Need help with making a (somewhat unique) decision about my HT

[bennyt89]

So this is why you made that other read (I posted in there too).

 

Our situations are similar, except you've been on fin a lot longer and my hair loss is a bit more severe in the front but still able to style/set my hair.

 

I am considering getting a HT later this year if I can, but I've only recently considered it and it's exactly for the same reason you just gave, i.e. getting increasingly more difficult to style the hair the way I want. I think that's the point of getting a HT for those like us. I think for the others, its for coverage and not so much styling options.

 

How is your donor area?

 

Sent my donor pics to a few doctors and general consensus is I have suitable donor area which is good.

 

At this stage I've basically decided I'm going to go ahead with it, I've been stressing about my hair and going bald for too long and whereas before it was manageable, it's getting harder and harder to style and the stress/lack of confidence are now starting to impact my work, love life, social life etc.. I'm at that stage of having to check the mirror every hour to make sure my hairs still sitting right among all the other stresses.

 

So it's now just a matter of deciding a surgeon and sorting out timeframes/logistics

[JayLDD]

If you can afford it and he can offer a suitable slot I would definitely recommend Feriduni. Personally I think Erdogan in Istanbul is doing the best FUE work on a consistent basis however and is quite a bit cheaper. Bisanga and Lupanzula certainly worth looking at and contacting in Belgium too.

[bennyt89]

If you can afford it and he can offer a suitable slot I would definitely recommend Feriduni. Personally I think Erdogan in Istanbul is doing the best FUE work on a consistent basis however and is quite a bit cheaper. Bisanga and Lupanzula certainly worth looking at and contacting in Belgium too.

 

It's basically down to Feriduni or Bisanga. As far as my research has taken me, these guys are in the discussion as being the best in the business. I want to make sure it's given every chance of being successful, and evidence of their work looks great. And both clinics have been incredibly helpful.

 

Feriduni isn't available until October and Bisanga I believe is similar waiting period. Which is fine with me, I'm going to Indonesia and the Philippines for a month in mid August, will enjoy that and have toppik there as a safety net if my hairs bothering me.

 

My ideal plan is to get to do Indo/Phil, come home for a few weeks then fly out to Belgium for the surgery, come back home for maybe a month to recover. Hopefully my hair is long enough to cover any redness and then I can head back out again and travel (having toppik as a safety net and knowing that there will be hair sprouting on my head will keep me in good spirits I hope). In my experience though there's always spanners being thrown into the works with the best laid plans so who knows..

[mattj]

Thanks Matt, can definitely relate. I'm two different people depending on how my hair looks, if it looks good I am confident, outgoing, witty etc etc. but when it's not I'm the complete opposite and just feel like staying inside and not seeing anybody. So of course the prospect of being able to fix that permanently is tempting to say the least.

 

So realistically given I'd be going from Australia to Belgium (20+ hour flight) there's a few options -

 

1. I do it in October, after a few months of travel. Rest up at home for a month (optimistically) and head back out

 

2. I wait until say April/May next year, towards the end of my trip and before I go back to work

 

3. If I don't do the above, I don't think I'd get a chance to take a week or 2 off for around 1.5 years minimum.

 

I can relate to that sort of 'duel personality' situation where you flick between high and low confidence. Hair played a part in that for me, pre-HT, but for me at least there were other reasons. I think a lot of guys who are bothered by their hairloss are men who have a lot tied up in their self-image.

 

I do think you qualify as a good candidate for a procedure due to your slow rate of loss. My hairloss began at around the same age as yours, if not earlier, and my loss was greater than yours at the age you are now. I'm 36 now and not a lot has changed. So when I see guys in your situation, I feel that an HT can be a sound decision. You seem determined to go ahead, you have a window of opportunity open to you, so if your hair is important to you (and you wouldn't be here if it wasn't) then I it seems like circumstances are ideal.

[bennyt89]

I can relate to that sort of 'duel personality' situation where you flick between high and low confidence. Hair played a part in that for me, pre-HT, but for me at least there were other reasons. I think a lot of guys who are bothered by their hairloss are men who have a lot tied up in their self-image.

