Thinking about doing scalp micropigmentation and need advice.

[michaelryle007]

Hello, I am new on here but definitely not new to baldness. I am 30 years old and have been balding since I was 18, but it has become noticeable over the last few years. I have been reading the forums for quite some time now and have been thinking about scalp micropigmentation. The top of my head is pretty much gone, and typical Captain Picard type baldness. Hair color is black and I have olive skin, physically fit. I don't want to do rogaine and finasteride. Was thinking about a hair system, but seems like it's too much work for upkeep. The one that intrigues me is scalp micropigmentation and wanted to get some advice. I've heard both sides of the stories and wanted to get some more insight. Just looking to have my whole top done and I understand that it needs to be redone once in a while depending on lifestyle. In winter I buzz, and in summer I bick. Could any body shed some light on this? The good and the bad? I appreciate your help.

 

[zdm632]

I stronlgy advise for not doing it at some cheap/unknown company. They do horrible jobs most of the time.
An example:
http://forum.hishairclinic.com/topic/5912-blue-smp-from-phuket-hair-clinic-revive-hair-clinics/

 

[shookwun]

From what Iv'e seen they all typically look like tattoos rather then a shade, and outline of hair. Doesn't work well on caucasian men with pale pigmentation, but does work better on different ethnicities such as Africans, and Indians with darker skin.

 

[Wylie]

Look into Milena Lardi Temporary SMP. It's too risky to do permanent ink on someone of your Norwood level, but temporary will give you am "opt-out" if not happy.

 

[tkster95]

Hey man, I can relate. I'm 31 and a full blown NW7 similar to you. I started thinning in my early 20's but was pretty successful at hiding it with concealers till about 29. Once I lost it all at 29 I tried wearing a system for about a month but absolutely hated it. I've been bicking it for the last 6 months or so, trying to get comfortable with being a NW7 for the rest of my life, but not exactly thrilled with how it looks on me. I had given up hope until about 3 months ago when I saw an online ad for micropigmentation. I've been researching it ever since.

When I first thought about the idea of tattooing my head I figured it was crazy, but after seeing all the before and after videos and pics the idea is really starting to intrigue me. The his site mentioned above is filled with information and real life testimonials. I've seen 100's of pictures, on all different types of men, and it really seems to be a convincing illusion of hair. I've read a lot of threads posted by actual recipients of the treatment and the response is overwhelmingly positive. Honestly, I've never seen a hair loss "solution" boast such positive reviews. That's the only reason I'm considering it. I have not yet seen it in person (or at least I don't think I have) so I'm not 100% convinced yet. I plan on having a consultation and viewing it on multiple people in real life before I make a choice to do it or not. If you plan on doing it, defiantly check it out on multiple people to see if it is for you or not.

Being a NW7, I'm forced to shave every few days anyways. I've tried letting my hair grow out a bit, but it looks sloppy and unkempt after a week or so. Basically, if I want to look presentable, I have to shave every two days for the rest of my life. I just have to decide if I want to do that as a natural NW7, or as a guy with SMP who looks like he has a full head of hair and chooses to shave. From what I can gather, it really does look like a natural shaved head, you just have to get used to the idea that its not real and it will never grow. True the treatment doesn't look great on some people, but even in those cases it just about always looks better than having no hair at all. As long as you stay away from a super straight hair line, and super dense side profiles, it can look very convincing. I've seen a lot of pictures of people with the treatment; old, young, skinny, fat, ugly, good looking, whatever the case.. just something about the illusion of hair improves everyone's situation.

As someone else mentioned, go with a reputable company if you choose to have this done. Its something that you'll have to maintain a bit over the years so you want a company that will stand the test of time and have your back years down the road. It seems for the average person they will need a touch up every 5 or so years after the first set of treatments.

No one really knows what it will look like in 20, 30, 40 years from now and that can be a bit frightening to think about. Worst case scenario you can laser it off which seems to work most of the time. That or it should eventually fade on its own if you don't go for touch ups every 5 or so years.

I'm just curious why the topic of SMP isn't discussed more in the hair loss community. I feel like its shunned simply because of the stigmata of it being a "tattoo". Believe me, I can relate to that, but once you get past the "tattoo" thing, it really seems like a great option for those NW6's and 7's at the end of the hair loss road.

 

[shirleygoodness]

I agree

It's important to know that the scalp micropigmentation technician has been specifically trained to do this procedure! Don't go to a tattoo artist or a Permanent Makeup artist because although they may be expert at what they do, they need specialized training in order to do scalp tattoo!

Do your research well!

 

[Jdawgnw6]

My SMP

Rocking my SMP for a few months now and so far so good. I was a Norwood6 when i had it done. No one has ever called me out thinking something was off. It looks very natural and i can go 24-30 hours after a wet shave without anyone detecting a thing...Make sure though you use someone that has a good reputation in the SMP field. unk:

 

[I.D WALKER]

Great to hear you're satisfied with it and can still fly low beneath the radar of discriminative scrutiny.

 

[tkster95]

It's important to know that the scalp micropigmentation technician has been specifically trained to do this procedure! Don't go to a tattoo artist or a Permanent Makeup artist because although they may be expert at what they do, they need specialized training in order to do scalp tattoo!

Do your research well!

Good for you man. I'm still dragging my feet trying to make the decision to get it done. I wish I wasn't so indecisive about it, I should have gotten it months ago lol. What company and practitioner did your treatment? Have any picture you could share with us? Thanks.

 

[Stanley7]

Rocking my SMP for a few months now and so far so good. I was a Norwood6 when i had it done. No one has ever called me out thinking something was off. It looks very natural and i can go 24-30 hours after a wet shave without anyone detecting a thing...Make sure though you use someone that has a good reputation in the SMP field. unk:

That sounds pretty good. Would love to see your result. Could you post a pic or two please?

 

[youngtrep31]

That sounds pretty good. Would love to see your result. Could you post a pic or two please?

Hey Stanley, just completed mine at Scalp Micro USA with Matt. I posted pics in my other thread. highly recommend it if you are thinking of doing it. if you have questions im happy to help

 

[Hammer]

I actually really like the idea of this if I ever required it (I used to wonder if I could use a biro to draw dots on my head before I had heard of smp!)

However, what happens when your real side hair turns grey?

My other concern is how it would look if you were stuck somewhere for a few days without razor - although if you were in that situation you would probably have to have been in jail/kidnapped and would have bigger problems than how your head looked...

 

[torontostringer]

don't do this. I know someone who had it done and it looks unnatural.

 

[juno01]

This is a good one.

You can see the before and after video at Youtube under Jason micropigmentation.

 

[youngtrep31]

you go with the right person and i think its a big improvement. I met 3 clients who had the treatment and thats what convinced me, but yes ive seen some **** ones online. Do your research. Juno01 i like that one too but hes darker skin than me

 

[hayden88]

Did you go ahead with this?

Would love to see some after pictures