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My journey - Dr Reddy, FUE 1200-1500 grafts - scheduled for 16th Aug 2022

S

Salazar

member
I think I will be perfectly happy to still have my usual skin fade. Which I'm yet to get done by my barber
When are you thinking of doing so?

Your hair looks great from the photos. Have you had any comments from friends or work colleagues regarding it?
 
hair-today

hair-today

member
When are you thinking of doing so?
Not sure, I don't think it's worth paying out for a cut when the top is just so short. I can fade it myself and get by, it's just I can't take it to a zero, and even the 0.5 needs to a bit lower as it's hard to get it smooth myself. Maybe another month or 2 it will have enough on top to make a proper skin-fade worth while.


Your hair looks great from the photos. Have you had any comments from friends or work colleagues regarding it?
Thanks. Not really, but I haven't seen that many people to be honest. As a speaker I've been on camera but only to peaple who don't know me personally. I also teach, but actually I hadn't done any since May, and just started back this week. So my students hadn't seen me for nearly 4 months anyway. Only one mentioned it but that's because he follows my speaking on Instagram and I'd posted about it there, so he knew.

I chatted to a neighbour the other day, and had forgotten about itm then when I suddently remembered I asked if she'd noticed anything different and her first comment was just that I'd cut it all off. When I explained she said she wouldn't have noticed.

To be fair though I wasn't too, too bad and I managed to hide my thinning quite well. So I I think unless I pointed it out, or was caught in particularly bad lighting, most people wouldn't notice I was thinning. So to them it's not much of a change.
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Great write up of your surgery day and the continued documentation. Everything sounds like it went very smoothly during the surgery. Those crunching sounds you can hear when the incisions are being made are kind of strange. At day 6 your donor had healed really well. Pulling off skin fades in the following weeks is a great. Your new transplanted grafts/hairline and behind looks very good. Having this new hairline should make a big difference to your facial look.

At day 25 everything looks normal and on course. Shedding and redness are all part of the process. Keep the updates coming as they will surely help others who are in the research process.
Looking forward to the next one.
All the best.
Bm.
 
S

Salazar

member
most people wouldn't notice I was thinning. So to them it's not much of a change.
Given how it can become a personal obsession, it's easy to forget that most people couldn't care less about the state of our hair.

Thanks for the write-ups so far. I really do appreciate your total transparency about the whole process. I think one of the worst things for me about hair loss is the sense of isolation. The fact that I'm losing hair, that I find it emotionally destressing, that I would like to get surgery, but that I'm worried about the outcome -- I can't mention any of these things to friends. If I did so, I would only be met with open derision and belittlement. So, I think it's great that you've been completely open about everything. Please keep updating. All the best.
 
hair-today

hair-today

member
Great write up of your surgery day and the continued documentation. Everything sounds like it went very smoothly during the surgery. Those crunching sounds you can hear when the incisions are being made are kind of strange. At day 6 your donor had healed really well. Pulling off skin fades in the following weeks is a great. Your new transplanted grafts/hairline and behind looks very good. Having this new hairline should make a big difference to your facial look.
Thanks, and yes really looking forward to seeing the hairline once the hair has a bit of height. Obviously for the usual reasons of donar preservation and the hailine aging ok the hairline is a little higher than it was when I was younger. So when it's this short it disapears from sight if I lift my head at all. But that should change a fair bit once the hair is longer on top.

At day 25 everything looks normal and on course. Shedding and redness are all part of the process. Keep the updates coming as they will surely help others who are in the research process.
Looking forward to the next one.
All the best.
Bm.
Thanks, yes I'm mega pleased with how it's all gone and how it's healing etc. I will certainly keep up with the upadtes. I've actually taken pictures daily and want to do a timelapse with them. It won't be great as I've not paid much attention to the angles of the pics and lightig etc, but hopefully it will still work. Just need to get round to stringing them all together.
 
hair-today

hair-today

member
Given how it can become a personal obsession, it's easy to forget that most people couldn't care less about the state of our hair.
Yes definitely agree there!!
Thanks for the write-ups so far. I really do appreciate your total transparency about the whole process. I think one of the worst things for me about hair loss is the sense of isolation. The fact that I'm losing hair, that I find it emotionally destressing, that I would like to get surgery, but that I'm worried about the outcome -- I can't mention any of these things to friends. If I did so, I would only be met with open derision and belittlement. So, I think it's great that you've been completely open about everything. Please keep updating. All the best.
Oh no, that is horrible. it's basically the kind of thing I talk about. People seriously don't get how these things that seem tiny to them can make such a huge difference to someone else and their happines. See my Instagram comment about that very thing.......I'll past a screen shot.
instagram post about hair and balding.jpg
 
