The following is a transcript of Episode 15 of the Hair Restoration With Dr. Daniel A. Danyo podcast.
All episodes of the podcast can be found at Apple Podcasts, Google Podcast, and Spotify.
Dr. Danyo: You know, the physician-patient relationship to me is just so important. I really learned that from my father, who I spent a lot of time with in my training and even my early years. He was an orthopedic surgeon. Out of all the physicians that I trained with, he was the best as far as touching patients and really having the patients respond in a positive way, you know, kind of set the foundation for me to build my practice, my professional career around the patient. And that’s really one of the main reasons why I left traditional medicine because I felt that that was evaporating. But, you know, with hair restoration, especially now with COVID, I mean my focus is 100% on the patient during that case.
Clark: That was the voice of Daniel A. Danyo, MD, founder and physician at North Atlanta Hair Restoration, a boutique medical practice solely dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment of male and female hair loss. And you’re listening to “Hair Restoration with Dr. Daniel A. Danyo.” I’m your host Clark and all season long, we’re speaking with Dr. Danyo about how he and his team at North Atlanta Hair Restoration are helping his patients transform their everyday lives for the better. In this episode, Dr. Danyo and I are joined by David, a hair restoration patient. David explains why he chose Dr. Danyo for his procedure and describes his experience with the process from start to finish. And he also offers his perspective on the anti-aging industry as a whole. There’s so much to talk about. So let’s dive right in. Dr. Danyo, how are you doing?
Dr. Danyo: I’m doing great Clark. How are you?
Clark: I’m great. How is the training going for all of the races you’re working on?
Dr. Danyo: Lately it’s slow, but, you know, you kind of go through peaks and valleys. I’m probably in a little bit of a valley right now. I’ve just been really busy. Pollen season is upon us. But…
Clark: Man, I feel you on that.
Dr. Danyo: Exactly. And we were actually going to do a half Ironman in Utah and we ended up changing to doing just the Augusta half Ironman in September, my daughter and I, just because a couple of the races got canceled and it’s like you’re transporting your bike out there and getting a hotel room and flights and 72 hours before the race, they’re canceling it. So there just wasn’t a guarantee so we just decided let’s just do the one race.
Clark: Right. Well, you’ve been busy.
Dr. Danyo: Yeah.
Clark: You’ve been busy working with all of your patients. And we actually have a special guest, a recent patient here with us.
Dr. Danyo: Yes, David.
Clark: So Dr. Danyo, give us a little intro here. David, welcome.
David: Thank you, Clark.
Clark: David, so first I just want to say hello to you David. How are you?
David: I’m doing great Clark. I’m excited to be with you guys.
Clark: So Dr. Danyo, tell me how you both met, and then we’ll kind of do a little background there and then kind of get to present day.
Dr. Danyo: Sure. Well, I met David probably around 2015. We just moved to a new office location. And David is in the cosmetic realm, works with a lot of dermatologists and plastic surgeons, hair restoration and, you know, other cosmetic procedures. So he introduced himself and we have had a great relationship. He is actually one of my vendors for something called PRP, which we’ve talked about before, and he’s been just a great asset to our practice. You know, he’s been in on a lot of hair transplants, and this was a couple of years ago, he said, “I might be the next one.” And then recently he said, “Let’s get it done.”
Clark: Let’s get it done. So, David, when was it when you all met? Was it just like a routine visit? Was it one of those kinds of things?
David: Yeah, I mean, you know, like doc said, I’m in the anti-aging business, been in on several cosmetic or hair restoration. Still at that point honestly was a little bit new, you know, to procedures. So I heard great things about Dr. Danyo and was excited to kind of reach out to him. And the one thing that really was a big thing for me was that, you know, he was the one doing the procedure because a lot of facilities, they use techs. And he even said to me, I remember, “Most of my patients want the doctor,” you know?
Clark: Right.
David: No offense against techs, all right, you know?
Clark: And a tech, they come in and they kind of…the doctor, you meet with the doctor for a few minutes and then the doctor leaves, that’s what you’re describing, and then the tech comes in and does the procedure?
David: Exactly, exactly, right, you know. And so, I wanted the best of the best. So many things that he had appealed to me on a personal level as we kind of moved through. Like doc was saying, I absolutely made up my mind early on, right, I’m going to have this done and I’m going to use Dr. Danyo. There’s absolutely no doubt in my mind, you know, about it.
Clark: So the anti-aging business, I feel like that is something that…it’s been around for a long time, right?
