What is realistic?? My expectations

[BlokeFromStoke]

I am currently in the process of contacting a few ht clinics. (The private Clinic UK, hlc turkey, after reading this forum going to contact bicer,demisory, ferriera) unfortunately as many of us do, I've shaved my head, so have got to wait for some growth before I can send images to them.

 

Before finding this forum I did contact the usual culprits of mills ( 1 who said I was nw6 and would have to leave the crown). thankfully I started reading your guys/gals posts before I pulled the trigger.

 

I don't agree I'm a six, more a  4.5maybe. but it did have me questioning what to expect at the end of the ht. Pictures below(longer during lockdown maybe 6-8months ago, shaved image from the other day) As I grew it, I used minoxidil only, but would be happy to use PRP,fin,minoxidil etc.. basically whatever a ht surgeon saw fit to suggest. Would I still be expecting to rock the prince harry style crown/minor receded hairline/ or thining look on top?? I ask as I don't want to be unrealistic with my hopes of the final outcome. Hoping for full head of hair at ≈£8k might be a pipe dream?

[Britanium]

Definitely talk to your Dr and consider Fin, it will help retain the hair you have. Have you also considered Eugenix ? Pretty much one of the best for higher Norwood levels. Bisanga, HDC @Doron Haratiand Vertex @DrTBarghouthiare also very good considerations. 

[Gatsby]

I second everything John has suggested. Most good surgeons will factor in the risk of finally one day ending up a Norwood 6/7 and plan accordingly. It's a life long approach when it comes to surgery and sadly too many hair mills are just interested in taking your money today and letting you worry about the results tomorrow. Consult with the one's John mentioned and if you have realistic excpectations and are able to trial finasteride then you have a plan. Wishing you all the best!

[DrTBarghouthi]

Thanks for the mention guys. I apologize for some delays in replying as I prefer to answer personally to all questions/mentions. 

@BlokeFromStokewould be great to see the donor, but It seems to me promising enough. Your pattern is not a 6 for sure. I agree it seems heading to a 5 and would therefore advise commencing finasteride (even if alternate days) and hopefully have no sides from it. What is your current age if I may ask. I think maintenance meds and adding density to the front, ms and crown is a possibility depending on age and donor area etc. 

[BlokeFromStoke]

@JohnAC71 @Gatsby thanks for the replies. I'll definitely have a look into it! My main consideration, was wanting to not get my hopes up too much. Are those 4 clinics within my realm of cost will be the only other issue. Probably is best to start fin to keep what I have until I get the green light

 

[BlokeFromStoke]

@DrTBarghouthi thanks for the quick reply! My age is 28. How long will the donor need to be for you to judge clearly?? Sadly I shaved it off, after taking the pictures Friday. So only have a few days growth currently.

 

Glad to see you seem positive in general though

[DrTBarghouthi]

1 hour ago, BlokeFromStoke said:

@DrTBarghouthi thanks for the quick reply! My age is 28. How long will the donor need to be for you to judge clearly?? Sadly I shaved it off, after taking the pictures Friday. So only have a few days growth currently.

 

Glad to see you seem positive in general though

Please feel free to share donor photos currently. Might need a week or two of growth to see better, but might be able to give a hint now anyway. 

[Britanium]

Contact them all and be aware that Bisnaga has different costs depending on where the transplant is taking place. Eugenix has different prices depending on which Dr/package you choose. HDC will be €2 per graft if you go through @Doron Haratiapprox. Glad you are now in contact with @DrTBarghouthi

[BlokeFromStoke]

@DrTBarghouthi can't see all that much I'm afraid but is it enough to think it's worth booking a consultation with yourself??

[BlokeFromStoke]

@JohnAC71 cheers John saved me some leg work there 👍

[DrTBarghouthi]

2 minutes ago, BlokeFromStoke said:

@JohnAC71 cheers John saved me some leg work there 👍

Yes that’s quite tough to judge. I would say leave it for 1-2 weeks before assessing it properly via a consultation. 

[BlokeFromStoke]

So while waiting for consultations, and naively believing I needed less grafts, quotes from 4.5k grafts to upto 7k( so needing more time to save for a procedure, originally thought £8k but maybe more now). I decided to be pro-active:

Monday/Tuesday/Thursday/Friday/Saturdays

Conditioner only

Retinoid/minoxidil before work.

Repeat at night.

+1mg fin.

Wednesday/Sundays

Retinoid/minox after work. Wait ≈4hours shampoo it out with exfoliating brush.

Microneedling (vary depth for different regions depending to achieve even pain level)

Added serioxyl yesterday too. Will it work.... Who knows but even a few 1% increases compounding will have an effect.

 

Results seem promising, judging by all the small hairs sprouting. But I'm not even sure if the routine could even start to work yet?

