My 2295 FUE at the Hairpalace, Budapest

[NickC]

Hi,

 

I just want to tell my story about my Hair transplant journey that i'm on at the moment. I know how much other peoples stories have helped me understand the process and the emotion involved. I can’t thank this forum and its contributors enough. Without it I seriously dont know if I would have had the courage and knowledge to actually go through with it. If this story helps just one person, then I will be thrilled.

 

Im a 44 year old male who lives in the UK and who has probably been losing his hair, albeit slowly since I was about 18/20 years old. When I got into my mid 30s I had to cut it shorter and shorter until just the last 3/4 years buzzed it down to a number 1 all over.

I have hated losing my hair and always looked in envy at all the people in the papers and TV who had had hair transplants but not knowing anybody personally that have had the proceedure, I just didn’t know which way to turn for help. With having a family, 2 kids, we’ve always had other things to spend the money on together, but this year I decided to bite the bullet and actually tell my wife that I really want this. Its really affected my confidence over the last 10 years I would say but I just haven’t had the guts to actually have a conversation about it. It was a big decision for me.

 

 

I did my homework and contacted a few HT Clinics, here and abroad. I saw a few stories on another forum about the HairPalace in Budapest and it made me look a little bit closer at them along with others. I contacted forum members for more info along with a couple of people who left telephone numbers on trust pilot about their procedures and Facebook review members. They all came back to me and said the same thing. They couldn’t recommend them enough.

Having been for a few consultations in Manchester, I compared prices, quality, ideas and more importantly reviews and came to the conclusion that I would take the plunge and travel to Budapest. All the clinics basically said the same thing. I would need two HT’s over a couple of years to fully cover what I needed and the front hairline would be the starting point. Now price wasn’t the main factor because I could have got it cheaper in Turkey or even India but I won’t lie, it did have a sway along with the votes of confidence and budapest is a nice place to visit.

 

So basically, i signed up for the 6000 hair FUE, got the tickets, made my plans with them and flew out, 28th January. I was met at the airport as arranged by their driver and taken to what seemed like a brand new apartment. It was really nice. It was quite close to a shopping centre so I made sure I bought all the food I needed, frozen pizzas, water etc for the days ahead.

 

I was picked up again, as promised by the same driver at 8.00am in the morning and driver, along with a French customer to the blood clinic. I could have got this done in the UK but it had to be done three weeks in advance of the procedure and I didn’t have enough of a timescale and for ?129 including an extra night, I didn’t think it was too bad. The rest of the day from 9.00am onwards was just sightseeing.

 

The day of the HT was a bit nervy at first, but the clinic and the staff were all lovely. Paperwork signed, money handed over, drugs taken and lunch ordered, I was taken for photographs, my hair shaved and then photos again.I was then lead into the operating room and lay, face down on a bed and had the injections on the back of my head. Again I won’t lie, they weren’t pleasant. Doctor Ljuba Zsolnai tried to numb the area with ice first just to take the sting away but you can feel the first few and there were lots. Once the head starts to numb you dont really feel the rest but on a pain scale I would say a 4/10. Once the injections were out of the way she got the motorised punch out and made quite a few incisions at a time and then the other two assistants came over and helped the doctor remove them. Then she would repeat the process over and over for the rest of the morning.

We had a good chat about the hairline and she kept making slight adjustments until we came to a decision on it with the marker.Lunch came, I chose a Hungarian two course meal, a few more pills and back to the room having made my choices for the movies.I sat up on the bed this time, a few more injections on the scalp, i knew what to expect this time with the pain, again not pleasant but not awful. This time she made most of the incisions for the grafts and then it was like clockwork. One technician primed the pen, or whatever the implement is that they put the hairs in with, passed it to the next, who handed it to the doctor. She hands it back to the first and a new pen is waiting, without her having to take her eyes of my head. It really was a well practised operation they had going on.

 

The first day over and I had about a half inch hairline which I hadn’t seen in about 15/20 years, very surreal. The only thing I would say about the clinic and it is only minor. It would be a great help if they could have the drivers drive you to and from the clinic. You don't look your best to say the least after the day you’ve had. I had a bloody strip across the front of my head and a big bandage on the back of my head. I walked from my apartment in the morning to the clinic in about 15 mins, believe me the journey back was a damn site faster!!!! Its was rush hour when I left and lots and lots of people looking at me. I know I wouldn’t be seeing them again but I am quite self conscious anyway, so it wasn’t great, but hey its not the worst thing in the world.

