2000 FUE - Dr. Mohebi - 31yo

[HairThereAndEverywhere]

Well, I'm one week away from my FUE Hair Transplant and I have to say, I have quite a lot of anxiety. The first thing is I have a lot of hair. So it doesn't look too bad per se but the writing is on the wall. The second thing is I can't take Propecia. I tried a number of dramatic experiments to try and avoid getting side effects like micro-dosing and doing blind placebo tests where I didn't know whether I was taking Propecia or aspirin and nothing worked. I got mental side effects every time. I even tried just putting up with the side effects and powering through but it was so bad, I just couldn't trade my mental state and cognitive abilities to maintain my hair. So I'm not on Propecia and I have hair to lose.

 

My thought process is: 1) I know I'm going to have to get multiple procedures, I'm fine with that. I just want to make sure I don't look like an idiot in between. 2) Dr. Mohebi assures me I'll be fine without Propecia. 3) I just can't stand the idea of sitting here and doing NOTHING. 4) I've been on Rogaine for about 18 months, so at least there's that.

 

I've attached pictures. The plan is to strengthen the hairline where it currently is, especially in the receding side areas. I'm worried about the forelock which is thinning but still there. As for shock loss. I'm super worried about that. But Dr. Mohebi says I ought to be fine with just Rogaine. After the hairline we're going to fix the receding temples with 150 grafts on each side. Then if there's any grafts left after that we'll look at the top/crown area and start the process of making it look like it's just thinning so it'll never look bald.

 

Some things I have in my favor are: My grandpa had full hair, my dad didn't get to a NW5 until his 50s. My older brother by three years looks about the same as me and he claims his hair receded when he was my age and has since stabilized. I have above average donor density at 2.3, so enough hair to do a good amount of work.

 

Pictures are attached. I'd love to hear your thoughts as I am experiencing a great deal of anxiety at the moment.

[Spanker]

We have pretty similar hairlines, but I don't have visible crown loss to that extent at least.

 

I got on fin when I was 31. I know what it is like to have a lot of hair to lose and the anxiety that comes with that after treating your hairline, so I feel ya.

 

My advise is to not be too aggressive with your hairline, because once you draw that line, it is drawn.

 

You can see a nice example that H&W posted today, where the guy is a little older and waited till his hairline had receded. He still got 4600 grafts. It looks good, but if he had a more aggressive hairline, he would be looking at closer to 7k for the same look and hairline.

 

Some people can pull it off, some can't, depends on your caliber/density/etc. Good luck.

[voxman]

Agree about not being too aggressive - remember it's a life long look. The only other advice I can offer is that you are in superb hands with Dr. M. 1st Class all the way.

[HairThereAndEverywhere]

Just got back from surgery with Dr. Mohebi. I wound up with 2073 grafts. I just want to point out, because I spent countless hours scouring the Internet for examples of this: I AM NOT TAKING PROPECIA. So, if you're like me, and cannot take Propecia due to sides than this is one of the very, very few documented cases worth following. I also highly recommend HTSoon if you want another example of someone doing this without Propecia.

 

I have been on Rogaine for over a year. It has helped slow things down but it definitely isn't as effective as Propecia. I'm also taking Pumpkin Seed Oil 1000mg, Saw Palmetto 320mg and MSM 1000mg on the off chance that any of those actually do anything. Shampoos: I do Pur A'Dor Anti-Hairloss shampoo 2 out of every three days. Pur A'Dor Conditioner every day. And then for dandruff, occasionally I'll throw on medicated Psoriasis shampoo with coal tar, or T-Gel. But if I'm not feeling particularly itchy I'll just do Regenupur once a week.

 

Since I can't take Propecia and I happen to still have a decent amount of hair left I had to go with a long-term plan of attack. So basically the number one priority here was to give me a hairline that would last, and fix the receding temple points. After fixing those two issues if we had any grafts leftover we'd put them in my thinning crown. Basically, I'm ignoring the crown and just going to use Toppik until I get my inevitable second HT.

 

When will I get that second HT? Probably once I start thinning behind my hairline to fix that up and then at the same time address the crown. I'm lucky enough to have above average donor density, although my hair is somewhere between medium and thin. However, I also have an audacious amount of beard and chest hair which I wouldn't be opposed to using to make my crown look like it's just thinning and avoiding ever having a shiny bald spot. But the next HT will focus on hairline touchups and the top/middle. Until then, or until they finally cure baldness, I will be using Toppik to cover my crown.

