My Hair Transplant Experience: FUE, 3,500 Grafts, Istanbul
On July 15, 2020, at the age of 33, I had a hair transplant in Istanbul — 3,500 grafts, FUE method. Before that there were twelve years of slowly losing my hair, and one year when it all fell apart. This is the honest story: why I decided, how the operation and recovery really went, and what I'd tell anyone standing where I once stood.
Why I Decided to Get a Hair Transplant
I started losing my hair at 20. My crown never thinned — it was the front: year after year the hairline slowly crept back. As I understand it, it's hereditary — my father was bald too. For twelve years I simply lived with it. I didn't try minoxidil or vitamins — honestly, I didn't even know those things existed.
Before: Norwood 4 after years of gradual hair loss
Then, at 33, came a year full of stress — and in that single year my hair loss jumped to Norwood 4. It happens to many people: the body holds on for a long time, and then gives way all at once. Around that time a friend of mine had a transplant. When I saw his result with my own eyes and heard how it all went, I understood: it's time. On his recommendation, I decided to do it.
How I Found My Clinic
I didn't spend months comparing dozens of clinics. I went to the clinic in Istanbul that my friend recommended — I saw his result with my own eyes, and that was the best proof for me. Since then I've talked to hundreds of people, and here's what I'd advise checking today:
What to check: who performs the extraction and incisions — the doctor or technicians; whether the clinic shows results across different hair types; whether they promise unrealistic graft counts; whether there are real patient photos at 8–12 months, not just on the day of surgery.
A recommendation from someone you know whose result you can see is one of the most reliable ways to choose. But not everyone has such a friend — that's exactly why I now help people figure it out.
The Day of the Operation
The procedure took about 8 hours, with a lunch break, under local anesthesia. Honestly, the anesthesia injections into the front of the head were unpleasant — for me it was about 9 out of 10. But it really depends on each person's pain threshold. After that you don't feel the procedure itself — most of the time I simply dozed, half asleep.
Day 2 after the operation
The doctor did everything personally — he extracted all 3,500 grafts from the donor area (back of the head) and implanted them into the front and the hairline himself. The FUE method means individual follicles — no linear scar, no stitches.
Recovery Timeline
Swelling and redness. The most uncomfortable part is sleeping: for the first 10 days you have to sleep so that nothing touches the grafts — I slept with a pillow under my neck.
Scabs sit on the transplanted grafts — you must not scratch or pick them off. The main things in this phase: careful sleeping and gentle washing.
The scabs don't fall off by themselves — around day 10 you're advised to remove them yourself. I did it with an ordinary cotton pad: soaked it in water and gently washed them off, very carefully. After that the head is clean.
Shock loss — the transplanted hair falls out. For me it started around day 15 and lasted until about day 90; roughly 80% of the transplanted hair fell out — you can see it in the photos below. This is normal: the follicles stay in place and grow new hair. In rare cases the transplanted hair doesn't fall out as much, but that's very rare.
Active growth. For me it started from month 3 and continued strongly until month 6 — thin hairs at first, then they get thicker and thicker. A good result was already visible at month 4.
The final result. By month 12 the hair had fully grown in — thick and natural.
The first two weeks in photos
My real photos, July 2020
How my hair grew back: from 3 weeks to 5+ years
Donor area (back of the head)
Same angles over time, July 2020 — today
The Mossi London kit I bought at the clinic — shampoo, vitamins, oil and serum
What It Actually Cost
Transplant: ~€2,500 (at the time of my operation), hotel included. Prices change — check directly with the clinic for current rates.
Flights there and back: ~€200.
Aftercare — PRP (plasma): the first session was done right during the transplant, the second at month 3, then every 3 months — 5 sessions in the first year. Since then I do it 2–3 times a year. Plus vitamins (Xpecia, biotin, Saw Palmetto). I don't use minoxidil or finasteride. Right after the surgery I also bought The Mossi London kit at the clinic: hair loss shampoo, hair vitamins (biotin, ginseng, zinc), repair oil and serum.
The Honest Truth
It's not magic — but it's not as scary as it seems either. Many people say the first 3–4 months are psychologically tough; for me they were completely normal. The hardest part was the first 10 days: I had to sleep in a way that wouldn't damage the grafts, so I put a pillow under my neck and slept like that. That was honestly the most uncomfortable thing in the whole process.
Also: a transplant moves hair from one place to another. It doesn't create new hair. In my opinion, the result depends first of all on who does the transplant — and on the donor area: if the donor hair is strong and dark, the transplant will almost certainly turn out very well. If the donor area is weak, a transplant alone won't solve everything. That's why a proper consultation before the procedure matters so much.
Before
After
Would I do it again? Without a second thought. I didn't deliberate for long — I saw my friend's result, made up my mind and went. And I haven't regretted it for a single day. Honestly, it's one of the best decisions I've made in recent years. I'm grateful to my friend — without his example I might never have done it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Watch the Full Journey
I documented my entire transplant journey on YouTube — from day 1 to day 365. No filters, no sponsorships, just real results:
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