S

Salazar

member
the hairline is a little higher than it was when I was younger
I think that your new hairline is just right. If you start chasing after your youth, you're only setting yourself up for disappointment. Modest goals are the only way to be satisfied with surgery. The most important thing is that you feel like yourself again. I only wish that I could say the same thing for myself. I've been dithering about whether or not to get surgery for 10 years, all the while barely living my life, avoiding social engagements and hiding under a hat. Sorry for the self-pity, but I feel like this forum is the only outlet I have for venting feelings. Whenever I try to broach the subject with friends, they basically tell me to "man the f*** up" or "get over yourself." Anyway, I appreciate your efforts to try to remove the stigma surrounding hair loss, particularly the stigma that surrounds being concerned about hair loss and wanting to do something about it. All the best.
 
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hair-today

hair-today

member
I think that your new hairline is just right. If you start chasing after your youth, you're only setting yourself up for disappointment. Modest goals are the only way to be satisfied with surgery.
Yep, that's why I started that sentence with "Obviously for the usual reasons of donar preservation and the hairline aging ok"


I only wish that I could say the same thing for myself. I've been dithering about whether or not to get surgery for 10 years, all the while barely living my life, avoiding social engagements and hiding under a hat. Sorry for the self-pity, but I feel like this forum is the only outlet I have for venting feelings. Whenever I try to broach the subject with friends, they basically tell me to "man the f*** up" or "get over yourself." Anyway, I appreciate your efforts to try to remove the stigma surrounding hair loss, particularly the stigma that surrounds being concerned about hair loss and wanting to do something about it. All the best.
It sounds like you really would be happier if you did something about this. I think this is one of those things where because it feels like a choice, as opposed to needing to do some type of medical procedure to, for example, save your life (which is still actually a choice, it's just an easier one to make) that it's so easy to worry about regret. It's something that's irreversable, so it's easier to put it off, as you still then have a choice but to go ahead, if it's not right for you , you can't take it back.

I've been in that situation twice now. I'm not one to jump into things (sounds like you are the same) and so after much deliberation and research I decided to do it. I can honestly say on both occasions it has 100% been the right thing to do, and it wasn't until afterwards that I realised quite how much it was needed. Meaning there's no way I'd ever go back (if it was possible of course). Obviously we are all different, but I feel you sound very much like me.

It also sounds like those around you are having an impact on your choices too. Only guessing of course! But I've also been there, and it stops you doing what's right for you.

Have you been for a consultation with anyone? Even if you don't go with that surgeon it would give you a great indication as to whether tiy are a good candidate or not. Obviously many (probably most) clinics will just tell you that you are, but for example I know Dr Reddy is quite strict on this and from my experience I would trust his judgment. So if you researched and saw someone like that, they could basically give you your answer. If they say it's not good for you in the long term, then at least you'll know and can stop agonising over the decision to or not, and if they think you are then it's 99.99999% likely you'll be happier if you do it.

Only you can decide in the end though, I'm just adding my thoughts.
 
S

Salazar

member
Have you been for a consultation with anyone?
I've been for a few in-person consultations, and I've done a couple online. I've been quoted anywhere from 1200 to 1700 grafts to improve my hairline. I also have some crown thinning but, with the exception of one clinic, I've been told that is unwise to try to transplant grafts there. Some of the clinics were reputable and others were cowboys. Sadly, I had a negative experience with one well respected clinic, which kind of left me not knowing where to turn.

It also sounds like those around you are having an impact on your choices too.
That's a fair point. Although the blame really lies with me for letting them have such an impact.

It's something that's irreversable
That's really the sticking point. I also have far too much emotionally invested in the outcome. The result will either make or break me. I don't think that is a healthy state of mind to be in. I need my mental health to be defined by something more than the number of follicles on my head but, sadly, that is where I am at the moment.