 

The next day was much of the same. Extraction in the morning and implanting in the afternoon. They filled in the space between the front and the mid region.The doctor sat me in her office when It was all over and I had got dressed and she explained everything that she had done, what I had to do over the coming days along with lots of information sheets. I asked questions like when should I be thinking about coming back for my 2nd op, did it go as well as she would have like etc, then back to the apartment, quick march!!!

The next day was the dreaded airport. The airport is lovely and again the driver picked me up exactly on time but its not the most pleasant experience being with lots of people who are constantly trying to work out what has happened to your head. I sat myself down in a corner and thanked god I booked a window seat in the last row of the plane back to Manchester.I have to say the treatment and professionalism I received from the Hairpalace was first class, better than expected. I have had contact on weeks 1,2 and 3 post op for me to send them photos and everything looks to be on track. I just wait with baited breath for good results now. That will ultimately be the test of how good they actually are.

By the way I actually had over 7000 hairs transplanted in the end because the Doctor said that I had a very high hair density, an average of over 3 hairs per graft, which I didn’t complain about, the more the merrier

 

 

The only slight issue I have, I seem to have a line around my head above the grafts to my mid area where I do have a few of my own hairs. I posted the question in the FUE section straight after the HT and the consensus of opinion was that it would all blend in eventually when it starts to grow or I can get it sorted easily on my 2nd HT.

 

I am now 4 weeks post op and it would seem that I have now in the last few days lost about 2/3rds of my new hair.

I knew the process and knew I would lose the hair but nothing prepares you for it.

I had a hairline for the first time in 15/20 years and came out of the clinic on cloud 9 and now I dont. I just look a bit strange to be honest. I still have a slight hairline because this is the densest area but behind it is very thin and patchy. I just wish it would all drop out.

This week is the first time I’ve felt I need to wear a cap and cover up. I can’t wait for this period to end and the growth to start. It’s going to be a long few months ahead.

 

I will try and post my progress as and when there is any and like I said earlier I hope this helps somebody who was in the same situation as me.

 

I will post all the photos of my progress so far.

 

Thanks for looking

[NickC]

More up to date photos

[superdudeo]

Hey Nick.

 

Thanks for sharing your experience. I haven't heard of this clinic before.

 

I don't want to alarm you but it looks like they've taken hair from outside of the safe zone in your donor area but I'm not an expert.

 

Did you discuss your long term plan? Looks like you were pushing a norwood 6, I hope you have some donor left for a long term plan.

[NickC]

Yeah, I’ve got at least another 3000/4000 grafts they told me and I’m planning on going back next year if the results turn out ok for the same amount on the crown and mid section.

[GregFUE]

Hey mate. Looking great so far. Mt friends brother went to Hair Palace and said it went very well. I've very tempted to go. I want to compare the costs between hair Palace and Dr Erdogan in Turkey.

 

Can I ask how much you paid?

 

Thanks and good luck with the growth.

[superdudeo]

Yeah, I’ve got at least another 3000/4000 grafts they told me and I’m planning on going back next year if the results turn out ok for the same amount on the crown and mid section.

 

Sorry dude, there's absolutely no way you have another 3 to 4000 grafts after already having 3000 grafts. You are most likely at your maximum already, if not close.

[NickC]

Well that’s your opinion. I’m currently buzzed down to a 1.5 mm, shortest length guard on my clippers before a 0 and you cannot see any loss in density from pre op photos and no scarring visible.

The Doctor was very confidence about the 2nd HT planned for early next year so I’ll take her advice.

 

Greg Fue - the transplant cost about 4150 gbp all in with the extra 1000 hairs on top of the 6000 package along with the blood test and it included the 4 night stop in one of their apartments with pickups and drop offs.

Edited March 4, 2018 by NickC

[superdudeo]

Well that’s your opinion. I’m currently buzzed down to a 1.5 mm, shortest length guard on my clippers before a 0 and you cannot see any loss in density from pre op photos and no scarring visible.

.

 

Firstly, you've had about 2200 grafts so of course it will be fine right now. My concern is that they are misleading you by saying you have a further 4000 available. I suggest you research FUE surgeries to see what is possible. Over 6000 grafts from FUE is almost unheard of from ethical FUE surgeons but you don't sound like you really care. I'm just stating this if any newcomers see this as an example and think its normal.

[Steeeve]

The recipient area looks great. Nice and clean. I’ve never heard of your clinic, though. For me, it’s really hard to tell by the post-op pics you posted to tell if any grafts were pulled from an area that wasn’t safe. I just can’t tell.

