Did you get a HT for yourself?

[HairHunter]

Hi Guys,

Just wondering how many peoples decision to get a HT was influenced by other people making comments about their mpb?

The issue of MPB is such a taboo subject in society and there seems to be no understanding among the general public how MPB effects its victims especially younger people.

Sneering & Jeering seems to be socially acceptable by all in regards to MPB. Where on the other hand it wouldn't be acceptable to comment on a Womens Weight????

I would love to see a huge campaign organised to educate people on how mpb can effect a person mentally, as Im sure there are young men out there that have ended there lives over this issue. There are plenty of Bald Good Looking Successful Men in the World, its time for society to stop ridiculing young men especially about there MPB.

Women had the Big is Beautiful Campaign a few years ago, its time for the Men to have the Bald and Proud Campaign!!! So We can let the next generation of young MPBers to be able to live there life to the max, not stuck under a hat in a rare public appearance.

Dont let Hairloss take your Social Life!

 

[Sparky]

My decision to do this was entirely my own, nobody commented on any hairloss as I was at the most a NW1.5 when I first made this very big mistake.
Basically I had almost no loss, just a bit of very minor recession, but I wanted a straight "Hollywood" hairline.

Nobody else cares about your hairloss, and for the most part they won't comment on it unless you let them know that it bothers you. If someone says "haha you're losing you're hair!" and you say, "I Couldn't care less" then that will normally be the end of it.

It is a bit annoying that people deem it acceptable to comment on baldness though when it's not ok to tell someone that they are fat.

Good thread!

 

[Bigmac]

I was concerned about my crown and how it was thinning. I never knew there was anything I could do about it, then work colleagues would call me names which were upsetting.

Then one day I saw an ad in a newspaper and the rest is history.

So I would say I did it for myself but the name calling was a big influence on my decision.

Bm.

 

[zionaxel]

I said the same thing a few yrs back how it seems fairly ok to take the piss on hairloss but most other physical issues seem a taboo subject . I started loosing hair in my teens and got a lot of stick about it . So it most likely led to making a wrong decision . Time is a great healer though so that's why when I read about young people suffering from hairloss I just hope they don't make the same mistake i did .

 

[HairHunter]

one of the biggest problem with people taking the piss is it rushes younger lads to rush into something head 1st without doing the required extensive research! All it takes is an advert in the corner of a newspaper and all of a sudden things are even worse for them, 1000's spent, big smiley to the rear and scattered hedgehog effect on top.
I would love to see Wayne Rooney do a proper interview about his whole experience, I know he took a good bit of stick b4 his HT.

 

[Sparky]

It was an ad in the back of FHM for me, around 1998.

 

[janna]

HairHunter wrote:

its time for the Men to have the Bald and Proud Campaign!!!

This is a great idea........love it!

I've asked the same question (topic title) to many of our patients and most say they are doing it for themselves. But you know that society plays a big factor. However, many like the fact that it makes them look younger when all is said and done.

 

[zionaxel]

Surely a Bald and Proud campaign would not sit to well with clinics? They need us to be insecure otherwise they would have no patients. As long as we feel bad about our hairloss it keeps them in business. But i agree totally it should be something that we should not be ashamed of..

 

[zionaxel]

Sparky wrote:

It was an ad in the back of FHM for me, around 1998.

Amazing how an ad in a magazine can change your life, same with me..Flap sounded so good at the time..

 

[HairHunter]

I would like to think that the good clinics will only work on patients who are well educated on HT's and well researched. No pressure sales at consultations just planning and educating the potential patient.
There are some great clinics out there, especially on this forum. Answering questions, giving advise even some go as far as to help victims with repair or people who have been in accidents.

These are the clinics we need to point younger people, who have researched and decided a HT is the way for them. Not well advertised clinic waiting to pounce on someones insecurities.

A HT should be an option for a young MPBers but not the only Option!

I personally think We should recommend younger MPBers shave their heads at least once before deciding to go for a HT. I would guess that probably at least 1 in 10 would probably grow to like the look after the initial shock.

 

[sl]

Just my 2 cents,

As a advisor for BHR I think I can say we don't have a problem either way regards to someone having a HT, I know we regularly say no to people and try to help them get on with their lives and be happy, on the other hand there is nothing wrong with having a HT. It's a really good topic and asks many questions, for me I didn't pull the trigger until my late 30's and have to say I have no regrets, but that is me and for many it is bad idea.

Losing hair has been going on as far back as we have, it's sad their is a stigma about it but that is reality, is it important, well yes and no, getting it into perspective is more important and trying to ask why you want to do something about it is very important.

I went from a patient to advisor, I can't say I was not surprised and learnt a lot from the change; I love what I do and there is nothing better than someone saying how you have helped them and improve their life. The other side is when you meet non candidates and have to tell them all they dreamed about can't happen, or worse maybe a repair patient, part of you says it could have been you, there go I but for the grace of God .

A good forum like this I am sure helps many people and should continue, it's through talking that helps, education and understanding helps, and knowing others feel the same as you helps.

All the best to everyone.

 

[HairHunter]

"A good forum like this I am sure helps many people and should continue, it's through talking that helps, education and understanding helps, and knowing others feel the same as you helps."

