Dr Tejinder Bhatti - ~3500 grafts - Aug 2017

[alexanderchampagne]

Me:

Age 37. Hairloss started age 23. Thinned gradually into an NW4 pattern. Not that bad, but it was time to commit; buzzcut or an HT.

 

I had narrowed my choices down to Darling Buds, India or ASMED, Turkey. While the latter, Dr Erdogan, has the more eye-popping results - in the end I concluded he consumes an almost unethical amount of donor hair to get there. Dr Bhatti seems to produce a lot more from less. I'd rather have some donor hair left for the future, so I went with him.

 

 

HT:

So ~2900 ish grafts from donor area. Apparently my donor area wasn't as mighty as I thought it was because, at the clinic, Dr Bhatti said I was showing signs of thinning at the nape area of my neck too. Which restricts the safe area donor hair can be taken from obviously. Bugger. The remaining ~400 ish grafts were taken from my beard to beef up the donor placement I guess. This came as a bit of a shock if I'm honest but oh well. I was told I have enough for life-long coverage which was pleasant compensation.

 

General experience:

The clinic's UK rep (Shera, on this forum) is brilliant. Friendly, genuine and informative.

 

The clinic itself is a professional, if slightly cold, experience. I guess doing a hair transplant is a long, busy day for the team, but, a bit more bedside manner wouldn't go a miss. However the end result is what matters and the doctor is a clearly a master of his trade, you should feel confident in his hands.

 

The area of Chandigarh it's located is a bit of a nightmare, be prepared for a culture shock if you've never left the relative comfort of Europe/US. I'd highly recommend paying for the best hotel you can afford. I'd also recommend bringing a friend, doing it alone turned out to be unexpectedly daunting even for me (and I am an experienced solo traveller and mr confidence haha).

 

Post surgery notes:

I write this six weeks after the HT date. After 'shedding' most of the donor hair about a week or so later (and most of my native recipient-area hair) it's starting to grown in already which has come as a pleasant surprise. I thought it would take longer, although it's early days yet.

 

The tender pinkness has now mostly faded from donor and recipient area. Occasional donor itching in the morning, aloe vera helps.

 

I keep my hair buzzed to grade 1, it looks pretty cool already. Nice to have a hairline again, it really changes your appearance for the better. I wear a hat outside mostly to protect from the sun.

 

Btw - the beard donor area heals astoundingly fast; like one or two weeks and there is no trace of trauma there whatsoever. Interesting.

 

General notes on hairloss:

 

- Shave your head and get on with life if you can

- If you can't: get a hair transplant

- Stay away from hair loss forums

 

I might come back to post before & after pics in a few months if I remember.

 

Overall, I would recommend Darling Buds. A very experienced and ethical team with affordable pricing and a wealth of decent results. If anyone is considering this clinic feel free to ask me questions.

 

cheers

[TakingThePlunge]

Congratulations and thanks for taking the tim to share your experience. I hope you'll keep updating us on your progress. I'm sure you'll be thrilled with the outcome.

 

 

Happy Growing!

[Shera]

Hi AlexanderChampagne,

 

Thanks for sharing your experience and thanks for the glowing endorsement!

 

It's true what you say about the neighbouring area, it has become a little rundown in the past year or so but it is still very safe. Once a bustling hive of activity with shopping, cafes, bars, funfairs and street entertainers, Sector 17 has unfortunately become a pale image of its former self. The middle classes that flocked there in their droves have all but disappeared, enchanted by the glamour and pizzazz of the glitzy new Elante Mall. I think we've seen a similar thing happening here in the UK to town centres where shoppers have deserted them for the out of town mega complexes. That's progress for you I suppose, last one out, turn the lights out!

 

This hasn't gone un-noticed and Dr Bhatti will shortly be moving his Darling Buds Clinic to his own purpose built state of the art 5 Rivers Hospital, located in booming Sector 104 in nearby Mohali.

 

As for the culture shock, everybody experiences it on their first trip to India, it is a different world from any other. However once over this shock, most patients will venture out and enjoy the experience immensely and even be enlightened and humbled by whats on offer. I have some patients who are planning on visiting again venturing further afield this time to broaden their experience of India.

 

And, yes its always a massive bonus if you know someone there or are traveling with someone who knows the drill.

 

Anyway back to the transplant, I think your handling everything just fine. You've healed well and you seem to be a fast grower much like myself. It all sounds textbook thus far. As always, if you have any queries, you know I'm only a message away.

 

All the best for now mate, I'm really looking forward to seeing you progress.

Edited October 4, 2017 by Shera