Time Sensitive! Not sure about this hairline - should I have this fixed?

[rgm82]

Hello all,

I posted on this forum last year about looking for a a hairline transplant in a country where I could afford it, one of the places that came most recommended was HLC in Ankara Turkey so I wound up here getting one done. This is my first ever hair restoration procedure so I don't know if this is cause for concern or not, just looking for input from folks who have som experience in the matter.

So I just went through the first round of implantation yesterday, and I'm just not sure how I should feel about these results - what do you guys think? I feel it looks super jagged, almost pixelated, like a staircase leading into my temple. The doctor told me that's for a natural look, so it's not perfectly straight across like doll hair, which I understand is something that's supposed to be done to an extent,  but this looks a little extreme to me - I'm looking around the clinic at some of the other hairline reconstructions here and while there is a bit of zig-zag happening with a lot of them, I feel mine is a bit more than the others.

They also said that part of why it looks weird now is the scabbing and the swelling, eventually that will subside and it will look more normal. I'm not a doctor and I have very little experience in this arena so for all I know it's possible they're right and I don't want to come off as the jerk who's complaining when I don't know shit, but I also can't walk out of this place with an unacceptable hairline...I still have surgery this afternoon, and I'm still here a few more days after for monitoring so it's not too late to fix it if I need to, any thoughts?

I also included a pic of a celebrity with a very similar hair type and hairline to mine before I lost any hair - this is more or less what I'm looking to achieve. I feel the overall shape of what they're putting in is right, I'm just worried about the smoothness of the edges. I also often shaved my head like this as well, and would really like to be able to reacquire that overall shape if I can

[Gasthoerer]

Everything is right! It is normal that there are some irregularities to soften the hairline. The ones you have are not extreme. 

More important point: it is very (!) likely that you cannot shave the hair like the guy on the pictures. HT is about illusion and finding the sweet spot of length and angles/layering to make it look good. 

[shiba1985]

There is nothing wrong with that hairline shape. Do not overthink it.  You should never be afraid to speak up as a patient, but there is a fine line between advocating for yourself and being an annoying patient that continues to split hair losing sight of the long term results due to some neurotic OCD type of behaviours most of us hair patients seem to have. 😝

How many grafts is that? 

 

[rgm82]

Ok well I guess I feel better about it if this is the general consensus of folks who have had this done before, just want to be sure I'm having quality work done before I leave this place forever.

I was mainly concerned about this one piece that just seems to stick out a little far, about halfway up the left side, i highlighted it - this is the side my hair naturally parts on, so if it ends up looking weird folks are gonna notice...for real though ya'll think this looks normal though? Not going to be an issue? If I'm just being extra anal about this I'll take everybody's word, it looks weird to me but I've never had this done before so I have no idea how it's going to grow in.

I don't recall how many grafts are on the first side, here's a shot of the finished work from the afternoon, it's just shy of 1700 total I think.

So wait though, I can't shave my head anymore? Really?! Like how come, it just doesn't look good or what? Damnit I can't believe that never came up in a year of doing research on this, that's one of my preferred ways to wear my hair, almost might have been a deal breaker for me...

[Gasthoerer]

2 hours ago, rgm82 said:

1. If I'm just being extra anal about this I'll take everybody's word, it looks weird to me but I've never had this done before so I have no idea how it's going to grow in.

2. So wait though, I can't shave my head anymore? Really?! Like how come, it just doesn't look good or what? Damnit I can't believe that never came up in a year of doing research on this, that's one of my preferred ways to wear my hair, almost might have been a deal breaker for me...

1. Simple answers: Yes you are. But for you own sake (even if it is only in your mind) you could have asked to put 3 grafts around it. 

2. How many people have you seen in here with a buzzcut after a HT? Not many... There is a chance that you can shave down, but it is gamble, especially with your hair skin contrast. Your plan should not built on that unlike you plan to add SMP in Donor and (!) recipient to begin with. 

[rgm82]

14 hours ago, Gasthoerer said:

 

2. How many people have you seen in here with a buzzcut after a HT? Not many... There is a chance that you can shave down, but it is gamble, especially with your hair skin contrast. Your plan should not built on that unlike you plan to add SMP in Donor and (!) recipient to begin with. 

Well the answer would be maybe 0 i guess, I never thought to even pay attention to it but 1) I don't come on this site all that often, just when I have a question to pose so it's not like I'm seeing a plethora of pics of guys on this forum, but even when I do see pics 2) lack of a shaved head does not in anyway to me imply inability to wear a shaved head, the first conclusion I jump to is a non-desire to do so...I would have never thought to ask whether or not people on this site didn't shave their heads because they either couldn't, or didn't want to.