 

So the way this worked out is they wound up using almost 1950 grafts just on the temples and to make the hairline/front as densely packed as possible. I'm pretty happy about that. Framing the face was my priority. I'm happy with the idea that I pretty much will have a hairline for life now and can just apply Toppik as I recede behind it until I get my second HT. And of course, if I need a touch up I will get that during my second HT. But framing the face is pivotal.

 

Shock loss is a major concern as well. I brought that up one million times with the doctor and he assured me that by shaving my head completely, using Rogaine and Saw Palmetto I shouldn't be too concerned about shock loss. So fingers crossed on that.

 

As for my crown, we had about 120 grafts leftover just sitting around so we threw them in the crown because why not I guess. They were out of the donor area, and we weren't putting them back...so even though they're not cosmetically going to accomplish much, they might come in handy when I apply Toppik.

 

 

 

 

 

[Pete-from-Farjo]

Congrats. The work looks really good and those temple points are going to make such a difference as they can play such a big part in framing the face. Look forward to following your progress.

[voxman]

I think you will have a great result. Be sure to keep us posted on how you are doing.

[HairThereAndEverywhere]

Congrats. The work looks really good and those temple points are going to make such a difference as they can play such a big part in framing the face. Look forward to following your progress.

 

Thanks! Yeah, in all honesty I was most excited about the temple points. Receding over there made my head bulge out like a light bulb and it really added to my age.

 

Just a note on that for anyone reading: If you get the temple points done, I feel like they hurt more than the rest of my head so be prepared for that. And also whereas if you get a transplant Mohebi will give you a very loose hat to wear as soon as you leave so you can avoid being seen....if you get the temple points done, wearing a hat is too risky and it mayy rub against the grafts in the temples. So I had to wear a surgical cap in my Uber home and I'm gonna have to wear another one when I return to get my post-op wash today. It's a bummer but no hats until 5 days post. But Temple points are done now for good. So next HT I feel like the hard part is over!

[HairThereAndEverywhere]

I think you will have a great result. Be sure to keep us posted on how you are doing.

 

Thank you! Yeah my goal is to keep this updated but also, I hopefully will be able to maintain this thread for two or more years so people can see what it looks like when you start to recede behind your HT. I almost didn't do it because so many people say you're an idiot to do an HT without Propecia. But honestly, I think I can Toppik that recession away until I get another HT and that's not gonna be a big deal. So hopefully this thread will encourage others to not despair if they can't take Propecia. Just like HTSoon's thread has encouraged me.

[Spidey]

Did you consider shaving ur head and seeing if you like the look? I know it's too let now but reading your first post just now, and I would have suggested buzzing your head to a number 1 and seeing you can pull off the look.

[HairThereAndEverywhere]

Did you consider shaving ur head and seeing if you like the look? I know it's too let now but reading your first post just now, and I would have suggested buzzing your head to a number 1 and seeing you can pull off the look.

 

Well, I knew I'd get the opportunity to see my head shaven right before the surgery. And I did, and while I don't look bad with a shaved head, I definitely look better with hair. Shaved head and beard just doesn't fit my personality. It makes me look too 'hard' whereas I am sensitive and neurotic.

[Spidey]

I know what you mean by looking "hard". I was in the same boat. I looked fine with it but it didn't go with my personality and even my style in clothing. But looking back now I I was a nw2 with very slow hairloss. I could have gone into my 40s styling my hair and no one would have noticed. But I wanted to be able to style my hair up and back. I won't go for further hts if my hairloss progresses behind my ht. I just hope there's not much texture and color diff in the recipient skin area if I ever buzz my head. I would have to Bic or laser the recipient hair if i go down hat route.

 

If you plan on multiple hts if required you obviously have nothing to worry about as buzzing will never be able option for you.

[Melvin- Admin]

Congrats on your procedure, HT without Fin is a touchy subject as many feel it's a requirement, I think it all comes down to expectations and understanding, as long as you understand that without fin you will absolutely need multiple HT's in your lifetime, and as long as you accept the crown will always be thin and or bald. I think your expectations are in line and the fact that you don't mind the crown means that you'll probably be very happy with your outcome. I met with Dr. Mohebi and even follow him on Snapchat, I felt he was very ethical and thorough in his examination, the miniaturization test of the donor is something very few surgeons do.

