Please Help... I'm Scared. What Do I Do?

[wprevil]

Hi guys..

Hope you guys are doing well. I know I've posted this topic before but I have to create a "new" one out of indecision and fear. I'm scheduled for a transplant in 3 weeks.

I'm able to style my hair and can get away with a combover and hide the hair loss. But I do have hair loss. And of course, I'm limited to only a combover given the hair loss. Btw, I'm going to an elite hair surgeon, as several of you know.

I'm worried that shock loss could destroy the hairs on my scalp that gives me a combover to hide my hair loss. THAT'S my fear.

Let me know what you guys think please. I highly value all of your replies!

[asterix0]

Shock loss can destroy miniaturized hairs for sure, because they are already weak and on the way out, so to speak.

The problem is, when a surgeon is transplanting over a non-bald area, there is only so much he can place in a first pass around these weakened hairs. It is pretty much impossible to predict which will survive and which won't. 

So, this is why many times a second surgery is needed for density. 

Edited October 31, 2023 by asterix0

[Youth_Again]

you only got one life, looks like your hairloss is already bothering you to the point that you are posting topics every single days.

What's the worse that can happen? The hair transplant does not work and you look the same as before, best case scenario, you can rock the same haircut as brad pitt in one hair down the road. 

🤷‍♂️

Edited October 31, 2023 by Youth_Again

[Gatsby]

Unfortunately every surgery has risks regardless of who's performing it. Those risks are mitigated substantially by doing lots of research and due diligence. I've often said communication is key in hair restoration. I would definitely be speaking with your surgeon about this concern prior to surgery. Not being able to to take meds is not in your favor. However remember that shock loss is rarely permanent and passes 'IF' it happens. At 51 you have a lot of hair still which I believe you will keep for sometime. Some of us on this forum are Norwood 7 before we hit 30. Discuss this issue and all of your issues with your surgeon and if you then feel satisfied then go ahead. If you don't feel satisfied then honestly I would cancel. You need to have good communication with your surgeon before surgery. But I can promise you that you will need it even more after the surgery. I'm not trying to scare you. I'm just trying to inform you of all of your options. All the best.

[wprevil]

4 hours ago, asterix0 said:

The problem is, when a surgeon is transplanting over a non-bald area, there is only so much he can place in a first pass around these weakened hairs. It is pretty much impossible to predict which will survive and which won't.

Yes youre right. Thats why its a gamble and risk. If shock loss didnt exist I wouldnt be so frantic about getting surgery.

 

Quote

So, this is why many times a second surgery is needed for density. 

I'm not going for a 2nd surgery.

[wprevil]

3 hours ago, Youth_Again said:

What's the worse that can happen? 

I answered that question in my op.

Edited November 1, 2023 by wprevil

[wprevil]

1 hour ago, Gatsby said:

However remember that shock loss is rarely permanent and passes 'IF' it happens.

Gatsby its damn good hearing from you again!

But I've read that permanent shock loss is more common than you describe it and can cover more area. Are you sure abut that??

 

Quote

You need to have good communication with your surgeon before surgery. But I can promise you that you will need it even more after the surgery.

Are you saying this because of the possible issues following a procedure?

 

Quote

Unfortunately every surgery has risks regardless of who's performing it. I've often said communication is key in hair restoration. I would definitely be speaking with your surgeon about this concern prior to surgery.

You are 200% correct about communication with the doctor being key. That said, it would be wise to travel to Spain to talk to Couto face to face about this instead of over video. Video isn't as precise as in person. Let me know what you think about this approach.

 

[Gatsby]

42 minutes ago, wprevil said:

You are 200% correct about communication with the doctor being key. That said, it would be wise to travel to Spain to talk to Couto face to face about this instead of over video. Video isn't as precise as in person. Let me know what you think about this approach.

I would tell Dr Couto that you are extremely anxious about the possibility of permanent shock loss. Ask him everything that worries you. Write each point out that you wish to discus with him before the consultation. If he is sympathetic to your anxiety (and he should be) then follow the same questions up with him when you see him in person. Before I had my first repair transplant, I was speaking with Eugenix for two years with endless questions and worries on a weekly basis. Everytime my question was answered another question popped into my head. Often I thought about canceling and two weeks before surgery I was going to pull out of it. I here you bro!

[wprevil]

27 minutes ago, Gatsby said:

I would tell Dr Couto that you are extremely anxious about the possibility of permanent shock loss. Ask him everything that worries you. Write each point out that you wish to discus with him before the consultation. If he is sympathetic to your anxiety (and he should be) then follow the same questions up with him when you see him in person. Before I had my first repair transplant, I was speaking with Eugenix for two years with endless questions and worries on a weekly basis. Everytime my question was answered another question popped into my head. Often I thought about canceling and two weeks before surgery I was going to pull out of it. I here you bro!

