Decision Time for FUT 36 yrs newbie

[dmann2k]

I've been losing my hair for about 10 years. I'm NW 7a as told by Dr. Pineda who got good reviews on this site by a few people.

I'm about 1 month away from doing FUT and getting cold feet.

I have only one concern and that is scarring. I'm concerned that I will never be able to shave my head again due to a large scar at the back of my head after the procedure. This is important if I'm not happy with the results as I figured I could always go back to shaving my head.

I'm told that I look good with a shaved head but don't believe a word of it. Not a single word...

I have a good amount of donor hair just not in the places I want them to be which is what Dr. Pineda should be able to take care of. Incidentally the doctor mentioned he'd try to maximize the number of FUTs in one session.

Please respond if you'd needed to or were able to go back to shaving your head.. Also curious if anyone was unhappy with their results and wished they hadn't done FUT procedure.

Pics included

[DAVE52]

Shave it off now and save your self the aggravation later on

As for the scar , you can still shave it , just that the big happy face scar will be there for everyone to see and it will be on your mind for the rest of your life

Ive seen a few guys who just said " screw" it because they were n';t happy with the results and didn't wnat to go back for further procedures

The scar is there , they've just accepted it and had to deal with it .

[aim4hair]

to be honest, in an advanced case like you, i would avoid FUT.
The thing is, if you go for FUT, FORGET about shaving or buzzing ever again, and with an advanced case like yours most likely your donor supply will not be enough to cover all balding spot (with nice density) specially from the crown area, so if you go for FUT you will not be able to to cut the sides and back short (grade 1 or 2).
Having said that, i have seen some impressive mega-sessons FUT from H&W.

So it's all up to you, but if you are thinking to keep your hair short from the back and sides or buzz it at some point in the future, then forget about FUT.

[topcat]

Do yourself a big favor, postpone this idea for at least 1 year. Give it some thought and seach the history on the all the forums not just this one. Searching history does not mean reviewing the lastest few cases that are showcased. It means reviewing the history of what patients have posted over the last 5-10 years.

[dmann2k]

Originally Posted by aim4hair

to be honest, in an advanced case like you, i would avoid FUT.
The thing is, if you go for FUT, FORGET about shaving or buzzing ever again, and with an advanced case like yours most likely your donor supply will not be enough to cover all balding spot (with nice density) specially from the crown area, so if you go for FUT you will not be able to to cut the sides and back short (grade 1 or 2).
Having said that, i have seen some impressive mega-sessons FUT from H&W.

So it's all up to you, but if you are thinking to keep your hair short from the back and sides or buzz it at some point in the future, then forget about FUT.

I was incorrect. I'm not a 7A . My rating is a 5A. Does that still mean that I should avoid FUT and why should I avoid it?

[aim4hair]

Originally Posted by dmann2k

I was incorrect. I'm not a 7A . My rating is a 5A. Does that still mean that I should avoid FUT and why should I avoid it?

With FUT you won't have enough donor supply to cover all the bald area, so let's say you get a good coverage for the front and hairline but your crown will still be very thin or have bald spot, with FUE you can have your hair very short from the sides and back so it will go fine with the crown... With FUT you will have a big scar you need to hide so you have to keep your hair long from the back and sides which will look bad since the bald or thin spots will be very very obvious.

So here is my break down to your options:
FUT: big scar, limited donor supply, 1 megga session over 1 day can be enough.
FUE: small white dots scars but not visible on grade 2+, limited donor, FUE sessions over multiple back to back days.
HST: no scars, almost unlimited donor supply, HST sessions (1500 - 2000 graft) per session with 9 months waiting in between.

[dmann2k]

Originally Posted by aim4hair

to be honest, in an advanced case like you, i would avoid FUT.
The thing is, if you go for FUT, FORGET about shaving or buzzing ever again, and with an advanced case like yours most likely your donor supply will not be enough to cover all balding spot (with nice density) specially from the crown area, so if you go for FUT you will not be able to to cut the sides and back short (grade 1 or 2).
Having said that, i have seen some impressive mega-sessons FUT from H&W.

So it's all up to you, but if you are thinking to keep your hair short from the back and sides or buzz it at some point in the future, then forget about FUT.

I was mistaken. I'm a 5A Norwood; I'm not a 7A Norwood.

why would you avoid FUT on a 5A?

[rdawg]

at 36 I'm not sure i'd reccomend even getting a hair transplant but it's your choice, you're at that age where a tonne of guys are going/or already are bald and especially at that age not many people care as much.

If you have the money, i'd try out GHO if you're serious about this, however i'm not a hair transplant expert so i'd simply reccomend researching alot then deciding. It's a big decision doing FUT or FUE as it leaves a permanent scar on the back of your head.

[VictimOfDHT]

dmann, you realize millions of men have gotten FUTs and are perfectly happy with the results. Some people will scare you off of course. Why? Because that's how people are. Many of the people who tell you to stay away have never had any HT surgeries. Their opinions are based ON HOW THEY FEEL about it rather than actual personal experiences. It's the same with Finasteride. Some people take it and get results. Some take it and dont get results/get side effects. Some dont take it but they warn you not to take it! Well, same goes for everything with us humans. We all have our personal OPINIONS and some try to influence others with them.

I guess it's all up to you and how much you hate being bald. If you think you can live the rest of your life with a bald head and it doesnt really bother you that much then I don't see why you need an HT. If it does bother you or worse, it affects your self esteem and confidence and the way you feel about your looks/self then I don't think you'd be asking whether you should be doing it or not. Just be realistic about your expectations. You realize HT can't give you the same density you had with the original hair. But many men think it's still way better than being bald. At least people wont see you as bald because technically you won't be considered bald any more. I'd go for that look any time over being slick bald.
The other thing, MAKE SURE YOUR DOCTOR KNOWS WHAT HE'S DOING. That's probably the most important thing. I've never heard of your doctor but you can ask around or check ISHRS or just travel to places where there are good trusty doctors.

FUEs might not leave a scar but be prepared to pay twice as much per graft.

I personally have had 5 HTs (or 4 and 1 very small one) and I'm planning on getting another one very soon. The scar doesnt bother me because my hair is thick and I would NEVER EVER shave my head anyway. I'd rather wear a mask 24/7 than shave off. You DO realize NOT all men look good with a shaved head and some actually look rather plain ugly and weird. The way I see it, if 1/3 or 1/2 of your head being bald bothers you, how would the whole head being bald be any better?

There's also dr. Gho in the Netherland. He claims -and I believe him- that with his method the donor site will regenerate more hair after an extraction, which means he can harvest the area over and over again -I believe it was 5 times but not sure- for future HTs.

One last thing, if you're holding off in the hope that some miracle cure will be out soon, then I'd tell you go get your HT done tomorrow. It'll probably be another 15 years if not more before any such cure or treatment is out, IF IT EVER WILL.

[dmann2k]

Originally Posted by rdawg

at 36 I'm not sure i'd reccomend even getting a hair transplant but it's your choice, you're at that age where a tonne of guys are going/or already are bald and especially at that age not many people care as much.

If you have the money, i'd try out GHO if you're serious about this, however i'm not a hair transplant expert so i'd simply reccomend researching alot then deciding. It's a big decision doing FUT or FUE as it leaves a permanent scar on the back of your head.

So can you see the scar after FUE? I know that there is a scar after FUT..