Microneedling should have a needle length of 1.25mm and the highest number of needles, like Dr. Pen’s system, with 36 needles. Keep the microneedling in the same place for 10 seconds. Move from place to place until you covered the area. Do this once a week. The purpose of the depth and the frequency is to produce a healing cascade from the microneedling wounds. This stimulates the stem cells close to the scalp surface and along the upper part of the hair shaft. They are located between 1-1.5 mm from the scalp surface with a good population of stem cells just under the sebaceous gland of the hair shaft.

I have seen microneedling reverse what we often think is irreversible hair loss.  It is worth trying. 

I never considered that fin could make the individual hair follicles thinner. (Can it?) I’ve noticed after the one month mark that the density of my hair has gone drastically down.

Finasteride doesn’t cause hair follicles to become thinner. Finasteride will help reverse miniaturized hair to become thicker. If you believe to the contrary, purchase a micrometer from Amazon (only $22) and measure your hair thickness. This is the one I use: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09964YBMF?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1

Cannabis and THC may have an effect on reducing the effectiveness of anesthetics used in hair transplants and other anesthetic procedures. This observation has been made by many hair transplant surgeons and substantiated by Anesthesiologists and the peer-reviewed article below.

A review of the anesthetic implications of marijuana use

So the biggest issue with going to a hair mill is that you dont know who the doctor will be? It’s just some random technician?
byu/SunilaP inHairTransplants

“I have a friend who went to NOW HAIR CLINIC, loved his results. But the more I google them I see a lot of negative reviews. I understand this is a hair mill clinic, you basically roll the dice. There is a chance you will get an amazing result or a bad one.

But this search is stressing me out. I dont think I can spend over $4,000 USD. I’ve gotten several consultations, many of these clinics said I need 3500-4000 grafts.

Can someone please just list out the top three choices in Turkey. I am coming from USA”.

It is more than just picking a clinic, possibly without or without a doctor. Even many of the doctors in Turkey and even many in the US, don’t know much more than to perform an FUE and stick the hairs in the recipient area. They always seem to quote too many grafts, showing no respect for the donor area reserves in the real case of failing to achieve your objectives. Also, understanding donor reserves addresses the likely progressive balding that occurs in every balding man. I visit clinics often, and I am amazed at what I see; failures to understand quality control mean poor graft survival and poor training that seems evident everywhere; placing the grafts in the wrong direction is more common than I imagined and finding in clinics everywhere by doctors or technicians who make the site’s produce poor directional control. I can continue, but more of these comments will not help you. Go to a really good doctor in the US and see what a good consultation is about and how it prepares you for a personalized Master Plan for now and your future hair loss. You ended your comment by asking for 3 recommendations, but I doubt any three recommendations will solve your problem.

I am scheduled for an upcoming hair transplant, and I am worried about having Diffuse Unpatterned Alopecia (DUPA).  The surgeon didn’t understand when I asked him about DUPA in my donor area, and I don’t want to go forward if I have DUPA.  Please help me with the diagnosis.  Here are four pictures from my donor area.  

The first picture qualifies for DUPA as there are many hypopigmented hairs in the field of view. The other photos show a much more straightforward case of DUPA.  I define DUPA as miniaturization over 20% of the hairs in the donor area.  The third photo shows well over 20% miniaturized hair, which you can count easily.  I would want a more extensive evaluation of the donor area before tackling a hair transplant, but what is here strongly suggests DUPA. He met face-to-face with three doctors before speaking with me by phone.  Shame on the doctor for (1) not understanding his concerns about DUPA, (2) not listening to his concerns, and (3) not making the diagnosis when he was before them.  Some doctors just do this for the money and really don’t care what happens to these patients after the surgery.  I tell the patient to ask himself the question: “Is this a doctor you trust?” This is a critical question everyone should ask before allowing them to work on their scalp.

I outlined in a circle (the third picture is the same photo as #2) with arrows and circles showing the hairs in the field that I think are miniaturized.  As this is part of the donor area, it would worry me a great deal if a hair transplant was on the agenda unless, that is, a better and more comprehensive assessment of the donor area is performed. Click on the photo to enlarge it. 

Dr. Robert Bernstein and I discussed DUPA and concluded that Finasteride works in most men to some degree.  It is worth trying this for a year and then reassessing the patient’s situation as having great before pictures is invaluable.  

I’m 25M  I made a post a long time ago talking about my nonfin hair loss stack.  It was actually working decently well for me but I got tired of using so many topicals so I just switched to Fin + min only. Ive been on that stack for about 6-8 months now. I don’t have a before or after because there’s been no drastic changes really. I’m maintaining but I’m way more carefree about my hair now. I used to not style it for years or blow dry it because I was scared it would make me lose hair faster. I was trying to change my lifestyle & do things like avoid coffee to try to slow or stop my hair loss

Now I just take my fin & do what I want with my hair. I actually style it when I go out now and I like how I look. I still have my insecurities but fin has definitely helped. I love the drug. It’s given me more confidence and that’s all I could ask for.  I do have some side effect, which are quite manageable.  The are: 1) Watery semen (by a little), 2) Nipple sensitivity, 3) I had an increase in sex drive at the start, slight decrease in sex drive now but I’m also cutting weight so that could be a contributing factor

This is not an atypical story.  Most men with good results, just don’t talk about it, but bad results is like the news, everyone wants to hear about bad results from medications or even hair transplants. 

I (F27) have recently moved to UK . I don’t know if it’s the weather change or the water but I am losing a lot of hair. The wash days are an absolute nightmare. If this continues I believe I might go bald. If any kind soul here can suggest what can I bring in my hair routine to stop this severe hair fall and promote regrowth. I want to avoid surgery or transplant as much as possible.

What you describe is stress and stress hair loss can produce a telogen effluvium, reversible over time in most young females. You should see a dermatologist to manage your hair loss.