Hello everyone. Im new to this forum, and I found you all by searching for "hair restoration message boards."

I am a woman, I live in NYC, and I have been losing my hair since my early 20's. I am now "almost" 46 years old , and my hair loss is almost in the advanced stages where my scalp is becoming difficult to hide.

My hair loss I would say is mostly at the hair line and the crown, which I believe is typical for women (I might be wrong). I am not on any special shampoos to help stop my hair loss, but I have tried Rogaine and Nioxin in the past. Honestly, I never stayed on any of these products long enough to notice if it was working or not.

After much consideration about my options, I have decided I do not want to go through the rest of my life wearing a wig, or wearing a system that will probably only promote more hair loss. I want to find out more information about hair restoration.

I have read through Falcero's comments (thank you for sharing your experiences), and I think I am in the right place for help.

I am glad I found you all and this site. If you can give me any suggestions regarding:

1) why I should stay away from centers such as Bosleys for instance.
2) NYC area doctors I can visit to determine my degree of hair loss and what my options are.
3) Costs.

Thanks again for being here. I look forward to getting to know you all.

nyc-home

1 They are hairmills more worried about numbers then you ,and much more expensive for inferior results.
2 Feller ,Bernstein, True, Epstein. {all good}

3 the larger the session the better but between 3.50 -5 a graft.
For price and results I put Feller ahead of the pack, but your in good hands with the rest also

nyc-home, PGP gave you a great list of Docs. Just do a search on these forums and you will come up with gazillion of before/during/post HTs. All the mentioned doctors are TOP notch but I would have to agree with PGP, Feller would be on top my of list. He produces AWESOME results CONSISTENTLY.

PGP and HairDew, thank you so much for your responses. I have been perusing the posts here and Feller is the first on my list. I actually called up and tried to make an appt for a consultation, but unfortunately, he only does consultations from 12:00 to 3:00 during the work week. So I'll have to discuss a day to take off of work for my husband and I and go out to his office. I like the fact that he is somewhat agreesive with his procedures. If I can get one procedure to do the trick I'd be very very happy.

I am pretty sure that my hair loss is not over. I lose alot of hair every day, both when I run a comb through it and in the shower. How do the doctors deal with the hair that is still falling out?

Can you help me with that?

I also called Epstein, but he is only in NYC once or twice a month. I'll have to take time off of work to see him as well.

Im going to check with Dorin next and see if he has hours. What Im actually hoping to do is get a couple of appts for the same day, this way I wont have to miss work to much.

I see from some of the photos, it looks like the area that is being transplanted is shaved. Does that mean that if Im losing primarily in the front/bangs area, would the doc just shave that off and create a new hair line for me?

Or, does it all depend on what I actually want to achieve?

Eileen

One more question, *lol*, are there any women here?

quote:

3 the larger the session the better but between 3.50 -5 a graft.

PGP, what do you mean by 3.50 to 5 a graft, is that the amount of hair follicles per transplant? Not up on the logo yet. ;o)

Thanks!

Yes there are woman that are on here.
Its better to have the hair shaved but most docs can work around that.
I was referring to cost per graft

I've seen difference opinion on shaving your head vs not shaving...Some doctors prefer shaving while others do not.

I have met with Dr. Keen in Tucson AZ last Friday and asked her this very same question and her opinion was that it is NOT required. It takes a little longer to work around your existing hair but a quality HT surgeon will do just fine either way.

Her take on the whole thing was that she understands that some people cannot shave their heads and be like that for a few months so she will work around to make her patients be more comfortable when its all done.

NYC-home,

Welcome to our discussion forum. I'm glad that my personal experience and things I've written have been able to help you in your research to date. I think you will find that the members of this community quite helpful and full of knowledge.

Let me also suggest that if you haven't already to be SURE to get tested by a dermatologist to determine the reason for your hair loss. Though androgenetic alopecia (male and female pattern baldness) is the most common, it is very important for a woman to rule out other causes first.

For example, diffuse alopecia (characterized by thinning hair all over the scalp) can be caused by a thyroid condition, hormonal changes, an iron deficiency, some medications including anticoagulants and retinoids (including excess Vitamin A), scalp dermatitis, etc. Reversing hair loss is sometimes as simple as treating the condition causing it and hair transplantation would cause more problems than benefit in this case.

Traction alopecia (hair loss caused by excessive pulling or styling of the hair that sometimes causes scarring on the scalp) and alopecia areata (random bald patches on the scalp and body) are other forms of hair loss to be aware of.

Only once you know the cause can a proper treatment be recommended. For genetic hair loss, only Rogaine has been FDA approved for women to potentially treat baldness and stimulate hair regrowth.

In the NYC area, I encourage you to consider consulting with Coalition Surgeons in no particular order:

Dr. Feller
Dr. Epstein
Dr. True
Dr. Dorin
Dr. Rose
Dr. Bernstein

I hope this helps.

Best wishes,

Falc

nyc-home,
by just finding this forum you've gotten off to a great start. you can also do online consults with docs that are out-of-state. however, being new yorkers we are very fortunate to have one of the top ht docs in the world right here (feller).

one nyc doc to avoid is karamikian. he uses outdated technology that yields poor results.

regarding shaving the recipient area, it does help the doc avoid transecting any existing grafts so while it may be tough to do it is very beneficial.

quote:

Her take on the whole thing was that she understands that some people cannot shave their heads and be like that for a few months so she will work around to make her patients be more comfortable when its all done.

