John Malloy Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 I'm extremely curious. How many people on this forum that had one or more Ht's are actually happy with their result? I don't mean learned to accept it either. While I'm only 7.5 months from my repair, I was suppossed to be an easy fix. While my hair looks good in photos, in everyday situations, it's completely obvious that there is something going on up there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member mattj Posted October 31, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted October 31, 2009 What exactly is it that you don't like about your transplant? I am a patient and representative of Dr Rahal. My FUE Procedure With Dr Rahal - Awesome Hairline Result I can be contacted for advice: matt@rahalhairline.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member the B spot Posted October 31, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted October 31, 2009 Happy! John, give it some more time, there is a very big difference between months 7 and months 12-14. You may reach your goals yet! Hang in there! Jason Go Cubs! 6721 transplanted grafts 13,906 hairs Performed by Dr. Ron Shapiro Dr. Ron Shapiro and Dr. Paul Shapiro are members of the Coalition of Independent Hair Restoration Physicians. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member thanatopsis_awry Posted October 31, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted October 31, 2009 John, is your primary issue a lack of density or a lack of naturalness? What looks off-kilter that you can't see from pictures? Do you notice the negatives when you look in a mirror? Even if you were an early grower, and it sounds like you definitely aren't, but if you were, your maturation process has *many* months to go in improving the "naturalness" of your HT. Since you pretty much aren't an early grower, you should expect impactful changes in density over the next several months, in tandem with maturation to come. I'm pretty critical about HTs when I evaluate them -- post some pics or PM me if you want. I'll give you my honest take on what I'd expect your end result to look like, and how you currently match up with that expectation/goal. I mean, I'm pretty elated with my HT, but if I couldn't or didn't style it in the various ways that I do I'd prolly feel pretty dissapointed. More and more I think the majority of HTs performed by an elite doctor, assuming similiar graft/baldness ratios, could look equally excellent, and what seperates the "OMFGWOW" results from the people with some dissapointment is simply in how they go about styling their hair; which I think to be unfortunate since this doesn't mean you can't style your hair fashionably and it doesn't mean that it's difficult to do. I guess I'll only be able to prove my hypothesis by opening up a HT salon and styling guys' HTs for them.... ----------- *A Follicles Dying Wish To Clinics* 1 top-down, 1 portrait, 1 side-shot, 1 hairline....4 photos. No flash. Follicles have asked for centuries, in ten languages, as many times so as to confuse a mathematician. Enough is enough! Give me documentation or give me death! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member runwithscissors Posted October 31, 2009 Regular Member Share Posted October 31, 2009 I have to agree with thanatopsis on this one. I always find it kinda funny that so many HT patients end up with absolutely terrible hair styles, maybe for those who haven't had to style their hair since the 1980s that is excusable, but it seems that many people spend thousands just to have a permanent bad hair day. At least with a shaved head it can never look a mess! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Malloy Posted October 31, 2009 Author Share Posted October 31, 2009 hey guys, Thanks for the support. But I guess it's my fault because I really did not think that a good HT came down to styling. I sincerely thought it was going to look completely natural except for a little lack of density. And even the lack of density I thought would not be visible to the naked eye. That's why I started this post to see how many people are happy with their HT. Kind of like a survey. Anyway, my issue is with both density and naturalness. But, I think I could live with my hair if it just looked like I was thinning. It seems like my hair is growing in straight rows- it looks like corn rowed stitches at this point. I am going to see the doc and Feller seems genuinely concerned. I'll be honest though. I don't know if the 3 hour drive has me stalling or if he tells me this is a good result. I really don't know if I can handle this much longer. my life has been a wreck since my first Ht in june of 08, and I think Feller's confidence may have given me false hope. Let's all pray the next couple of months are miracle months. Thana, for whatever reason my digital camera takes the photos with too much memory. If you give me a personal e mail address, I will forward you some pics. You can pm me the address. Thanks again guys--my wife is so tired of me worrying about this and its getting to the point that I'm upsetting her. She suggests I just shave it and not worry about the scar. She thinks more people notice the artificalness of the hair. Most people will think the scar is just a scar, but the hair screams fake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member freakin Posted October 31, 2009 Regular Member Share Posted October 31, 2009 Let's just say I have to wear a hat everywhere, and my friends and neighbors are catching on that there is something wrong. I feel that there are a lot of *white lies* and smoke and mirrors in progress. I have yet to hear of a physician taking the blame for a poor outcome (red flag). A house of cards if you will. If I come across crass, I apologize, I just don't care anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member thanatopsis_awry Posted October 31, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted October 31, 2009 It's not your fault, John, but I don't even want to assign "fault" here, because