Hair Restoration Blogs

Hair Restoration Blog phoneguy

phoneguy

I began losing my hair in my mid-thirties. My father went totally bald by the end of his life and I decided that just wasn't something I wanted to have happen to me. With today's advanced hair restoration techniques, I realized I didn't have to keep looking in the mirror each morning, helplessly watching my hairline fade away. That is when I decided to take action....

Hair Restoration Blog Falceros

Falceros

Hello everyone,

Most of you know me from the forums already, but I thought I'd take the time to create my own hair web log

I started losing my hair around the age of 21 and 22. I was in denial at first - like most people are. I saw what looked like some thinning in my crown - this was the first area to go.

I started my first treatment of Rogaine 5% when I was about 23 years old after talking with my father who had success with it. It seemed to work a bit for awhile, but I became lazy.

I foolishly thought if I stopped taking it I would keep the existing hair I regrew. Well, let me tell you that this is not true...not only do I know this now from experience, but the disclaimer even states this.

So I tried Rogaine 5% again a year or so later after my condition worsened - and it only made my scalp itch. So I tried the 2% generic version of minoxodil (the active ingredient in Rogaine) which didn't irritate my scalp, but it didn't appear to be working either.

So I tried a number of supposed "cures". Notice the quotes around the word cure. Let me tell all you readers now that there is NO cure for hair loss - don't let anyone deceive you. I've tried ridiculous products like Folliguard (anyone remember this?), Nism, Reviogen, and a few others. None of them did anything but make my head sticky as I continued to lose more hair.

I lost a lot of hair between the time I was married (age 25) to age 27. Looking back on pictures made me very depressed and miserable. Even though my wife still said she found me attractive, I just felt unattractive and my confidence was impacted.

Let me tell you that hair loss affects people differently. I would say that most if not all people don't like it, but some let it impact them more than others. I know some people who don't seem to be that bothered by it, and I know others who are extremely affected. My sympathy and empathy is strong for those who are extremely affected by it - especially to the point where their social life suffers from their own withdraw.

Whereas I believe that there is MUCH more to life than hair, I admit that my confidence was moderately affected. I wore a hat just about everywhere. The funny thing is, that I could pull this off very well - because all through high school I wore a hat because it was the cool thing to do (no - wearing a hat does not cause hair loss - this is a hair loss myth - along with many others. You'll find many posting by me and my peers on the forums about this and other subjects).

This is where my surgical research and treatments began. See below:

Hair Restoration Blog This is the time

This is the time

At age 23 I began loosing my hair, and like so many of us, I convinced myself that some magic potion or medical products would come out to help stop this and begin regrowing my hair back. I used Rogaine, and minimal results, althought I think it helped slow down further loss. I used Propecia on and off, and it gave minumal results. As I aged, I noticed that people began to always look at my fading hairline and thinning hair. It was sooo embarassing I just knew I needed to do something. On May 7, 2008, I did. 2842 hair transplant.. I am excited to have finally had the courage to do this and can't wait for the results.

Hair Restoration Blog Jeff

Jeff

I've been losing hair since college. I actually found myself pulling it out during at stressful engineering test. I started Rogaine around then (stopping pulling it out) and used it for the next 20 years. Rogaine seemed to slow, but not stop, my hair loss pretty well. I stayed away from propecia until recently. First I wanted to sure it was as safe as possible, and second I wanted to stay away from it until I was done having kids. I know the risk is extremely low, but I'm glad I waited. One of my kids was born with a rare birth defect and I wouldn't have been able to forgive myself it I thought I did anything that could have contributed to that.

My hair was in good shape at 30, but got much worse over the next 10 years. I noticed recently the best way to tell which infant I was holding in a picture (at an early age they look alike) was to see how much hair I had.

Hair Restoration Blog LaGrange

LaGrange

My hair loss started at 25 now pulling 50 and a NW5a-6....Tried the hair systems for 15 yrs but wasn't all that comfortable wearing it, but it was a good cover up at the time..

