anxious about hair transplant after 24 years

[steve7]

 Newbie

 Posts: 1
 Joined: 10/14/2013
    Hi -I live in uk and I had a small hair transplant by old plug method back in 1989-90 when I was 34 years old. I couldnt face the prospect of a vast bald dome so I had the HT done at a reputable clinic in London.
 It wasnt a disaster and in many ways I benefitted from it. I insisted that the hairline was unusually high up so it has a sort of receding look. And I only had a 5 0r 6 rows done so I still had a big bald patch behind. By giving myself some hair on top I acquired some confidence.
 But it was very thin and I had use hair thickener spray. The sides have gone down slightly but it looks ok from front. I have however recently become very conscious of how it looks on top especially the plugs in neat rows look which looks bad from the top (but only to someone whom takes a close look from that angle). I am angsting about it quite a lot recently which is odd after so many years.
 My options are : continue as before. I'm 58 now, who cares if people notice. Or shave it all off but problem there is of course the little plug scars on top the head and the little growths of hair each day which emphasise the pattern. Also the sides are dark brown going grey. If I use dark brown thickener it will be a slightly different colour to sides (unles I use grey remover), but if I use grey thickener it will also be more grey than sides.
 At end of day I was young and suicidal because I was losing my hair and for many years the partial HT came me confidence and made me happy. Now I am being anxious. What advice would you give me?

[slymyke]

who cares

Hi Steve, and Welcome!   I took one small quote from your text.   You said "who cares".... I think you answered your own question.  Your anxiety can be solved with your own thought.   In your context, you were referring to "who cares" if people could see your current situation with continued MPB and a few rows of HT.  Why not apply that same thought to shaving it all off and having just a few small scars (that others will not notice unless they are looking for them).   I think that would be easier than worrying about matching the color of remaining hairs on your head, or worrying about the randomness of their placement and growth patterns.  

I think the liberation will SOOO outweigh ANY possible scenario your mind can create.  

[geeman]

I used hair thickener years ago when I started going thin, worst decision, best decision I made was shaving....no more hiding, no more worry, the relief was huge, no one cared that i shaved, and why would they? A few people said "wow you've shaved your head" that was it. Seriously Steve, you won't regret not having to hide, or worry about someone finding out your secret, or not going somewhere because of your "hair" my life rocks now, my confidence is sky high, and I look gooood...... Do it....and enjoy the feeling of "why did I wait so long"

[Marshal S.]

I think the scarring you may have can be covered by something like DermaBlend.  It is the same cover people with burn scars use.  I'm not sure how big an issue that might be for you, but just to know, there are options.

[Baldstu]

I have seen thison a guy who is well into his 60s .lookslike bad scarring .a plastic sugeon job maybe

[Cave Dweller]

Hey, Steve.

So, it sounds like you are having MPB Round II. Ouch.

The fact that you are worrying about the thinning and how the HT rows now look tells me that YOU care if people notice.  Hey, if most of us on this board didn't care at least somewhat about how we looked, we would be sporting horseshoes and a few other MPB patterns.

If you choose to shave, the plugs probably will show a little like the shadow most of us who shave have where our follicles are. That is one of the reasons a lot of us shave daily as it lessens that shadow. As your scalp tans, the shadow fades as there is less contrast between the skin tone and darker hair.

I am of the opinion that if you are interested in how you will look smooth, the only way to find out is to shave. Then wait the thirty days to adjust to the look and determine if you want to stay that way. If you don't, grow it back. You will be in the same position you are now.

I can say for myself that my only regret in going Sly is that I waited so long to do it.

Welcome!

[chgobuzzbald]

I had the same problem and found HIS Hair from Birmingham UK. PM me for details but look closely at my profile pic. I no longer have that problem you described and am very happy.

[Sir Harry]

Welcome and good luck with whatever you decide to do.