SWNS
The identical twins have had two hair transplants so the hairline matches the sister’s – and it cost £5.5k
A woman desperate to have the same ‘perfect’ hairline as her identical twin sister has spent £5,500 on TWO hair transplants – which have changed her life. Rebecca Chadwick, 29, went ahead with the procedures to boost her confidence after comparing her receding hairline to her sister’s. She first noticed the difference at age 18, when she started noticing the subtle differences between her and her sister. After much research, she underwent her first hair transplant in January 2016 to “complete” her hairline. She followed this in March 2022 with a new procedure to give her a well-shaped widow’s peak. The consultant is now speaking out to educate people and “change the narrative” about the cosmetic procedure and normalize it for women. Rebecca, a consultant from Derby, said: “There was something about my face that I was struggling with. “I have an identical twin sister and her line is so symmetrical, but mine looked like it wasn’t shaped properly. “I started to hyper-fixate on my appearance and it was all I could see when I looked in the mirror. “In my 20s, I started to focus more on my appearance to boost my self-confidence. “I came across a random post on Instagram from someone who had had a hair transplant. “I had looked into Turkey as an option, but their method was more old-fashioned and invasive. “From the research I did, I found that British clinics made it look more natural. “It was a lot to research because they are much more common in men. “I would like to have another hair transplant because you can’t get the fullness. “I try not to look like my sister, but she is the reflection of me. Over the years it has made quite a bit of money, but now when I look back at the photos from when I was younger I can say that I had no confidence in it. “Now I am, and I attribute that to spending money on my appearance. “My sister used to be the same as everyone else, and thought it was so small. But now when I show her my before and after pictures, she understands the importance.” After noticing her receding hairline during her early teens after noticing a difference between herself and her sister, Rebecca started writing in 2016 at 22 aged ‘seriously’ looking at hair transplants abroad and eventually went to a clinic in Lenton, Nottingham for her operation. Rebecca sent pictures of her hairline before signing up for a consultation in December 2015. “The first one I got paid in advance with savings, and the second one I did for financing and paid monthly,” she explained. “I’m still paying for it now, I still have two years of payments left. “A good surgeon will always tell you the risks, but the main complications were a risk of infection or the body might shed your own hair, and it not take or grow, but that is very rare.” We talked about my expectations and whether they were realistic. “Then if I wanted to move forward, I could hire a consultant for the procedure.” Just weeks after her initial consultation, Rebecca went to her first hair transplant appointment on January 6, 2016. Rebecca said: “I went there and back in a taxi on my own both times as it was a less serious procedure. “I was ready for it to happen after my examination. ”My first procedure only took two hours! “On the day itself, the surgeon marks the area and donor area of the hair to be taken from the back. It sits in the middle of your head so you can cover it with your hair. “In men who are bald on top, they take it from the back of their head, but for women they just take a line from the middle of the head at the back so they don’t have to shave the donor area.” ”Surgeons then took hair follicles and inserted them into my hairline. “I had 800 follicles inserted, which cost £2,500. “You should not wash your hair for a few days afterwards as it needs to heal, and for about ten days after that the hair will fall out before slowly growing back. “When you first get home, you should spray your hair with a saltwater solution every once or twice a day. two hours during the first week of doing this. “You need to keep it wet because if it dries out, the hair will dry.” Then, the first time you wash your hair, you should use baby shampoo and use a cup to pour out the water. “You have to wash it gently for the next two weeks and you can’t go swimming for a month. “I was a little worried about people’s judgment because it was such a small area that I had done. “I took some time off after that, but went back in pretty quickly. Of course I told people and that was fine.” About three years after her first transplant, Rebecca noticed there were other differences she wasn’t happy with. “When the hair started growing out after the first one, I thought, ‘Why does this side of my face still not look symmetrical?’” she said. “That’s when I realized my widow’s peak wasn’t shaped properly and what needed filling. In March 2022, she underwent another operation at the same clinic, inserting 800 follicles into her widow’s peak, which cost £3,000. Rebecca’s latest procedure has now extended to her ear, but is still not long enough to stay behind it. “I’m just now noticing how fuller and thicker it looks,” she said. “You can tell if you’ve had it done because the hair is thicker in the back than in the front. “Once you get it done, you can hear them putting the hair in so it’s a little dirty, and then it looks like you have a sore bruise.” Rebecca’s surgeon told her that many women get a hair transplant if they don’t like the size of their forehead as this can be a way to correct it, just like transgender women. While sharing her hair transplant journey on TikTok, she often has women reach out saying they “didn’t know it existed.” Rebecca said: “Some people respond to it and say, ‘You don’t need it’, or ‘There are lots of other ways you can spend your money’. ‘What I’ve noticed in office gossip is men talking about it.’ I say to them: ‘Actually, I’ve already done one’, they are genuinely curious about everything. “I love educating people and changing the narrative. “It’s normal to talk about lip fillers, but not this.” For other women considering a hair transplant, Rebecca encourages them to go for it. She said: “If you have done enough research and not only choose the cheapest option, you can also try out different options on a limited budget. My self-confidence has definitely improved, it has allowed me to go for jobs that I would otherwise choose.” you haven’t done that in the past. “Since I took ownership of my appearance, I have found the confidence to be more assertive and also to stand up for myself. “I would like a little more fullness in my hairline, so I would consider another hair transplant in the next year or so.”