Sutured-NotButchered
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Hello everyone. I have decided I've had enough and am going to do something about this . I am 34 years old and a norwood 4a . First off, let me say, message boards such as this as well as Hairlosshelp have been a godsend for me.. Some GREAT information, as well as support in cyberspace .. I have been a lurker soaking up information for months .
Ok, had my initial consultation with Armani last Thursday , met him in his office after meeting with another guy that had it done 6 months ago (showed me his thin scar) . Armani seems like a caring guy, out for the best in his patients .
Today (Monday) I went in for a second time to pay my $2000 deposit as this is required to book a surgery date . Alexander is there to meet you for payment and he is also very well versed in the procedure - he was able to answer additional questions I had..
He gave me booklets on pre and post op preparations for the surgery - the basics like dont drink alcohol for 2 weeks prior etc. He also gave me a time to meet Dr Armani again one day before surgery which is the norm , I guess for final valuations and expectations - I like that as it will give me 30 or so days to plant down exactly what I want.
I am very happy I live only 15 minutes from Armani's office .. Hope this means he'll give me the BEST optimal result (crosses fingers) . Not that he doesn't to out of towners - not implying that .
I have decent coverage in zone 3 and on the crown have a bald spot about the size of a quarter (just 9 months ago it was the size of a dime, I'll say why later) . Considering my age, we thought it was best appropriate to build my hairline once again.. He will put in about 2900 grafts in zone one and an additional 1500 grafts in zone 2 which is the zone behind the hairline ( we discussed it will be between 4000 to 4500 grafts total).
I used Proscar for 5 years and kept pretty much the crown and the zones around it.. For YEARS I have had a comb-over in the front but I made it look very hip (in other words, not flat in the front but spiked up in some spots) , I used stuff like toppik shampoo, followed by toppik hair fattener, then toppik powder added with some dermatch for good measure.. I did this almost everyday for years, at least days that I did not go out with a hat (IE the Gym , I have never taken my hat off there) ..
I started avodart (dutasteride) 8 or 9 months ago because in zones 1 and 2 (zone 2 being the area behind the hairline before entering the top of the head) I had pretty good diffuse thinning .. I heard a story that avodart blocks more DHT receptors and is better than proscar, so I gave it a shot.
Needless to say, after starting avodart, my bed and pillow looked like a BEAR slept in it . The hair was EVERYWHERE .. I lost alot .. Despite what I heard some say here ( as I have been a lurker here for about 3 months) to keep at it after large Shedding sessions and to stay on course, I didn't listen and I have gone back to Proscar as of 2 months ago..
With that said, I looked like I DEFINITELY had a case of male pattern baldness Before going on avodart, I just did a terrific job concealing as I have become an expert over the years with toppik, dermatch and a couvre combination . I was so good at my technique over the years, that it would look like I planted 3000 grafts at the front of my scalp simply with concealers followed by a light cover of hairspray. But with my great temple recession over the last year, this technique is deemed worthless because I need some hair by the temples to mask it properly . Without it, it looks like total crap - it exposes WAY WAY too much skin at the part now to mask anything.....
You see, I have the face of a 25 to 27 year old , even though I am 34 . I am single and decided this is the time to get it done.. I want hair to match this face (not trying to sound egotistical whatsoever, but when I wear a hat backwords women always compliment me on my looks, saying I am extremely cute and look mid 20's yadda yadda yadda - I walk into a sportsbar with my hat on backwards in a bar of 10 women, and about 5 are gazing at me .).Well, luckily I work at home ( have a home business) because I do not go out as much as I did a mere 8 months ago .. Because of my drastic hairloss of course..
What really REALLY irked me was this beautiful 26 year old french teacher who lives in my condo building.. She parks next to me at my parking spot which is underground below the building.. Anyway, I always saw her as I was headed to the Gym (with my hat on of course) as she was coming home from work . I go to the gym at 5:30, she comes home sometimes at that time (about once a week we catch each other) .
Anyway, we started talking one day (you know how it goes) and I helped bring her groceries up to her condo unit cause she had ten bags and being the gentleman that I am, I offered to carry them up for her cause it looked like she was struggling .. She then made this remark - "I ALWAYS see you with your hat on, whether it be a blue, white or black baseball cap" .. And I cooley and calmly replied - "well, thats cause you always catch me when I am headed to the gym" .. Well, she asked me for my number as I could tell she was interested in me ( the way she looked at me and acted it was obvious) , she said - "I dont know anyone in the building " even though she has lived here for a year.. I then said smoothly , "well , I am new here and don't know anyone either, so lets get to know each other" . She then said - " Sure" .
