Waiting for the hair. Questions...

[tsteiner61]

Hi, all.

 

I joined the forum last year and thanks to all the help and advice I went forward and got my xplant on 1/16/2017.

 

I ended up going with Dr. Dorin and he was great. I would fully recommend him to anyone on the site considering this procedure. He was the ultimate professional both with the medical and financial aspects of my work. The procedure went very smoothly and quickly without incident of any sort. He was straightforward in his pricing and with the expectations for the final outcome of the surgery.

 

I got 1563 grafts done all on the front half of my scalp. There were no apparent complications, as I was told at my 3 month follow up. Healing went quite well. My scalp only stayed pink for about a month, which as far as I know is quite good, compared to the average/median results of such a procedure both nationwide and in this community.

 

After 3 weeks, the newly xplanted hair did fall out, as I expected, again thanks to advice from those on this forum.

 

I also know it may take some time for the hair to start growing.

 

We're pushing 5 months and no new hair yet. Still not panicking, but do have a question or two.

 

I know it could take up to a year to see results. That being said.. *when* I do (LOL) I have two questions that I am not clear on.

 

1. For you guys that have already had this done, when the hair started growing in, did the individual hairs at first grow in thin, then get thicker over each natural hair shedding phase, or did they grow in at their normal, final state, thickness?

 

2. Did you notice all the hairs start to grow about the same time, or did you see a variation between different physical areas of your scalp?

 

I'm just curious, b/c overall, I am happy so far. Even if, bite my tongue, this doesn't work, my hair currently looks no worse than it did before, so that fear has been addressed. There were no complications, so I still have a positive outlook overall that I will be satisfied a year from now. Probably just getting a little impatient.

 

Thanks for any help/advice in advance.

Edited May 30, 2017 by tsteiner61
Omitted details

[gillenator]

Congrats on your recent procedure...

 

You're going into your fourth month post-op so you should begin seeing some regrowth very soon. Some individuals are early and some are later bloomers.

 

And the regrowth of the grafts are intermittent so they do not all grow at once. This is why it takes 12 months or so to get the full visual effect.

 

And yes, during the 12 months following the procedure, the maturation of hair caliber takes place. Sometimes the new hair can look thin but as it grows in, it will eventually take on the same characteristics as it was in the donor area where it was harvested.

 

Let us know how things progress for you!

[Shampoo]

i really started noticing some change at 7 months....and then more improvement up until the 1 year mark

[Bill - Seemiller]

Hey Tsteiner, congratulations on your recent hair transplant. Below are my thoughts on your questions.

 

1. For you guys that have already had this done, when the hair started growing in, did the individual hairs at first grow in thin, then get thicker over each natural hair shedding phase, or did they grow in at their normal, final state, thickness?

 

In my experience (and in the experience of many), hair starts to grow in thin, fine and colorless and as it matures, it will thicken, darken and lengthen. So in a lot of cases, even though many of the hairs may have pushed through the surface of the scalp at 6 months for example, it may not be cosmetically significant or different than 4 months. This is why a lot of people touch their scalp and feel hair but it doesn't look like much in the mirror. It simply takes time for the hair to grow.

 

2. Did you notice all the hairs start to grow about the same time, or did you see a variation between different physical areas of your scalp?

 

I know this is a bit ambiguous, but some do and some don't. That's why some may see hair on the right side of their scalp looking nice and thick but be very concerned that transplanted hair on the left side hasn't grown in. In many cases, patients begin to worry and feel like that side of their scalp is a failure. But hang in there, it just takes time for all the hair to grow in.

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill

[tsteiner61]

Thanks for the very clear and concise responses. I feel a bit better now and I know a little more what to expect over the next few months!