Welcome to the world of hair restoration

I’m bald and it bothered me for a long time. ,

I was annoyed that I was bothered. But just one swipe down my Instagram feed reveals that I’m not the only guy who’s confident about his hair.

They greet me with videos and posts offering me hair transplants, regrowth tablets, density sprays, gap-filling powders, and hair systems (once called wigs or toupees).

These products promise to restore my “lost confidence” and stop my lack of hair from “holding back” my life.

But does the wealth of treatment options on offer mean that attitudes towards hair loss have changed? Is what was once considered something to be given up now as reversible, albeit at a cost?

According to the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery (ISHRS), hair transplants are becoming more common around the world – and the people doing them are getting younger.

This global group of surgeons, doctors and specialists found that 95% of its member patients sought hair restoration surgery between the ages of 20 and 35 – and this is something that hair loss surgeon Dr Nilofer Farjo confirms is mirrored in the UK.

When my hair first started receding in my early 20s, I tried to cover it up by wearing it regularly and styling it in a way that hid the new patches of scalp I hadn’t seen before.

Then, while I was out for my brother’s stag do in a Liverpool nightclub, something happened that I haven’t been able to forget since.

I had suggested we wear white t-shirts and carry permanent markers so people we meet can leave funny messages on our shirts.

“Basman? The best comb,” one woman wrote.

I laughed it off at the time, but inside, I was crushed. It was clear that my hair loss was now noticeable to other people. And since then, I’ve become more and more self-conscious about my thinning hair.

When I was younger, bald men were often the joke – but taking steps to regain lost hair seemed to be considered feminine and vain. However, I began to wonder if a hair transplant was my only option. Was this a possibility for someone like me? In my mind, it was only for rich people and celebrities like Elton John.

Fast forward ten years, and social media and dating apps have made us all more aware of how we look, Dr. Farjo says, and seeing celebrities and influencers be more open to hair transplants has normalized the process.

He says more and more young men are now choosing to treat their hair loss and what was once considered a “vanity” is now considered “routine self-care”.

When I first started thinking about getting a hair transplant, I was fresh out of university, had little money and had no idea how much the procedure could really cost.

I started doing some research and discovered a nearby transplant clinic that offers free consultations and monthly payment plans.

“You’re still pretty young,” I remember the hair transplant consultant telling me as he drew on my scalp with a nose pin. “After this transplant, your hair could recede more. But you can just come in and fill it in.”

Despite the payment plan, I realized I couldn’t afford a hair transplant – especially if I had to come in and do a touch up later in life.

Since my own consultation in Cardiff in 2014, I have heard of men traveling abroad in increasing numbers to countries such as Turkey to have hair transplants. Dr Farjo says this is because the cost is “a fraction” of what it is in the UK.

But while the price may be attractive, he says there are concerns about the industry’s practices, with limited regulations. Dr Farjo also warns that cheap, uncontrolled procedures, not just in Turkey, can sometimes lead to people needing “expensive corrective surgery” to deal with scarring and “poor hair design”.

But hair transplants in Turkey remain popular and there are many happy customers – including content creator, Ben Placito.

After some funny comments from his barber, Ben decided to consider getting a hair transplant. And after months of research, he discovered it would be cheaper to have the procedure done in Turkey than in the UK.

Some offers from Turkish clinics were “crazy cheap”, says Ben, offering surgery for around £1,500. But the 31-year-old chose not to go with the cheapest hair transplant on offer and instead opted for a ‘premium’ option.

Ben felt reassured about the clinic he chose after talking to other men who had gone there and had good experiences. Ben traveled to Turkey in 2022 to have the procedure, sharing his experience on his TikTok account.

“People have said to me, ‘It’s the best thing you’ve ever done,'” says Ben. “I’m so glad I did it.”

About a year after giving up on the idea of ​​surgery, I found an ad for a clinic that offers non-surgical treatments such as finasteride tablets and minoxidil cream that can be used to stimulate hair growth.

Finasteride is one of the most common hair loss pills, taken by tens of thousands of men in the UK. Available by private prescription only.

It works by blocking the conversion of testosterone into another hormone called dihydrotestosterone (DHT) which can stop hair growth.

Minoxidil, originally a blood pressure medication, has hair growth as a side effect and is usually sold as a daily cream that is applied directly to the hair and scalp.

I paid several hundred pounds for a combination treatment of minoxidil and finasteride, but the treatment requires consistent daily use and I often forgot doses. Eventually, I realized I couldn’t justify the cost—or trust myself to stick with it. Health concerns were also weighing on me, which the clinic had made clear.

According to a 2024 report from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), finasteride is linked to psychiatric issues such as depression and suicidal thoughts and can have side effects that affect sexual function.

The MHRA advises users to monitor symptoms and stop using the medicine if side effects occur.

My experience was a decade ago, but the market for hair loss drugs has exploded since then. Superdrug’s private online doctor service says it has seen a 68% increase in new patients requesting hair loss services in the past three months compared to the same period last year.

Having given up medication, I relied on hats and carefully fitted sunglasses to “hide” my receding hairline. If I was taking a photo of my family or friends, I would position the camera so that it was cut off from the top of my head.

Then in 2019, I started seeing ads for hair systems. These faceless pieces of hair are attached to a shaved scalp and blended with existing hair, with regular clinic visits for maintenance. This seemed like a quick fix with no side effects.

But I couldn’t shake the thought of suddenly showing up at work or family events with a full head of hair – everyone knew I was bald. I also questioned the legitimacy of the ads. Were the results real? Or just the result of clever lighting and angles?

I had seen some people with systems tell their followers on social media that they could start peeling in the middle of the day – and I was afraid of it.

But for 36-year-old Adam Lomax, who has male pattern baldness and trichotillomania (a mental health disorder where you can’t resist pulling your hair), a hair system was “life-changing”.

Adam had already tried finasteride, which left him feeling anxious, depressed and low libido.

“People have been really positive,” says Adam of the reception to his new hair. “The conversation around male pattern hair loss has changed a lot – but you still have the odd troll on TikTok.”

It’s clear that there are many options for men experiencing hair loss, but not every bald man sees hair loss as something that needs to be fixed or prevented.

“The narrative around hair loss needs to change both socially and commercially,” says Tariq Kazemi, co-founder and CEO of skincare company Bld Bro, a brand that began life as a support group for balding men.

Tariq remembers a colleague poking fun at his bald spot during a shopping trip and describing it as “like an ice pick in my heart”.

Tariq later shaved his head and noted that the jokes about his hair loss stopped. She chose not to pursue any form of hair restoration.

“These industries prey on the fear and anxiety of young men,” he says. “We’ve been told that our identity, our confidence and our attractiveness will disappear with the hairs on our heads.”

In 2020, when the world went into lockdown due to the coronavirus, many people pulled out their hair or tried to cut it themselves.

By this time, the only hair I had left was around the back of my head and a thin patch on the top of my forehead. I took the plunge and decided to shave my head. There was a freedom in skipping the final stage of the balding process and I have continued to shave my head ever since.

There is so much buzz on social media about hair loss and money to be made from men’s concerns about it. But after talking to different men about their experiences with hair loss, it’s clear that there’s no one right way to feel happy with the way you look.

The anxiety I felt while losing my hair has gradually subsided and I feel more accepting of my appearance. I’ve come to terms with my baldness now and I’d rather be bald than bald.