[HairThereAndEverywhere]

Congrats on your procedure, HT without Fin is a touchy subject as many feel it's a requirement, I think it all comes down to expectations and understanding, as long as you understand that without fin you will absolutely need multiple HT's in your lifetime, and as long as you accept the crown will always be thin and or bald. I think your expectations are in line and the fact that you don't mind the crown means that you'll probably be very happy with your outcome. I met with Dr. Mohebi and even follow him on Snapchat, I felt he was very ethical and thorough in his examination, the miniaturization test of the donor is something very few surgeons do.

 

Sure I agree. I kept telling Dr. Mohebi how worried I was that I couldn't take Propecia and he told me that I have nothing to worry about. And that worried me. We all know Propecia is almost mandatory with HTs, so I was surprised that he was so lax about it. But it gave me the confidence to go forward. I guess I have some factors in my favor. One being my hair loss seems to progress slowly. Two, my dad still had some hair into his 50s and 60s. Three, my brother looks pretty much the same as me at three years older with no treatment. Four, good donor density/abundant chest and beard hair.

 

Another thing is the always just out of reach 'cure for baldness'. Lets say I need three or four HTs in my lifetime. Maybe one now, maybe one in three years, maybe one three years after that to take care of the crown. That's about seven years time that's gonna pass. Maybe in those seven years hair cloning will come out? Or Replicel. Or whatever. So there's that gamble too. I realize that's an unlikely one but, hey, it's worth considering.

 

HTSoon - You just did your 3rd HT, right? And that was to address the crown. So I'm following your plan of attack here. 1) Frame the face, 2) Get coverage on top and front + hairlie touch-ups 3) Fill in the crown the best we can.

 

Isn't that working out for you pretty well? Your post has me a little worried as its not so positive which is surprising since your HT experience has been one of the best transformations I've seen Propecia or not. Has anything changed?

[Spidey]

Personally the crown is something I wouldn't even really worry about. In seven years you will be almost 40. Maybe it's just me but if I was 40 and had a decent hairline and mid, i would be happy. Even in my kid 30s my whole outlook now vs two years ago is completely different.

[Melvin- Admin]

Sure I agree. I kept telling Dr. Mohebi how worried I was that I couldn't take Propecia and he told me that I have nothing to worry about. And that worried me. We all know Propecia is almost mandatory with HTs, so I was surprised that he was so lax about it. But it gave me the confidence to go forward. I guess I have some factors in my favor. One being my hair loss seems to progress slowly. Two, my dad still had some hair into his 50s and 60s. Three, my brother looks pretty much the same as me at three years older with no treatment. Four, good donor density/abundant chest and beard hair.

 

Another thing is the always just out of reach 'cure for baldness'. Lets say I need three or four HTs in my lifetime. Maybe one now, maybe one in three years, maybe one three years after that to take care of the crown. That's about seven years time that's gonna pass. Maybe in those seven years hair cloning will come out? Or Replicel. Or whatever. So there's that gamble too. I realize that's an unlikely one but, hey, it's worth considering.

 

HTSoon - You just did your 3rd HT, right? And that was to address the crown. So I'm following your plan of attack here. 1) Frame the face, 2) Get coverage on top and front + hairlie touch-ups 3) Fill in the crown the best we can.

 

Isn't that working out for you pretty well? Your post has me a little worried as its not so positive which is surprising since your HT experience has been one of the best transformations I've seen Propecia or not. Has anything changed?

 

I think my post may have come out the wrong way, I was just stating for those that choose not to use propecia they have to understand the limitations of surgery, I couldn't be happier given my situation, my life has completely changed. Everything has turned out well for me, I do still have some weak spots of my crown that some may deem unacceptable, but it all comes down to expectations, I use toppik sometimes and honestly my hair looks like I never went bald ever, if I don't use toppik then you see some thin spots but in my opinion not bad. I wouldn't worry there are plenty of guys that don't use finasteride, perfect example is bill, he's been off propecia for years and his transplant looks the same, which begs the question whether propecia was even doing anything for him, once you've lost most of your hair and your pattern is well established im not sure propecia is even that beneficial, the only reasoning behind a Norwood 6 getting on finasteride is to strengthen the crown and prevent the sides from dropping, but it's not a guarantee that the sides will drop, if you're genetically a Norwood 6 then that is your balding pattern. Most guys assume the Norwood chart is a progression chart, but it's not, it is a chart showing the different balding patterns, for example my father is 60 with a Norwood 3 level of baldness he's been a Norwood 3 since he was 40, he's likely not to progress much more, some men die Norwood 3's and 4,s so and so forth, not every one with MPB will progress to a Norwood 7 as that remains a somewhat rare balding pattern, there are far more men likely to progress to Norwood 4-5 level of baldness than 7, that's what Dr. Rassman has stated and he's been doing transplant for 30 years.

