Top view, 6, 9. 12 months

Not a huge amount of change in the last three months, but apparently it should keep thickening up for at least another six months. 

Some embarrassing "Before" photos

It's a bit cringey to look back to 2012 / 2013 when these photos were taken. I was developing the "island of hair" you see quite often. I used to keep it short because it looked better that way - imagine what I looked like when I needed a hair cut! We are our own worst critics, I'm definitely no exception. But looking at these photos makes me feel a lot happier about how my hair looks now. Even taking the step to tackling it is a big one, and I know I've still got a long way to go before I get to a point where I don't feel self-conscious about it. But it's great looking in the mirror and not being horrified!

The 'island' of hair

I also had a big gap at the front

It looked better short.

Taken on my phone, 12 months after

12 Month Post (almost!)

It's been a long year (technically five days before the one year mark), but a good one. I've probably said so before but we all think we're gonna be that guy whose hair grows in quickly and looks utterly transformed after six months. For me, because the number of grafts was pretty high I was expecting a good result. Of course I'm happy with it so far! But I still hope there is a bit more thickening to come - especially towards the back.

Anyway I'll let the photos speak for themselves. For a laugh, I'll dig out some old photos and upload them in another post. Quite funny looking back now and thinking what my hair looked like a year ago.

There's still quite a large thin patch covering the crown area, but there are longer hairs growing. I definitely think it's thickening - but gradually!

Happy with the front

All in all, a huge improvement on before! Looking forward to another few months of hair thickening. 

10 month - Follow-up visit to New Age Clinic

I'm just back from a few days in Istanbul and thought it was only right to visit the clinic for a follow-up appointment. Although Dr Ilker said he cannot really evaluate me properly until 12 months is up, he did have a look at my hair and could see the progress so far. Particularly when you look at the 'before' photos they took you can see the difference.

Mixed feelings about my visit; the surgeon told me I'm still losing hair from the middle third of my head which is a bit disappointing. He said to keep taking the propecia to slow it down, and encouraged me to give minoxidil another try (it has given me headaches and 'brain fog' before). I was also concerned that my scar is uneven but he said that it's pretty even all the way along and isn't abnormal (though not the least visible). Concerning the slower progress of the hair towards the back of my head, he explained that there is less blood-flow here which means hair takes longer to grow. Finally, if I want to go back in again I can do this any time after 1 year from the original procedure to concentrate on the vertex or clear up any other areas I'm unhappy with.

This photo doesn't really show the progress of the hairline, but does give a good indication of the result. 

9 Month top view (2)

this isn't the best picture but I feel like the top is thickening (slowly!)

9 Month comparison top view

Looks like my hair is thickening up slowly but surely. Although it's still pretty thin and you can see my scalp quite clearly on top, I think it is beginning to happen. I think I imagined by 9 months I would have a full head of hair but obviously still waiting for that point - now I'm prepared to wait at least one year or more for it to thicken up fully.

Here's a comparison shot showing the top view 6 months and 9 months after the procedure

8.5 Months (a week after a hair cut)

The 8 month mark came and went - still reasonably happy with the results so far but growth has not been quite as thick or quick as I expected. The back third of my head hair is growing, but it's taking longer than I thought it would. I keep telling myself it'll thicken up in time. I hope it will!

Overall I feel much more positive about my hair and the way it looks - in these pictures I feel it looks better than it does in the mirror! But then I'm usually under a light in the bathroom which is never flattering. At the least I don't think you can really tell from the donor area that hair has been taken from the back and sides.

Oblique view. If you zoom, you can see that the new hair still has some thickening up to do, but it's coming along. I'm happy with the angle of the hairline. 

Front view. I used to have a big gap right in the middle of my hairline. That's mostly gone although you can still see the hair is thinner (because it's all transplanted hair) under lights. 

View from the top - still thickening up (this is the bit I'm most anxious about) 

View from behind - hopefully when the top thickens this part will be less noticeable

Side view : can you see the strip scar?