significant results.

 

Best of luck and keep us updated. :cool:

[menosmolas]

thanks everyone.

 

So now it's done! jut today i did the second session. I guess that the correct is to open an independent thread to do so, which I did here:

 

2800 FUE with doctro Lupunzula - Forum By and for Hair Loss Patients

[gillenator]

Just took a peak...very awesome Meno...

[wibbles180]

In my laymans opinion you made an excellent choice in surgeon ... looking forward to following your thread !