23yo, how much would a hair transplant cost me?

[Ilovehair]

I'm 23, and my hair is getting worse. I took generic propecia for two and a half years but I stopped taking it 6 - 8 months ago, because I was fearful of possible side effects as I had never sought medical advice and ordered my tablets online. I appeared to be still losing hair while on the drug so I decided to give it up, but it seems as if my hair has gotten thinner since I stopped but not by much.

The picture above is the first picture I have taken in two years, and its depressing when I see how bad it is.

My father is a norwood 7 and its pretty evident that I am going that way too. Is it even worthwhile considering a hair transplant at this stage if I am going to end up being a norwood 7. Judging by my picture how much would a hair transplant cost to give me a full head of hair. I would be willing to spend up to $10,000 but realistically what would that get me.

Who are the best hair transplant doctors in america or canada?

Thanks

 

[theanimator]

Hi,

I hate to sound pessimistic, but looking at your situation I would suggest that you just shave your head and resign to being a bald guy. You said that you thought you were losing your hair even while on the medication. I would see this as a sign that you shouldn't get a hair transplant. There are plenty of men out there who look good without hair and you may be one of them.

You're also only 23 and are in the later stages of hair loss. Maybe it's better to shave your head now and accept baldness sooner rather than over the course of 20 years.

Sure you could get a hair transplant, but I don't think many reputable doctors would recommend it if the drugs weren't working. Plus it would be like fighting a never ending battle. But if you really wanted to get a hair transplant I would expect to pay around 7-8k now, then another 7-8 in 1-2 years.

Take a look at Jeff Garcia, then look at his wife. Hair just doesn't matter to some people.

Best of Luck,

 

[RaginDemon]

Hi,

I hate to sound pessimistic, but looking at your situation I would suggest that you just shave your head and resign to being a bald guy. You said that you thought you were losing your hair even while on the medication. I would see this as a sign that you shouldn't get a hair transplant. There are plenty of men out there who look good without hair and you may be one of them.

You're also only 23 and are in the later stages of hair loss. Maybe it's better to shave your head now and accept baldness sooner rather than over the course of 20 years.

Sure you could get a hair transplant, but I don't think many reputable doctors would recommend it if the drugs weren't working. Plus it would be like fighting a never ending battle. But if you really wanted to get a hair transplant I would expect to pay around 7-8k now, then another 7-8 in 1-2 years.

Take a look at Jeff Garcia, then look at his wife. Hair just doesn't matter to some people.

Best of Luck,

Jeff Garcia is a professonal football player of course he will get hot women with or without hair.

His wife is hot though.

 

[dd11856]

If I were you, I would hold off as long as possible. I recently has a hair transplant operation, I am just under 30. Honestly, there were times earlier in life when I had considered doing a hair transplant, but there were three reasons I did not: 1. I wanted to wait and see how my hair loss progressed. 2. I wanted to buy a house before I did a hair transplant, if I ever did. 3. I just wasn't ready financially.

Also, realize that you a hair transplant is not a cure-all. I just had a 2500 graft strip session and will probably require another session, probably somewhat smaller, around the crown. I seriously considered doing a hair transplant two years ago at 27-28, but I am very glad that I did not, because in that time my crown thinned significantly. My forelocks remained, OK, although they are thin. However, I felt that I had reached a point where I could say I was pretty stable in my hairloss for about the past year. I had lost a lot and what remained had remained about the same for several years.

My recent procedure focused on rebuilding a hairline without lowering it, AKA, feeling in above the temples, adding hair in the forelocks, and placing some in the crown. Another session will add density in that region and focus on the crown most likely.

Also, realize that your Doctor will advise you to continue with minoxodil and finasteride even after hair transplant if he is worth a flip, because he will know you will continue to lose your natural hair.

Finally, realize too, that you will be scarred for life. Looking at pictures, seeing others donor scars personally, chatting with folks on the net, will not prepare you for seeing that reddish line stretching across your scalp from ear to ear. I am personally testifying to this. I am sitting here 16 days post-op with undissolved dissolvable sutures just wishing that I could trim my hair on the sides and back because until my grafted area starts growing well (which it hopefully will), I am going to look "balder" than I did before and I have big red line running around my head. I also realize that if this scar is bad I am going to have keep my hair on the sides and back longer than I really want just to cover it. I am also already thinking of hair it excised, or having FUE done into if the scar is bad.

So, seriously, you really want to think this through because a hair transplant may just complicate matters even more later in your life.

 

[s.a.f]

Sorry but I have to agree with the animator.
Lets look at the facts:
1) For a 23 yr old you have quite alot of loss (presuming thats under ordinary lighting) so that does'nt look to promising.
2) Your father is a NW7 and you think that you may be headed the same way. (NW7 is not suitable for hair transplant)
3) You say that you have given up on meds and the treatment did'nt work.
4) It looks like you have diffuse thinning so you could suffer permanant shockloss.

All of this says to me that having a hair transplant right now would be a mistake for you.
My suggestion is to get back on meds and hope that they hold what hair you still have, if so then maybe in a few years you could have a conservative hair transplant. In the meantime you could always shave your head. Sry

 

[Ilovehair]

Thanks for the replies.

