Disguise a transplant options

[hopeful]

It’s around about a year since I booked / paid a deposit and drove to The Hair Dr for a hair transplant only to pull out and drive home. I am absolutely gutted I did not get it done. I’ve given it so much thought to why I did not go through with it and the truth is that it’s nothing more than the fact of trying to disguise it until it grows in . I know most folk will say just get it done but I just really would not want folk to know & with my job and lifestyle it would not be possible to hide it. Apart from a hat as anybody found a way of disguising it ?
thanks I’m advance

 

[Bigmac]

It depends on how many grafts and what areas will be transplanted. Could you post a picture with your face cropped out?

 

[hopeful]

I had my consultation via zoom and it was suggested 2500 however once Dr Arshad met me in person he said over 3000. Dr Arshad did want to shave the front of the middle back so as he could thicken it up although totally understand i wanted to leave as much on as possible - to obviously try and disguise the transplants. Although thinking about it I actually agree with Dr Arshad- I would want the best job possible. I have posted about the Hair Dr before to say how great they were in understanding I did not want to go through with it but just to say again they were brilliant with me.

 

[Bigmac]

Your loss does go quite far back. The donor will have to be shaved regardless. If you only shaved the frontal half of your head your hair will look weird to people. Could you not buzz it short to get others used to the look, then have the transplant?

 

[Fatjim]

I thought about how I was going to deal with everyone knowing as I was having a lot of grafts, but its all in the mind. I felt very self conscious about venturing out, especially when I shedded. After going out a few times I told myself I didnt look any worse than I did before and I told most of the people I knew which helped, even though I thought my appearance had changed a lot, people didn't quite realise what had happened.
So if you ask me just go for it and you'll find its a lot less stressful than you think it will be.

 

[hopeful]

Your loss does go quite far back. The donor will have to be shaved regardless. If you only shaved the frontal half of your head your hair will look weird to people. Could you not buzz it short to get others used to the look, then have the transplant?

That would be the ideal thing to do but then folk really would see how far my hairline goes back and it would be so obvious after the transplant. Also in all honesty if I could buzz it and I would look ok I would do it in a heartbeat but it really does not suit me. I had it cut shorter recently and it just looked awful

 

[hopeful]

I thought about how I was going to deal with everyone knowing as I was having a lot of grafts, but its all in the mind. I felt very self conscious about venturing out, especially when I shedded. After going out a few times I told myself I didnt look any worse than I did before and I told most of the people I knew which helped, even though I thought my appearance had changed a lot, people didn't quite realise what had happened.
So if you ask me just go for it and you'll find its a lot less stressful than you think it will be.

Thanks for your response. I’m really pleased it worked out for you. Can I ask how many grafts you had ?

 

[Bigmac]

Could you start wearing a loose fitting ball cap now? Are you allowed to wear one for work? Possibly let people know you`re thinking about a HT, it`s not the taboo it once was.

 

[hopeful]

Could you start wearing a loose fitting ball cap now? Are you allowed to wear one for work? Possibly let people know you`re thinking about a HT, it`s not the taboo it once was

Im afraid I could not wear one for work.
how long is it before most people shed the new transplants ?

 

[Bigmac]

Shedding usually begins 7 days post op and can continue for a number of weeks. Some say up to 6 weeks. Each individual is different making it hard to give an accurate timeline. As an average, I`d say 3 weeks.

 

[hopeful]

Thanks for the reply’s.
I guess then it’s the waiting game for new growth.

 

[Bigmac]

Yes it is unless you`re one of the few who does not shed and those grafts keep on growing.

 

[hopeful]

I guess that is very rare . I wonder why that happens on occasions though ?

 

[My2021story]

I was the same- nervous about shaving my head and what people think etc.

Having gone through with the procedure myself, you realise people care much less than you think. Most were actually inquisitive as to how it all works.(especially men!)

In truth, most people will be fully aware of the fact that your hair is receding, (as a fellow follicle fighter, it is obvious from your pictures that you have hair loss and are styling a combover to disguise this) but people probably haven’t mentioned this to you as it’s perfectly normal for a man to recede.

I think in truth, unless you can wear a hat or keep away from people for at least a month after the procedure, there is not much you can do to hide it.

scabs are gone after 14(ish) days but depending on skintone, your scalp will be red for many more weeks, everyone is different however my scalp was red for at least two months.
My mindset was “I will look worse for a few months, but this is a long-term plan and after six months I will be on the road to looking better than ever!”

I think you need to either accept the fact that you will be unable to hide the transplant and embrace it, or accept the fact you will continue to lose your hair and a transplant isn’t for you.

Apologies if this comes across a little blunt, but there’s no getting around the facts.

You have to either embrace it or accept the fact you will continue to lose hair.

If you can’t face shaving your head and telling people of your surgery then maybe you need to look at hair systems as an option

 

[Fatjim]

Thanks for your response. I’m really pleased it worked out for you. Can I ask how many grafts you had ?

4408

 

[Baldingman23]

I told everyone I had gone for a lockdown cut, no one questioned it

 

[bullitnut]

Tricky one this, I would just buzz it on the day and tell people you had a buzz cut....suppose it depends on how bad the donor area looks when you go back to work and how red if at all the recipient area looks....maybe have some time off when the shedding happens and wear a loose cap as much as possible tell people you don't like the buzzed look....people tend to believe what they are told and unless you have some jerk at work who knows his stuff you may get away with it dude.

 

[Johnboy83]

You tried using hair concealers?

 

[hopeful]

You tried using hair concealers?

Hi Johnboy83
I do not really know anything about hair concealers ?

 

[Hoping_for_hair]

I agree with my 2021 story.

I've not told anyone (apart from you guys!) That I had a transplant. I won't lie, it obviously helped that I could work from home and was only on camera. My hair got a bit longer over lockdown so I got the usual jokey comments about my hair when I buzzed it short. I actually did it in stages, so went quite short for a month, got most of the jokes out the way then just said I that I just wondered what it was like really short etc. Most people don't care (few people said it suited me) and will already know you have hair loss (and won't care) so try not to over think it (easier said then done I know!) No one has ever said or asked if I have had anything done including my best friends and parents. Like the others say you have to weigh up long term benefits vs..short term.

I would say that I wouldn't have been comfortable seeing people before 2 weeks (I did 11 days then on camera for work but it's less noticeable of course). Once the scabs go it's fine and you may have some redness.

Won't lie it's not fun for a few months but I keep focusing on the long term.

It's a big decision but hopefully experiences of others here can help you make your decision as informed as possible.

Good luck with whatever you decide!