Couldn't agree more. Nail on the Head Statement.

Stephen, how often do you get patients in for consultation who have no idea about what is involved in a HT, no concept of Donor Limitation, Techniques, Cost etc.?

 

[sl]

For a consultation, we try hard prior to even booking an appoinment to educate the person where needed.

It is important by the time of the consultation that they have a good understanding of the basics and also pros and cons of surgery types. An initial pictorial assessment is done and preliminary questions then answered.

The doctor's time is precious as he will have a patient in the op room, but also we want to ensure enough time for the consultation to get all the information out there and answer any questions. So it is important that the consultation concentrates on the individual, donor hair, design, future, goals etc and not having to literally "teach" the person the difference between Strip or FUE, or what a graft is for example. This doesn't help anyone and can all be done before, so it's safe to say that really all our consultations are well hair educated by the time they come.

 

[topccat29]

Speaking just as a patient and poster for a very, very long time I would have to say the amount of patients that are completely clueless about hair transplants and the industry seems to be very high and most of them are in the 20-30 age group. I would like to think that if I had access to the same amount of information26 years ago I would have made a much better decision but judging from some of the responses I sometimes receive I m not so sure. Maybe I would have been just as flippant in my attitude.

I just got a response the other day that I was just some bitter old man, these young guys just don t get it sometimes. The reality of greed and what people will do to climb the financial ladder is very harsh and if they are just one of the rungs someone needs to step on so be it. That s not bitterness that s just speaking reality and something that these young guys really need to understand as that is at the heart of the dark side of this industry as well as many others.

The good clinics with exceptional skill, ethics and patient care are out there but they are not always easy to find and for every young guy that they turn away because he is not a good candidate there is always someone out there lurking in the shadows with promises of making their hopes a reality.

Oh, and I intially started to consider a hair transplant after a relative made an offhand comment. It's amazing how much we can sometimes be affected by what others think about us at that age. I guess it would be similar to women and boob jobs. I can just imagine how hard that would be for a woman to bear over time.

 

[zionaxel]

The person I feel most bitter towards is myself , in the early 90s we didn't have this info but maybe I should of handled hairloss better than I did . Even though you try and do the hard man routine like you don't give a shit to hairloss comments they can really get to you when you are in your late teens or early 20s . If someone called me spam head or baldy now I'm in my 40s I would most likely laugh at them . Different matter though if someone would laugh and take the piss because you look like a freak due to a bad hair transplant .
The information to find a good doctor is there and you will find it on this forum, but I also feel the forum should also be a place that people who suffer hairloss at a early age can find a place for support and to realize they are not alone and that hairloss is not the end of the world and that there are more options to live with mpb than surgery .

As it is hairlossexperience after all .

 

[sl]

Hi Topcat,

Would like to say you are wrong but I can`t, we have seen people we have turned away later posting their surgery op and with the greatest regret you know it's going to end in tears and as such, they will be you in ten years, but now there is no telling them, although now there is so much info about, the power of hair takes over.

I know you have said before it happens in many areas of life and business, probably always will; but that should not stop people from trying to help and educate, one saved is better than one not.

 

[topccat29]

SL, yes I agree and I suppose those that do listen don`t necessarily respond and especially with the bitter old man comments. Many don`t realize my criticism is just as harsh in many other areas outside of hair transplants but it`s only in effort to help others with what I do know as I do too much of that fancy book reading... I guess in my own past I always learned the most from those who actually had experience and told me to just shut up and listen when I thought I knew what I was talking about, so it is a style I respect.

Countless young guys come up to me in the gym and ask me for advice and when I tell them most of what they see in these ad magazines is simply marketing bullsh*t they listen but they always go back to what they were doing thinking the answer is in the magic pill or powder. Same with women who have all these questions about losing weight they always go back to whatever is being marketed and always fail. They don`t grasp the concept that you need to understand so much outside the subject at hand that doesn`t seem to be related but in fact is such as psychology, marketing, etc. But I always keep trying.

Zion, I also agree with your comment. The forums should be for support for those that just need support and not necessarily a hair transplant. I think if we get down to the crux of the matter here having hair at a young age is about passing your genes on which is the most basic instinct and that fear of not being able to which most are not even conscious of can be a very strong driving force. Once you realize that hair is not as important as you think in relation to other essential aspects of being a male then maybe those suffering from hair loss can get past it. But you need to understand it first and that requires reading which most will not do as they are under the hypnotic spell of marketing. Only so much can be learned on the internet, texting, or FB sometimes you just have to pick up a book.

 

[hatti]

I had a transplant several years ago, I lost the frontal third of my hairline, this appearance did not suit my face, made me look older, this depressed me, so I had a hair transplant to restore my youthful looks.

I did this for my own self esteem, I have not regretted the decision one bit, I feel and look so much better.

 

[TOMMYTWO]

Definately did it for myself. The way hairloss made me feel about myself drove me to get a HT not the comments of others, Although i did recieve comments from people and still do but it doesnt really bother me anymore, probably because i know there is a solution out there when done with the right clinic/Dr

 

[MPBsucks1234]

I did it purely for myself.