I'm 23 and my hairloss has had a major impact on my life, like everyone else I guess. At times I feel like I am just existing, it prevented me from doing things in the past and really set me back a few years, but I have realised that I need to get on with my life. Two years ago, I flunked out of college because I was so ashamed of my hairloss. I found it hard to attend lectures, and as a result my grades suffered so I had no option but to leave. I was also slightly depressed at the time. By chance I landed a job that pays well but I f*****g hate it, but if I quit tomorrow I would only get some low level job as I have no qualifications. I didn't mind this so much as I intended to join the cops, something I really wanted as I felt I had no other option to get out of the hole I was in. In the space of a year, I failed the interview twice which I couldn't understand as I did my best. So now I am kind of floating about aimlessly with no direction and the women I am interested in just don't feel the same. Recently the older guys at work have started making jokes about my hair, and its hard to take tbh.

At 23, I am in a much different world than I pictured myself to be when I was 18 and I really don't know how to change it. I know hair won't cure my problems but it'd be nice to have some, lol

Hypothetically speaking, what would it cost to go from a norwood 7 to a 2 or 1? I'm just curious as to if its actually possible.

 

[s.a.f]

Like I said before NW7 is beyond help from a hair transplant. (imagine trying to paint an entire house with only 1 tin of paint). With a NW6 a great surgeon, favourable patient characteristics, you could at best achieve an acceptable (thin) NW2.

I read your last post and can understand how you feel. I've been through it aswell and I know that as ridiculous as it sounds I would be a much different person if I had'nt had to face this sh*t. But I dont know what to tell you there are no easy answers and every situation is relative to the individual. Thats why although people can give you their advice, no one actually has the answers, but you have to find your own way to cope with it. Wether that means changing your own expectations on life or whatever....

 

[BobbyChalfont]

Have you tried concealers? Could help thicken up the appearance of your hair somewhat.

If you're destined to become a Norwood 7, you only really have two options (well three, but the third one doesn't really count).

1. Get a wig
2. Shave the head and rock the Vin Diesel look.
3. Wait, hope and pray that Hair cloning works out.

 

[Ilovehair]

I guess my best option is to shave it so. God, if you're reading this can we please have my hair back.

 

[BobbyChalfont]

Try not to lose self-esteem over this.

Bald guys get laid too. You just need to be confident in your shell.

 

[easynow]

Thanks for the replies.

I'm 23 and my hairloss has had a major impact on my life, like everyone else I guess. At times I feel like I am just existing, it prevented me from doing things in the past and really set me back a few years, but I have realised that I need to get on with my life. Two years ago, I flunked out of college because I was so ashamed of my hairloss. I found it hard to attend lectures, and as a result my grades suffered so I had no option but to leave. I was also slightly depressed at the time. By chance I landed a job that pays well but I f****ing hate it, but if I quit tomorrow I would only get some low level job as I have no qualifications. I didn't mind this so much as I intended to join the cops, something I really wanted as I felt I had no other option to get out of the hole I was in. In the space of a year, I failed the interview twice which I couldn't understand as I did my best. So now I am kind of floating about aimlessly with no direction and the women I am interested in just don't feel the same. Recently the older guys at work have started making jokes about my hair, and its hard to take tbh.

Weird, that is very similar to have I felt a while back, and also to what I did. I've got nearly identical loss and I'm 22. As for people taking the piss, they must be perfect then? People will bully you all day if you let them man!

 

[Ilovehair]

I try not to let it get to me or be walked over but I get no satisfaction from putting people down.

I was at a night club one night and some random girl started talking to my friends and cracked jokes about my hair all night, I was so pissed off that I cracked a joke about her small tits. I said it in the same tone that she was using when talking about my hair. She had no choice but to laugh it off but I could tell she was on the verge of tears. I don't particularly like doing this but sometimes its necessary.

 

[sphlanx2006]

Your hair loss is preety extreme for your age but i dont see it as there is no option.

First of all you must try rogaine. You never know how well it could work for your. It has certainly worked very nice for me and for many other people. You could regrow a lot of hair. Perhaps you should start propecia again. Propecia alone may not be enough to battle your hair loss(since it is obviously a severe case) but if you add rogaine and nizoral to the mix you may have nice results.

Also, 10,000$ cant get you the best hair transplant, but if you consult a very good doctor and you are willing to pay some more you might manage to get decent results. You will have to settle with a thin crown and high temples but you will have hair to "frame" your face witch is very important.

Good luck with whatever you choose and do!

 

[CCS]

Be happy your hairline is still intact. Stay on finasteride, and shave or just keep it short. Nice that you still have hair roots around your face. I think you should look into the modern hair pieces you can get for $200-300, which last about 2-5 months.

 

[Guest]

Well, I really hate seeing these threads--- sorry brother, it really sucks sometimes, yeah?

Anyway, I think if your smart you might be able to help yourself out-- but 10K will not do it--- more like 25K

If you MUST do this--I recommend fue-- no exceptions.