David: Oh yeah. Oh yeah.
Clark: But over the last couple of years, maybe most recently, have you found yourself… You know, how many offices or how many other folks have you been around just to help me understand kind of the work you do?
David: Yeah. I’ve been in the anti-aging industry for 29 years and I’ve seen a lot of different things. Technology has really gotten to a great level and there’s no better example than hair restoration for this. The technology that’s available is tremendous. But really, you know, the main thing too is just, you know, the expertise and the absolute attention to detail that Dr. Danyo brings to his procedures. He’s unique, there’s absolutely no doubt about that. And I’m not talking about in Atlanta or Georgia, really nationwide. You know, the fact that he does the shave-less procedure is so important to a lot of people, especially I think guys, because typically when a man’s getting hair restoration, you know, they go and they use a 1 guard at the barber and they shave you down, so everyone pretty much knows what you’ve done, and Dr. Danyo doesn’t do that. You know, in my travels, no one knew what I had done. I liked that. You know, I mean, I’m a bit of a private person, but it looked very natural and that’s an important part, I think, to this whole procedure.
Clark: I think what makes your perspective on all this really unique is that you… You said you’ve been doing this kind of work. You’ve been around this industry, anti-aging and all of this, for 29 years. So you’ve seen a lot.
David: I have.
Clark: And that I think… Compliments to Dr. Danyo. Man, that’s got to feel good to hear.
Dr. Danyo: Oh yeah.
Clark: Dr. Danyo talks a lot about his reason why, why he loves this work so much. And what I’ve loved hearing him say is like, you know, the feeling he gets from seeing his patients, how they react and respond afterwards. So maybe, could we talk a little about just, with you David, about kind of the before and after? What were you feeling before and was there a moment when you decided… Because you were saying, you know, one of these days I might come see you, but was there a time when you were like, “Okay, I think now I’m ready to do this.” And then let’s talk a little about the after and how it’s been because it’s been, at the moment we’re recording this, maybe around a month ago.
David: Yes.
Clark: So the before, was there a moment when you were like, “Okay, I’m ready to do this?”
David: Well, I’ll tell you what, I had been looking at my hairline for years. It was probably 10 years ago, I started to notice, you know, the recession and it bothered me, right? Because yes, as you were talking about Clark, I’ve been in this industry for 29 years, but it’s not something that I just do, it’s really who I am. Through the years, you know, I’ve had clients say, “Hey, are you someone who uses what you’re talking to me about?” And the answer has always been, “Yeah, absolutely.” All right. I mean, I believe in everything that we do, but again, it’s who I am. Anti-aging as I said to my wife one time, I said, you know, “I’m in the anti-aging industry, I probably should look a little anti-aged.” And she said, “Well, probably.”
Clark: Oh all right. Yeah.
David: But again, just on a personal level, you know, just looking in the mirror every single day for the last decade and thinking I see pieces that are disappearing and I don’t want that. And the technology and the expertise that Dr. Danyo brings to this is so unique. And again, when I met him early on and just talked with him for a little bit, I knew, you know, when I get this done, I am going to see Dr. [inaudible 00:09:06].
Clark: That’s awesome. I love that.
David: Yeah, absolutely. And the after, I mean, the whole experience and then the after was there for, you know, a bit. We got done and Dr. Danyo took the time to go through, you know, the post-care with me. He had it written out perfectly. I refer to that several times. Over the next several days, he called and checked on me. You feel like, you know, you’re the only thing that matters when you’re in his facility. You know what I mean? A lot of facilities, there are so many things happening and that wasn’t the case there. You’re just, you know, the focus and that, from a patient experience, goes a long way.
Clark: Boom. I love hearing that because as I’ve been talking with Dr. Danyo here now, I think I’ve started to take it for granted a little bit, just…and it really, it’s just, it’s him and it’s the patient. And sometimes the sessions might take a couple of hours longer or shorter depending on the situation, but what a great focus to really hone in on of not only did you want to work with him, but you wanted it to be done by him. And that’s how he does all of these. So it’s really cool to hear directly from somebody is what I’m trying to say.
