Update after 10 months of wearing:

I'm still wearing the small partial, and have been happy of the results most of the time. At first it really was a life changing experience, and I was able to leave all the worrying and depression in my life behind when I started wearing. It seemed like I had my life back for the first time in years.

However, my existing hair behind the partial has been thinning all along. I have been using concealers for that, but now I'm again at a situation where the concealers don't do the trick any more. I'm again dropping into depression with my hairloss. This depression comes from the fact that I'm completely aware of my hair all the time. The style just doesn't work and I look like a complete idiot when there's a small wind etc. and the thinning hair behind my piece won't stay put. This limits my life a lot, and that's one of the worst things about hairloss - the way it can consume all your energy and stop you from living your life.

So here I am again in this forum, starting this quest of a bigger partial this time...I need to shave some of the thin hair off and try again with a bigger piece. Again I feel neurotic, but I'm also hopeful because of the good result I got last time. But of course I am also scared about the fact that maybe the bigger piece won't fit, maybe it won't look natural etc....but it's good to read this forum, and the experiences others have had since I was last here. Maybe it gives me the confidence that it's still possible to do something about this problem again, and stops me from locking myself inside and avoiding people.

Time to go make a template....