22 yo Considering HT (Looking for Advice)

[PayDay]

You need to get your butt back on Propecia. If you keep the hair you still have it will make your hair transplant look much fuller overall.

[CIT_Girl]

What's the reason for committing to not shaving ones head? Because the scars will be present or it damages the donor hair?

If you opt for a strip transplant, it's likely you will never be able to shave your head without having a visible linear scar. This is why Dr. Cole typically cautions that strip transplants are never a good option for men under age 30. Even with FUE, it's possible you will experience hypopigmentation (the small white spots where follicular units have been removed), which may be visible if you shave your head extremely closely. This is why you should think very hard before proceeding with any sort of ht surgery. I don't think Winston was implying that shaving your head would have any impact on the condition of your donor hair.

The biggest concern with you having a hair transplant at such a young age (even though you don't want to hear it ) is that it's hard to determine, at this point, to what extent your hair loss will progress. It's difficult to say how much (or little) donor hair you will ultimately be left with and, therefore, if you do choose to proceed, you need to be extremely cautious. You definitely don't want a doctor who creates an aggressively low or densely-packed hairline in case your hair loss progresses and your donor supply is further depleted.

[Locke]

If you opt for a strip transplant, it's likely you will never be able to shave your head without having a visible linear scar. This is why Dr. Cole typically cautions that strip transplants are never a good option for men under age 30. Even with FUE, it's possible you will experience hypopigmentation (the small white spots where follicular units have been removed), which may be visible if you shave your head extremely closely. This is why you should think very hard before proceeding with any sort of ht surgery. I don't think Winston was implying that shaving your head would have any impact on the condition of your donor hair.

The biggest concern with you having a hair transplant at such a young age (even though you don't want to hear it ) is that it's hard to determine, at this point, to what extent your hair loss will progress. It's difficult to say how much (or little) donor hair you will ultimately be left with and, therefore, if you do choose to proceed, you need to be extremely cautious. You definitely don't want a doctor who creates an aggressively low or densely-packed hairline in case your hair loss progresses and your donor supply is further depleted.

Thank you for the insightful post. Gives me a lot to think about.

[hindsight2020]

I got 2 HT's done when I was 24 (about 3200 grafts). I had a different balding patten than you, but roughly felt the same way with the same amount of hairloss. I was balding in my early 20's while most, if not all of my friends, had thick full heads of hair.

Even though both transplants were successful, I constantly was worried about wind, lighting, people touching ym hair, ect. On a good day, my hair looked normal/thinning at best. Even when I thought to myself "Damn it looks good today, great decision to get a HT!!!" ... it was still noticeable that I didn't have a thick head of hair, it was just enough to cover up bald spots.

This is the important part. 6 years later, I am now 30. Half of my friends are balding or bald. I continued to bald and now have a permanent scar on the back of my head, and obvious red bumps on the top of my head that you can now see form the continued hairloss. I am so envious of my friends who are naturally balding (which comes with age). All I want to do is be able to trim my hair down short again, or shave it completely off.

But I cant. Not without revealing how naive I was to assume I would be ok later in life if I could just correct my baldness when I was 24. Sure for a couple of years it did the job, but now I am either stuck getting more and more transplants to keep the coverup going... or shaving it off and revealing my scars.

What I would give to go back to a naturally bald head.

[Locke]

I got 2 HT's done when I was 24 (about 3200 grafts). I had a different balding patten than you, but roughly felt the same way with the same amount of hairloss. I was balding in my early 20's while most, if not all of my friends, had thick full heads of hair.

Even though both transplants were successful, I constantly was worried about wind, lighting, people touching ym hair, ect. On a good day, my hair looked normal/thinning at best. Even when I thought to myself "Damn it looks good today, great decision to get a HT!!!" ... it was still noticeable that I didn't have a thick head of hair, it was just enough to cover up bald spots.

This is the important part. 6 years later, I am now 30. Half of my friends are balding or bald. I continued to bald and now have a permanent scar on the back of my head, and obvious red bumps on the top of my head that you can now see form the continued hairloss. I am so envious of my friends who are naturally balding (which comes with age). All I want to do is be able to trim my hair down short again, or shave it completely off.

But I cant. Not without revealing how naive I was to assume I would be ok later in life if I could just correct my baldness when I was 24. Sure for a couple of years it did the job, but now I am either stuck getting more and more transplants to keep the coverup going... or shaving it off and revealing my scars.

What I would give to go back to a naturally bald head.

Yeah that was my concern. If you get the HT done and make the front look nice but the hair behind it is receeding...at what point do you get another HT done?

Maybe just wait until all the hair is gone before getting a HT?

[CIT_Girl]

Yeah that was my concern. If you get the HT done and make the front look nice but the hair behind it is receeding...at what point do you get another HT done?