#2-- you only use 4500 grafts to transplant the frontal 70-90cm's of balding zones.

Then you WAIT--- you wait to see where your hairloss takes you, you wait to see if the frontal zone transplant separates from your sides requiring a 1000-1500 grafts to tie everything back in, etc....

Through all of this you will be able to buzz you head pretty short--maybe #2--most likely a #3, leaving you a nice framed face and an overall "cool look"

As you age, you may find you could give a sh*t about your looks or you may want to see what can be done --age 35 might be ok---

I would suggest getting the front done and then wearing a nice crown piece or some type of nice weave (costly!!!!) and go on your merry way.

That is about the only way to do it in your case, IMO.

Of course, I believe EVERYONE should shave their heads before a transplant and wait until at least 25-26.

Take Care,
Jason

 

[CCS]

To the thread author;

My transplant area is less than half the size of your Nw5.5 area, and that is not counting if you want to rebuild your temples. I have 4000 grafts, and that makes my hair about 1/3 the density of the back hair. Actually I'll rephrase that. It makes my frontal hair about as thick as your NW5. I can't tell with your hair being so short. Maybe my hair is at most twice as thick as yours, but I doubt yours is that thin when it is dry and grown out one inch.

Anyway, you don't seem happy with your current density, so I doubt you would be happy with mine either. But if your hair somehow survived, you might be happy with mine. I doubt it would, considering the shock loss even I got. So you'd probably want 6000 x 2 grafts. About 12,000 grafts. Even at $3 per graft, that is $36,000. You can't get that many with a strip procedure. So you'd need FUE to take grafts from non-traditional donor areas. So probably at least $5 per graft then, or $60,000.

But I bet as soon as you have the procedure, your hair next to the graft area will recede 1/4 inch, partially from male pattern baldness, and partially from shock loss. Then you'll look funny, like me where mine receded.

But let's look at the best case scinario. Suppose your area is only 1.5x as big as mine, and suppose you don't get total shock loss, and keep some of that density, and get some regrowth, so that you get by with just 4000 x 1.5 grafts = 6000. Even at $3 per graft, if you trust those cheap places, that is $18,000. And you can't do that all in one session. You will need two or three sessions to get that density. If you go with FUE to get full density faster, you will spend at least $7 per graft. So $42,000.

Or you can shave it, or you can put some masking tape over your short hair and make a template and mail it in to toplace or hollywood lace and get a custom piece for $200. Send them a 1/2 inch hair sample so they can match your color exactly.

 

[RaginDemon]

Like I said before NW7 is beyond help from a hair transplant. (imagine trying to paint an entire house with only 1 tin of paint). With a NW6 a great surgeon, favourable patient characteristics, you could at best achieve an acceptable (thin) NW2.

I read your last post and can understand how you feel. I've been through it aswell and I know that as ridiculous as it sounds I would be a much different person if I had'nt had to face this $#iT. But I dont know what to tell you there are no easy answers and every situation is relative to the individual. Thats why although people can give you their advice, no one actually has the answers, but you have to find your own way to cope with it. Wether that means changing your own expectations on life or whatever....

this gotta be one of the best responses I read on this board.

saf is the man I will definitely consult with before I get my hair transplant.

 

[s.a.f]

:blush:

 

[Ilovehair]

Guys, I guess you're right, unfortunately. I might go back on the propecia, my only concern was potential side effects and its overall safety that's why I chose to give it up and my hair has visibly worsened since I gave it up over six months ago. Has anyone any links to recent studies on its safety and what's the best site to buy generic propecia from?

I don't think I'll go down the road of a wig, I just wouldn't feel right plus it would be quite obvious going from my current state to a full head of hair over night.

The hair transplant idea doesn't seem that feasible tbh, it seems as if it would be a never ending battle of throwing money down a hole. I would be better off using that money to do something with my life. I guess if I was a millionaire I'd be willing to throw buckets of cash at it but I am not in such a fortunate position nor do I envision I'll ever be.

I guess I have one thing going for me is that I don't wear hats as a comfort blanket. There is a guy in work who is 35 and completely bald but in the three years I have worked with him I have never seen him without a hat, I happened to see his drivers licence by chance and he's a norwood 8.

I was recently looking up pictures of myself with a shaved head from two years ago, admittedly I had more hair but I was 30lbs lighter and my head shape suited a buzzed head more. I'm 6'6 and 210lbs at the moment so I can carry the weight but I should really get back into shape as it would probably boost my confidence somewhat.

 

[cal]

It's horrible not to have any real hope for getting back your hairy appearance even with transplants, but I honestly think this is the case for a youger guy showing a Norwood#7 pattern.

I'm personally looking at a Norwood#4-5 at the absolute worst, and I'm very concerned about whether hair transplants are a good idea even at that point.




Someone back there said 12,000 grafts would hypothetically be needed for your transplant case over the long haul. There is no way in hell that anyone with an eventual Norwood#7 pattern is ever gonna see 12,000 grafts. I doubt even a Norwood#5 could pull that off very well in most cases.