Resul Yaman - 4550 Grafts, Sep18/2023

[xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx]

Hi! Long time lurker, first time poster.

I had my operation with Dr. Yaman on September 18, 2023. I hope for a good result! Balding has shattered my confidence and my dating life, so I hope to take it back. I believe Lookism is alive and well today - looking better affects every aspect of your life due to the halo effect. Therefore, I am taking steps to change it. 

First, I went to a hair mill in the USA to get a free consultation and have my donor checked out. Turns out, i'm pretty good. LOL. Thanks, unnamed hair mill. They recommended me about 5k grafts.. I would agree. I would say diffuse norwood 7. After running around and consulting, I didn't like that Dr. Dogan and Dr. Gur go through a marketing agency (FUECapilar), thusly adding more middle men to waste money, and Yaman had invented his own spin on the choi pen, and had procedures himself. This told me that Dr. Yaman has some sort of passion for his craft. Furthermore, some Turkish surgeons are now insanely overpriced ( Dr. Bicer is literally the same price as home surgeons in the USA, LOL, get real ). Several all consultations all read the same for me, around ~4000 grafts, give or minus 500. After doing my homework, I picked Yaman.

(Pre Consult: Step #1 - Thanks USA hairmill for your time! Off to Turkey I go)

The Gorrion Hotel you stay at is truly nice. The breakfast there is literally the best hotel breakfast i've ever had. I'm uploading a plate from it because it's relevant to my progress. As a recovering fattymcfatfat, holy hell this breakfast buffet..I still think about it, even today.

Yaman's procedure is the same - he uses loupes, did consultation, drew hairline, incision, the technicians use loupes, doctor came back to check multiple times on me during the procedure. I was Xanax dozing my way through life merrily. Anasthesia is painful - the clinic mentions needleless on the website, but doesn't seem to use needleless in the transplant. After all numby, I was lulled off to sleep by the merry noise of scratching at my brain.

Recovery was typical. I had a TERRIBLE headache as the anesthesia was wearing off ( somewhere around 7 days ), and it was so debilitating I almost couldn't work for a couple days It went away though.

But the clinic is awesome, the staff were nice, Doga is THE MAN ( as many people have already stated regarding this clinic.) Really everything about my procedure has been mostly positive aside from making the mistake of going back in economy class to the USA and sitting next to this distinguished woman who needed to pee every five seconds. Curse you. (Buy Business class going home folks...please..)

We are now 90 days post procedure, and I hope to be turning the corner. I don't really notice any growth yet, but i'll keep updates rolling since so many people love to abandon the topic as soon as they get a good result (lol). Dr. Yaman recommended me a second procedure as well before the procedure, and said we couldn't cover the crown on the first operation - but then I discovered that it looks like that wasn't the case - maybe my recipient had a little bit more hair than I thought?  We'll see what things look like. Overall my impression of the clinic , procedure, and doctors is extremely positive - but everything hinges on results. If my results aren't nice, I won't care about any of that. We'll see how it goes. I don't think I see much of anything yet at the 90 day mark..but this is the point where things turn the corner, I hope.

 

Notes: Clinic diagnosed my hair as the low side of medium thickness( I forget the microns, sorry). I'm 37. I lift weights, don't do drugs, and have no known health conditions aside from mold/grass allergies.

My Routine: 1 mg oral finasteride / day, 1.5 mg oral minoxidil per day, ketocanozle 1% shampoo 2x weekly. I've been on Fin for about ~3 years and started oral Minox in may. Multivitamins that were given by clinic 1/day, vitamin D supplements (2500IU) 1x/day, fish oil 1200mg 2x/day( 720mg Omega3), extra multivitamin. Have a collagen + biotin shampoo that I use 1x a day. Summary: My routine is on point - if my results fail, i'm going to throw a fit. 

 

Pre-op (Consultation by USA hairmill)

The Gorrion Hotel Legendary Breakfast

Post-op, day1

Post-op, day 5

Post-op, scabs off

1 month

3 month(90 days, today)

Edited December 18, 2023 by xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx

[Gramatik]

Happy growing mate...do you have donor pics ??

[xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx]

13 minutes ago, Gramatik said:

Happy growing mate...do you have donor pics ??

I do, haha, I just don't even think about it since I thought my donor looked OK, I didn't really take a lot of pics. The only 2 good ones I have are here.

[Gramatik]

55 minutes ago, xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx said:

I do, haha, I just don't even think about it since I thought my donor looked OK, I didn't really take a lot of pics. The only 2 good ones I have are here.

ok good. How about donor pics at 3 months ? 

[xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx]

Donor - 3 months

[xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx]

3 month, 1 day update.

LOL

Honestly, I wouldn't have done this, but when I looked yesterday there was nothing. I touched my head today and felt a lot of fuzzy. Then, I took another picture in my usual spot. 

We are sprouting boys. Everywhere. If you zoom in on this photo, you can see at least 100+ baby hairs starting to pop out. Think they must have realized I was writing a review and getting antsy, and Dr. Yaman must have gave them a call and told them to get their crap together.

GROW MY MINIONS! GROW! I AM TIRED OF BEING A PLUCKED CHICKEN!

[Jayhair]

3 months on your head still red, did they warn you on this, I been told 2 weeks i would go?

[hair133]

13 minutes ago, Jayhair said:

3 months on your head still red, did they warn you on this, I been told 2 weeks i would go?

is it problem if your scalp still red after 3month? its sign of something wrong?

[Jayhair]

42 minutes ago, hair133 said:

is it problem if your scalp still red after 3month? its sign of something wrong?

Good question, didn't think of this, for me it was just a visually not nice when your hair is still sparse and when you go out people see it.

[BaldGuy]

Redness is a good sign that growth has already started...I would suggest you to add topical minoxodil 2 times daily for extra blood supply!

Edited December 20, 2023 by BaldGuy

[xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx]

I have ultra-fair skin. I don't ever go outside, I hate it out there. I was told that my skin was sensitive and to expect my recovery period to be a little bit longer.( Though this clinic has been telling literally every patient that they have sensitive skin on this forum for some time now, so I don't know...)

If someone told you that you are going to be red for 2 weeks, they are lying through their teeth. I don't know a single person who has been red for 2 weeks. Mr. Rolandas, another youtuber ( 

Was also red for 5+ months.

Let'sGetHair (The most popular hair loss youtuber) was red for 3 months+

Literally every pale person I know is red for 3+months. I wish clinics would stop spreading this "You're only red for 2 weeks" nonsense lies. If I went to a clinic that told you that, I would cancel your procedure because they're probably lying to you ( unless you have very dark skin and are lucky) That applies for maybe 5% of patients imo, from what i've seen.

If I start topical minox now - wouldn't that just induce another factor that could cause me to shed and delay my results? I'm a little wary about starting a different treatment now.

Also, my body seems to hate microneedling. It causes frequent shock loss when I do it, so I stopped it. I am lucky that the trauma on my scalp is not causing massive shock loss ( I have a little bit on one side where it looks extra thin ). I was worried about a transplant because my body seems to hate being stabbed. ( At least, I think - I noticed thinning intensify after about 4 months of microneedling, so I stopped. I was using topical minoxidil for many years prior to switching to oral in may. ) ((Obviously, I have not been microneedling since the procedure, because that would be stupid.)

Edited December 20, 2023 by xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx

[BaldGuy]

2 hours ago, xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx said:

If I start topical minox now - wouldn't that just induce another factor that could cause me to shed and delay my results? I'm a little wary about starting a different treatment now.

 

in fact topical minoxidil will speed up your growth...many patients who get topical minoxidil after hair transplant see their growth faster than normal. It will also help your growth by adding more blood supply in your scalp.

Do not do microneedling !

Edited December 20, 2023 by BaldGuy

[Jayhair]

Am going there next month and be staying at Gorrion too. I note I have 2 days free after surgery. I aim to stay in hotel mainly (been to Istanbul few times and don't want to risk exposing my hair to outside too much) where can I go for a walk, look around and food (lunch and dinner) local, search on google maps the surrounding areas look derelict.

[xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx]

The surrounding area around the gorrion is, as you said derelict.

I would not recommend doing anything the first day after the procedure. Grafts are delicate. Gorrion hotel room service is stupid expensive. I found an App for food delivery ( https://www.yemeksepeti.com/en/ )  but was having issues getting it to work without a Turkish phone#. There's a little ceasars 5 minutes away if you want to try the uniqueness of Turkish Little Ceasars( lol , I did ) 

The second day, consider - Mall of Istanbul is a local mall. Everything is priced for locals. ( A whole pizza at Pidem is 1$  lol ). I found a nice Cezve set and some other stuff there. The Mall of Istanbul is roughly a 10~ minute drive. Uber works to get Taxis the cheapest way, so make sure you have cellular data. Almost nobody at Mall of Istanbul knows English, so be prepared for it ( but that's what makes it fun, right ? )

I didn't go anywhere after my surgery at all because i'm paranoid about touching grafts, but I went before my surgery to the Mall of Istanbul and had a fun time exploring. It's huge ( 5 stories )

Edited December 21, 2023 by xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx

[hair133]

On 12/20/2023 at 7:10 PM, BaldGuy said:

in fact topical minoxidil will speed up your growth...many patients who get topical minoxidil after hair transplant see their growth faster than normal. It will also help your growth by adding more blood supply in your scalp.