So, we exchanged numbers. I didnt call her first (gotta play it cool and right fellas, good to build mystery, women Love that) . She called me about 4 nights later and we hit it off for a good humorous 2 hour conversation .
Anyway, that original comment about her mentioning she always sees me in hats really irked me .. This was recently (as I just moved into the condo building 3 months ago and way after the initial avodart shed) .. So, what I did next was, I got dressed up and tried using my toppik and dermatch hands of art , unfortunately I could not emulate the look I had just 8 months earlier.. However, at the time I thought it "could pass" even though deep down I knew it couldn't with my temples so far receded back now ( the comb over technique I used last year is WORTHLESS now with no temple hairs to mask somewhat) .
Well, and I know this may sound a***, I went down at 5:30 acting like I was getting something out of my car as she arrived - yes, like I said I know it sounds a*** but you should see what a hottie she is ! Needless to say we proceeded to the elavator chatting and under the well lit small lobby, I could see her gazing up at my hairline a couple times checking me out..
We entered the elevator talking and I was crackin jokes, she's laughing etc , then we arrive at her floor ( as she lives below me) . She made a comment as she stepped out before the elevator doors closed saying - "You look a lot different without the hat" . She said it with a smile but I know what she meant..
Here I am, good looking face and women turn around to look at me wherever I go with a hat on backwards ( I also workout a heck of alot and am pretty ripped so to speak) .. I can approach just about any woman and start a conversation with a good chance at another meeting (with my honing conversational skills) with my baseball cap on backwards , of course .. Take the hat off and I look 10 years (or more) older , turning them off .. It's surreal how it happens .. And, it really hurts how my life is being robbed from me - like a rug being pulled out right underneath me (no pun intended)
That's it, I've had it... Dr. Armani please give me my sense of life back
April 28th, the quest to go back in time begins...
Thanks for all your posts of support . Even though you weren't directly supporting me over the past few months as I was just lurking, I felt a great deal of support from you folks even though you were supporting other follically impaired people.. Thanks.
Ok, had my initial consultation with Armani last Thursday , met him in his office after meeting with another guy that had it done 6 months ago (showed me his thin scar) . Armani seems like a caring guy, out for the best in his patients .
Today (Monday) I went in for a second time to pay my $2000 deposit as this is required to book a surgery date . Alexander is there to meet you for payment and he is also very well versed in the procedure - he was able to answer additional questions I had..
He gave me booklets on pre and post op preparations for the surgery - the basics like dont drink alcohol for 2 weeks prior etc. He also gave me a time to meet Dr Armani again one day before surgery which is the norm , I guess for final valuations and expectations - I like that as it will give me 30 or so days to plant down exactly what I want.
I am very happy I live only 15 minutes from Armani's office .. Hope this means he'll give me the BEST optimal result (crosses fingers) . Not that he doesn't to out of towners - not implying that .
I have decent coverage in zone 3 and on the crown have a bald spot about the size of a quarter (just 9 months ago it was the size of a dime, I'll say why later) . Considering my age, we thought it was best appropriate to build my hairline once again.. He will put in about 2900 grafts in zone one and an additional 1500 grafts in zone 2 which is the zone behind the hairline ( we discussed it will be between 4000 to 4500 grafts total).
I used Proscar for 5 years and kept pretty much the crown and the zones around it.. For YEARS I have had a comb-over in the front but I made it look very hip (in other words, not flat in the front but spiked up in some spots) , I used stuff like toppik shampoo, followed by toppik hair fattener, then toppik powder added with some dermatch for good measure.. I did this almost everyday for years, at least days that I did not go out with a hat (IE the Gym , I have never taken my hat off there) ..
I started avodart (dutasteride) 8 or 9 months ago because in zones 1 and 2 (zone 2 being the area behind the hairline before entering the top of the head) I had pretty good diffuse thinning .. I heard a story that avodart blocks more DHT receptors and is better than proscar, so I gave it a shot.