 

 

[BlokeFromStoke]

Med update. Granted not same lighting/place etc... But still has me hopeful

[Al - Moderator]

Wow. It looks like you are getting some great results for it only being one month. I'd like to see where you can get to after at least 6 months. Check out @Shifty thread

 

 

[BlokeFromStoke]

@BeHappy thanks! Shifty and few other posts, are reason I thought I'd try in the mean time. As well as Derek of YouTube's MPMD fame. 

 

Hopefully crown, midscalp, and front tuft get some extra coverage. But still looks like transplant to avoid Jude law temples 🤣. All that's at front is little vellus hairs.... So yeah might be a bit too far gone to be revived there.

[BlokeFromStoke]

Coming up on 2 months meds 1) dry natural light Vs 2) wet and harsh lighting ( @Shifty 🤞🤞 I'm joining your group of hyper responder hahaha)

Edited November 25, 2021 by BlokeFromStoke

[Gatsby]

Wow that's a massive difference!!!!! And this is only two months!!!! Can I ask why you are not taking finasteride @1mg a day? Is it due to side effects? I'm only asking as you are a responder obviously and if yo took Finasteride and minoxidil as generally prescribed you should have even better results. Also hold off from any surgery what's so ever for at least a good 6-12 months. You may seriously be surprised by the results that you are able to achieve from meds alone. Wishing you all the best!

[BlokeFromStoke]

@Gatsby full disclosure, it did grow back a blonde, ginger, brown mix (looked aweful!!) So dyed it all ginger which made a huge difference!

Thanks for the kind words!

I am on 1mg fin. Full routine:

AM condition hair, cetrizine, retinoid, minoxidil

If it's a bit dry, add oleuprein oil on my dinner break at work

PM redensyl , retinoid, minoxidil finasteride

 

Microneedling Wednesday Sundays

 

I know cetrizine, redensyl, oleuprein might be snake oil! But for £20 over a month if it even adds 1% fine by me! Worse case down £20. Best case added 1000hair seems decent gamble.

 

[Gatsby]

38 minutes ago, BlokeFromStoke said:

@Gatsby full disclosure, it did grow back a blonde, ginger, brown mix (looked aweful!!) So dyed it all ginger which made a huge difference!

Thanks for the kind words!

I am on 1mg fin. Full routine:

AM condition hair, cetrizine, retinoid, minoxidil

If it's a bit dry, add oleuprein oil on my dinner break at work

PM redensyl , retinoid, minoxidil finasteride

 

Microneedling Wednesday Sundays

 

I know cetrizine, redensyl, oleuprein might be snake oil! But for £20 over a month if it even adds 1% fine by me! Worse case down £20. Best case added 1000hair seems decent gamble.

 

As the old saying goes. 'If it ain't broke then don't fix it!' I'm incredibly happy for you and you are doing all the right things. I can only imagine where your hair will be at 6 months. At 12 months! All the best!

[Britanium]

Hyper responder indeed, good for you ! This is showing what can be achievable 😉

[ciaus]

Its kinda funny to see your middle and frontal areas responding so well and first. The meds do work in these areas as well, but the crown area in the back is what the drug companies focused on in their clinical trials and advertising because those follicles tend to respond the best.

[BlokeFromStoke]

@ciaus what's even weirder is,  I lost the temples , mid then crown. So I figured I'd gain back in reverse order!  They are the least miniaturised follicles🤷🏻‍♂️  backwards genetics had me off while I'm in my twenties, so yeah... Not surprised they responded how they want.

 

Oooh god all the effort and left with a prince harry style crown, no thank you!!

[ciaus]

58 minutes ago, BlokeFromStoke said:

what's even weirder is,  I lost the temples , mid then crown. So I figured I'd gain back in reverse order! 

Yea loss starts at the front for most guys like that, those hairs being more DHT sensitive. And "makes it way back" to the crown in terms of noticeability. And for most guys that frontal miniaturizing has gone past the genetic point of no return by the time they start on finasteride and minoxidil. You are definitely one of the lucky ones catching it at this point in the progression.

I don't see anywhere you've mentioned how old you are, but judging by your lack of grey hairs you have at least a few decades of living ahead of you. Just remember that Finasteride doesn't eliminate all DHT -up to 70%, and miniaturization is a gradual accumulating process. So depending on your genetic sensitivity you could still experience some additional losses here and there as the years go on. But your loss rate will always be less than it was if you were not taking finasteride, so stick with it. Helps to think of it as hairloss brakes, best case scenario it halts the loss completely or slows it down alot. So you can enjoy the fullest head of hair possible with the least amount of hair transplants.

[BlokeFromStoke]

So 2 month update biggest difference seems to be new growth on the temples. The only mad thing is depending on lighting/location I can move 1 norwood! See area where it's filling in(shaded)  Vs image from 25th which looks like it's already 1/2 filled, with current lighting it just looks like a shadow🤷🏻‍♂️

[Al - Moderator]

They aren't noticeable in certain light because most of them are still very short and thin and don't yet provide any real coverage. You are having great results at just 2 months. Keep at it. Most of those new hairs coming in may continue to grow into long, thick hair.