 

I’m also not sure why you’d be maxed out in your donor. Again, from your pics, there are some visible gaps in your donor but nothing that I haven’t seen after some other post-op pics from guys on here who’ve gone to top notch docs and made multi procedure plans with.

 

In my opinion (it’s just that, though. Take it with a grain of salt) you have some more hair to pull from that donor, man. I’m not just saying that to make you feel better or because it may be what you want to hear. This is a layman’s point of view. I’m not qualified to give medical advice, however, I think you’re doing alright.

[NickC]

Cheers Steeeve, thanks for your input, I appreciate it.

At the moment I’m more concerned with the transplant I’ve just had and if in a year I still want to have the 2nd procedure done, results of the first considered, I know I’ve definitely got enough. At the end of the day, aslong as there are another 2000 grafts left, that will do me and if there are any in the bank further along the line, it will be a bonus, but I’m not planning a 3rd.

Thanks

[mikeyhwk]

Firstly, you've had about 2200 grafts so of course it will be fine right now. My concern is that they are misleading you by saying you have a further 4000 available. I suggest you research FUE surgeries to see what is possible. Over 6000 grafts from FUE is almost unheard of from ethical FUE surgeons but you don't sound like you really care. I'm just stating this if any newcomers see this as an example and think its normal.

 

I'd agree that 4k donors in his supply would be from the pictures look to be a stretch but he isn't exactly tapped out either, he's probably comfortably in the 1500-2k range and possibly more donors, shaving it down does make it harder to get a perfect picture of what is available so his docs would know best. Also 6k grafts from a fue isn't unheard of anymore. Not everybodies donors can handle that but there are certainly doctors able to get those numbers if the donors are supplying them. Check out my boy Gatsu here http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/187515-2987grafts-dr-lupanzula.html he's 6500 in and he's still got 3k in the bank with very ethical drs. I myself am 4600 in and Dr Lorenzo estimates with his coverage value system ( same one Erdogan uses) that I could push it to another 10k grafts. I know the numbers seem unheard of and I'll be honest I don't want to test it by going anywhere near that far in but if you've seen their work you see little to no depleted donors or obvious extraction patterns so the idea that donors are way tapped out at 6k grafts as a rule isn't the case. The tools have evolved and they can far more accurately tell you what is achievable before the depletion is noticeable to the eye than they used to be able to. After my first op with Dr Bisanga he said I had at min another 8 k grafts, and that was after 2500 grafts removed so if we went on the low end im still sitting at another 5k grafts comfortably available. My donor is above average strong and my hair characteristics play to my favor which also helps but we're no longer confined to the thinking that fue means you're limited to sub 5k donors. Here's another Lorenzo patient, thick donor but he's 9k grafts in with another 1500 remaining http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/177764-dr-lorenzo-3201-grafts-madrid-3.htmlhttp://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/177764-dr-lorenzo-3201-grafts-madrid-3.html and the examples in the Erdogan patient reports could go on days lol

[Steeeve]

Cheers Steeeve, thanks for your input, I appreciate it.

 

My pleasure, Nick. Good luck and happy growing!

[NickC]

Just a quick update to show you my 2 month photos. Not much has happened apart from the shedding. The redness has died down on the front and the donor has healed well. No itching. The redness looks a lot worse in the photos than it does in real life. I had just had a hot shower and this does make my head very red, as does applying the minoxidil foam.

 

Not all the hair came out and I’m not too sure if I’ve had some early growth or whether the hairs that didn’t shed have thickened up. My wife thinks that I definitely look like I have more hair than a few weeks ago but I just can’t tell.

 

Anyway the photos are attached and there are a couple with and without flash.

 

I’m just looking forward to the next couple of months and hopefully I can post some more positive images.

[NickC]

Just thought I’d update with my 3 months photos.

Things seem to have started for me. I’ve had quite a bit of early growth and I’m really happy so far. A long way to go I know but so far things are positive.

 

So far I’ve been shaving my hair down to a grade 0 each week just to blend it all in together but I’ve left it this last week. It’s still short but is about a grade 1 at the moment. I’m thinking of growing it out now things have started to take off but I’ll see how I look.

It’s still very patchy but I don’t care, I’m just happy it’s started to grow.

[NickC]

Hi,

 

For anybody that’s interested here as my 4 month update photos.