I wouldn't worry its every guys fear, but I'm coming up on 3.5 years since my first transplant and my hair hasn't changed at all.

[Spidey]

Also if you're worried about FIN try topical Spiro and or topical Azalaic Acid. I am currently using both along with rogainefoam

[HairThereAndEverywhere]

I think my post may have come out the wrong way, I was just stating for those that choose not to use propecia they have to understand the limitations of surgery, I couldn't be happier given my situation, my life has completely changed. Everything has turned out well for me, I do still have some weak spots of my crown that some may deem unacceptable, but it all comes down to expectations, I use toppik sometimes and honestly my hair looks like I never went bald ever, if I don't use toppik then you see some thin spots but in my opinion not bad. I wouldn't worry there are plenty of guys that don't use finasteride, perfect example is bill, he's been off propecia for years and his transplant looks the same, which begs the question whether propecia was even doing anything for him, once you've lost most of your hair and your pattern is well established im not sure propecia is even that beneficial, the only reasoning behind a Norwood 6 getting on finasteride is to strengthen the crown and prevent the sides from dropping, but it's not a guarantee that the sides will drop, if you're genetically a Norwood 6 then that is your balding pattern. Most guys assume the Norwood chart is a progression chart, but it's not, it is a chart showing the different balding patterns, for example my father is 60 with a Norwood 3 level of baldness he's been a Norwood 3 since he was 40, he's likely not to progress much more, some men die Norwood 3's and 4,s so and so forth, not every one with MPB will progress to a Norwood 7 as that remains a somewhat rare balding pattern, there are far more men likely to progress to Norwood 4-5 level of baldness than 7, that's what Dr. Rassman has stated and he's been doing transplant for 30 years.

I wouldn't worry its every guys fear, but I'm coming up on 3.5 years since my first transplant and my hair hasn't changed at all.

 

Good to hear! Yeah, I'm not that worried. Although it'll suck going through 3 HTs I already feel better knowing that I'm working my way, slowly, towards hair that will last for the next 20-30 years. I'm sitting here, head shaved for the first time in my life, scabs on my face, swelling from the anesthetic, and I honestly haven't felt this confident and good about my hair in 5 years. That's the difference between action and inaction.

 

SPIDEY & HTSOON - Both you guys are taking Azelaic Acid. Could you explain to me what that is? Where you get it? What brand you get? How you apply it and how often? Why does it work? I'm having trouble finding some good resources on this.

 

Thanks guys!!!

[Spidey]

Google azelaic acid and hair loss and read up on it. I use the dht blocker made by kourosh that contains 5% aa, zinc, and b vitamins. I honesty cannot say if it does or doesn't work. I've been on it for a year now. I just restarted using topical Spiro (s5 cream). I use the aa and S5 twice a day and minox before bed. Only time will tell to see how well my regimen works. My hairloss was very slow to begin with. Basically a nw1 to nw2 in approx ten years. At this point I'm afraid to get off min due to the possible shed. I honestly don't think it really did much for me as I started using it for my hairline which it didn't really save for me.

 

If I really wanted to know whether my treatments worked or not I would stop using one at a time and see it just hairloss accelerated, which I am not about to risk.

[HairThereAndEverywhere]

Well, I can't believe it's already been one week. Time flies when you're hiding from society alone in your apartment. Things seem to be progressing pretty well. I've finally developed scabs which I was concerned about because for a while I didn't have any at all. It would be nice if all that great hair could just stay in place but I'm awaiting the inevitable shed. Some takeaways from the first week:

 

- Maybe I'm imagining things but it seems like one temple point is less densely packed than the other. Do you guys notice anything? Close-up pictures attached.

 

- Now that my hairs growing in a little I notices four lighter patches. Two on the border of my temple point restorations and two right above the corner receding restoration areas. Do you guys see those? Is that shock loss?

