The clinic gave me a timeline. I understood it logically. But emotionally, I expected faster change. For weeks, nothing. Just redness. Then crusting. Then patches. I stared daily. Hoping for sprouts. Some hairs shed. I panicked. They said that was normal. Part of the process. Still, I feared failure. I had to learn patience. Real patience. Hair doesn’t rush. It returns quietly.
They showed me photos of men with worse hairlines than mine—who had great outcomes
At first, I thought mine was too far gone. My temples had receded hard. But the clinic showed photos. Real patients. Worse starting points. Better recoveries. That gave me perspective. Hairlines can be rebuilt. Not recreated—but rebuilt. I didn’t need teenage hair. I needed believable shape. They understood that. It made me trust their plan.
I didn’t know I’d look worse before I looked better
The swelling surprised me. My forehead ballooned. Then bruised. I wore a hat everywhere. Not from shame—but because I didn’t recognize myself. Friends asked if I’d hit something. I laughed it off. Then came shedding. A cruel stage. Everything fell. I looked balder than before. But they warned me. “Shock loss,” they said. It passes. And it did.
I didn’t expect the crown to grow slower than the front
After four months, my temples showed shadow. My crown didn’t. I thought something went wrong. But they said it’s normal. Crown takes longer. Blood flow. Hair density. Even angle of grafts. I had to wait. Again. Eight months in, the crown caught up. Now it blends better than expected.
The transplanted hairs felt coarse at first—like beard stubble on my scalp
New growth surprised me. The texture was different. Rough. Thick. Not soft. I worried. Was this permanent? They said no. Over time, it softens. Matches existing hair. It’s just new growth adapting. And they were right. At a year, it blends. Even in photos, I can’t tell.
I didn’t expect friends to notice until month seven
For months, no one said a thing. I thought maybe they noticed and stayed quiet. But then month seven came. Someone said, “You look younger.” Another asked if I changed shampoo. Subtle things. Then one said, “Did you do something with your hairline?” I smiled. Quiet confirmation. That’s when I knew it worked.
One guy at the clinic had his transplant done twice
He didn’t regret the first. It worked. But he wanted density. Coverage. So he returned. The first round set the foundation. The second filled it in. I hadn’t considered that. Thought one was enough. For many, it is. For others, touch-ups help. That made sense to me.
The donor area healed faster than I expected
I worried about the back. What if people saw it? But healing came quickly. Within a week, the area calmed. Redness faded. Hair masked the extraction. I had imagined bald patches. But they never came. The donor zone was smarter than I realized.
One guy shaved everything afterward and still looked natural
He didn’t want a styled look. Just uniform growth. He shaved everything. Short buzz. Even cut. Still, it looked natural. Even with short hair, the hairline held. No scars showed. I hadn’t thought that was possible. But he pulled it off. Proof the results weren’t just about volume—but design.
Another patient had dense hair but needed the front reshaped
He didn’t want more hair—just better framing. His temples were high. Forehead wide. He had plenty of volume everywhere else. So they filled just the front. Not for density. For shape. That changed everything. Small changes. Big difference. I hadn’t known that was an option.
I didn’t expect the redness to last as long as it did
For me, the redness stayed. Longer than others. Nearly two months. It didn’t hurt. Just looked flushed. Like sunburn. They said it varies. Some heal in weeks. Others need months. Skin tone. Sensitivity. Weather. It all mattered. But it faded. Slowly. Then all at once.
Not everyone gets their childhood hairline back—and that’s okay
My surgeon asked what I wanted. I showed a photo from age seventeen. He smiled. “We can mimic that,” he said. “But let’s stay age-appropriate.” I didn’t understand at first. But now I do. Youth isn’t always symmetry. It’s believability. I got that instead.
Source: Hair Transplantation in Dubai / Hair Transplantation in Abu Dhabi