thanatopsis_awry

Sorry to hear of your situation -- ridiculous for that to happen. Just recently it has been stated in various threads how vital clear and consistent doctor/patient dialogue and trust is. I'm curious if you thinking he was "very sloppy" and "rushed" was because of anything concrete and specific, or if it was a general sense based off of the whole operation?

Regarding cost, (thankfully) many of the top clinics do not charge an inordinate price to the market.

Regarding the first case, I think the pics are totally kosher, though they don't tell the whole story...The grafts went into the frontal 1/3rd (actually very similiar to my HT, though he had temple work, and his area looks a bit larger) and were feathered in terms of density as they went farther back; grown out, everything is then pushed forward and into the middle in the hairline. He also did have a pretty strong lot of native hair in the middle area of his hairline to begin with Nonetheless, it is a very good result, but I'm not the biggest fan of the documentation, as a whole; one thing is that it would be nice if top-down shots were shown pre-op and post-op.

yes, day after would be too soon. you're going to want to wait 2 weeks or so and having your staples/sutures taken care of before you start even thinking about exercise, and even then, you want to be extremely cautious.

Re: scarring....in the hands of a good, let alone elite, doc, a strip scar is NOTHING like the horrorshows you are probably thinking of when you think "strip scar". Likewise, while in capable hands FUE scarring is significently less noticeable than strip, in poor hands the FUE procedure can be just as brutal, imo. Also, FUEing *into* a strip scar is a viable option, though, many -- I would say, most -- do not even feel compelled to go this route after a legit, elite strip procedure.

I have seen and heard only good things from Konior, and by all accounts he is the clear king in that region; Meshkin, I have not seen nearly as much of, which raises a big flag....and, I seem to remember multiple posts pumping him up that reeked of shilling....anyways, until proven otherwise, I would definitely "gravitate" towards Konior of those two. When you go for your consults, I would bring a written list of questions/concerns so you don't forget anything important. Specifically, I would start by seeing a CLEAR body of their work...that is, consistent pre-ops, immediate post-ops, and fully grown out results that are clearly and consistently documented...I would pay particular attention to people who have had similiar levels of baldness and treatment. The 64k question is how many grafts -- once they give you a figure, inquire about the general battleplan that they envision you having...you will want to critically compare and contrast this with any of your other consultations, and also with the research you have done online. Hope that helps some!

Glad to be of service. We all need goals, and what better goal than ensnaring mystical, buxom babe in the not-so-distant future!

Just to play Devil's Advocate, and I don't even know if what I'm about to say is truth -- but, I beleive Bill has taken flack by some for not running a "true patient driven forum"...I've never actually had that phrase elaborated, but I've assumed it refers to when a substantial # of posters work for clinics.... Either way, a gray area exists. EDIT -- is it that b_spot "shouldn't" be posting in any thread that is a Who Is Best...that he can't recommend *any* clinic....or that he can't single out a *single* clinic....it seems that in this case he recommended looking in the direction of a host of clinics.

From what I understand, Giannotto is putrid; also, a 21 year old NW2 prolly' shouldn't be getting a FUT procedure to begin with. Nonetheless, what's done is done and it is great you've found this site. As mentioned already, I would definitely consult w/ Vogel and Lindsey; and I would most definitely NOT return to Giannotto....again, this *is* speculation (albeit logical speculation) w/o pics, but that you feel your 4k didn't go to good use I'd have to think is likely related in part to the poor work of Giannotto. However, it isn't like you got plugs, so if you move foward now making good decisions you're putting yourself in a good, overall spot. The thing w/ bad docs is twofold -- you can't trust the quality of their work itself, and you can't trust their judgement in how they go about applying their work (graft estimates, aggressiveness, judiciously working on only GOOD candidates, etc.). This is why even a consultation with a poor clinic is beyond worthless as you can't (unfortunately) even trust the word of many doctors, let alone their work.

MrX, Congrats on your HT. Just know, that when someone makes their very first post, without divulging pics, and it pumps up a certain clinic....it comes off as "shillish"...not saying I even think this, but just so you might understand any feelings of skepticism that come across.

It is a clear day, with but a few, bulbous clouds floating in the sky; there is a very mild, albeit very comforting breeze. The sand is warm, and the heat of the sun strokes your skin. Up ahead, a fair maiden, with a chest that would make Xerxes himself bow down and call her master, approaches. Now, do you wish you had been hitting up the gym in the weeks, months, leading up to this moment?

I stayed away from this thread as to not inadvertently stoke any flames; however, now in its "aftermath", I feel compelled to just say a few things: Even to this very second, Aquarius, you are being extremely passive-aggressive, confrontational, and all the while vauge. Repeatedly, without provocation, in just the past ~month alone, I've seen you hurl jabs at myself, Pat, and especially Mrjb and Bill. Quite frankly, especially for the latter two, they have patience and class to mostly just ignore you, which I don't think many (myself included) would have. Your latest spat w/ NG2GB was a pure disgrace, and it was painful to read through. Culimating with you spewing talk about meeting up to "fight"....cmon'....and once again, even after the dust has supposedly settled, you immediately resort to trying to quarrel with Bill.... I think it is apparent that NG2GB *honestly* regrets having had any part of this, and that this is NOT his norm, even though he, admittedly, likes to walk a fine line between humor and knowledge; can the same be said for you? You seem to enjoy and be content playing the role as some sort of "witty maverick"; you come off most of the time to most people, however, as an insolent guy with no sense of respect for others. You sometimes talk about how much you have actually helped people in the hairloss community; and while I don't actually doubt this, and find such action to be incredibly commendable, your behavior on this forum, as far as I am concerned, simply doesn't reflect this. Walking the line between humor and knowledge is totally fine, and I do enjoy it very much; there simply shouldn't be a fine line regarding respect, however, as it just shouldn't be crossed in most situations, period -- this being one of them.