 

- I couldn't sleep at all. I was instructed to sleep upright the first few nights in a recliner using a travel pillow around my neck. And I did that for five nights. I'm sure this was great to make sure I kept ALL my grafts. But sleeping has been difficult. For the first night last night I slept in bed lying down and I was so nervous about rubbing the grafts against my pillow that I also couldn't sleep. But everything seems OK despite the rubbing.

 

- It still hurts. I'm shocked that I've still had to take the provided Percoset even up through one week. I think it's because I got my temple points done and those are more sensitive. But those are getting better.

 

- Can't wait to start on Rogaine again in a couple of days. Haven't been off it this long in over a year. Also ordered Lipogaine Sensitive Skin to get Azelaic Acid in my routine. I'll do Rogaine Foam in the morning and Lipogaine at night and see how that works out with my routine. Still taking Saw Palmetto, MSM, Pumpkin Seed Oil.

 

- I can finally take a normal shower today. I'll finish up the shampoo provided and then move on to Regenpure and Pura D'or combination to get all that good Keto and whatever else DHT blockers they use.

 

- Up until now I've been scrubbing my head with a sponge in the donor area as instructed by the doctor 2x a day and pouring water over it in a cup, and then dabbing the recipient area lightly.

 

- Other things I have purchased in preparation for recovery time that I am waiting to use: 3 hats, several bandanas, face sunscreen, spray sunscreen FOR REDNESS: Cortizone cream with Zinc, Witch Hazel, Aloe Vera Gel, ALSO SOMETHING I'M GLAD I BOUGHT: A handheld mirror (to see the back of my head's progress)

 

Here's the hairline. It would be nice if that would just stay where it is!

 

Left Temple

 

Left Temple Close-Up

 

Right Temple, is one temple denser than the other?

 

Right Temple Close Up

 

The Crown (a small contingent of hairs grafted there. Looking forward to HT #2 as my hair loss progresses to address behind the hairline and some more crown. Until then, it's Toppik.)

 

Donor Area (sorry for the bad pics. But IMO the scars are hardly noticeable at this point.)

 

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ALSO - I sent an email to the doctor with a bunch of questions 5 days in. I figured I'd copy and paste that here:

 

QUESTIONS

1) Since I got my temple points done I was instructed not to wear a hat for a while after the procedure. The surgery was last Wednesday. I just wanted to confirm that wearing a hat is okay at this point?

 

2) Also, when can I start going to the gym and doing heavy weight lifting (with a hat on)?

 

3) Also, I have been sleeping in a recliner with a neck pillow every night since the surgery. When should I feel comfortable sleeping in bed? I normally lay down right on my side where the temple points are and so I would imagine they would take a beating if I slept normal. When should I feel comfortable doing that?

 

4) Technically, what day post-op is this? I know that Day 5 is a milestone where my hair should be rooted in place. Dr. Mohebi said that on Thursday I was at “Day 0”. So now that it is Tuesday would that make this “Day 5.” Meaning that starting Wednesday I should feel totally confident my grafts are permanently in place?

 

5) So starting on Wednesday I’m going to start taking regular showers again as normal, is that correct? Can I start scrubbing the recipient area as normal? (Up until this point I have been just dabbing with the provided sponge.)

 

6) All the materials have been mentioning scabbing. I have not really noticed any scabbing at all. My donor area is hardly noticeable at this point and my recipient area just looks red underneath tiny hairs, no scabbing. Is that normal?

 

7) When can I start using Rogaine again?

 

8) I also purchased Lipogaine Minoxidil which has Azelaic Acid in it, which is supposed to be a DHT blocker (it was recommended on the forums by others who can’t take Propecia). Have you heard of this? When can I start using this?

 

 

ANSWERS

Yes at this point you may wear a hat, as well as go back to your normal sleeping position. When it comes to the gym (as far as heavy lifting) we do ask that you wait about a full week, so that can be resumed after tomorrow (Thursday). Today marks your 6th day post op (However it is counted differently in terms of the hair wash). At this point your grafts are embedded in place, and you may resume your normal hair wash routine today, however you can start tomorrow if you'd like. When going back to your normal hair wash routine, you will do everything as you did before you had the procedure. It is normal not to have any scabbing as of yet, that will more than likely occur in the next few weeks, and should you begin to get scabbing, make sure that you are cleaning your scalp well (but do not itch or pick at any scabbing) and try to keep your scalp moisturized to ease any discomfort. For the Rogaine, that can be resumed one week after your procedure, so you may start using that on Thursday, as long as there aren't any open wounds in the donor or recipient area.

