Scar Grafting with Dr Cole

[southeastguy]

Atlas20,

I said that the FUE scars I can't see at all. I know what to look for and I can't see them. It looks like a hair was tweezed and it never grew back. I don't even see any scars. Maybe at a 0 guard you can see something, but other than that there is really nothing. Its not even in the same stratosphere as a strip scar. Don't do beard hairs. I would go to a trusted Doctor, I went to Shapiro medical, and have them do a couple hundred scalp FUE into your scar. The FUE scars, if you want to call them that, don't make a difference either way. It usually takes 2-3 sessions to get a great result because of a number of factors (lower density, upper edge of scar hair too thick). Yes, it helped. Im still a long way to go but I'm a lot better than when I started.

[Atlas20]

Good to hear southeast guy. You mentioned you can't see the FUE scars at .5 length but then said you wish to get to a 1 guard length- does this mean your FUE was extracted from a location you shave at a lower grade?? Or did you previously shave to a .5 to evaluate your results??

I have a scar that is very thin, maybe 1-2mm, but it's ear to ear. I am nervous about FUE and the possibility of more scars on my head. I was considering a test of 10 beard grafts first.

It sounds like grafting into your scar has been beneficial, would you say there is a significant improvement in concealment ??

[southeastguy]

I am 9 months post op. The FUE Scars i can't even notice at a .5 guard and I did 390 grafts. I am doing another session, but the growth I got is around 75%. This FUE has given me some hope that I can get to a 1 guard someday and be at peace.

[Atlas20]

Bump

How is your progress southeastguy??

[Atlas20]

Northeast guy, thanks for sharing, do you have any updates on your progress??

I am considering the same path. I am worried the FUE extracting will leave scarring, I am considering 150-200 scalp FUE into the scar. Did your FUE leave noticeable scars?

[fueforme333]

Hi northeast guy,

Does your beard area still look good this day (no dot scars)?

Did Dr Cole ever tell you why your beard hair never grew into your scar? Im scared this will happen to me, except mine are FUE scars, not FUT scars. I simply want to get rid of dot scars.

[southeastguy]

I got a question for Wiley and Northeastguy. I am at day 57 waiting for my fue into scar to grow. I am trying to debate is it better to wear your hair long and hide a scar or keep it short and wear a hat? At this point my scar is too disfiguring to go out in public at a 1 guard. I am trying to be a man about it but I'm not sure which is the better evil. I hope I get good growth because at this point I refuse to grow my hair long when I look 10X better with short hair.

[southeastguy]

I am 19 days post-op from my 390 grafts. On Day 5, i almost didnt see any scar because of the little hairs and scabs that made things blend. However, by the second week most of the hairs started falling off with the scabs and now the scar appears similar to what it did before the surgery.

Neguy. Does this sound similar to your experience?

At this point its just a waiting game. I am going to try to grow my hair long to give me some relief until the hairs grow in.

[bullitnut]

I had my scar repaired with Shapiro Medical as well. It was a long time ago and i only had a scar revision with no SMP like people are getting these days, but still i'm very happy indeed with how things turned out and would highly recommend them to anyone wanting scar work.

I had repair work done by Shapiro Medical after getting screwed over by an unscrupulous UK clinic when i was very young. Thankfully i found the forums after spending years living with a butchered head and bad scarring and received help from several great people including Dr Ron, Dr Paul, Bigmac, Janna and Spencer Kobren to name a few. Shapiro Medical changed my life around and gave me back the confidence to do things with my family that most people take for granted.....and for that i will be eternally grateful. I'll add a few pics to see my scar before and after and at various lengths.

[southeastguy]

Dr. Feller is a total dirtbag and a coward for giving me a 25cm scar for 1,600 grafts and not apologizing. I wouldn't go to Feller to get a hair transplant on my dog's stuffed animal chew toy.

I just got my fue into scar today with Dr. Joe at Shapiro Medical Group. 390 grafts to cover a 25cm nightmare. I can't comment on the growth, but I can say that Dr. Joe was a class act. If you are a guy with a Strip Scar that keeps you up at night, call Shapiro Medical Group and give them a chance. I was almost ready to accept my fate of hopelessness. I feel confident that after this session I will go from a #5 to a #2.

[Therealdeal23]

You're right man.

I'm not here to go back and forth on such a great thread. Thanks for all the updates NEguy.

[wylie]

Actually it sounds like you are the one getting worked up, not me. Your sarcasm is duly noted. I should have used kid gloves, I forgot. Please accept my apologies. Why don't you post a picture of your hair so we know what it looks like? Northeast guy was nice enough to do so, so maybe you can too? That way we can better understand what we are dealing with.

[Therealdeal23]

Not sure why you're attacking me and getting worked up. There's not many cases of this sort so i was just curious to see how well it all came together. I applaud NEguy for sharing this journey and he doesn't have to post a video I never said he did. I simply asked because he has been documenting his journey and helping thousands of patients for years. I'm not saying he doesn't look great and it's not notticeable in those pictures but pictures never tell the whole story. That's why a lot of guys are in this mess because they see transplant pictures that look great. Shit I can take a picture and it seems like I have a full head of hair and I'm not even trying to manipulate it to look like that but it's not the case in real life. Just like SMP places take pictures and it seems like the scar is gone. If NEguy is happy with it that's all that matters I was just simply curious to see how well it truly holds up. It's amazing that he's come this far.

You're right though people who stress about strip scars are losers and need to grow a pair. I shouldnt let it prevent me from having the super low haircut I want despite how hideous it looks. That'll show people I have balls and am not a loser.

[wylie]

Would you be able to post a video of how it all looks? Pictures sometimes don't show it looks in real time/real life. I feel like videos capture that a bit better. If you don't mind that is of course. This has been such a help.

He doesn't need to reply with a video, because THAT IS WHAT HE LOOKS LIKE. Those pictures don't lie, they are clear and reveal just how much his scar has disappeared. I don't even see any evidence there was one there, and NEITHER DOES ANYONE ELSE.

When someone spends night and day obsessing over something stupid like a strip scar, you go to bed every night with visions of strip scars dancing in your head. When there is a traffic jam on the way to work, it's because there is a giant strip scar in the middle of the road holding everyone up. When your boss smiles at you as he walks away, he is secretly laughing at your strip scar.

What I think might be beneficial for a lot of people is to either grow a pair or go see a counselor in addition to repairing their strip scars, dependent on how affected they are by it. Why don't you post a picture of your strip scar so we can see if it is even visible?

[wylie]

So happy for you man I'm glad you have finally conquered this. Temporary SMP seems great it just kinda sucks you need 1-2 touch ups a year would be super cool if you got something that matched your skin tone for 2-3 years. Either way you've come such a long way I don't think anyone can really tell there was a scar there at the length you keep it at. How does it look at a 0.5 or 1 guard? Is it noticeable?

You're getting yourself all worked up over nothing. No one said you have to go back once or twice a year, other than the practitioner, who is interested in doing as many sessions on you as they can. Don't opt for permanent SMP. Find an experienced practitioner who can do Milena Lardi SMP. Nicole at Shapiro is who I've been to.