Over a period of just a few years during my late-20's to early-30's, I went from people guessing that I was several years younger than my age to everyone assuming that I was five or more years older!  I first heard about hair transplants a few years ago through some infomercials, so I decided to visit a couple of hair-transplant facilities.  I was impressed but skeptical about the possibilities, and I put the idea on the back burner for a while.  In the Fall of 2003, I began to research the topic once again.  This time, I checked the internet for available information.  Surprisingly, there was a wealth of information online that was not available just a couple of years ago.  Many web sites document good doctors' work and offer recommendations.  Anyone who is contemplating having a hair transplant needs to do his research.  This is a cosmetic surgery; therefore, there are some very shady practices out there, and the last thing that you want to end up doing is hacking up your head.   I spent a significant amount of time researching hair-transplant procedures.  This included taking notes because you can quickly become overwhelmed with all of the information available online, and you begin to forget exactly what facts you've already read about and on which web sites the facts were stated.  In addition, I consulted -- either in person, by phone, or via e-mail -- with several hair-transplant surgeons from across the U.S. and Canada.  Do not limit yourself geographically in having this done.  Most often, the best and even the less-expensive surgeons are not located right near you.  Moreover, I spoke and even met with several people who had hair transplants over the past few years.  I contacted some of these people through hair-transplant web-site discussion forums.  Also, most surgeons will provide you with lists of referrals.

I finally decided to have the procedure done, and I scheduled it for March 29, 2004 with Dr. Wolf in Cincinnati, OH.  First, I was given some pain pills and a few shots of local anesthetic.  Then I was ready for the surgery to begin!  A strip was cut from my scalp along the back of my head, which will leave a fine scar.  This strip, containing hair that is genetically programmed not to recede or fall out later in life, was cut by technicians into individual hair follicles.  Meanwhile, the doctor sutured the strip along the back of my head.  Next, tiny slits were made in my forehead region to hold the individual hairs, and then the doctor and his technicians carefully placed the hairs into the slits.  I felt almost no pain whatsoever during the cutting and suturing of the strip on the back of my head, but, during the portion of the procedure on the front of my head, I felt a sensation of wearing a tight helmet.  The surgery lasted for about ten hours.  However, there was a lot of down time for me while the technicians were microscopically dissecting my strip of hair.  I ended up receiving about 2,000 FU's (follicular units) spread over the frontal 2/3 of my forehead.  The few days following surgery, my head was quite sore, and I also experienced some fairly intense swelling around my forehead and eyes on about 2-4 days post-op.

Update as of November 2009:  It's been quite a while since I've made an update to this site.  After about a year post-op, all new hair growth was complete, so there were no further changes to show.  However, the hair has continued to become slightly thicker and stronger over time.  I notice the biggest difference in this thickness when I get a haircut.  After the first year, it almost felt like my transplanted hairs were going to be pulled right out of my head whenever I got a haircut.  The hairs now feel no different than all of the others when they are tugged.  Also, the numbness in the transplanted region of my head took about 1.5 years to completely subside.  Six months is typical from what I've read, but this is one of those things that depends on the individual.

Please check out these two web sites if you're interested in hair transplantations.  They contain some valuable discussion forums, and I considered them to be the best during my research.