Going to Dr. Gokhan Gur (Fuecapilar) in May 2024

[the_confused_guy]

Hello everyone,

I'm pretty new here, not sure if this is the right place to post this. I need some advice. In January 2024, I was on the verge of booking a hair transplant at one of the hair mills in Turkey. However, a last-minute decision to do some more research led me to this amazing community.

After discovering that my initial choice was a hair mill, I decided to explore other options. I reached out to Dr. Keser, but unfortunately, the earliest available date was in December 2024. Seeking a sooner option, I contacted Fuecapilar and have now secured a date with Dr. Gokhan Gur. I'm currently finalizing the booking, but I have a few doubts and would appreciate your opinions:

1. VIP vs. Standard Package: The VIP package offers extraction and channel incisions by the doctor, while the Standard package has technicians perform these tasks. Graft placement is done by technicians in both packages. Is it safe for technicians to handle the graft placement? I'm uncertain about the criticality of this step.

2. Payment Options: If I choose to pay with a debit or credit card, there's an extra 21% fee for all transactions, which seems quite high. Has anyone dealt with making such large payments in cash? My package will be around 6000 Euro, and my bank doesn't charge forex fees. Would withdrawing cash from an ATM in Turkey be feasible for this amount?

3. Post-Surgery Concerns: I'm quite self-conscious, and I'm unsure about how I'll feel flying back home from Turkey after the surgery. Can anyone share their experience at the airport or during the flight? Are there surgical caps available that I can wear during the journey?

I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts and experiences. Thank you in advance for your help.

Edited March 12 by the_confused_guy
Clarification

[Rese]

Regarding your second question, you may have to visit multiple ATMs to withdraw that amount of cash in Euros and even then the ATMs may not have enough in foreign exchange. Can't you withdraw before you get on the plane and bring the cash amount with you?

Good luck with the operation and keep us updated! 

[akbar264]

I just had my surgery with Dr. Gur last Monday!!! Will answer your questions one by one based on experience.

1. I chose the standard package so the technicians did my extractions. I am unsure if he uses the same ones in every surgery but the ones I got were excellent and extracted my donor exactly in the way Dr. Gur said they should (he did not want to go into my lower crown at all). 1 week later everything looks completely fine and you can barely notice anything was done. In general, most people would say that you should have as much doctor involvement as possible but many of the top doctors have technicians do all of or part of the extractions. It really depends on what you're ultimately comfortable with. When the doctor does it you know that you're always getting a consistent result, but if techs do it there's more variance, so it might be worth it to do the VIP package just for the peace of mind, you just have to do your research on what the doctor's results typically are. I knew that I saw virtually no difference in results among people doing standard or VIP, and from how ethical Dr. Gur is I trusted that he would have people who knew what they were doing, that's just me though and if I ever go for a second case where my donor supply is more limited I may want more doctor involvement. 

2. Again I chose the standard package so my total cost ended up being 3400 Euro. After the 500 Euro deposit I owed 2900 in total. I paid it in USD, which ended up totaling  $3150. They accept USD, EUR, and GBP notes. I had just withdrew it from my local ATMs over a course of a couple of days ahead of time without problem (my bank makes it quite easy to increase withdrawal limits). I had no issues carrying cash in the plane, just put it in a secure place in your carry on. 

3. Dr. Gur doesn't provide any head coverings and the post-op instructions are very clear on no hats, although from experience from previous clinics you might be able to get away with a VERY loose fitting bucket hat or surgical cap if you want to risk it, but just know the clinic does not recommend it and in general you should be listening to what your clinic says. I brought my wife with me so it was a bit easier, but I am also super self conscious.  It helped that there are a TON of people who are flying home after surgery in Istanbul so you would be far from an outlier. In my experience, I was probably way too worried about how I would be able to fly back with scabs on my head but it was honestly fine and the only people who ended up acknowledging my head were other people who had surgery lol, no one really even stared much. 

Edited March 13 by akbar264

[Al - Moderator]

I would not want techs doing the incisions. I wouldn't trust a tech to be designing the hairline and deciding on the angles that the grafts will be facing.

 

 

 

[Urschwob]

Don't save in the wrong place. My cousins all have to do a HT again this year because they wanted to save money. There's a saying in Germany: "If you buy cheap, you buy twice"! Doesn't matter who it is, but let the doc do the whole job! I was at Keser and at the moment it feels like the right decision! Tomorrow you can see new pictures in my report. Keser's results speak for themselves. That's why I was able to convince my brother to save money for another three years so that he could then afford Keser. I would also recommend a HT in December or winter, because a) you don't have the sweating problem like in the summer and it's easier to keep the head clean and b) you could easily hide your operation with a hat!

Edited March 13 by Urschwob

[akbar264]

On 3/13/2024 at 2:33 PM, Al - Moderator said:

I would not want techs doing the incisions. I wouldn't trust a tech to be designing the hairline and deciding on the angles that the grafts will be facing.

