Great growth at 3 months, then very little at 5 months, is this normal?

[newpatient99]

Hey everyone, had my first HT earlier this year, at about 2.5 months, I started seeing the new hairs coming in and between months 3 and 4, I was on my way and was making great progress, my growth at that point looked to be faster than the average patient here based on the pics posted. I'm coming up on 5 and a half months in a few days and unfortunately, since month 4, I've had very little to almost no growth. I would say in the last month, I've had maybe less than 20 percent of what I had the previous month. Should I be worried or is this normal?

 

I didn't take pics of my progress because I wanted to live my life and not let the waiting game hold me back from doing so. Everything (according to the doctor) looked amazing immediate post op and 1 week check up. The doctor I went to has a great reputation on here so at that time, I wasn't worried about it, but now that I think about it, I am slightly concerned because I was the second surgery of the day and the doctor's only involvement was the hairline incision. The extracting of the grafts was done completely alone by an assistant and then the placing the grafts were done by two different assistants. At the time, I wasn't sweating about it, because I just assumed that was normal. Can someone shed some light on this?

 

A few other key points...

 

- I was very careful when it came to post op care. I was told to wait 2 weeks before working out and I waited 3 weeks. I was told to not let use the shower head for 5 days, I waited 10 days.

 

- About 90 percent of my new hairline as of right now is about half a cm higher than my post op hairline. On the right side of my hairline, there are a few new hairs coming out exactly where the post op hairline was, however the rest of my hairline is about half a cm too high. Like I said, the placing of the grafts were done by 2 different assistants, so I don't know if that has something to do with it.

 

- There's a lot of hairs that sprouted at 3 months that haven't grown at all since then.

 

Maybe I'm worried over nothing and this is completely normal? Hopefully at month 6, everything will be back on track like before.

[newpatient99]

I also forgot to mention I was not given any kind of spray or special shampoo to take home after the surgery. When I called about this, I was told it wasn't needed. Hopefully I wasn't a rushed patient.

[Speegs]

Everyone grows differently, telling you exactly what to expect month to month is impossible.

 

Generally, after about a calendar year you can accurately gauge how well you're going to grow, sometimes it even takes up to 18 months, but most are able to have a good indication about the outcome of the surgery at the one year mark.

 

Anything before then is case by case with each and every patient.

 

The less than 6 month mark requires a lot of patience as it is generally the ugly duckling phase for most.

[mattj]

Growth can come it dribs and drabs and I wouldn't worry at this early stage. Five months counts as early. There is no special shampoo as such. I know that my doctor instructs using baby shampoo, as it is mild. The main thing is not to apply too much pressure in the first couple of weeks, and as I'm sure you've followed that instruction then I'm sure you haven't done any damage.

[newpatient99]

Growth can come it dribs and drabs and I wouldn't worry at this early stage. Five months counts as early. There is no special shampoo as such. I know that my doctor instructs using baby shampoo, as it is mild. The main thing is not to apply too much pressure in the first couple of weeks, and as I'm sure you've followed that instruction then I'm sure you haven't done any damage.

 

Yes, I was extra conversative with post op care. Didn't touch my head for the first 5 days and would only pat dry my hair after showering for the first 2 months. It's weird because my 3 month growth was better than most of the pics on here but than my 5 month growth seemed to be slower than those same pics lol

[newpatient99]

Everyone grows differently, telling you exactly what to expect month to month is impossible.

 

Generally, after about a calendar year you can accurately gauge how well you're going to grow, sometimes it even takes up to 18 months, but most are able to have a good indication about the outcome of the surgery at the one year mark.

 

Anything before then is case by case with each and every patient.

 

The less than 6 month mark requires a lot of patience as it is generally the ugly duckling phase for most.

 

 

So 5.5 month mark isn't even close to the final density?

[Speegs]

So 5.5 month mark isn't even close to the final density?

Nope, month 9 is when most people actually start noticing the most cosmetic difference, and even then the next three to six months could offer even more density to come.

[newpatient99]

Nope, month 9 is when most people actually start noticing the most cosmetic difference, and even then the next three to six months could offer even more density to come.

 

Thanks! Was it at month 9 when you started to notice the biggest change in your hair after your surgery?

[Speegs]

Thanks! Was it at month 9 when you started to notice the biggest change in your hair after your surgery?

With the first surgery yes, and with each subsequent surgery the change was more subtle, required photographs to really recall how dramatic it was.

[Macbernal]

Man I’m having this same issue, came outta the gate hot with new hairs popping at 2-3 months, now for the last month and a half I haven’t seen any new hairs. I know it’s early but just wanting to see anything new would be sweet. Anyone else have this happen them?

[BaldingtimetoLdar]

They could be growing at the same rate but it maybe less blatant due to the contrast. For example lets say you shave your head and your hair grows by 2cm you will think wow its growing fast because you can see the difference from bald to hair. However when it grows by another 2cm you might not think the growth has slowed down because it isn't completely bald and you can't clearly see how much it has grown. It's kind of hard to explain if you get what i mean.

[newpatient99]

Man I’m having this same issue, came outta the gate hot with new hairs popping at 2-3 months, now for the last month and a half I haven’t seen any new hairs. I know it’s early but just wanting to see anything new would be sweet. Anyone else have this happen them?

 

Glad to hear I'm not the only one, especially since we both went with reputable doctors. Guess we can only wait.

 

 

They could be growing at the same rate but it maybe less blatant due to the contrast. For example lets say you shave your head and your hair grows by 2cm you will think wow its growing fast because you can see the difference from bald to hair. However when it grows by another 2cm you might not think the growth has slowed down because it isn't completely bald and you can't clearly see how much it has grown. It's kind of hard to explain if you get what i mean.