 

I do think you qualify as a good candidate for a procedure due to your slow rate of loss. My hairloss began at around the same age as yours, if not earlier, and my loss was greater than yours at the age you are now. I'm 36 now and not a lot has changed. So when I see guys in your situation, I feel that an HT can be a sound decision. You seem determined to go ahead, you have a window of opportunity open to you, so if your hair is important to you (and you wouldn't be here if it wasn't) then I it seems like circumstances are ideal.

 

You're right, I am very caught up in my image. But unfortunately as a single guy in the western world it's a very shallow place in the dating scene, im the type of person that looks attractive with a head of hair but if I lose that framing of my face I look like pure dogshit. I also have a weird shaped head and I have very white skin (which I actually like), but wouldn't suit going the bald look.

 

There are other things that bother me about my looks, however they are only things that i stress about rarely. Whereas this hair is an all day everyday thing for me.

 

But it seems everything has aligned for me to go ahead and do this. And if I don't the only way my hairline is going go is back further and thinner.

[bennyt89]

Just an update for those interested. Been consulting with both Dr Feriduni and Bisanga's clinics. Graph estimate from Bisanga was 1600 (conservative) to 2000 (agressive) to address the temples and front hairline, still waiting to hear back from Feriduni.

 

Just an open question if anyone knows, when it comes to donor area. My donor zone back all the way up to my early 20's used to grow fairly fast, I noticed now that even though it grows and still quite thick it doesn't grow AS fast as it used to. Would this casue issues with grwoth after the HT?

[Mick50]

If the expected result is communicated to me beforehand I can keep my expectations in check. And if I don't like the sounds of the expected result, I just won't go through with it.

 

I've been procrastinating for a reason, I want to maximise the time with my exisiting hair as much as possible, I don't want to hop in too early as the results are permanent for better or worse. Up until probably November last year it was pretty easy to style my hair how I wanted without much fuss, but now it's getting harder and harder which would indicate that now is probably the right time.

 

Hope i didn't come across as rude Benny just have seen a few guys on here who were not mentally good candidates but you seem to have thought it through

[Mick50]

Just an update for those interested. Been consulting with both Dr Feriduni and Bisanga's clinics. Graph estimate from Bisanga was 1600 (conservative) to 2000 (agressive) to address the temples and front hairline, still waiting to hear back from Feriduni.

 

Just an open question if anyone knows, when it comes to donor area. My donor zone back all the way up to my early 20's used to grow fairly fast, I noticed now that even though it grows and still quite thick it doesn't grow AS fast as it used to. Would this casue issues with grwoth after the HT?

 

Yea my donor grows more slowly than it used to, mind you I'm 54, up to my late thirties it grew really fast could wear it in a thick ponytail if i wanted I didn't though because I was thinning on top and that look is as bad as the infamous comb -over , although it doesn't grow as quickly, it still is pretty dense considering I ve had 4200 FUE grafts extracted .as long as the donors is healthy I wouldn't worry too much it

But of course ask your Doc

[bennyt89]

Hope i didn't come across as rude Benny just have seen a few guys on here who were not mentally good candidates but you seem to have thought it through

 

Not rude at all mate, I appreciate the concern. One of the great things about this community is the level of support and knowledge everyone brings to the table. I hope once I go through it , and my result is (hopefully) successful I can help others in the same way with my experience.

[bennyt89]

So a question I neglected to ask earlier.

 

Given my current situation (NW 2.5 with pattern of 3 emerging) what realistically could I expect from a HT should it be successful? I would be in a better position to get full coverage and good density back compared to say a NW 4 and beyond?

[Mick50]

Well it seem to be the higher the NW the more modest expectations should be I would say plus and minuses I was a high NW so didn't really have to worry about losing native hair on top as the hair i had would make negligible cometic difference if if remained or fell out a lower NW while may get a great result

has the problem of losing more native hair the in future, thats where a good Doc will advise you what approach to take as each case is different .