I also never thought to ask whether or not I would be able to shave it after having a transplant, apparently I should have but the idea that it would be off the table never even occurred to me. I'm a little surprised nobody else ever brought it up either, every picture I've submitted to hair clinics or forums looking for advice/quotes etc. featured me with the shaved head I sport every summer, it's a little disheartening nobody thought to say "hey you can't have that hairstyle anymore btw"...

I live in Texas and I work outside in the summer...there's really no way I can have this touched up in some way to make a shaved head possible? It's pretty unbearable otherwise. Are there any other hairstyles that are now unavailable to me? And where does one find this information because I really thought I read a lot of articles and watched a bunch of stuff on youtube besides coming to this and other forums before making this choice and the idea of certain hairstyles being off-limits didn't come up once.

 

...also what does this mean?

"Your plan should not built on that unlike you plan to add SMP in Donor and (!) recipient to begin with. "

Edited March 20, 2022 by rgm82

[Melvin- Admin]

Time sensitive and hair transplants should never go together. If you’ve already had a procedure, best thing to do is wait and see how it looks. Trying to undo what’s already been done can be disastrous.

[rgm82]

8 hours ago, Melvin- Moderator said:

Time sensitive and hair transplants should never go together. If you’ve already had a procedure, best thing to do is wait and see how it looks. Trying to undo what’s already been done can be disastrous.

My bad, i didn't mean to make it sound like it's a big emergency, I have till wednesday and they did offer to fix that one highlighted edge that's sticking out...just trying to get advice on whether I should take them up on it or not while I'm still here. So it's a little time sensitive in that regard, but it's certainly not urgent

Edited March 20, 2022 by rgm82

[Nw7HPE]

I had my hair transplant at HLC done a couple of months ago , I am from California and traveled far to have my HT done there . All I can say is regarding hairlines they know what they are doing and I would not worry about much . All you can do now is focus on your recovery and post-care as the most important month is the first . 

[Al - Moderator]

Don't change it. I think it will turn out fine. The Dr is right that it will look more pronounced now than when it grows in. The actual hairs that grow will be much thinner than that scab/graft size that you see now, so it won't be as noticeable then, but you do want it to be a little noticeable once it grows because you don't want a straight line.

 

Edited March 20, 2022 by BeHappy

[rgm82]

ok well thanks for the feedback, I feel much better about and will leave it be and see how it grows in

Still pretty bummed about this head-shaving thing, is it really true that I may not be able to do that again? That's going to make summers for me so much harder...is there really no type of touch up or follow up procedure that can be done to facilitate that?

[Gasthoerer]

Hair transplant is the art of illusion:

- Giving the appearance of a full head of (recipient) hair despite only using 50 % of native density --> To achieve the illusion, a certain lenght and layering is required. 

- Giving the appearance of a unharmed donor, despite having thousands of grafts taken --> Also requires a certain length to cover the scars

Of course there are exception:

- Some achieve almost natural density by consecutive surgeries (being a low NW)

- Some doing donor restocking (BHT or SMP).

- Some have such a low density overall that transplanted density matches 

Again, if the length you are looking for is possible, is difficult to predict. The general rule is: If you wanna shave, do not have a HT but SMP (or nothing).

Some examples:

Super high density by multiple surgeries:

Recipient view + Donor impact due to strong hair skin contrast (incredible 10/10  result by the way):

Donor restocking:

 

[Vann]

Could you post some photos of before your hair transplant, after the transplant, some of the graft break downs and the average amount of hairs used? Also the donor site before/after?

[rgm82]

26 minutes ago, Vann said:

Could you post some photos of before your hair transplant, after the transplant, some of the graft break downs and the average amount of hairs used? Also the donor site before/after?

I lost the most recent before pics, these are a little older but nothing really changed, they still apply...not really sure why one of these photos flipped itself

I don't remember the exact breakdown, it was around 1700 total I think, 50/cm on the sides and I think maybe 20/cm in the middle...they explained it all right before loading me up with drugs, it's all a bit of a blur at this point

Edited March 20, 2022 by rgm82

[Eugenix Hair Sciences]

It is too early to judge the results. Lets wait for atleast 7 to 8 months to see the results. Do keep us posted your hair journey. 

 

[Zinedine]

On 3/20/2022 at 8:31 PM, rgm82 said:

I lost the most recent before pics, these are a little older but nothing really changed, they still apply...not really sure why one of these photos flipped itself

I don't remember the exact breakdown, it was around 1700 total I think, 50/cm on the sides and I think maybe 20/cm in the middle...they explained it all right before loading me up with drugs, it's all a bit of a blur at this point

All looks good and you now have to be patient. But you seem to have an excellent hair quality and your donor looks amazing too... so please, keep those updates coming!