thanatopsis_awry

The work looks alright, but it's really impossible to make any sort of conclusive judement with the pics that show the immediate-post-ops; the clearest shot is from 2days out, and scabbing etc has already commenced. Most if not all veteran members wouldn't have their opinion swayed either way, IMO, on the perceived quality of work regardless of doctor. If anything, a heralded doctor will get extra-honesty if the work looks unusually poor; and an "infamous" doctor/clinic will get extra-honesty if the work happens to look good. Also, how the work looks from immediate post-ops you can sometimes get an idea if the result will be poor, IMO, but just because the work looks "good" from that vantage doesn't mean the actual result will be good.

Looks really good, and there is good reason to believe it will only get better. You've come a *long* way!

Hahaha...funny stuff.....GQ stands for "gentleman's quarterly", alluding to the men's high-brow magazine, I assume.

lol, so snippy....I agree with most of what you are saying (at least that which is rooted in fact) but some of your ensuing assumptions/interpretations are just going to detract from your central point(s) on FUE itself. I mean, what is your problem with "80%" survival when the doctor performing it is doing it with total transparency to the patient and putting the choice in their hands, after equipping them with all of the information and options available? And what is wrong with a "neutralizing comment" when the neutralizing comment is rooted in fact, and is being said for the purpose of informing the patient? (e.g. in smaller surgeries the yields are higher, primarily due to significently less fatigue). Also, "Of course, no doctor would ever say such a statement and I provided the reason for this in my original post.", regarding FUE's stark inferiority to strip regarding yield.....you are actually dead wrong on this, and if you looked at Feller's consistent body of talk *and* walk, you would know this. Feller isn't the only one, either, but he is certaintly the most visible and regarded. Cherry-picking statements to beef up your righteous crusade against (FUE) doctors is just going to alienate you and your valid points from the very people who are actually in the trenches fighting *for* your points.

I don't necessarily disagree with your choice, as you seem to have a solid grasp of your situation and are prepared for the future decisions that may very well be necessary. 10k+ from strip alone basically means you are set for life; so, unless your doc is a bullshitter (and most if not all of the good ones are conservative in the estimations they give) you should be fine. This should op should give you a good turn-around, but it's tough to say how much perceived-density we will actually get till it grows...

Thx for the words every1, appreciated, truly! It's been a *long* road to haul, and while the ride isn't over, it's going in a *much* better direction! Re: harsher pics....I've posted 8month outdoor shots in very bright sunlight, including close-ups of hairline and top-down, which I will use when I construct the main gallery of this thread (that is currently vacant) showing the entire progression. My density really hasn't changed all-that much since, and the biggest difference has been a maturation of the hairs, which basically just makes styling easier, and lends to a sharper look (imo). I do apologize for the pics kinda being scattershod, though, and I will definitely do a master-gallery utlizing all the pics floating around going from pre-ops to 1yr sometime this week. Petchski -- honestly, I'm not sure, and Dr. Feller would have a much better (if not exact) idea. In retrospect I would have made sure I really knew the cm2 (I'm lucky that Dr. Feller had a good, honest eye, and listened to my desires for what kind of style I could "get away with"). Keep in mind hair caliber at all times, and adjust accordingly. Young -- totally agree. when I compile the immed-postops you can see that the hairline totally takes into account my future ability to give density to other areas if need be, but when grown out appears bolder than it "really" is because it fits so well. Also, the guy all the way on the right in that one pic really does have the hairline of a wolverine....it's sick how juvenile it is! Hey, when cloning gets perfected and doesn't cost a house we will all be there.

I'm 23, was 22 when I had the HT performed. My laxity was solid and my scar has turned out fine; though it did stretch some, I don't think this had much if anything to do with my age. How many grafts are you shooting for? As a virgin scalp, depending upon the # and doc, you may really not need to worry too much about scalp exercises, IMO. Also, who told you that you are at greater risk for a stretched scar? Epstein, right? Not saying the validity is otherwise, but I've never heard anyone else say this, so I'd at least try to get a couple more opinions w/ reasoning, etc....at least before I started making any decisions based off of the possiblity.

