One year later… I had the operation on the 2nd February of 2015 and decided to wait for a full year before writing a review. I spent around a year investigating different providers and doctors previous to the operation. And I decided to go with GetHair based upon the public reviews and one or two reviews I got from past patients without GetHair’s knowledge. One thing I thought was missing from the reviews was 12 month post-op ones. I decided I would wait until 12 months after my op and then write a review based upon the results and the overall experience I had to help others. Dealing with GetHair..... I had done a few consultations with different clinics in Dublin, Ireland where I live and got the follow up calls which I found a little pushy at times. Through my investigations, I came across GetHair and was impressed with the sheer volume of recommendations on the web for them. If I am being honest, I was looking for some faults in the reviews thinking that GetHair may have hired people to write them. I read through quite a few of them over a period of weeks and decided they were genuine. I decided I had nothing to lose and contacted them. I contacted them over email and maintained the conversation through email only for the entirety (I still haven’t spoken to Kaan). This I found suited me. I could take my time, think about my questions and articulate them well and then send the email when it suited. When Kaan replied, I could absorb the answers and take time making my decision. I felt confident enough to quiz a few answers which I possibly wouldn’t if we were face to face. As I say, email really suited me and I recommend it to anyone as it was a very thorough way of communication for this. I investigated the doctor that was going to do the operation and to be honest, had more qualifications and experience than any other doctor I had come across. When they say, look for the certain qualifications and memberships Dr. Tayfun has them all, no exaggerations, check for yourself. I contacted a previous patient on my own accord, without Kaan or GetHair’s knowledge and the patient was 9 months post-op and delighted with the results. He was balder than I was and showed me some very good pics. I decided with this, the reviews on the web, the doctor’s reputation and the correspondence with Kaan GetHair were the company I was going to use to get my transplant done. The trip to Turkey... We settled on a date, paid the deposit and I booked my flights. I didn’t realise that Turkish Airlines flew from Dublin until Kaan mentioned it and the flights costs came in under €250, delighted. When I arrived in Istanbul, the driver was there waiting for me. A really non-judgemental nice guy that I had a lovely conversation with on the way to the hotel and he made me feel really welcome. After a good night’s sleep and a nice breakfast, the driver brought me to the clinic which was about a ten minute drive away. The Operation... At around 9am on the Monday morning, I met the nurses and had the consultation with Dr. Tayfun whereby he drew out my new hairline and marked a few bald spots that also needed to be covered. A nurse then shaved my head and I lay down on the operating chair which would be my resting spot for the next few hours. The first part of the operation involves numbing of the scalp through local anaesthetic injections. For me, each injection was painful. I didn’t remember reading about that anywhere so it is something you should be aware of. I basically grit my teeth and got through it and it was fine but certainly memorable. Within two to three hours all of the donor follicles had been removed and Dr. Tayfun had opened the new recipient channels. This lead up to lunch. A fine meal was provided and things resumed at 2pm. The next part was to implant the donor follicles in the channels. Two nurses performed this over the next three hours, two of which I was asleep for. After the operation... Upon completion of the operation, my English speaking patient coordinator gave me some drugs and explained when I should take them. This would have been better if the instructions had have been written down as I was post op and obviously not fully coherent. The usual painkillers I take at home for any ailments are taken as a pair. When I took the painkillers given to me as a pair, I then recalled how the coordinator had stressed not to take more than one and wait for four hours before the next. I rang here once I realised my mistake and she then rang the doctor. I was to stay away from alcohol and fizzy drinks for the next four hours, which I did. She checked back in with me a few times until I was in the clear. She was great, really nice, this was my mistake of course, but I advised her that if it was written down for me it might not have happened. Hopefully, she has done that since. On arrival home... The driver that picked me up from the airport and had driven me backwards and forwards to the hospital was very good to drop me to the airport even though I had a late flight booked, a great guy. The flight home was perfect. The hat that the clinic supplied did the job of covering my head. I had booked two weeks off work to give it a chance for some healing. I had some swelling and noticed the area was very understandably red. After a few days the swelling went down but the red remained. When the two weeks were up and I had to go back to work, the red was still quite prominent so I had to wear a hat. Luckily, being a software developer we can get away with baseball caps. I told most of the guys, I shaved my head and didn’t like the look so was wearing the hat. With my close workmates though, I told the whole story and showed them. They were amazed, supportive and non-judgemental. It’s all forgotten about at this stage now. 3 months later... Three months later I still had the red on the recipient area. After some investigation it seems that this is common for sensitive skins and is known as the sunburn affect. I sent a pic to Dr. Tayfun and he advised a certain cream which I got and started applying it. 6 months later... Six months later the red was still there although fading a bit. I went on holidays and tried to cover it with a real tan, which worked. So when I came back to work, I didn’t have the cap and there was also some new growth there. Nobody really passed much heed in work, my hair isn’t all that important in the context of other people’s lives. 9 months later... The sunburn red had mostly gone although it was probably a pinky color now. There was now good growth but it seemed to be thinner in places. I went a got a haircut to try even things out and that worked. Over the next few months I noticed the thinner patches starting to grow and get volume. 12 months later... At twelve months, I have good volume in my hair, a lot more than I have had in the past ten years. The thinner parts have filled out more but I would be still expecting some more growth there. I am aware that it can continue improving for another six months. Summary.. Would I recommend you to get the procedure done? Absolutely without a shadow of a doubt. Would I recommend you to deal with GetHair.co.uk? Without a doubt. All communication I did was over email and Kaan was just fantastic. What is a balanced expectation I would offer any potential patient? It is a roller-coaster. You have probably been thinking about it for years, I was. You read about everyone else’s great experiences and think well that’s them, I’m different and I usually end up with a different story. You worry about the reputation of the company, surgery and doctor. You’re not an expert on hair transplants, but you do your investigations. GetHair had more reputation than I could find for any other company out there. I would compare others to them. Do your research and settle your own mind. Do what you need to do. I did and as I said GetHair covered all the areas I was concerned about, even without their knowledge. Don’t expect plain sailing and a huge afro in two weeks, this will take a year. Expect it to take the year. I had to remind myself of this a couple of times through the year to keep the long term goal and expectation. You might find yourself, at times during the year thinking, it didn’t work, its red, there are still a few bald patches. When, in fact, it is settling in and growing at different rates, maybe not a speed you might like it to. A year afterwards, you will then be closer to the end result and you will be able to stand back and really see the results. Am I happy? Bloody right I am. How is the confidence? Remember when you were younger and had hair that you were obsessed with, just confident with it, took it for granted? This brings that feeling back but this time with an appreciation with it. I began losing my hair at 30, I am now 43 but feel 30. I used to look in the mirror and sigh. Now I look and I smile at what’s looking back. It’s about self-esteem and I have got a boost to mine that I hadn’t released had dropped. You will see the same message in other reviews here because it is true. Should you take the risk? It’s about minimising risk, with GetHair and Dr. Tayfun it is minimized as much as can be. It is then up to you to make the decision. Do it, you won’t regret it. You will more than likely write a review here and help others make the same decision. There is nothing in this for me, only a sense that I can help someone like me out there go for it because it is so worth it. Do it and enjoy the results, I am.