So you recommend I talk to him over the phone first then follow up in person if satisfied with his answers. I can do that.

Btw your hair result looks very very good!

Edited November 1, 2023 by wprevil

[Gatsby]

Definitely 

[Hairwolf]

10 hours ago, wprevil said:

So you recommend I talk to him over the phone first then follow up in person if satisfied with his answers. I can do that.

Btw your hair result looks very very good!

You are in good hands with Couto, so wouldn’t worry to much about shock loss but contact him just to put your mind at ease.

[wprevil]

1 hour ago, streethawk said:

You are in good hands with Couto, so wouldn’t worry to much about shock loss but contact him just to put your mind at ease.

Appreciate that. I talked to him. Although he assured me things would go well I still have some doubts.

Edited November 1, 2023 by wprevil

[Cooper48]

Surgery is all about personal risk-reward.  If the reward doesn't outweigh the risk for you personally then you probably shouldn't do it.  I'm sure all of us here evaluated the risk but determined the percentage chances of issues versus positive outcomes were in our favor and chance of issues were worth it for our own reward (e.g., looking better, less self conscious, not wearing a hat all the time, looking younger, etc...)

 

[wprevil]

47 minutes ago, Cooper48 said:

Surgery is all about personal risk-reward.  If the reward doesn't outweigh the risk for you personally then you probably shouldn't do it.  I'm sure all of us here evaluated the risk but determined the percentage chances of issues versus positive outcomes were in our favor and chance of issues were worth it for our own reward (e.g., looking better, less self conscious, not wearing a hat all the time, looking younger, etc...)

Hi Cooper. Appreciate your reply. So I'm on the fence with only a few weeks before surgery. This is no doubt the toughest decision of my life. As you can imagine, I'm biting my nails as this is by no means an easy decision.

Given my hair loss, I'm still able to style my hair (combover) in a way that looks like I'm not losing hair with good density. But my sister says it looks like I'm recruiting hairs from the side to cover my hair loss - something to consider.

One thing you mentioned that rings very true is, "not wearing a hat all the time.'" I always wear one outdoors most of the time when I dont style my hair. I also wear one indoors most of the time.

Styling my hair takes a bit of effort in getting it to look just right. After shampooing and drying out my hair completely with a blow dryer, I stand in front of the mirror for 10 minutes to get the style to look good. This involves recruiting hairs from the side to overlap and add density to the top and recruiting hairs from the front to cover space in the temple area. The style is a combover. Hairspray and gel are used to keep this style in place. But the wind is my enemy. If theres a gust of it, I'll turn my head from it or duck into a store for cover to prevent the hairstyle from messing up.

Its a good system given the circumstances. But it can be tedious and a bit frustrating when it fails to look the way you want it to since there isn’t enough hairs in the temple area for added support. This makes it susceptible to the wind which can make it unravel to the side. And the only way I can style my hair is always after I shampoo, completely blow dry and do all the needed steps mentioned above, fyi.

Let me know what you think.

Edited November 1, 2023 by wprevil

[wprevil]

8 hours ago, Gatsby said:

Definitely 

Hi Gatsby.. I talked to Couto. Concerning shock loss, he reassured me that he's had many many cases of patients who haven't experienced any. He did say that shock loss would wipe out 5 - 10% of the native hairs closest to the transplanted hairs due to competition for blood and oxygen from the newly transplanted hairs. Keep in mind, if memory serves me correctly, I do believe he said 5 - 10%.

He suggested PRP and incisions spaced a bit from the transplanted zone to lessen shock. And if need be, a touch-up which I presume is done 12 months postop after should it be needed.

He also strongly suggested refraining from reading about topics revolving around hair transplants/ shock loss in order to remain positive about the upcoming surgery as stress hormones can wreak havoc on the scalp during surgery.

He assured me that I'm in magnificent hands and not worry at all. He said I’m a very good candidate with lots of donor hair.

Let me know what you think.. looking very much forward to your much needed response, Gatsby.

 

Edited November 1, 2023 by wprevil

[Cooper48]

I hear you brother.  We are near the same age and I spent the last 15+ years doing all of that.  Not sure what your crown looks like but we have similar loss in the front.  For me, once I evaluated the risk reward it was a very easy decision (with the risk being minimized by picking a reputable surgeon).  I'm at 6 weeks, I have significant donor area and recipient area (native and transplanted) shock loss.  I'm definitely in the ugly duckling phase and look worse than when I started.  While I don't like how I look right now, I have zero regrets.  I also still believe all of this is temporary based on all the research I have done. I weighed the risk-reward and it was a good decision for me.  It may not turn out but the risk-reward for me is still the same and worth it. 