Holy &@*%....nobuzz, what a harrowing website...I'd never seen the intra-op photos of punch/plug operations....JESUS CHRIST!!!!!!!!!! To say nothing of the scalp reductions. I always wondered what could be the cause of some of the horrific scarring I've seen online....now I know....sickening.

1/2 an inch for every 1500 hairs is the going exchange rate from what I understand.

I'd have to think @ 12 months your HT has pretty much come to fruition, in that you'll have a very sound idea as to where you stand in regards to HT #2. I know just recently some posts were made, however, which highlighted further thickening changes that may occur in months following. As for elasticity, I've been under the impression that at 12 months you should generally be fine. 12 months, IMO, is a great time, especially if you are primed and ready to get back in there for some more follicles. What type of session size are you looking at, ballpark? Also, when you mention "excuses" -- do you mean for all the newfound hair you'll have, or for the recovery process?

I'm curious how H&Ws prognosis changed so much from this latest (2k to 2.5k) to what you said before (3.5k).

Between Dr. Feller's post, Bill's, and others', I think JoD should have a pretty good idea of what his options are at this point, and whatever he chooses he will be doing so having had a plethora of clear knowledge (some of it differing) to choose from. So all the best to him, having said that, and regardless, he will be taking a positive step forward. The logic to each viewpoint -- that is, the ~1500 camp, or the ~3k camp -- does intriuge me, as perhaps this is a quintessential case where there can be opposing "philosophies" that both have founding...of course, one will invariably always end up being "a bit better"...

Tremendous. Especially for 3600 grafts onto your once-barren frontal 1/2.

Hmmm, if I'm ever in such a follicularly sound state as to indulge myself in evening out the thickness of my beart on my right side, I definitely would love to get some FUE work done. However, while these results do look great, 1500 grafts seems like A LOT! I don't know if I'd ever be able to allocate My Precious like that...when I first saw this thread, I was thinking more along the lines of a Feller "lunchtime stamp" session....

Browsed through your blog....we seem to have lost our hair at around the same age...saw your prom pics; interestingly, I was just looking at my prom pictures....junior prom 100% follicular vitality.....senior year prom, however, I was somewhat shocked to notice that I really had started to thin out by then, and my mother wasn't bullshitting me ....damn.....

Sweet jesus of the moat!!! His styling options are virtually limitless....and a fairly modest # of grafts, as well. Hmmm, his balding patten looks very similiar, I think, to where I am headed. But ya, let's all meet up 12months post-op for a massive, joint GQ photo-shoot too!

For 2 years I endured a combo of a herniated disk in my neck, and pinched nerves, and was on the cusp of undergoing surgery. Total nightmare. NN gave you fantastic advice, unsurprisingly so. I basically did everything he outlined to you -- I would emphasize his final word of advice...TIME...it wasn't until I truly layed low that it truly healed. The sooner you heed this advice, the sooner you will get full recovery. As far as I now, what your chiro did to you is a form of traction, btw, but NN can clarify. A combination of "intense" rest, physical therapy (I did traction, ultrasound, in time some exercses, and also this weird thing where "electrodes" got hooked up to me and they pulsed real hard contracting my muscles, which I loved....I forget what it was called), chiro, and MAT (muscle activation tecniques, which I think is what really sealed the deal on my recovery) did it for me.

He does look like a radically different person; though, in the context of the radical things that happened to him I don't doubt for a second that it isn't the same guy. Plus, H&W simply would not doctor a picture, let alone use a different person for an after shot! It truly is amazing what hair and weight can do to a person's look -- to say nothing of improved skin.

There is a dearth, an unfortunate lackthereof...too often wee get represented as the weak abled -- and weak minded -- George Costanzas of the world...hair is so often -- and so powerfully -- linked to virility; I think it is great that a potential superstar in the most "masculine" arena in sports is on the prowl and is a pure-blood, like many of us. Kelly Pavlik, who I've followed for years, and current boxing champ and juggernaut (who also happens to be a chill guy), is easily my new, favorite athlete. This dude rocks out and is a *pure-blood NW7* (!!!) and I don't think he is even 26 (!!!)...for his fights he almost always shaves to the skin, but, nonetheless plenty of times I have seen him sport the most stereotypically, egregious "bald man" look this side of the Mississippi. He is fighting this Saturday in a huge bout (rematch); let us, of The Balded Nation, pray that one of our brethren continues to carry the torch proudly this weekend and represents. In Kelly We Trust. N.B. I couldn't readily find any pics of him online w/ his NW7 grown out, but it is there!

There is a dearth, an unfortunate lackthereof...too often wee get represented as the weak abled -- and weak minded -- George Costanzas of the world...hair is so often -- and so powerfully -- linked to virility; I think it is great that a potential superstar in the most "masculine" arena in sports is on the prowl and is a pure-blood, like many of us. Kelly Pavlik, who I've followed for years, and current boxing champ and juggernaut (who also happens to be a chill guy), is easily my new, favorite athlete. This dude rocks out and is a *pure-blood NW7* (!!!) and I don't think he is even 26 (!!!)...for his fights he almost always shaves to the skin, but, nonetheless plenty of times I have seen him sport the most stereotypically, egregious "bald man" look this side of the Mississippi. He is fighting this Saturday in a huge bout (rematch); let us, of The Balded Nation, pray that one of our brethren continues to carry the torch proudly this weekend and represents. In Kelly We Trust. N.B. I couldn't readily find any pics of him online w/ his NW7 grown out, but it is there!