Hi everyone,
I wanted to briefly share my experience in Istanbul with Dr Demirsoy and Armamed because other people's stories helped me to make a decision that I am (so far) extremely happy with.
Background
I am 27 and always had a really high hairline, even as a child. Around age 20-21 I noticed rapid hair loss around the temples and hairline. Over the next few years, my hairline stabilised and I haven't noticed any real changes in the last 3-4 years. No one in my extended family has anything past a Norwood 3.
I have experimented with buzzing and shaving my head completely and I wasn't happy with the overall look. I have been researching FUE procedures for years and had always come back to the idea every 6 months or so when I came across the topic online again or if someone made a comment on my appearance. I am aware that I could require a second procedure down the line but I will cross that bridge when I come to it. For now I will be taking Minoxidil but not Finasteride.
Why Armamed?
I did enormous amounts of research and cost/benefit analysis of dozens of different doctors across Europe and eventually narrowed it down to Armamed and another well known clinic in Istanbul. The other clinic quoted me 2800-3000 grafts which seemed excessive for my case. I have no desire to have a really low hairline. I never had this in my life and think it would look completely unnatural on me. I still was interested in going to the other clinic under the assumption that I would have input into the hairline design.
Overall it was a really close decision between the two options. The other clinic was a lot more expensive but the price was not the primary motivating factor for me. Now happened to be a great time for me to go. I had the spare cash and my current work situation means I can take time off whenever I like and I can easily conceal the fact that I underwent the procedure. Both clinics were fully booked so I would have to wait several months for either appointment. In the end I booked the procedure with the other clinic. A few weeks passed an I figured I had waited long enough and got in touch with Armamed again. They had a last minute cancellation two days later. That night I booked my flights and left the following day for Istanbul.
To summarise, my reasons for choosing Dr. Demirsoy were:
Results - I have seen some very impressive results from Demirsoy. I think Armamed almost undersells itself because until recently the photographs they produced of their procedures weren't as professional as other clinics.
Price - Great price in relations to other clinics producing similar results.
Ethics/communication - I first enquired with Armamed about a year ago and was initially rejected. The pictures I sent in mustn't have shown the full extent of my condition. Of the dozens of clinics I contacted, Dr Demirsoy was the only one who rejected me and to me this said a lot about his ethical approach compared to some of the HT farms out there.
Convenience - The timing suited me perfectly.
Overall Experience
I won't go into too much detail about the logistics of the whole thing as I think other threads covered that in great details but everything went really smoothly with regards to transfers, hotels etc. The hotel you stay in is lovely and the patient coordinator, Muzzaffer, is an absolute gent.
I will let the pictures do the talking as I think people are more likely just to browse through and look at them rather than reading a wall of text.
If anyone has any specific questions please just ask, I will do my best to respond.
Pictures
Online Consultation
Consultation
Hairline Design
Post Op