Only you can decide in the end though
I know. I am the one who is going to have to live with it, one way or the other. Of course, everyone considering surgery (including yourself) is in the same boat. I'm glad that things seem to have worked out well for you. All the best.
 
hair-today

hair-today

member
I've been for a few in-person consultations, and I've done a couple online. I've been quoted anywhere from 1200 to 1700 grafts to improve my hairline.
That's not a massive ammount of grafts, and if you've been expereincng hairloss for a decade or so it sounds like you aren't balding at a rapid rate. That would generally bode well for a procedure.

I also have some crown thinning but, with the exception of one clinic, I've been told that is unwise to try to transplant grafts there.
Can I be nosey and ask why they think it's unwise?
Some of the clinics were reputable and others were cowboys. Sadly, I had a negative experience with one well respected clinic, which kind of left me not knowing where to turn.
Mmmm yes I had an online consultation with a clinic that seems to have a decent reputation. In the consulaton they quoted me for a lot more grafts than I have just had done, and at the time I did think it seemed a lot of grafts for the amoount of thinning I have. But then when they sent the quote through afterwards the written quote had a lot more than they'd orginailly said and so also of course a much higher cost. It certainly didn't seem very organised or ethical. I have also often recieved texts from clinics (I think including the one above - but can't remember exactly to be fair) trying to persuade me to book due to special offers. There's no way I'm ever going to book with a clinic that does that.

That's a fair point. Although the blame really lies with me for letting them have such an impact.
Not your fault really, it's not as simple as that.


That's really the sticking point. I also have far too much emotionally invested in the outcome. The result will either make or break me. I don't think that is a healthy state of mind to be in. I need my mental health to be defined by something more than the number of follicles on my head but, sadly, that is where I am at the moment.


I know. I am the one who is going to have to live with it, one way or the other. Of course, everyone considering surgery (including yourself) is in the same boat. I'm glad that things seem to have worked out well for you. All the best.
Yes it's a tough decision. Good luck, I hope you figure it out!!!
 
S

Salazar

member
Can I be nosey and ask why they think it's unwise?
They told me that placing grafts in the area could damage the already existing hairs, and actually make matters worse.

I had an online consultation with a clinic that seems to have a decent reputation.
I had a meeting with the patient advisor. Everything went well, but I was told that I would receive a report by the end of the week. I waited nearly two months, and then emailed them to ask what was happening. No response. I waited a fortnight, then tried again. They told me that I would get it by the end of the week. Cue another two months of waiting. This set the pattern for all of our communications, one where I was constantly having to chase them up. The only time that they were prompt in their replies was when it came to discussing paying a deposit. I nearly paid it, but then realised that somehow, in all the confusion (having to repeatedly resend emails just to get them to acknowledge my existence), all of their promises (such as being put in touch with former patients) had fallen by the wayside. To top it off, I discovered that the surgeon performing the operation wouldn't be the one on whose reputation the clinic is built, but some other person who I had never heard of. I decided to postpone things, so I emailed them saying that I needed a little longer. As expected, they never even acknowledged my message. Add into the mix the fact that they were signing me up for FUT -- despite my goal in having a transplant being the desire to be able to wear my hair short again -- and I think that I dodged a bullet. But it left me confused for a long time afterwards. Given the reputation of the clinic, I kept thinking that it must have been me who was in the wrong in some way.

That's not a massive ammount of grafts, and if you've been expereincng hairloss for a decade or so it sounds like you aren't balding at a rapid rate. That would generally bode well for a procedure.
I've been on finasteride for the last ten years, so that seems to have helped things -- I just hope that it continues to work into the future. I also have minoxidil, but I've never used it. I know that the hairs that are shed are ones that were dying anyway, but the thought of this happening rapidly (in a matter of weeks rather than years) has so far dissuaded me.

Yes it's a tough decision. Good luck, I hope you figure it out!!!
Thanks. I appreciate you talking to me. Please continue to update. All the best.
 
hair-today

hair-today

member
A little update at the 5 week + 2 days mark.

Again I attempted my own skin fade going to a 0.5 grade. This time I tried to take the 0.5 a little higher up.

I think in a couple of weeks I may splash out the £20 for my barber to do a proper job, with a foil razored skin fade (to 0).
29B40F71-22EA-432A-855B-DFFF341DFD30.jpeg
DE00526B-B22E-4919-AFB5-39BFD34238E4.jpeg
0325CBE1-F0D8-42EB-83D2-5A6FDE30C757.jpeg



You can defo see the gaps in the donor area but only if you’re really looking. I certainly don’t feel it’s prohibitive to a skin fade.

