N
NWsixseven
Valued member
I'm nearly 29 years old. My hairloss began at the start of my twenties already. After I had tried all the things that were in at the time (Proscar, Propecia, Regaine Shampoo, etc.) and my hair just kept on falling out, I decided at the age of 23 to have a hair transplant.
At the time I was a Norwood 2. I stumbled upon a doctor in Germany who came from Bucholz and had a clinic in Dortmund. Of course, he made me some huge promises and talked my ears off. I should have one transplant now and another in a years time and it was no problem to have one big scar after another across the back of my head.
We agreed on 500 grafts. The growth rate was miserable and the hairs which grew looked dreadful when they finally came out. During the operation, 3 or 4 Polish nurses has been freshly flown in to to prepare the grafts and to place them. From that point on, it was clear for me that I'd never let nurses play at doctor with my head ever again. The huge scar looked horrendous and the whole thing was the worst decision of my life. I had basically arranged for someone to wreck my head - and I paid money for him to do it.
Later, when I had reached Norwood 5, I decided to wear a hair system. There was no way that I would return to the subject of hair transplants and I didn't pay any attention to how the techniques were developing. In any case, the hair system people also made massive promises, just like the first doctor. Their marketing strategy was fascinating. It was advertised as if no one would be able to see a thing and it would feel like your own hair. Of course the hair system would be able to do anything, like swimming or extreme sports, and, and, and! In reality the slightest contact with any liquid or with sweat made the whole front of the system go loose and it was an extremely stressful time. Nevertheless, I got used to it because it was my only solution. I wore the hair system for a year and a half and during this time, my hair loss kept going and I became a Norwood 6/7. The chemical adhesive was so aggressive that even began to damage what was left of my hair around the sides. When I went to see the hair systems consultant, he said the glue wasn't dangerous for the skin or the hair and that the skin could breathe through tiny holes in the middle of the hair system. As you can see, this wasn't true. My father was a Norwood 5 and my uncles on my mother's side were also a Norwood 5. I think I would have stayed a Norwood 5 if I hadn't used the stupid hair system.
Anyway, long story short. I came across Dr Azar while watching a TV report and I found out that hair transplant technology had changed a lot in the last few years and now it was possible to get much better results. I researched a lot and made inquiries from all the top doctors on the scene. For me another FUT was not an option, even if there are one or two really good doctors in this field now. I'd never want to have another massive scar on my head like the one I had already.
What convinced me was that Dr Azar was well-known for the fact that he did the whole operation himself. From the first consultation through extraction,and all the way down to the placing. When he offered me a consultation I booked a flight to Berlin on the spot. There of course I asked a hell of a lot of questions. I'd been very naive with the first operation and also with the hair system. I'd had bad experiences and I wanted to know what I was getting into. Since I'd been played twice I was very mistrustful and I wanted to know about every single detail. Dr Azar was great, he was very patient and answered all my questions. he told me straight off that my hair reserves in the donor area were meagre and that we wouldn't get far if that was all we used. He suggested a mix of scalp hair, beard hair and body hair and that in my case especially, it would have to be done carefully, in several sessions. Other doctors that I spoke said my case was hopeless and nothing could be done. They suggested that I do another FUT to get the maximum out of my scalp donor area. But with my severely depleted donor, I wasn't going to allow another scar on the back of my head. The other doctors didn't seem to care about that. Anyway, I went to see Dr Azar for the first treatment. The plan was to start by filling the front of the head through to the middle, to create a sensible hairline and for the first time to start to fix my life. The first day went smoothly although when I arrived I was really worried about how it would go.
He calmed me down and told me again and again that it was important to do the whole thing carefully and peacefully. I had thought that time is money with doctors like that and that I'd need to be quick because that's how I'd remembered it from my previous experiences. After we shared a very nice breakfast, the day started with another consultation, where he took the time to repeat his suggestions and drew the hairline which we then both looked at and discussed. After that he took some blood to make a concentrate to put the grafts in during the operation. Then it started with the extraction of between 80 and 100 grafts which he placed immediately. That was how it went from then. Extraction and then immediate placing. There were always enough breaks planned so the operation was as easy and relaxing as it could be. in between there were always some nice snacks and plenty of fruit and drinks. The operation took 4 days and 1200 grafts were transplanted from the back of my head, 300 grafts from my beard area and 900 grafts from my chest. The operation was almost completely painfree. Anyone who has had an HT will know how nervous you can get before the anaesthetic injections. But other than that everything was easy and I didn't have any pains. Actually it was more or less the opposite: I actually fell asleep a few times. Dr Azar did not leave my side from the first to the last operating day. On the second day, his nurse was with him. She was only allowed to pass him the grafts and nothing else. He really did do everything himself. What I found even more amazing was that the extracted areas were hardly visible after 1 day and completely invisible after 2 days. I went to work four days after the operation and my colleagues did not notice a thing. I did wear a baseball cap. They asked where I'd been on holiday and said I looked very relaxed. Probably you could see the weight that had fallen from my shoulders. I'm really happy with the result and I'm looking forward to my next treatment where we will work more from the back and the gaps on the side are going to be filled as well.
It's important to me to share this experience with you all because my case was very extreme and you can see that even in situations like this, with the right doctor, you can eventually be successful. I don't know how the whole thing will end up but I have a good feeling about it because everything just felt right. I know that I'm not going to end up with a lion's mane like before but the main thing is to have hair back on my head which I can style somehow and so I won't have to walk around wearing a cap all the time. Caps have become one of my external 'organs' and I wish it were different.
I've posted all the photos I've got of the first operation and I'll post more once the second operation is done, later on, this year.