[pkipling]

Hey man. Welcome to the Mohebi club. Fantastic and very informative write-up about your experience, and I look forward to following this thread. Documenting your progress while not being able to take Propecia is going to be very helpful to a lot of guys who are in a similar situation.

 

The works looks amazing and all your concerns and anxiety leading up to and immediately following the procedure sounded very familiar to mine. Haha. I'm pretty sure I called the office about 10 times the week of my surgery with different questions, and thankfully the receptionist always responded to me with patience and kindness.

 

The temples look amazing and I'm glad you were able to get those addressed this time around instead of having to go back for that. Aesthetically, they're going to make a huge difference. And I don't see a difference between the two temples. Maybe you can speak to Dr. Mohebi about this when you go in for your next followup if you still have concerns at that point. Are you doing a 2 week followup?

 

My biggest advice right now is that once you're back to normal and back to your routine, try not to analyze your hair every day. Over analyzing is the biggest way to drive yourself crazy and talk yourself into believing nothing is working. Try not to expect to see results for at least 6 months so that you won't be disappointed if you're a late grower.... and if you happen to be an early grower, you'll simply be pleasantly surprised. Feel free to reach out if you have any further questions.

[HairThereAndEverywhere]

Hey man. Welcome to the Mohebi club. Fantastic and very informative write-up about your experience, and I look forward to following this thread. Documenting your progress while not being able to take Propecia is going to be very helpful to a lot of guys who are in a similar situation.

 

The works looks amazing and all your concerns and anxiety leading up to and immediately following the procedure sounded very familiar to mine. Haha. I'm pretty sure I called the office about 10 times the week of my surgery with different questions, and thankfully the receptionist always responded to me with patience and kindness.

 

The temples look amazing and I'm glad you were able to get those addressed this time around instead of having to go back for that. Aesthetically, they're going to make a huge difference. And I don't see a difference between the two temples. Maybe you can speak to Dr. Mohebi about this when you go in for your next followup if you still have concerns at that point. Are you doing a 2 week followup?

 

My biggest advice right now is that once you're back to normal and back to your routine, try not to analyze your hair every day. Over analyzing is the biggest way to drive yourself crazy and talk yourself into believing nothing is working. Try not to expect to see results for at least 6 months so that you won't be disappointed if you're a late grower.... and if you happen to be an early grower, you'll simply be pleasantly surprised. Feel free to reach out if you have any further questions.

 

Thanks! Yes I have a two week follow-up. And yeah it's a bummer still that I can't take Propecia. I tried everything to 'trick' myself into not getting side effects, but at the end of the day I just couldn't swing it. And I wasn't about to trade my brain for my hair, so I'm off. I'm trying to stay positive about keeping the hair I have and hoping for some kind of breakthrough in the next ten years like hair cloning to just give me that extra edge hair wise so I can put this anxiety behind me. I have seen others come before me without using Propecia that have turned out great. I hope to be the same, even if that means I'm destined for more HTs. But aren't we all?

 

Either way, I am extremely happy to have my hairline back and to know that that is where my hairline will be from now on, especially with the temple points. I'm not as worried about the crown. I don't mind that really. It's framing the face that's the issue. Next I just don't want noticeable recession behind my transplant. Once that happens, I'll be in right away for my second.

 

And yeah, I've seen your pictures all over the website and walls of Dr. Mohebi's. I pointed at your picture and said, it looks like his hair is perfect. I envy your ability to take Propecia and put this behind you for a long time. Congrats!

[HairThereAndEverywhere]

Here I am two weeks post op. Around ten days in I was instructed to start scrubbing my recipient area with the provided sponge. (I had been doing that in the donor area only up until this point.) And now two weeks later I am scab free. I've resumed all normal activities and with a hat on I pretty much forget I even got a hair transplant. There was one harrowing moment where I left my house without a hat because I didn't even remember I needed a hat. And then I saw a neighbor and was like, 'Oh no, I don't have a hat on.' That's how little I think about it up until this point. A couple of quick thoughts:

 

1) If you're contemplating doing this. Take it from me: A HAIR TRANSPLANT IS NOT A BIG DEAL. (Other than the money, which is substantial.) But if you have the money, and you're thinking about doing this go for it. I'm sitting here two weeks later and I don't even feel like I did it. I'll just wake up six months from now and have a hairline.