Thx C_B -- I'm sure you will, Rahal is awesome, no doubt! FYI's: Page 3 has my 5-6month update w/ an additional pre-op; end of page 4 has a good comparison-shot outdoors top-down in bright light; page 5 has a bunch of outdoor hairline shots @ 7months; the pic in the link above is an 8month'er, from when Dr. Feller took month8 documentation (including video). I'll try to select the most representive shots at some point and do a series, I think, so it's easier for people to get a feel especially by adding some more pre-ops....basically, though, I had no hairline or frontal 1/3rd before. EDIT -- I'd like to add that while I shudder to think of where I might be were it not for Dr. Feller, this site, and my decision to get the HT, I learned SO much along the way....and changed a lot, as well....the entire process has given me a newfound perspective, toughening me up some, and heightening my empathy for anyone who is dealing with any sort of physical-like affliction. So, while this has probably been the single best decision I've ever made, I feel that with my *current* perpspective (which, for me, took the process itself to achieve) that I *could* have gone a different route and still been happy...i.e. buzzing it up....and going forward I believe I will be all the more powerful and well-armed in my ability to control future perspective.

I've said before, but I really think this will be an excellent outcome! And most deserved for someone so young....can't wait to see the progress-pics!

Well, quick update....I'll include more of the harsh, hair-porn pics we all love so much later! Right now, I have access to a bunch of recent shots that just show me how I normally look....a bunch are either in or right before "social situations" that I never would have been a part of were it not for the HT! So, I figure I'll post them -- and I've included lots of close-ups, sunny shots, etc. in the past, so I think this is a good change of pace; also, appropriate for my 1year update, as I'm moving past the constant inspection of my mop....trying to pinpoint weaknesses....expose it in X lighting, at Y angle, etc.....all are ~12months, except for one in the green shirt which is 10, I believe. I feel like I've come full-circle in many respects, and I feel very fortunate that what was once a total wrecking ball is now actually something that I take to be an attribute! (re: the follicle ) EDIT -- I'm going add some some comparison photos side by side.....I was really SO balded pre-op -- virtually no frontal 1/3rd, let alone a hairline, and I looked radically different overall.... EDIT2 -- http://www.fellermedicaldata.c...topsis/9-11-08/1.jpg I want to find more pre-ops to compile, as this one actually looks quite "good" compared to the others floating round! A few top-downs that I've seen were simply horrifying!

Their site strikes me as a bit sketchy (non-scarring closure, BHT, one-stop-solutions, to name a couple), but I've seen a good deal of their work and it's been consistently -- if not universally -- impressive. Also, the sheer quality and vividness of their photography is 2nd to none. I'd love to get more info on them concerning their "combo method"; particularly, since they appear to do a good deal of strip and fue, what their thoughts are on the overall augmentation of the donor if a patient elects to strip AND fue himself out....

He y'all....sorry for the delay and going past the timetable I set...right after my lasting posting I've been working through an unexpected, "personal tragedy"....which has pretty much been consuming me, so I haven't had the will to hook up my iphone and do the said update. That said, I haven't forgotten, and there will be a nice update in the coming days. I have some random/casual shots that really exemplify just how far I've come, which I have on my phone (staying w/ my parents at the moment), and some hardcore mop-shots on my camera, which is back at my apartment.

Even if a HT for a given individuall is "ipso facto" a temporary fix, and progressive MPB requires future procedures, this still doesn't make it a poor choice for many -- particularly, I would say, the younger you are. (I'll preface this by saying that it is 100% imperative said people get a good if not elite HT.) The factor I'm speaking about is precisely how it is effecting our lives. I'm not one to ever marginalize any anguish one has over MPB, but is both intuitively and empiracally accurate to asses that the younger you are the more vicious and widespread the tentacles of MPB go, impacting your ability to function and thrive. Personally, even if I *knew* I would require multiple procedures with similiar tecniques/technology; and even if I *knew* that a decade or two down the road I might be in a place where my baldness could not achieve full-restoration (which I think is an overblown fear), the route of HTs launch by the inaugural session would still be a very, very simple decision for me. There are costs and risks of getting a HT...there are costs and risks in *not* getting a HT....it's a risk-reward analysis that every prospective patient should do, and there are many shades of color that need to be taken into account -- particularly, if you are young.

