» This is my story. It’s probably not all that different than many of yours.
» But it’s mine and I’m hoping some of my brothers in hairloss may give me
» some perspective on my situation.
»
» I’ve been losing my hair since pretty much puberty. Thanks again mom and
» dad. I started on rogaine around 16-17. By 24 I shaved my head. Got on
» Fin. Then there were the surgeries.
»
» Life was never what I’d hoped it to be. The women were never the type I’d
» hoped to get. The lighthearted comments from friends cut deeper than they
» could ever imagine. The feelings of worthlessness and helplessness. And
» still - no real solution.
»
» 3 Strip Procedures, about 6000 grafts total, with the reputed
» best-of-the-best surgeon in New York City. The results were decent. I
» find myself with around a patchy NW2 Hairline, NW3 Temples, diffuse
» thinning throughout, and a crown I cringe when I get a glimpse of. Not to
» mention a smiley face scar and thin donor that make me wish I never even
» bothered. I’d gladly shave my head today, but sadly that’s not a real
» option.
»
» So what are my real options?
»
» I suppose I could live with mediocrity. Sure. Great boring life. That’s
» what I want. It doesn’t look so bad with concealer. But I lead a pretty
» active life and it’s just too tough to keep up that kind of lie. I don’t
» want to live a lie. The HT lie is a big enough one, but easy enough to
» keep quiet about. Rugs are not an option either.
»
» Since I live in LA now, I’ve gone and consulted with Dr. Umar. He’s
» pretty awesome by the way. Since my donor is mostly depleted, I figured
» some BHT would be needed. He recommended 8000 grafts. 4000 FUE, 1000
» Chest, 3000 Beard. About 1500 for the Hairline and Temples. 1500 to add
» thickness througout, and about 4000 to the crown and scar. If I can get a
» result like Heliboy where I could pull off a buzzcut until some true cure
» is found, I can live with it. The money is certainly up there, but we only
» have one life. At 36 I’ve now spent half my adult life suffering because
» of this. I want this resolved, but I certainly can’t handle any more
» disappointment.
»
» One thing of concern is no real testing for the BHT. Shouldn’t there be
» some grafts tested to be sure they’ll take or am I wrong about that? My
» yields from my strip surgeries were pretty solid even if ultimately they
» provided mediocre results. And while my hairloss has mostly stabilized,
» there are certainly no guarantees of that remaining to be the case.
»
» Are there any alternatives I haven’t considered? I suppose I could wait
» for something else to come along, but there aren’t very many prime years
» left for me. Do I really want to spend them worrying about my hair and
» feeling I’ve left even more wasted potential out there?
»
» Really I’ve answered my own question as to what I want to do as I wrote
» this out, but maybe one of my fellow brothers in this fight can provide
» some insight I may have overlooked.
»
» Thanks for listening and best of luck to all of you in this struggle.
I think youve got a pretty good game plan. As you say you only live once. Less hair on the body and more on the head should definitely make a big difference. Ok maybe body hair will not all grow, but its better than having a patchy head. Probably best to break down the project into a few smaller transplant sessions rather than doing it all at once.
Good luck with what ever you decide.