 

 

 

Dr. Gur does the hairline design and incisions in both standard and VIP. Technicians just do the extractions in standard.

[the_confused_guy]

Thank you all for your valuable comments and insights. I truly appreciate the input.

After careful consideration of the responses provided, I have made the following decisions:

1. I have opted for the VIP package, primarily due to the added assurance it offers. Additionally, the availability of an earlier date for the VIP package influenced my choice.

2. For convenience and to avoid any potential hassles, I have decided to bring cash with me for the trip to Turkey. This eliminates the need to search for the right ATM and the possibility of incurring a 21% surcharge when using my card. It's always best to err on the side of caution.

3. Considering the limited options for direct flights from Turkey to Canada, I am hesitant about waiting for a connecting flight immediately after my surgery. Therefore, I am contemplating staying in Turkey for an extra week post-surgery before flying back to Canada. This additional time will hopefully allow some improvement in the redness, especially considering my brown skin tone. Additionally, this plan allows me to adhere to the recommendation of avoiding wearing a hat during the crucial recovery period.

Thank you once again for your invaluable guidance.

[Al - Moderator]

14 hours ago, akbar264 said:

Dr. Gur does the hairline design and incisions in both standard and VIP. Technicians just do the extractions in standard.

 

OK. Good to know. I was just responding to what the OP wrote.

 

[Urschwob]

10 hours ago, the_confused_guy said:

Vielen Dank an alle für Ihre wertvollen Kommentare und Erkenntnisse. Ich weiß den Input wirklich zu schätzen.

Nach sorgfältiger Prüfung der Antworten habe ich folgende Entscheidungen getroffen:

1. Ich habe mich für das VIP-Paket entschieden, vor allem wegen der zusätzlichen Sicherheit, die es bietet. Darüber hinaus beeinflusste die Verfügbarkeit eines früheren Termins für das VIP-Paket meine Wahl.

2. Aus Bequemlichkeitsgründen und um möglichen Ärger zu vermeiden, habe ich beschlossen, für die Reise in die Türkei Bargeld mitzunehmen. Dadurch entfällt die Suche nach dem richtigen Geldautomaten und die Möglichkeit, dass bei Verwendung meiner Karte ein Zuschlag von 21 % anfällt. Es ist immer am besten, auf Nummer sicher zu gehen.

3. Angesichts der begrenzten Möglichkeiten für Direktflüge von der Türkei nach Kanada zögere ich, unmittelbar nach meiner Operation auf einen Anschlussflug zu warten. Daher denke ich darüber nach, nach der Operation noch eine Woche in der Türkei zu bleiben, bevor ich nach Kanada zurückfliege. Diese zusätzliche Zeit wird hoffentlich zu einer gewissenhaften Verbesserung der Rötung führen, insbesondere angesichts meines braunen Hauttons. Darüber hinaus ermöglicht mir dieser Plan, mich an die Empfehlung zu halten, während der entscheidenden Erholungsphase auf das Tragen einer Kopfbedeckung zu verzichten.

Nochmals vielen Dank für Ihre unschätzbare Anleitung.

I can also recommend that you do the cash thing, I did exactly that. You shouldn't worry about being seen with an HT on the Turkish streets or at Turkish airports. The Turks are used to it! On my return journey from Ankara to Stuttgart, I saw three people with an HT at the airport and there was another person with an HT on my plane. But if you don't want that, then I think that spending 4-5 days in Turkey is a good idea, then at least you would have scabs on the return journey and would be completely inconspicuous.

What I would definitely recommend is that you book the last row by the window on the plane. So there is no risk of someone touching your head as you walk past or a passenger behind you grabbing your head as he is trying to get out of his chair.

Edited March 16 by Urschwob

[Midyear]

On 3/15/2024 at 10:41 PM, the_confused_guy said:

Thank you all for your valuable comments and insights. I truly appreciate the input.

After careful consideration of the responses provided, I have made the following decisions:

1. I have opted for the VIP package, primarily due to the added assurance it offers. Additionally, the availability of an earlier date for the VIP package influenced my choice.

2. For convenience and to avoid any potential hassles, I have decided to bring cash with me for the trip to Turkey. This eliminates the need to search for the right ATM and the possibility of incurring a 21% surcharge when using my card. It's always best to err on the side of caution.

3. Considering the limited options for direct flights from Turkey to Canada, I am hesitant about waiting for a connecting flight immediately after my surgery. Therefore, I am contemplating staying in Turkey for an extra week post-surgery before flying back to Canada. This additional time will hopefully allow some improvement in the redness, especially considering my brown skin tone. Additionally, this plan allows me to adhere to the recommendation of avoiding wearing a hat during the crucial recovery period.

Thank you once again for your invaluable guidance.

I am going to be do my transplant with Gur in May as well and plan to stay one week. Will you be there between 5/13-5/17?