[MAIZE1694]

Haven't seen your pics so can't make a real judgement yet. You could be a nw3 with good density and exaggerating your situation, I don't know.

But you're booked with Couto? Thats one of the best surgeons on the planet. I'm sure he's had a few unsuccessful cases but they're few and far between.

I say go for it. 

Edited November 1, 2023 by MAIZE1694

[wprevil]

2 hours ago, MAIZE1694 said:

Haven't seen your pics so can't make a real judgement yet.

But you're booked with Couto? Thats one of the best surgeons on the planet. I'm sure he's had a few unsuccessful cases but they're few and far between.

I say go for it. 

No surgeon in the world CANNOT prevent shock loss.

 

Here are my pics:

 

Edited November 1, 2023 by wprevil

[wprevil]

2 hours ago, Cooper48 said:

I hear you brother.  We are near the same age and I spent the last 15+ years doing all of that.  Not sure what your crown looks like but we have similar loss in the front.  For me, once I evaluated the risk reward it was a very easy decision (with the risk being minimized by picking a reputable surgeon).  I'm at 6 weeks, I have significant donor area and recipient area (native and transplanted) shock loss.  I'm definitely in the ugly duckling phase and look worse than when I started.  While I don't like how I look right now, I have zero regrets.  I also still believe all of this is temporary based on all the research I have done. I weighed the risk-reward and it was a good decision for me.  It may not turn out but the risk-reward for me is still the same and worth it. 

I have no issues with my crown.

Who was your doctor?

If you have significant shock loss I dont think thats normal as shock loss shouldn't cover so much area.

Here are my pics if youre curious:

 

 

[gillenator]

Permanent shock loss is more prevalent with native hair that is in a more advanced diffused stage…but if it were to occur, you could consider using a partial hair piece temporarily to achieve a combover effect until the regrowth of your new grafts manifest.

[MAIZE1694]

6 hours ago, wprevil said:

No surgeon in the world CANNOT prevent shock loss.

 

Here are my pics:

 

Honestly you are pretty far gone. I think you'll need a 2nd pass regardless of the 1st surgery outcome. I wouldn't be worried about shock loss in your situation.

Again, you're going to need 2 surgeries anyway.

[Gatsby]

8 hours ago, wprevil said:

Hi Gatsby.. I talked to Couto. Concerning shock loss, he reassured me that he's had many many cases of patients who haven't experienced any. He did say that shock loss would wipe out 5 - 10% of the native hairs closest to the transplanted hairs due to competition for blood and oxygen from the newly transplanted hairs. Keep in mind, if memory serves me correctly, I do believe he said 5 - 10%.

He suggested PRP and incisions spaced a bit from the transplanted zone to lessen shock. And if need be, a touch-up which I presume is done 12 months postop after should it be needed.

He also strongly suggested refraining from reading about topics revolving around hair transplants/ shock loss in order to remain positive about the upcoming surgery as stress hormones can wreak havoc on the scalp during surgery.

He assured me that I'm in magnificent hands and not worry at all. He said I’m a very good candidate with lots of donor hair.

Let me know what you think.. looking very much forward to your much needed response, Gatsby.

 

I agree 100% with what Dr Couto said.

[wprevil]

1 hour ago, MAIZE1694 said:

Honestly you are pretty far gone. I think you'll need a 2nd pass regardless of the 1st surgery outcome. I wouldn't be worried about shock loss in your situation.

Again, you're going to need 2 surgeries anyway.

Appreciate the response but Couto assured me that chances are that I dont require a 2nd surgery. But thanks for the cnocern

[wprevil]

5 hours ago, gillenator said:

Permanent shock loss is more prevalent with native hair that is in a more advanced diffused stage…but if it were to occur, you could consider using a partial hair piece

No wayyyyyyyyyy

[wprevil]

1 hour ago, Gatsby said:

I agree 100% with what Dr Couto said.

Hi Gatsby.. but what should I do? I'm seriously stuck in the middle and dont know what decision to make. I know you said you agree with Couto. But I'm still stuck in the cement. Would you please offer more info on what decision to make?

My apologies for pushing you like this, its not normally something I do. But in this situation which is nerve racking, I have to ask for your answer and support since youre experienced. I'm really lost. Hope you understand.

 

Edited November 2, 2023 by wprevil