As you can see the recipient area has shed a fair bit, but that stopped shedding around 10 days ago. So now it’s a waiting game until it starts to regrow. However even as it is now I am much happier than before, so I’m definitely going to enjoy watching it grow back in.

I was trying to decide whether to keep it shaved short until it starts growing, rather than have the ugly duckling phase and some hairs longer while the nee hair is short underneath it. But I have decided against that as I am trying to decide which type of minoxidil to continue with and want to be able to tell if the crown/very top starts shedding again.

For information, I can’t take finasteride and am currently on oral minoxidil. But as this is actually a blood pressure medication and even at the lower dose I’m on can increase heart rate, I’d rather not risk my long term health by staying on this. But, I started shedding and did not stop for a year and a half while I was on topical minoxidil. This stopped completely, and very suddenly, exactly 4 days after I stopped using it coming into the surgery. So I am nervous about returning to it. So need to figure out what to do. Leaving the top a little longer makes it easier to tell if it’s shedding. I am currently trying a half dose of oral minox and will see how that goes. Plus will likely have a chat with my GP as to what she thinks any long term risks may be.
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Everything looks right on track at this stage. Although you can see the scarring if looking for it you’d be able to have it completely hidden with a little length to your hair.
As for the topical, you may have to stay away from it and see how the lower dose of oral goes.
Let us know what your doctor advises.
Good luck with it.
 
hair-today

hair-today

member
Thanks Bigmac.

Although you can see the scarring if looking for it you’d be able to have it completely hidden with a little length to your hair.
Yes longer is an option. One of my massive hesitations was whether I'd still be able to sport my skin fade to a zero grade, so would like to keep it short. Obviously I knew there was be some scarring, and I am really happy with how little you can see. I'm happy to have my skin fade and show off the scars.

Always good to have options though :)

As for the topical, you may have to stay away from it and see how the lower dose of oral goes.
Let us know what your doctor advises.
Mmmm yes, I am very weary of trying topical again. I'm not in a hurry to chat with my GP so will do so at some point. I'm sure 6-12 months of oral minoxidil won't do any long term harm, so will see how things go in the mean time.

Yes I will definitely update after speaking to the GP though, as I assume it will be useful info for others using this forum.

Good luck with it.
Thanks :)
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Pulling off a skin fade is always going to be difficult after an FUE surgery. We all heal differently and some fortunate people heal very well with little to no visible scarring. Your scars look decent. I doubt the average person in the street would notice anything.
Oral minoxidil seems to be the popular option right now. I`m not on it but if I were, I`d start on a low dosage to see how I reacted. If no sides or improvements slowly increase the dosage.
 
hair-today

hair-today

member
Pulling off a skin fade is always going to be difficult after an FUE surgery. We all heal differently and some fortunate people heal very well with little to no visible scarring. Your scars look decent. I doubt the average person in the street would notice anything.
Yes, the skin fade was one of my worries. Dr Reddy assured me that for the little amount of grafts I needed that it would be fine though. I asked about SMP and he just confidently said "You won't need it". So I am relieved with how it's come out.


Oral minoxidil seems to be the popular option right now. I`m not on it but if I were, I`d start on a low dosage to see how I reacted. If no sides or improvements slowly increase the dosage.
I'm actually only taking half dose. And keeping an eye on any shedding. Fingers crossed (Hope I don't jinz it now) all seems fine. Which wasn't the case for the year and a half I was on topical minoxidil. I've thinned now, and I'm sure it was the minoxidil. But obviously it's impossible to know for sure.
 
hair-today

hair-today

member
A little update. Just shy of 8 weeks and you can see some hairs growing. Not enough to fill out the area and cover the 'ungly duckling' look. But to be fair, even how it is now I think is much better than before, so I'm excited to see what the coming months bring as is comes in thicker.

Hair - 9th Oct - just shy of 8 weeks.png
 
hair-today

hair-today

member
Your donor area is still looking good. What length is it (1.5, 2, 2.5, 3 mm) in the photo?
I'm not sure. Those pics were just after week 5, and your hair grows roughly a grade a week. It was shaved to 0.5, so it must have been around a grade 6 on top. But the back part I think is growing quicker than the front. And the back and sides obviously I shaved, so faded up from a grade 0.5.
 
E

Edsarn

Member
You picked a top surgeon and great man @hair-today! Looking really good so far and you should get an excellent result.
 
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