Do not do microneedling !

why do not microneedling? everyone says its help for hair growth? and reverse balding

[A_4_Archan]

2 hours ago, hair133 said:

why do not microneedling? everyone says its help for hair growth? and reverse balding

It cn cause skin irritation/infection if the skin is sensitive or if it is done in incorrect way...better thing would be to massage the scalp for 5-10 mins

[roosvelt1984]

On 12/20/2023 at 5:10 PM, BaldGuy said:

Do not do microneedling !

I'd say definitely do it but not yet. Check with doctor when it's right to try it/ return to it for your specific skin type.

I wouldn't discard microneedling altogether.

[beegee84]

For me redness only started going away about 2 months in by 4th month it was mostly gone

[Chka]

Was the main part of the procedure done by the Dr himself?

[xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx]

10 hours ago, Chka said:

Was the main part of the procedure done by the Dr himself?

Doctor did consultation with me, analyzed hair foliciles, did math and provided options and information. Then, doctor administered anasthesia and did all incisions.

Extraction and implantation into the already pre-aligned slits were done by technicians. Doctor revisited to oversee procedure multiple times during procedure.

[Chka]

Does the the grafts removal and implementation take place on day1? With the hairwash and free to go on day2? Also do you pay on arrival to the clinic? Any tips for sleep after the procedure? 

[xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx]

7 hours ago, Chka said:

Does the the grafts removal and implementation take place on day1? With the hairwash and free to go on day2? Also do you pay on arrival to the clinic? Any tips for sleep after the procedure? 

Yes, all surgery was done in the first day for me. Hairwash I believe was day 3 before I went to return.

You will pay after consultation.

Buy a comfortable travel pillow (preferably with a chin strap so you won't roll out of the pillow in the night , even better if it has back straps to hook up to the plane seat so you can basically suspend yourself and sleep on the way back. Melatonin to try to pound yourself into sleep. Sleeping for the first 7 days was not fun. Stack pillows at the hotel for proper elevation.

[xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx]

108 day update.

I was going to wait for 4 months, but this is really the first day I looked at myself and saw the first noticeable change. Looking back at my 90 day, there's been a pretty big boom of growth. Being this is the "anniversary of me actually feeling like there's some improvement" versus being stuck in the ugly duckling phase and almost worrying if I got sliced 4550 times for nothing. If growth continues at this rate, I will be ecstatic. I can feel tons of little fuzzy babies popping up still.  Arise my minions, save your father from his baldness. The change from day 90 to 108 has been pretty nutty imo - only basically 2 weeks and i've had a huge explosion in frontal third. I have big faith the next few months are going to be very exciting..

Edited January 5 by xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx

[dinothet]

On 12/21/2023 at 8:18 PM, Jayhair said:

Am going there next month and be staying at Gorrion too. I note I have 2 days free after surgery. I aim to stay in hotel mainly (been to Istanbul few times and don't want to risk exposing my hair to outside too much) where can I go for a walk, look around and food (lunch and dinner) local, search on google maps the surrounding areas look derelict.

You find anywhere as going there 2nd week Feb how was your procedure 

[Steverino80]

On 1/5/2024 at 5:42 AM, xXFOLICILEDOMINIONXx said:

108 day update.

I was going to wait for 4 months, but this is really the first day I looked at myself and saw the first noticeable change. Looking back at my 90 day, there's been a pretty big boom of growth. Being this is the "anniversary of me actually feeling like there's some improvement" versus being stuck in the ugly duckling phase and almost worrying if I got sliced 4550 times for nothing. If growth continues at this rate, I will be ecstatic. I can feel tons of little fuzzy babies popping up still.  Arise my minions, save your father from his baldness. The change from day 90 to 108 has been pretty nutty imo - only basically 2 weeks and i've had a huge explosion in frontal third. I have big faith the next few months are going to be very exciting..

Looks really good so far. Your hair is quite similar to mine, I visited Yaman in December. I would be really happy for my hair to look like that in three months