I am wondering because I have long hair and most of my hair loss is in the front/bangs area, so for me to shave my hair in the frontal area would look really scary *LOL*

[QUOTE]Traction alopecia (hair loss caused by excessive pulling or styling of the hair that sometimes causes scarring on the scalp) and alopecia areata (random bald patches on the scalp and body) are other forms of hair loss to be aware of.

** Hi Falc! I have been tested for thyroid and vitamin deficiencies in the past. All came back normal, but honestly, that was quite some years ago, and I am probably due for new testings.

I do believe that my hair loss is contributed to excess styling, pulling and dying. I do not have random bald patches, so its not that.

My father's side of the family, especially my father and aunt, are considerably thin, so between the excess styling, etc. and a bit of hereditary thining, I believe its that combo.

I always had fine/thin hair. When I was born my hair was so fine, my mother said when she would put a barrett in my hair it would just fall out. *LOL* Oh well, such is life.**


In the NYC area, I encourage you to consider consulting with Coalition Surgeons in no particular order:

Dr. Feller
Dr. Epstein
Dr. True
Dr. Dorin
Dr. Rose
Dr. Bernstein

** I have already contacted Feller. Im going to set up an appt to see him either sometime in June or August. I have been discussing my ideas with my husband and from the looks of things right now, I probably wont be able to have my first HT until probably early next year.

I have also contacted Epstein and they suggested that I take some photos of my head and forward them the doctor. He would then do a phone consult with me.

Im going to contact Dorin today and see what his schedule is like. Funny that the order you gave is the order I am going in.

I have tried rogaine in the past but did not use it long enough to see any results. Every time I tried it, there was that little clause on the box that said hair loss may occur for the first 6 weeks and that always scared the !#%$% out of me so I would stop.

I suppose I could give it another try, but I am so nervous about losing more hair. There is not that much hair to spare so I just continue the way im going.

I must admit that since I REALLY confronted this problem a few weeks ago, (after I had my hair colored I noticed a considerable thin-ness), I am feeling better and less nervous about this problem. Knowing it will be taken care of is a great relief.

I honestly cannot wait to have bangs again!!

Thank you for your help!

One more thing.....*LOL*

Just talking about it helps so much. I have been talking about my hair loss since my early 20's and nobody really believed me. In fact, 2007 and this year have been a turning point for me and my hair loss. 2007 I realized it was really getting to the point where there was not much hair left and I started thinking about alternatives. A few years before 2007 I grew what little bangs I had left out and I wear them on the side (hence, there are not to many bangs left), and I have to sort of wear a comb over. I read somewhere on the forum here, someone said "the sun and wind were his worst enemy." That is exactly how I feel.

I have bought wigs in the past but never wore them continually. I would rationalize my hair loss and think "its really not that bad...yet" I have also seen some hair systems on line and the thought of glueing, etc. just isn't for me. I even thought of buying 2 human hair wigs and just wearing them for the rest of my days, but I cannot imagine wearing a wig on a beach! I am a big beach person and the though of sitting on a beach with a wig on is just UGGH for me.

I am going to Vegas tomorrow, and I am really self conscious about how Im going to deal with the pool area this vacation. Im bringing a hat, and I figure when I come out of the pool, I'll comb my hair back and just plop the hat on my head. Im also worried about styling it, because no matter what I do, you can see right through the top when the light is really bright.

Anyway, just getting these feeling off my chest FINALLY, at a place where I know ya'll understand how Im feeling, is a great relief, and I am absolutely loving the encouragement and good wishes ya'll are sending me.

My husband has finally realized that the hair loss Ive been talking about since 1994 (thats when we met) is finally coming to fruition *LOL*

Thank you all again for your continued support an help, it means so much to me!

NYC

quote:

Originally posted by hairthere:
nyc-home,
by just finding this forum you've gotten off to a great start. you can also do online consults with docs that are out-of-state. however, being new yorkers we are very fortunate to have one of the top ht docs in the world right here (feller).

Hi Hairthere! I am going to do some legwork and checkout a few different docs, but honestly, I want to go to Feller. After seeing and hearing about his work, I kinda have a good feeling about him. When I meet him, I hope I have the same good feeling.

I am going to post a few pics of my head when I get home from Vegas. From the front, my hair would appear pretty normal but fine looking. But I will show you what is really happening on my head. *LOL*

NYC

NYC,

Well you have come to the right place for education and support. We can all relate to some degree on what you are going through. Hair loss really impacted my life for some time. And even though hair transplantation cannot restore a "full head of hair", I have a much improved look with full coverage and some density that makes me feel a lot better about myself. Without hair transplantation, I'd be completely bald now.

Just be sure that all other types of hair loss have been ruled out. I notice that you said"

quote:

I do believe that my hair loss is contributed to excess styling, pulling and dying

If you believe this is the problem, then you may very likely have traction alopecia. Stopping the hair pulling may help the hair regrow on its own.

I'd also encourage you to get re-tested to rule out any other possible conditions that may be contributing to your hair loss.

By the way, what does your hair loss pattern look like? Are you thinning only in some areas on top of the head? Are you thinning everywhere including the sides and back? Does your hair loss look like any of these on the ludwig scale or norwood scale?

Remember that there are no perfect solutions for hair loss, but options to exist to help treat it.

We are here to help.

Best wishes,

Falc