Hair Restoration Blog KamCal

KamCal

Gradually started losing my hair from the age of 23. Started using Rogaine when I reached 25 and continued for several years. I don't think it helped me at all since I continued to lose hairs during that time. I finally got tired of the messy regime. So, I quit once I reached 29 and started to think about other options and that's how I found this website. After a lot of research, I decided to go through the HT surgery with Dr. Victor Hasson of H&W and I am very happy with my result.

Hair Restoration Blog boodi

boodi

Gradual thinning at the temple from a high natural hairline. Very thick hair everywhere else.

Hair Restoration Blog Coopcoopcooperman

Coopcoopcooperman

It all started back in the early 90's when my business partner said I looked like Jack Nicholson after a day at sea in the Carribean! I was stunned but it got me thinking about my hair loss. I tried Rogaine for about 6 months and it seemed to stop my loss but ...well I was just too lazy to stick with it and besides I still had lots of hair right?...WRONG... So over the years I watched my follicles slowly disappear and new hair restoration techniques develop until one day about a year ago I decided to find a way to help restore at least an appearance I thought would match my age...then about 47. I went to several interviews... all with the usual heavily advertised companies. None of them seemed to really have great results and I figured if I was going to go through with a hair transplant I wanted the best chance of a positive experience. So I waited and I researched and then when that was done I did it again...Its not I am extremely compulsive I just really wanted to learn what I was getting into and likewise what I would get out of it. Of course Mother Nature didn't wait for me to decide and I kept shedding daily. By July of 2007 I was ready to take the big plunge and feeling confident I scheduled an appointment with Joe at Hasson and Wong for Sept. 10th 2007. The rest ...well here we go!!!!!!!!!!

Hair Restoration Blog kman

kman

I guess my hair started thinning in my 30's but it never started to bother me much until my 40's. That's when I really started to notice my hairline and temples receeding and finally decided to look into my options.

Hair Restoration Blog elwayne

elwayne

i started thinning in my twenties and went to close hair cuts (number 2 razor) in my late 30's.

Hair Restoration Blog looks matter

looks matter

i started losing hair on my temples since age 22 i guess..i started searching about hair transplant on internet a year before.. looking at all the results i decided on having a surgery with Dr. Rahal. I met him for the first time on dec 5th, 2007. What a nice and professional person he is....
He is funny at times also...still remember his joke when he provided me after surgery food and said to me "don't worry its not beef its feathered beef"

Hair Restoration Blog ChrisHT

ChrisHT

History

Hey everyone! I am 25 and a half years old. I have been researching hair loss for the past six and a half years. My hair loss began in about 2001-2002, around age 18 or 19, and I immediately began to use minoxidil sporadically. I began to use Propecia (1mg Finasteride) about a year later. While the products were moderately effective, I accelerated my hair loss by taking certain legal performance enhancers. I was aware of the consequences and also took measures to minimize the hair loss throughout. I would shed quite a bit, but much of the thickness would return.

In 2005, I had a severe knee injury in a football game that greatly accelerated the hair loss. While a year later much of it had filled in, certain areas (crown, temples/hairline) most prone to Male-Pattern Baldness needed professional restoration beyond the limited �peach-fuzz� that minoxidil could provide. I considered potential physicians by their expertise with dense hairline packing. The frontal, Zone 1, was the area that needed the biggest touch up, due to my naturally low, fairly square hairline - that the FDA approved treatments rarely improve. I contacted several reputable opinions and decided to have my procedure done by Dr. Glenn Charles.

Dr. Charles most closely shared my philosophy that: the hairline, to quote him, �makes-or-breaks� ANY hair restoration procedure. I felt quite comfortable that Dr. Charles understood the wishes of his younger patients - whereas other doctors might have a more generic hairline which they will provide each of their patients, regardless of age or race.

Although I am younger than most candidates, I have quite a bit of experience with hair loss treatments and how they work (more often, do not work) combined with sports supplements. I have provided advice to countless persons on their surgical and non-surgical options. Although I have discontinued my use of sports supplements, I am familiar with the majority of the compounds. I have tried nearly EVERY hair treatment available and I have even experimented with some of my own creations. While some hair treatments are effective, the only permanent solution is a hair restoration procedure.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask!