regardless of what your result will be....you *will* improve from where you are, so nothing bad has happened; I would be beyond stunned if you did not improve in both density and naturalness. Styling is underplayed and overplayed at the same time. It's importance is underplayed; but how tough it is to actually style it is overplayed. I'm not saying it's some perfect thing that you "must" style your hair to make it look good w/ a HT, but the steps to maximize your HT are the same steps that will make your hair look its best regardless, HT or no HT. I'll PM you my email addy later tonight. Look at it like this, though: Bad Styling + No MPB = bad hair Bad Styling + MPB + HT = bad hair x2 Good Styling + NO MPB = flawless hair Good Styling + MPB + HT = good hair Scissors touched on this, and I don't know if this applies to you necessarily, and I'm not faulting you if it does, but I get the sense that many guys go into the HT with the expectation of simply wanting to have hair where you formerly didn't, and specifically with the expectation in mind that the basic look of their hair in years past will be smoothly replicated in basic. Unless you have minimal loss, and/or get a good chunk of grafts, this won't be the case -- you won't have the head of hair you had X years ago, and you won't have just a lush head of hair that you can do nothing to and it'l look 100% like it always did. Don't panic, though, because your result is *NOT* in yet -- this is undeniable! Save up your panic for if you are 3, 4 more months down the road and you feel the same way. Right now, IMHO, you're just going to drive yourself crazy, unnecessarily so. ----------- *A Follicles Dying Wish To Clinics* 1 top-down, 1 portrait, 1 side-shot, 1 hairline....4 photos. No flash. Follicles have asked for centuries, in ten languages, as many times so as to confuse a mathematician. Enough is enough! Give me documentation or give me death! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Julius Posted November 1, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted November 1, 2009 Hi John I sympathise with you but just give it a little more time. Could I ask at what density is the hair in the transplanted area? I was also under the impression that a good ht should look good without styling or maybe just running a comb through it a couple of times. Results of Shuffle and the like certainly give this impression. I think a person in the early norwoods or a diffuse thinner could even have good hair after hours of styling which is something I don't want to do and is why I am looking at hts. All the best Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member freakin Posted November 1, 2009 Regular Member Share Posted November 1, 2009 I really do hope that the next 5 mons or so bring the final result this patient so desires. It has been my experience that at the 6 mons mark, my appearance was the most natural and appealing due to the transplanted hairs being close to natural in caliber. Any added thickening that occured thereafter, made the hairline too coarse and drew unwanted attention. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Malloy Posted November 1, 2009 Author Share Posted November 1, 2009 Freakin, Who did your ht, and how far along are you now? Thana, Thank you, I received your e mail, and I will send you pics by tomorrow. keep in mind, as I told you before in pics my hair looks really good. but in person its completely obvious. I mentioned before that more than one person, in the last month or so (since i've been hiding under the hat less) have asked me if I have plugs. Spex, As I feel Dr. Feller is completely genuine in his concern with my issue. I sincerely feel your not. Everytime I post, you respond with some post that "protects" you and the doc. Maybe, that is your job, but it does not help me all it does is makes me angry and want to lash back. Let's be clear: When I went to see Feller before my surgery, the only words mentioned to me were "easy fix". There was no mention of scar tissue, or no waivers about no guarantees for that matter. The only waiver that I ever signed was the day of my surgery, when I was $4,000 out if I decided to back out. That is an UNDISPUTABLE FACT AND ANYTHING TO THE CONTRARY WOULD BE AN OUTRIGHT LIE. It's really ashame, because I honestly believe the doc and I can either get me where I want to be or find another solution;but everytime I post your responses are just fuel thrown at a fire that I'm trying to put out. Trust me, I'm being extremely amicable relevant to my character. Simply because I kind of like the doc. But I can't stand your responses that have not an ounce of concern, but a pound of liability avoidence in them. My question's goal was, as I said, like a survey, I was curious who is actually happy with their HT and not just accepting it. I even went as far as stateing that IT MAY HAVE BEEN MY FAULT FOR NOT DOING ENOUGH RESEARCH, AND TAKING THE DOCS CONFIDENCE FOR AN EASY FIX AS GOSPEL..But, you tend to ignore that. Sorry, if this is harsh, but that is how I sincerely feel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Malloy Posted November 1, 2009 Author Share Posted November 1, 2009 to all, By the way, from looking at my pre-ops, there is a huge improvement from 7 months ago. I wanted to mention this to be fair to the doc.But, I also want to mention that my goal with the second surgery was for it to be totally undectable, not "not as bad as before". Hopefully, in a couple of months I'll be there, but now I'm not. My goals of my posts are not to bash anyone, but to let anyone even considering a Ht to know what I'm going through. If I've read posts similiar to mine before having a Ht, I would not have had one--even if I have an excellent result in a couple of months. Does anyone really think that my goal of my Ht's was to sit on a website on a Sunday afternoon and vent my frustrations. Keep in mind the reason for my actions--Do you think I wanted this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Malloy Posted November 1, 2009 Author Share Posted November 1, 2009 Spex, The doc has the pics that I sent to him at 7 months, why don't you post those also? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Mountinvan Posted November 1, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted November 1, 2009 Yea---can we see the 7 mo pics? Was this a strip procedure? How many grafts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member kaounis Posted November 1, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted November 1, 2009 I feel for you John, I still think that you will find the answers you are looking for...and the resolution! I won't try to pretend I know what you are going through, because I don't, but what I will tell you is that, we are our own worst enimies, and our own worst critics...Cheer up...life's way too short Just a thought from the peanut gallery... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member hrvoje14 Posted November 1, 2009 Regular Member Share Posted November 1, 2009 nicely put, kaounis... john - it really is still a bit early - check out pushing40's blog and then his post 2 yrs post-op... think he was struggling with similar issues, and in the end - wow, crazy result! even more importantly, however - no matter what your FINAL result (and this applies to all of us here) - do not let your hairloss/HT 'own' you... you are the boss, what you say goes... say to yourself: 'i CAN be happy even if my hair is not perfect!' and work on yourself to make it so... and, really, happiness is what life's about, not perfection... My Hair Loss Website - Hair Transplant with Dr. Rahal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Malloy Posted November 1, 2009 Author Share Posted November 1, 2009 thanks guys for the support. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member hairthere Posted November 1, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted November 1, 2009 john, 7.5 months really is far too early to make a judgment. my hair continued to soften and change up until 18 months post-op. HTs really are a waiting game, and the best you can do is stop obsessing about it and just live your life. also, looking at your pre-op pics, your situation doesn't look too bad. there are guys in much worse shape. my case was very similar to yours in terms of 1st HT results and even hair type. just try and be patient. oh, and i think the reason spex replies the way he does is that he truly believes your results will turn out great. he's a very helpful guy and i'm sure he just wants you to have a great result. I am the owner/operator of AHEAD INK a Scalp Micropigmentation Company in Fort Lee, New Jersey. www.aheadink.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member thanatopsis_awry Posted November 1, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted November 1, 2009 The first thing I thought when I saw Spex's pics was that you seemed almost identical to hairthere, even in the charachteristics of your hair, though you seem to be in an even better position if memory serves me. Good guy to compare yourself to, for sure. Re: maturation..it's a looong process; I'm 2years post-op and in the recent months I have still experienced a further softening, and my hair has become much straighter. ----------- *A Follicles Dying Wish To Clinics* 1 top-down, 1 portrait, 1 side-shot, 1 hairline....4 photos. No flash. Follicles have asked for centuries, in ten languages, as many times so as to confuse a mathematician. Enough is enough! Give me documentation or give me death! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill - Seemiller Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 John, I'm very happy with my hair transplants, but it took me a long time to get where I am now - 4 hair transplants over 4 years. I know you are experiencing some anxiety and disappointment right now. And though I know you're sick and tired of hearing this, telling you to "wait it out" is really the best advice I or anyone can give you at this stage. If you have some updated photos of your hair to date, we'd love to see them. Then I encourage you to continue posting photos each month so we can follow your progress. Hang in there my friend, Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Julius Posted November 2, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted November 2, 2009 Where are the seven month pics? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Malloy Posted November 2, 2009 Author Share Posted November 2, 2009 to all, I've sent pics to thana,I do not know how to shrink the kb size to fit the sites standards. Anyone that wants to see my 7 mos pics, can send me a personal e mail, and I will send them. Sorry about the negativeity guys, but I'm really struggling with things right now because of this Ht. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Forrest Gump Posted November 2, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted November 2, 2009 John Malloy, sorry to hear that you're still struggling with your HT outcomes. Regarding your question on shrinking pic size, there are some options available on the web. I think irfanview is one of them. Do a google search to see other options. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member hairthere Posted November 2, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted November 2, 2009 yes, you can use irfanview to shrink pictures easily. I am the owner/operator of AHEAD INK a Scalp Micropigmentation Company in Fort Lee, New Jersey. www.aheadink.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member hdude46 Posted November 2, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted November 2, 2009 well, u arent the first poster here to be unhappy with dr. feller and one of his results. however unless u post pics we really have no way of judging it to see if u are telling the truth or have unrealistic expectations. i would hold off judgement until 12 months and then revisit this issue if necessary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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