Needless to say, after starting avodart, my bed and pillow looked like a BEAR slept in it . The hair was EVERYWHERE .. I lost alot .. Despite what I heard some say here ( as I have been a lurker here for about 3 months) to keep at it after large Shedding sessions and to stay on course, I didn't listen and I have gone back to Proscar as of 2 months ago..
With that said, I looked like I DEFINITELY had a case of male pattern baldness Before going on avodart, I just did a terrific job concealing as I have become an expert over the years with toppik, dermatch and a couvre combination . I was so good at my technique over the years, that it would look like I planted 3000 grafts at the front of my scalp simply with concealers followed by a light cover of hairspray. But with my great temple recession over the last year, this technique is deemed worthless because I need some hair by the temples to mask it properly . Without it, it looks like total crap - it exposes WAY WAY too much skin at the part now to mask anything.....
You see, I have the face of a 25 to 27 year old , even though I am 34 . I am single and decided this is the time to get it done.. I want hair to match this face (not trying to sound egotistical whatsoever, but when I wear a hat backwords women always compliment me on my looks, saying I am extremely cute and look mid 20's yadda yadda yadda - I walk into a sportsbar with my hat on backwards in a bar of 10 women, and about 5 are gazing at me .).Well, luckily I work at home ( have a home business) because I do not go out as much as I did a mere 8 months ago .. Because of my drastic hairloss of course..
What really REALLY irked me was this beautiful 26 year old french teacher who lives in my condo building.. She parks next to me at my parking spot which is underground below the building.. Anyway, I always saw her as I was headed to the Gym (with my hat on of course) as she was coming home from work . I go to the gym at 5:30, she comes home sometimes at that time (about once a week we catch each other) .
Anyway, we started talking one day (you know how it goes) and I helped bring her groceries up to her condo unit cause she had ten bags and being the gentleman that I am, I offered to carry them up for her cause it looked like she was struggling .. She then made this remark - "I ALWAYS see you with your hat on, whether it be a blue, white or black baseball cap" .. And I cooley and calmly replied - "well, thats cause you always catch me when I am headed to the gym" .. Well, she asked me for my number as I could tell she was interested in me ( the way she looked at me and acted it was obvious) , she said - "I dont know anyone in the building " even though she has lived here for a year.. I then said smoothly , "well , I am new here and don't know anyone either, so lets get to know each other" . She then said - " Sure" .
So, we exchanged numbers. I didnt call her first (gotta play it cool and right fellas, good to build mystery, women Love that) . She called me about 4 nights later and we hit it off for a good humorous 2 hour conversation .
Anyway, that original comment about her mentioning she always sees me in hats really irked me .. This was recently (as I just moved into the condo building 3 months ago and way after the initial avodart shed) .. So, what I did next was, I got dressed up and tried using my toppik and dermatch hands of art , unfortunately I could not emulate the look I had just 8 months earlier.. However, at the time I thought it "could pass" even though deep down I knew it couldn't with my temples so far receded back now ( the comb over technique I used last year is WORTHLESS now with no temple hairs to mask somewhat) .
Well, and I know this may sound a***, I went down at 5:30 acting like I was getting something out of my car as she arrived - yes, like I said I know it sounds a*** but you should see what a hottie she is ! Needless to say we proceeded to the elavator chatting and under the well lit small lobby, I could see her gazing up at my hairline a couple times checking me out..
We entered the elevator talking and I was crackin jokes, she's laughing etc , then we arrive at her floor ( as she lives below me) . She made a comment as she stepped out before the elevator doors closed saying - "You look a lot different without the hat" . She said it with a smile but I know what she meant..
Here I am, good looking face and women turn around to look at me wherever I go with a hat on backwards ( I also workout a heck of alot and am pretty ripped so to speak) .. I can approach just about any woman and start a conversation with a good chance at another meeting (with my honing conversational skills) with my baseball cap on backwards , of course .. Take the hat off and I look 10 years (or more) older , turning them off .. It's surreal how it happens .. And, it really hurts how my life is being robbed from me - like a rug being pulled out right underneath me (no pun intended)
That's it, I've had it... Dr. Armani please give me my sense of life back
April 28th, the quest to go back in time begins...
Thanks for all your posts of support . Even though you weren't directly supporting me over the past few months as I was just lurking, I felt a great deal of support from you folks even though you were supporting other follically impaired people.. Thanks.