I’m quite happy with the progress so far but still hoping for a bit more. I’m prgressing we’ll and I just need the front to fill in a bit more and I’ll be very happy. The front fringe is really thick but behind it is a little thinner. There are quite a lot of uncoloured hairs in there and hopefully when they colour up it will look better.

 

The before and after photo are below along with a photo my daughter took of me this weekend without me knowing but it shows me in real outdoor lighting and gives you a better idea of what it looks like.

 

Any comments on my progress are most welcome.

[home1212]

Well that’s your opinion. I’m currently buzzed down to a 1.5 mm, shortest length guard on my clippers before a 0 and you cannot see any loss in density from pre op photos and no scarring visible.

The Doctor was very confidence about the 2nd HT planned for early next year so I’ll take her advice.

 

Greg Fue - the transplant cost about 4150 gbp all in with the extra 1000 hairs on top of the 6000 package along with the blood test and it included the 4 night stop in one of their apartments with pickups and drop offs.

 

it appears they're harvesting grafts outside the "safe zone" of your donor area, this is the traditional u-shape around our heads in which those hairs are not susceptible to DHT and will not fall out. of course if you go beyond the "safe zone" you have a wider donor area in which to harvest grafts, but there is no guarantee that those grafts will not eventually miniaturize and die off due to the progressive nature of male pattern baldness, just something to consider if you are going back for a 2nd round with the same clinic who is telling you that you have another 3-4k grafts left in your donor -

[NickC]

Just past the 5 month mark now and I’ve bitten the bullet and had my first proper hair cut for about 5years having shaved myself before. I’ve grown it out since the middle of April and it was looking a little messy. I couldn’t be happier with it at the moment.

[Bill - Seemiller]

Nick,

Your hairline looks nice and thick, which I’m sure you are happy with. Can you post some additional photos showing different angles of your scalp so we can see the top of your scalp, etc.?  That will give us all a better overview amd appreciation of your progress so far. 

Best wishes,

Bill

[2941grafts]

Great job and excellent result! Thanks for sharing your experience. There are plenty of good HT surgeons out there that we never heard of them due to the lack of marketing strategies.

[NickC]

Thanks for the positive feedback, appreciate it.

The photos were just some quick ones I got my daughter to take of me today, there’s a couple of others but not of the top of my head. I’ll get a top photo taken tomorrow. It is still a little thinner in the middle but it’s still early days and I am still aware I will need another op next year to finish it off. Thicken the mid section and fill in the back but I have to say at the moment I’m really happy with the progress.

Im keeping up with the finasteride and biotin daily and minoxidil twice daily and I think this may have helped as well.

[NickC]

Another couple of photos from the top. The hairs still a little wet washing. As you can see it’s still a little see through from above but hopefully the next 6 months sees some improvement until I go for my 2nd procedure.

[NickC]

A few comparison images. 

[jjsrader]

Looking good!  Stay on the meds - after your 2nd hair transplant is fully grown out you could have many many years of enjoying your hair you paid for!

Edited July 18, 2018 by jjsrader

[Mick50]

On 3/4/2018 at 6:06 PM, superdudeo said:

 

Firstly, you've had about 2200 grafts so of course it will be fine right now. My concern is that they are misleading you by saying you have a further 4000 available. I suggest you research FUE surgeries to see what is possible. Over 6000 grafts from FUE is almost unheard of from ethical FUE surgeons but you don't sound like you really care. I'm just stating this if any newcomers see this as an example and think its normal.

I've had 4200 FUE grafts I would say at a conservative  estimate I easily have another 2000 plus in the bank . OK each case is different but top FUE Docs are regularly extracting 6000 plus grafts,  over1-2 or even 3 sessions, Lorenzo to name one . Sound as if I'm contradicting   myself but for high NW I think FUT is the way to go, just pointing out large FUE cases are quite common, obviously have to have the density, from what Ive seen on this site Dr Erdogan will turn down anyone who he   thinks is  not a suitable candidate same with Dr Lorenzo  I would imagine .

 

NickC   hair is looking really good made a big difference to your appearance, definitely  hold fire til the  month 12 even 18 months before deciding on a second one, lots more growth to come .

Edited July 18, 2018 by Mick50

[NickC]

Thanks for all the comment and feedback.

Mick50, Yes, thats exactly what i'm going to do. I'm going to make the decision when the growing and maturing has finished and see where I am. I know the top/back is always going to be thin because I never had any work done in that area but i’ll see if I can live with it when its complete. If the front to mid thickens up a bit more I will be more than happy but i’ve got a feeling I will get hair greed though!!!