As hair loss is obviously progressive in nature, this is definitely a concern. For this reason, it's important to have a long-term plan and wait until you're old enough to get a good indication to what you extent hair loss will progress. Men who gradually progress to later stages on the Norwood scale will generally have to undergo more than one procedure in their lifetime (or else have that 'wall' of hair in front and recession behind it). An honest doctor will evaluate your hair loss pattern and family history, and be upfront with you about the possibility of needing additional procedures as you age.

It's definitely one more thing to think about before you take the leap and another good reason to get on meds to preserve your existing hair.

hindsight2020, I'm sorry to hear about your situation/regret. Have you considered some sort of strip repair/graft redistribution that would allow you to just shave your head or bald 'naturally', or are you (justifiably) reluctant to have any further surgery?

[hindsight2020]

Yeah that was my concern. If you get the HT done and make the front look nice but the hair behind it is receeding...at what point do you get another HT done?

Maybe just wait until all the hair is gone before getting a HT?

If you ever have any questions in the future let me know and we can chat through IM or even phone, I dont mind. I have no rpoblem talking to you, or anyone else thats thinking of getting a HT. I will tell you the good and the bad, give you realistic stories of what you'll be dealing with, and hopefully set realistic expectations for you.

[Locke]

Since I have a 4 month summer I decided to buzz my hair to see how it looks. I don't think I'll shave it completely because this gives me a pretty good indication of what it'll look like. I will be traveling through Asia for 3 months so I won't have to encounter people who knew me with hair and will comment on it, although I'll be traveling with 3 friends who certainly will.


From the front.


Front on an angle.


Top.

I honestly don't like how it looks. I have a large forehead and a long face that is not made to be bald. If my head were circular like my mom's or brother's it'd look a lot better. Maybe I'll get used to it... but maybe not. I don't think someone who is 22 should look this way and I'm sure many of the people who I meet in public will think the same way and comment on it to my face or behind my back. That's my biggest fear to be honest. I hate the thought of people's first impressions being based solely on my hair, or lack thereof.

I started taking finasteride again today and I'm going to order nizural shampoo and rogaine foam. I'll see if I can stabilize it over the next 12 months and then strongly consider a HT.

On Thursday I will be finding out if I'll be attending medical school next year. Many of the people I meet won't know me when I had hair so maybe this is a good thing? I'm also single and I was hoping to meet someone in school but I don't think my hair helps this cause...

If I do get a HT next year during my 2 month summer I'll then have to go back to school and have everyone comment on me having got a HT at 23...I dread the thought....

[hindsight2020]

hindsight2020, I'm sorry to hear about your situation/regret. Have you considered some sort of strip repair/graft redistribution that would allow you to just shave your head or bald 'naturally', or are you (justifiably) reluctant to have any further surgery?

For a while yes I did. But I have accepted the fact that I made a mistake in getting a HT at a young age, and sometimes I regret getting a HT at all. Even though it served its porpose for the past 4-5 years, I am growing envious of how good people look with a shaved, naturally bald head. I am sure that came with age, and now that I am 30, I have a different persepctive on life. But I guess thats all part of the game, you live and you learn and you try to make yourself a better person during the process.

@Locke - I would kill to have your head again. When I was 24 I shaved my head just like yours and looked way more bald. But I had no scars, no ingrown itchy hairs on the top of my head, no worry about what my hair looked like, cause it walways looked the same. After my HT I thought my life would be easier, after all I had hair. WRONG... you think your worried about what people think of you now, wait till you have a HT... your ALWAYS worried about someone noticing. Someone noticing a HT is waaay worse than someone noticing that your going bald. HT's are unnatural and kind of wierd (if you think about it)... and thats how others will think about it... on the other hand, nothing wierd about going bald.

[Locke]

For a while yes I did. But I have accepted the fact that I made a mistake in getting a HT at a young age, and sometimes I regret getting a HT at all. Even though it served its porpose for the past 4-5 years, I am growing envious of how good people look with a shaved, naturally bald head. I am sure that came with age, and now that I am 30, I have a different persepctive on life. But I guess thats all part of the game, you live and you learn and you try to make yourself a better person during the process.

@Locke - I would kill to have your head again. When I was 24 I shaved my head just like yours and looked way more bald. But I had no scars, no ingrown itchy hairs on the top of my head, no worry about what my hair looked like, cause it walways looked the same. After my HT I thought my life would be easier, after all I had hair. WRONG... you think your worried about what people think of you now, wait till you have a HT... your ALWAYS worried about someone noticing. Someone noticing a HT is waaay worse than someone noticing that your going bald. HT's are unnatural and kind of wierd (if you think about it)... and thats how others will think about it... on the other hand, nothing wierd about going bald.

Thanks for your thoughts. I appreciate you sharing your story and giving me a much needed opinion based on real experiences with a HT. Every time I read your posts it makes me believe more and more that what's happening to me is natural and I have nothing to be ashamed of. If anyone has a problem with my balding head then to hell with them! It's not like they're perfect either!

That's quite the badass attitude...or should I say baldass? Bad joke I know.