So first, here are some preop photos
Postop:
Now the chest and beard after the operation
Now five months. I'll post some more soon and when I've done the second op.
Images no longer available due to the image hosting site not existing anymore. Admin.
At the time I was a Norwood 2. I stumbled upon a doctor in Germany who came from Bucholz and had a clinic in Dortmund. Of course, he made me some huge promises and talked my ears off. I should have one transplant now and another in a years time and it was no problem to have one big scar after another across the back of my head.
We agreed on 500 grafts. The growth rate was miserable and the hairs which grew looked dreadful when they finally came out. During the operation, 3 or 4 Polish nurses has been freshly flown in to to prepare the grafts and to place them. From that point on, it was clear for me that I'd never let nurses play at doctor with my head ever again. The huge scar looked horrendous and the whole thing was the worst decision of my life. I had basically arranged for someone to wreck my head - and I paid money for him to do it.
Later, when I had reached Norwood 5, I decided to wear a hair system. There was no way that I would return to the subject of hair transplants and I didn't pay any attention to how the techniques were developing. In any case, the hair system people also made massive promises, just like the first doctor. Their marketing strategy was fascinating. It was advertised as if no one would be able to see a thing and it would feel like your own hair. Of course the hair system would be able to do anything, like swimming or extreme sports, and, and, and! In reality the slightest contact with any liquid or with sweat made the whole front of the system go loose and it was an extremely stressful time. Nevertheless, I got used to it because it was my only solution. I wore the hair system for a year and a half and during this time, my hair loss kept going and I became a Norwood 6/7. The chemical adhesive was so aggressive that even began to damage what was left of my hair around the sides. When I went to see the hair systems consultant, he said the glue wasn't dangerous for the skin or the hair and that the skin could breathe through tiny holes in the middle of the hair system. As you can see, this wasn't true. My father was a Norwood 5 and my uncles on my mother's side were also a Norwood 5. I think I would have stayed a Norwood 5 if I hadn't used the stupid hair system.
Anyway, long story short. I came across Dr Azar while watching a TV report and I found out that hair transplant technology had changed a lot in the last few years and now it was possible to get much better results. I researched a lot and made inquiries from all the top doctors on the scene. For me another FUT was not an option, even if there are one or two really good doctors in this field now. I'd never want to have another massive scar on my head like the one I had already.
What convinced me was that Dr Azar was well-known for the fact that he did the whole operation himself. From the first consultation through extraction,and all the way down to the placing. When he offered me a consultation I booked a flight to Berlin on the spot. There of course I asked a hell of a lot of questions. I'd been very naive with the first operation and also with the hair system. I'd had bad experiences and I wanted to know what I was getting into. Since I'd been played twice I was very mistrustful and I wanted to know about every single detail. Dr Azar was great, he was very patient and answered all my questions. he told me straight off that my hair reserves in the donor area were meagre and that we wouldn't get far if that was all we used. He suggested a mix of scalp hair, beard hair and body hair and that in my case especially, it would have to be done carefully, in several sessions. Other doctors that I spoke said my case was hopeless and nothing could be done. They suggested that I do another FUT to get the maximum out of my scalp donor area. But with my severely depleted donor, I wasn't going to allow another scar on the back of my head. The other doctors didn't seem to care about that. Anyway, I went to see Dr Azar for the first treatment. The plan was to start by filling the front of the head through to the middle, to create a sensible hairline and for the first time to start to fix my life. The first day went smoothly although when I arrived I was really worried about how it would go.
He calmed me down and told me again and again that it was important to do the whole thing carefully and peacefully. I had thought that time is money with doctors like that and that I'd need to be quick because that's how I'd remembered it from my previous experiences. After we shared a very nice breakfast, the day started with another consultation, where he took the time to repeat his suggestions and drew the hairline which we then both looked at and discussed. After that he took some blood to make a concentrate to put the grafts in during the operation. Then it started with the extraction of between 80 and 100 grafts which he placed immediately. That was how it went from then. Extraction and then immediate placing. There were always enough breaks planned so the operation was as easy and relaxing as it could be. in between there were always some nice snacks and plenty of fruit and drinks. The operation took 4 days and 1200 grafts were transplanted from the back of my head, 300 grafts from my beard area and 900 grafts from my chest. The operation was almost completely painfree. Anyone who has had an HT will know how nervous you can get before the anaesthetic injections. But other than that everything was easy and I didn't have any pains. Actually it was more or less the opposite: I actually fell asleep a few times. Dr Azar did not leave my side from the first to the last operating day. On the second day, his nurse was with him. She was only allowed to pass him the grafts and nothing else. He really did do everything himself. What I found even more amazing was that the extracted areas were hardly visible after 1 day and completely invisible after 2 days. I went to work four days after the operation and my colleagues did not notice a thing. I did wear a baseball cap. They asked where I'd been on holiday and said I looked very relaxed. Probably you could see the weight that had fallen from my shoulders. I'm really happy with the result and I'm looking forward to my next treatment where we will work more from the back and the gaps on the side are going to be filled as well.
It's important to me to share this experience with you all because my case was very extreme and you can see that even in situations like this, with the right doctor, you can eventually be successful. I don't know how the whole thing will end up but I have a good feeling about it because everything just felt right. I know that I'm not going to end up with a lion's mane like before but the main thing is to have hair back on my head which I can style somehow and so I won't have to walk around wearing a cap all the time. Caps have become one of my external 'organs' and I wish it were different.
I've posted all the photos I've got of the first operation and I'll post more once the second operation is done, later on, this year.
So first, here are some preop photos
Postop:
Now the chest and beard after the operation
Now five months. I'll post some more soon and when I've done the second op.
Images no longer available due to the image hosting site not existing anymore. Admin.
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