Hair growing back thin/less dense after hairline lowering surgery?

I had a hairline lowering procedure in early January. I experienced a fair amount of shock loss along my hairline and incisions. It's been 4 months and hair started growing back, but it looks thin and sparse. Is this normal at first? Also, if I was to need a hair transplant can they do it without shaving anything? This process is grueling, I'm tired of wearing a scarf all the time and I imagine a transplant will take an additional year to recover from.