"my frustration at getting hit on by overweight, bald men who can't spell to save their lives?" What horrible horrible people she must be getting harassed by.... Assuming she even scored high enough in the Vagina Lotteries to feel such aesthetic superiority....perhaps, she should take the "sign on her head" of who is hitting on her that while she might have some physical game she it's....everythingelseabouther....that isn't wrangling in the fish she feels should be a birthright.....

"HT55", fwiw, had several ops w/ Dr. Cohen -- if I remember aright, he thought the work was "ok", and that not enough grafts were harvested (or could be harvested in that particular clinic). He's come and gone from quite a few forums, though, so he might be hard to track down, but could be worth your effort.

Going to do an update (some pics and commentary )when I get back from work -- just wanted to bump this so I don't forget!

What are the cons of HTs >3500 grafts? If anything, I would say the consistent quality of results across the field is as good if not better in sessions ~3500+. I mean, H&W alone (let alone Feller, Rahal, etc.) basically make their living doing 3500+ day in and day out and produce consistently excellent results. The larger the session that can be done the more options for the patient and the greater chance they can be satisfied -- not just in shorter time with less surgeries, but also in the ability to achieve greater density/coverage.

Nary a hint of hairloss.

There was a really good thread a month or few ago about this....posters leaving, and the like... Personally, I haven't updated since 8months, when I did a big update of my own and also saw Dr. Feller...I'm actually at 12months right now -- almost exactly.....SICK....hahah.... If I had to sum up my HT experience I could say many things, and depending upon when you would have asked me I may have given you a very different response. At this time, and I think I will attest to this right now and at any time in the future, I'd say that the HT has solved a mammoth dilemma to allow me to tackle the important problems that life hurls in our direction. It's ironic that the biggest "issue" in my life right now, and the biggest issue I've had since....hairloss....is something that *NEVER* would have materialized had I not gotten the HT. Not necessarily a good or bad thing in and of itself, that will depend upon what actions I take; but it's some interesting food4thought.

Yes, I only wish I had more patience to combat the Armani hooligans like Hopefull and LMS, as well as a few others; unfortunately, it isn't exactly an appealing task..... particularly, when you are dealing with and being villified by people who are -- at the very least -- allowed to run amuck. The Barnum&Bailey Circus of Bullshit that blanketed that site by those who promoted or even tolerated pro-Armani agenda was and is an utter disgrace. How come many of us simple bystanders saw this all too clearly all too long ago.....

It behooves you to consult with various clinics, either way -- not just for price, or even "quality", but most specifically in their approach and the prognosis that they recommend and are willing to do. In the end, make sure that the # of grafts combined with the talents of the clinic will produce the best result for you and a result that you will be satisfied with.

Pretty sure, but someone can easily verify. I'd talk to him directly about this, either way. Shapiro I know prefers shaving, and in some cases requires it from what I understand -- your case isn't 3k+, I'm guessing?

I can vouch for this, as I know I have done at other times in other threads....in my circle of mid-20 friends I'm known for having "cool" even "thick" hair....and under many conditions, and certainly the ones that matter most, my hair does look both cool and thick. However....however....just how thick and cool it looks is intricately connected to how (well) I style it. I considered taking some shots of my hair under some conditions and posting -- and I don't mean absurd or extreme ones, either -- to show how much different my hair can look. It's an incredibly easy and swift process for me to style my hair, but it is an essential one.

I agree, it's gotten a bit ridiculous. Besides the obvious, Nakatsui and Gabel are the only doctors that spring to mind who I've seen solid documentation from. The combination of virtually ceasless immed-postops, combined with the glaringly poor documentation when a post-op does rear its head is a nasty combination. The thing is, it should be obvious to the clinics that if they took the simple, clear steps (which people like Bill have made exceedingly easy to understand) to provide proper documentation they would be *heralded* and stand out....for stepping up the plate, and also in people being able to give truly positive evaluations of the results they are now doing justice to.

I'm pretty certain Dr. Feller and I talked a good bit about hairstyle pre-HT. Either way, hairstyle is utterly critical, for sure.....it's incredible what an impact it can have.