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I started noticing that I was going bald when I was in my early twenties. To be honest, it was hard to notice at first: a few hairs growing just in front of my hair line, my temples becoming slightly more pronounced, that kind of thing. Periodically I looked into possible treatments and occasionally tried various homeopathic remedies, but nothing worked. But I was too busy with school and work and life to really worry about my hair and so I let things go… probably a lot longer than I should have.
When I hit thirty years old, though, I knew I had to get serious about treatment. Anytime I got out of the shower I was reminded of how much my haircut concealed my hair loss and I dreaded humid days that flattened out my hair, windy days that pushed my hair from its most advantageous position. I had tried Propecia, but I was unlucky enough to have experienced some serious sexual side effects and, as the cure is worse than the disease in that case, I didn’t know what to do. I had just moved to NYC and began researching ways to prevent the hair loss again. I began using Rogaine again (which had never seemed to work for me), biotin supplements, and shampoos that promised to increase volume and density. Nothing worked. It was time to look into hair transplant surgeries.
As I researched, I noticed that there seemed to be a small-scale war going on regarding hair transplant surgeries. One webpage/person/video/review would claim that one procedure was the best and the other was terrible, and the very next webpage/person/video/review would say just the opposite. The whole thing felt counterproductive, and I knew I needed to actually speak with someone, and most importantly, someone who performed both treatments.
Dr. Bernstein’s clinic came up very quickly as I researched hair transplants. I called and researched a number of places but costs were either prohibitively high or suspiciously low and none of the results page (that shows the images of previous clients) looked as good as Dr. Bernstein’s (even when I cross referenced it to those with the specific Norwood level I thought I had). I decided to bite the admittedly expensive bullet and schedule a consultation.
I was extremely nervous when I was in Dr. Bernstein’s waiting room and had close to no idea what to expect. When I was called back to meet with Dr. Bernstein he asked all the questions you’d expect him to ask: Have you tried Propecia? Rogaine? How long has this been going on? What was I hoping to achieve? He examined my scalp and my hair and informed me what he thought he could offer. We talked about the benefits of FUT and FUE and which would be better for me. I know that some have commented that he is terse in his bedside manner, but he and I were able to joke a bit and I found his knowledgeable and calm approach reassuring. I was not looking for a new best friend or someone to hold my hand, I was looking for an expert surgeon, and Dr. Bernstein’s ability to answer my questions, his patience with me as I asked and re-asked an unending stream of questions, and his methodical attitude was more than I could have asked for. We spent more than 45 minutes in that initial consultation and I told him I needed time to think about it. He told me that if I ever wanted to come back, the price paid for the original consultation would cover any subsequent consultations within the year.
I thought a lot about what to do over the next few weeks. It was a big decision and everyday new questions piled up in my mind. I decided to schedule another consultation and in the next month I was in his office again asking him about how the hair would age, the recovery timeline, and tons of other things. He was extremely clear and direct while being patient with me. He made it clear that he was available for any questions I would have. On my way out of his office that day, I was sure I would get the procedure.
When I hit thirty years old, though, I knew I had to get serious about treatment. Anytime I got out of the shower I was reminded of how much my haircut concealed my hair loss and I dreaded humid days that flattened out my hair, windy days that pushed my hair from its most advantageous position. I had tried Propecia, but I was unlucky enough to have experienced some serious sexual side effects and, as the cure is worse than the disease in that case, I didn’t know what to do. I had just moved to NYC and began researching ways to prevent the hair loss again. I began using Rogaine again (which had never seemed to work for me), biotin supplements, and shampoos that promised to increase volume and density. Nothing worked. It was time to look into hair transplant surgeries.
As I researched, I noticed that there seemed to be a small-scale war going on regarding hair transplant surgeries. One webpage/person/video/review would claim that one procedure was the best and the other was terrible, and the very next webpage/person/video/review would say just the opposite. The whole thing felt counterproductive, and I knew I needed to actually speak with someone, and most importantly, someone who performed both treatments.
Dr. Bernstein’s clinic came up very quickly as I researched hair transplants. I called and researched a number of places but costs were either prohibitively high or suspiciously low and none of the results page (that shows the images of previous clients) looked as good as Dr. Bernstein’s (even when I cross referenced it to those with the specific Norwood level I thought I had). I decided to bite the admittedly expensive bullet and schedule a consultation.
I was extremely nervous when I was in Dr. Bernstein’s waiting room and had close to no idea what to expect. When I was called back to meet with Dr. Bernstein he asked all the questions you’d expect him to ask: Have you tried Propecia? Rogaine? How long has this been going on? What was I hoping to achieve? He examined my scalp and my hair and informed me what he thought he could offer. We talked about the benefits of FUT and FUE and which would be better for me. I know that some have commented that he is terse in his bedside manner, but he and I were able to joke a bit and I found his knowledgeable and calm approach reassuring. I was not looking for a new best friend or someone to hold my hand, I was looking for an expert surgeon, and Dr. Bernstein’s ability to answer my questions, his patience with me as I asked and re-asked an unending stream of questions, and his methodical attitude was more than I could have asked for. We spent more than 45 minutes in that initial consultation and I told him I needed time to think about it. He told me that if I ever wanted to come back, the price paid for the original consultation would cover any subsequent consultations within the year.
I thought a lot about what to do over the next few weeks. It was a big decision and everyday new questions piled up in my mind. I decided to schedule another consultation and in the next month I was in his office again asking him about how the hair would age, the recovery timeline, and tons of other things. He was extremely clear and direct while being patient with me. He made it clear that he was available for any questions I would have. On my way out of his office that day, I was sure I would get the procedure.