WHY DOCTOR GLENN CHARLES???
I have done 4-5 years of homework on hair restoration. In the past 18 months, I have spoken to countless coordinators and patient representatives in regards to my pictures and the work they thought I needed done. Most were knowledgable and helpful, some generic but friendly, and a few were downright rude and disrespectful.

Dr. Charles was the only DOCTOR that called me directly and spoke with me about my pictures and the work that I.WANTED.DONE. He gave me conservative quote of 2000 hair grafts but agreed to pack the hairline (zones 1 and 2) with those grafts. Many doctors gave me an identical quote, but did not agree to place the transplanted hairs where I wished to have them. Dr. Charles understood the wishes of a younger patient, but adhered to ethics by considering the donor supply. We used ~2134 grafts (~20% of my donor supply). Hopefully it will give me the result I am looking for.

Hair Restoration Blog WilliamB

WilliamB

This is my story. Since I was a teenager I�ve been into exercise and staying in shape and growing up I always felt like I had really good hair, until I started seeing more of it in the sink. As I got older I started to get more and more self conscious about losing my hair. Especially because I had a lot of scarring on my left forehead from a bad case of shingles at 16 and the more my hairline receded, the more I felt like people could see it. My g.f. knew this was really bugging me, so she started doing research on the internet. We looked at everybody�s websites and it was interesting seeing some of the pretty incredible results. I found that I was spending a lot of time on Dr. Bernstein�s website because he has so many great photos and man he has written A LOT about this stuff, but mostly I picked him because he seemed more about pushing important information rather than just pushing people to get a hair transplant (something that I had already started to gather from lurking in these forums). That kind of sold me on it and gave me the push to look into him a little more.

Hair Restoration Blog Arclan

Arclan

Since early 20s have been using topical treatments; went off them for a year or so. In the mirror, I think it looks ok; but when I see myself in pictures it looks really bald sometimes. It's like I don't recognize myself. Been considering HT for years and almost had a HT with Bosley two years ago. After some research, I decided to wait. I did not know of a reknowned hair transplant doctor in Phoneix until finding Dr. Scott Alexander on the internet. After researching him a lot, I decided to go through with it.

Hair Restoration Blog Car Guy

Car Guy

The hair thing has been bothering me for quite a few years and I finally decided to look into a hair transplant. I went to five consultations and was very impressed with the work of Dr's True and Dorin. This blog helped me quite a bit in making my decision so I figured now that I went through it maybe my story will help someone else with their decision.

Hair Restoration Blog THINinHOUSTON

THINinHOUSTON

Started losing my hair in my 20's got on Propecia for a few years and Rogaine and saw some growth. Discontinued the tropical treatments and my hair started thinning again. I started using then again but It is quite obvious that I would never get a full head of hair. I wanted a full head of hair so I went with a large session.

Hair Restoration Blog Arizona99

Arizona99

Started losing my hair in my late 20's and have been bummed out since.

Hair Restoration Blog Crown Royal

Crown Royal

I began losing my hair little by little in the crown right out of college around 22 years old. I panicked once I heard the first comment because I never saw back there. I took a bunch of bs topical treatments that never seemed to work. Finally, at about 23, I discovered a miracle. Dermatch. When I first used it, it had looked like I had never lost any hair in the crown. Fast forward 6 years and I still use it every day religiously. Pretty much, nobody knows the extent of my crown loss, except myself and the 3 hair transplant docs that I have consulted with over the years. Not even my live in girlfriend knows the extent or anyone at work or my family. That is how self conscious I am about it. I discovered this website around 25 and the info has been invaluable. There are so many people to shout out on this forum for inspiration and motivation that I can't even name them all.

Hair Restoration Blog Roger

Roger

October 2004 -- 2400 grafts

October 2005 -- 2000 grafts

February 2007 -- 1900 grafts

Hair Restoration Blog Don

Don

I used to be a Hair Club client. In fact, I wore a modified cover for a few months while my 3000 unit job was growing in.