 

2) MY MASTER PLAN: As a person who's not on Propecia (Rogaine only) I had to go over my master plan with Dr. Mohebi at my two week follow up. Things are looking good. Basically he said I have around 3000 grafts left on the back of my head. I'll use 1500 of those to address any further recession that occurs behind the hairline going all the way back to the top of my head in the next 2-3 years. I'll use 300 of those just to spot check my hairline and temple points if needed. And I'll use 800-1000 for the crown. I don't think I'd take the full 3000 from the donor area I'd probably just do 2500 or 2000. Basically one more surgery. Because next:

 

I'm going to use my beard and chest hair. I had Dr. Mohebi look at my chest and he said that my chest hair is quote amazing unquote. It's not amazing as chest hair no. It's amazing in that it looks like head hair. It'll even grow out straight if you let it get long enough. So I'm thinking ultimately I'll use up chest and beard hair to fill in that crown. I think that will give me a grand total of three surgeries in the next ten years most likely. But then after that, I might be done for quite some time. That's the master plan.

 

3) THE PICTURES ARE IMPORTANT: I was just looking at my two-week pictures and kind of disappointed with how things are looking. Especially in the crown area. I didn't think my crown was as bad as these pictures reveal. And honestly, I think once my hair grows in my crown won't be this bad. But I was thinking I haven't made much progress. THEN I went back and looked at my one week post op and was like, man I can't believe I thought I looked fine then! Compared to now it's a world of difference.

 

4) AWAITING THE SHED: I really like my hairline and I'll be sad to see it go. My next post won't be until after the shed.

 

Here's the crown. Only about 100 grafts there that were just left over. Not expecting anything cosmetic here.

 

Donor area is not noticeable. Once again, this whole thing has been NO BIG DEAL. I was kind of surprised at how bad the crown looks from the back though.

 

Hairline looking good. Sad each time I see a little hair shed. You can even see one that's shed in the photo. Can't wait for this just to be my hairline.

 

Left temple point. Lookin good.

 

Right temple point. I believe is less dense then the left and may have to be addressed at round two. Hard to tell now though with shedding.

[HairThereAndEverywhere]

About Five Weeks Post-Op now. When I went in for my two week follow up Dr. Mohebi told me that at this point I'd be "miserable." And while I'm not "miserable" I am feeling the pangs of the ugly duckling phase. Granted, I actually feel like I'm in good shape because my regular hair is alright on its own. But with it short and now that all of the reinforcements have shed I get a chance for the first time to really see the nature of my hair loss.

 

Additionally, I've got some dates coming up and I need to figure out as many excuses as possible to why I'm wearing a hat.

 

No one seems to comment on my posts. I guess my case is uninteresting. But if anyone reads this, let me know if you think I'm progressing well. I'd appreciate it!

 

HAIRLINE: About a 70% shed there I suppose. My hair seems pretty thin behind that but when it's fully grown it doesn't seem too bad. I don't think this is a terrible look. I'll use some Toppik to fill in the gaps for my dates.

 

LEFT TEMPLE: No hiding the shed here. Man I really did look better with a great framed face! Please come back! Thankfully I'm not dealing with as much redness that others have issues with. I don't like how my sides have that 'moth-eaten' look though. Not even sure if that's donor area loss, shock loss, or just how it looks short.

 

RIGHT TEMPLE:

 

DONOR: Still moth-eaten but you can't tell I get a surgery I'm pretty sure.

 

THE CROWN: Yikes! So I didn't do any work on the crown except a measly 100 left over grafts that we just couldn't fit in the front. Those have all shed. But yeah, this is what I'm dealing with. One day in the future that will be filled with beard and chest hair I hope.

[HairThereAndEverywhere]

[Melvin- Admin]

Honestly, it doesn't look that bad for being 5 weeks, usually that's the worst stage, as for no one commenting, I think that's because most guys comment on doctors they are interested in, and while I think Dr. Mohebi is a great doctor I just don't think he garners the attention let's say Dr. Erdogan would.

 

This is my suggestion, go to the barber and cut the sides to a taper fade with a 1/2 guard at the very bottom fading up to a #2, use some toppik for the crown and midscalp, and you will look 100X better, you may want to try dermmatch as well as it may work better with the short hair, ditch the hat, there's really no need to wear a hat for your case, you just need some concealer thats all.