 

 

Hopefully. I just hope it wasn't due to two assistants having different skill levels when they planted the grafts.

[wheretogo]

Nope, month 9 is when most people actually start noticing the most cosmetic difference, and even then the next three to six months could offer even more density to come.

 

Hey,

 

if i had HT for the frontal part of the scalp 4 months ago, how long do you recommend to wait before doing the crown area?

[newpatient99]

This weekend would hit 6 months and 2 weeks for me and there has been almost no growth from month 5 to now after such a promising start. I spoke with the doctor's assistant about this and he assured me this was normal and that I wasn't even supposed to start sprouting until 6 months since I didn't do PRP and I'm actually ahead of schedule if I started sprouting at 3 months. Not supposed to sprout until 6 months seems off compared to other progresses I've seen on here, however I'm feeling better about this since I have faith he knows what he's talking about and he sounded pretty confident. Anyone else in the same boat and can shed some light?

Edited July 6, 2018 by newpatient99

[HG1]

As others have stated, its a 12 to 18 month journey. Its not wise to compare yourself to others, however its human nature I guess. I'm at 8.5 months and find I have surges here and there. Just relax and chill out, I've read so many similar accounts - then hey presto at 12 months all has come good.

[matt3480]

I feel there is a lot of confusion sometime based on general guidelines regarding the whole “you should be at this percentage at this many months, etc.”

I have had a few HT’s and I felt that all my hair had sprouted by 5 months post op. I think you had that initial blast of density early as opposed to others who might get it a month or two later at 4-5 months. I wouldn’t be expecting another explosion of growth by any means. The hair should grow longer which will give it more of an illusion of density and may also mature into a coarser hair overall if you have that type of native hair. I have very fine hair so I actually lost a small bit of density once my hair matured because it started out coarser than my native hair initially.

Unless it’s the crown, you really are going to have 95 percent of your hair sprouting at 6 months.

Edited July 6, 2018 by matt3480

[mattj]

I do think that the initial 'explosion' is often where the majority of growth occurs, but that doesn't mean that this is all you're going to see. I would hang on longer before passing judgement as I've seen so many cases where people feel a bit down about their result, only to see a big difference occur further down the line.

[newpatient99]

On 7/6/2018 at 3:07 AM, matt3480 said:

I feel there is a lot of confusion sometime based on general guidelines regarding the whole “you should be at this percentage at this many months, etc.”

I have had a few HT’s and I felt that all my hair had sprouted by 5 months post op. I think you had that initial blast of density early as opposed to others who might get it a month or two later at 4-5 months. I wouldn’t be expecting another explosion of growth by any means. The hair should grow longer which will give it more of an illusion of density and may also mature into a coarser hair overall if you have that type of native hair. I have very fine hair so I actually lost a small bit of density once my hair matured because it started out coarser than my native hair initially.

Unless it’s the crown, you really are going to have 95 percent of your hair sprouting at 6 months.

When I stopped seeing growth from months 5 to 6, I called the doctor's office to address this concern and his assistant told me this was completely normal and most patients only begin to sprout at 6 months, and month 8 is when the density starts coming in. He sounded pretty genuine when he told me this. I just hit month 7 and I have noticed some growth in length and density for the last 3 weeks so I'm feeling optimistic. I don't know if 6 months for the sprouting to begin is the case for most patients. But I remember Dr. Diep mentioning in one of his videos, that most of his patients don't start spouting until 4 to 6 months. 

[Markee]

6 vs 12 Month results comparison video 

https://youtu.be/1kVaL8qfq20

Results may vary

 

Edited July 23, 2018 by Markee

[newpatient99]

On 7/23/2018 at 2:18 AM, Markee said:

6 vs 12 Month results comparison video 

https://youtu.be/1kVaL8qfq20

Results may vary

 

So far I've been hearing conflicting stories. Some say at 6 months, all your hair has sprouted and some say at the 8-9 month mark, that's when you start getting density. Would love to hear more opinions on this matter. 

[matt3480]

Whatever clinic said most patients only begin to sprout at 6 months is full of it, end of story. Most patients start sprouting at month 4 and if you have not started by 6 you are going to have a very very poor result.

I am telling you how my growth was based on my surgeries. Now again,  I am NOT talking about the crown as I did not have any work done in my crown and I have heard the crown indeed does takes longer to start growing. I am talking about the rest of the head. Sure, you may get a few hairs sprouting after 6 months, but I highly doubt you would notice much of a difference. The difference after month 6 comes from the new hair maturing and the shaft thickening (and, in my case, letting the transplanted hairs grow longer)....not from more sprouts coming in. Again, I felt 95% of my sprouts erupted by mid-way through month 5 to month 6 in all my surgeries. That isn't a bad thing....I grew in great on all my surgeries....the growth just came early.

Edited July 26, 2018 by matt3480

[matt3480]

On 7/23/2018 at 2:18 AM, Markee said:

6 vs 12 Month results comparison video 

https://youtu.be/1kVaL8qfq20

Results may vary

 

Those peoples' hair do not look any thicker at 12 months in that video than they do at 6.

[Markee]

1 hour ago, matt3480 said:

Those peoples' hair do not look any thicker at 12 months in that video than they do at 6.

Yeah thats the point the guys trying to make in this video 

 

[Al - Moderator]

Those peoples' hair do not look any thicker at 12 months in that video than they do at 6.

But he is specifically picking patient photos who don't look much different from 6 months to 12 months in order to fit what he is saying. You can easily do the same kind of video pointing out how there is a big difference between 6 months and 12 months by showing different patient photos. Everyone grows differently.

 

[wheretogo]

?

Edited July 27, 2018 by wheretogo