JST07

Hi Everyone, 

Thought I would add some update pictures. 

These are from Day 6. 

I will add more pictures once I have removed the scabs in the recipient area. 

Cheers, 

I paid for room service with my credit card and just had enough cash for tips. 

2000 lira seems a bit excessive. But you can always change it back in the airport? 

I only had Euros on me, and the room service staff / taxi staff were happy to accept tips in euros...

Hi All, 

I had written a previous post explaining the generic stuff about my situation as a pre-amble to my surgery, see link below for the context: 

I had the surgery on 23 November 2020 and the below is my initial feedback /review. 

Organisation:

Muzaffer, Dr Demirsoy's assistant, is the point man for the entire process. I cannot stress enough how much it helps to have a single point of contact for everything from hotel bookings to explaining post op care. He's a great guy and shows a keen interest in your wellbeing. I don't have experience of how other operations are run - but the Armamed process is certainly very smooth and well organised. 

Surgery: 

Dr Demirsoy originally suggested 3500-3800 grafts when I sent in photos a few months ago. However, on closer inspection of the thinning areas and due to selecting a conservative hairline (see pictures below) we landed up with only 3007 grafts. I am happy with the lower number of grafts, there will be plenty left over for another surgery if/when needed. Dr Demirsoy said that I should be good for another 2500/3000 grafts in donor capacity before compromising the donor sight. 🙂 

Local anesthetic injections are not pleasant, but really aren't too bad. I didn't experience any pain during the procedure. 

I didn't get an average hair count per graft, but Dr Demirsoy said that there were mostly doubles and triples, with a few quads.

Dr Demirsoy extracted the grafts himself, using a 0.85mm motorized punch. He also makes off the the incisions for the recipient area. His three nurses then place the grafts after a quick lunch. The whole process took from about 8:30-16:30 (including pre-op planning etc.) 

One thing I hadn't read else where and found quite interesting is how your head actually feels post op. It feels like you are wearing a child size helmet, which is a bit disorientating, but not painful.  

I think what everyone is after, at least initially is the photographic evidence, so please see below some of the pictures taken by the team:

Planning:  

Shaved post planning:  

Immediately post op:  

Day 1 post op:  

I am happy to answer any questions here or with a PM. 

So far I am really happy with the experience. I will continue to post on a weekly/ monthly basis. 

Cheers. 

@MagnificentAl thanks! I have never seen someone mention ice packs, but that makes sense! 

Hi All, 

Long time lurker. I've been looking into getting a hair transplant for a few (3/4) years. I've been on the fence for a while, previously I could get by with concealers. But to be honest I am tired of having to go through the process of applying the concealers in so much detail. It makes life very restrictive. (I loved the rain as a child, now not so much. 😅)

Some basic details about me

1. Age - 29 (30 in Feb)

2. Medication - Finasteride 3 times weekly for the last 2.5 years. (I actually started when I was 25, took it for a year and stopped for about a year. That was a mistake! Lost a lot of ground in that year of not taking.) And 2.5m oral minox for the last 5 months. No sides on either that are worth mentioning. Also micro needle occasionally - but I am not very good with sticking to a schedule on this one. 

3. Thin dark brown hair, I have always had a high hairline, classic NW2 pattern since about 17. However, of late the temple recession has deepened and the midscalp/crown have thinned out pretty aggressively. Fin and min seem to be holding this steady and I haven't lost much ground since restarting fin 2.5 years ago, and the oral min appears to be helping but 5 months is a bit sort to be 100% certain. 

4. Family genetics are a bit mixed - with only 1 NW7 in the immediate family of 7 men (grandparents, dad, uncles and brother) - Dad has a thinned out NW4 at 67 years old. 

What do I want to achieve?

I am not aiming to lower the hair line at all. I'd like to close off the temple points and add density to the midscalp and crown to a point where a full on combover isn't needed to conceal scalp. I would be happy with a NW2 "mature" hairline - but would like a decent amount of density behind that. I don't mind needing to add a bit of concealer down the line to "thicken" it up for certain occasions - but would be really happy if it wasn't a daily need. (Damn that stuff is such a crutch when you get hooked). 

I sent pictures through to various clinics and they all come back with a similar range of 3500 - 3800 grafts. I would like to try get on the upper end of this target if possible. But I will leave that to the discretion of the surgeon. (See below) 

I fully appreciate that I may need a second transplant down the line. This is an unavoidable reality in my case. 

Choice of surgeon

I am not papa Elon - and I live in a developing country (Euros are expensive) - so affordability is a factor here. To this end, after lots of research, I have booked a slot with Dr Demirosy (Armamed) on the 23rd of November. I found that in terms of surgeon involvement to price factor - he is the best value for money. And from the reviews on this forum and others - I am comfortable that I am in safe hands. 

Pictures: 

Left side profile: 

 Right side profile: 

Wet slick back of midscalp and crown: 

Damp midscalp: 

Harsh bathroom lighting:

I will do my best to keep this thread going. I cannot thank the other forum contributors enough, without having seen / read about the others experiences I would definitely not be in a position to have made the choice to go ahead with this. 

Wish me luck!