Dr. Danyo: Yes. Well, you know, the physician-patient relationship to me is just so important. I really learned that from my father, who I spent a lot of time with in my training and even my early years. He was an orthopedic surgeon. Out of all the physicians that I trained with, he was the best as far as touching patients and really having the patients respond in a positive way, you know, kind of set the foundation for me to build my practice, my professional career around the patient. And that’s really one of the main reasons why I left traditional medicine, because I felt that that was evaporating. But, you know, with hair restoration, especially now with COVID, I mean, my focus is 100% on the patient during that case. I’m also free to interact with people after the case and really just build that relationship, which is sorely lacking these days with how medicine has changed and how doctors are now just providers and not necessarily, you know, this physician that really spend a lot of time with patients and where patients felt comfortable to kind of open their hearts and kind of give their all. And it’s great when we can kind of do it together and I can give my all and get the results that I want and the patient wants.
Clark: I think of something that’s interesting with both of you is your careers are…you’re kind of around a lot of the similar things and, you know, this anti-aging perspective. And David, you were saying something earlier, like, you know, I’m a private person and I really like this because this procedure is shave-less, FUE procedure, which basically means it doesn’t look like you just got this procedure. It’s pretty discreet. My question for you, since you’ve been around this for so long and all sorts of different procedures and different things, do you have a common encouragement that you give to people, a perspective about the industry? Are there maybe things that people feel like, I don’t know if I should do this, any kind of anything for themselves for anti-aging? Does that make sense? I’m just kind of curious for someone who’s been around this for so long…
David: Yeah.
Clark: Yeah. Well, yeah. What are your thoughts on that?
David: I’m not just someone who is in the industry, it’s part of who I am. And I’ve been so interested in anti-aging my whole life. And as it relates to hair restoration, you know, there’s a lot of different things I’ve seen out there through the years, mainly it’s the strip technology where literally someone goes into the back, cuts a large strip, takes graphs, and then those are placed where the restoration is needed, where this, there’s nothing like that. To me, and this goes with any aesthetic procedure, hugely for hair restoration, and that is that it needs to look natural. That to me is the definition of a great aesthetic procedure, it looks completely natural. You know, we’ve all seen someone who had a facelift or worked on and you looked, and you can tell. All right? That to me is not a great aesthetic procedure. It needs to look natural. And that’s what I absolutely love so much about this is that it does. And I’m almost a month in and it looks completely natural. No one can look at me and say, “Hey, what’s going on?” Right? There’s none of that. And that was immediately after the procedure. That again goes back to the shave-less that Dr. Danyo has, that no one has, you know, and again, not just in [inaudible 00:14:12] Georgia, really across the country.
Dr. Danyo: And David, one thing I wanted to add is that you’re one of the 10% of patients that has early growth. So, I mean, you’re seeing amazing growth right now. You know, a lot of people have shedding at this point and maybe, you know, one month out, there’s not a lot of growth. So, you know, you’re lucky to actually be having such early growth and amazing results, which is awesome.
Clark: Excellent.
David: No, I mean, the whole experience, everything about it is exciting.
Clark: How do you feel like you would describe how you feel now that you have this?
David: Well, you know, I was excited before, during, all right, and more so after, because I know literally every single day it’s going to look better and better and better. And so it’s just, you know, this gift that’s going to keep giving. And we all want to look and feel better, that’s no secret. The fact that I’ve been able to do it with Dr. Danyo because he set such a high level.
Clark: I think everyone, you’re absolutely right, everyone deserves to look and feel better. And congrats to you for making that decision. And great work, Dr. Danyo. Another happy patient, another great story.
Dr. Danyo: Yeah. It’s awesome.
David: I even learned about Wim Hof, right, for my breathing technique. That’s actually helped me work out, right?
Clark: Oh what is that?
David: Doc, I’ve been telling everybody about this thing. I actually had someone yesterday who actually texted me and he said, it’s amazing.
Dr. Danyo: How long have you done the breath-hold now?
David: I actually started probably a week after I had the procedure. And it was almost like the first time I did it, I was like, wow that’s like…like he talks about tingling and stuff, you know, on your fingers and everything, you know? And so, it’s 11 minutes and he goes through, you know, I love that, end with peace, out with stress, right? But it’s what I do in the morning. I’m a morning person. I like to do that, and then I go and I work out, you know, whether I’m lifting or I’m running myself and I’m noticing that my workouts are better. The showers, you know, I kind of used his app for that. It was like, okay, 15 seconds, 30, get up to 2 minutes, and now I take… That was like, whoa, right? But now I’ve gotten literally to the point where it sounds weird, but it almost feels warm to me. I mean, it’s good stuff, right? You know what I mean? Doc, we’ve always talked, you know, he works out, I work out, and so we kind of relate on that level as well. But I actually love that. I told a group I was talking to last week about it, and this is the person who texted me yesterday, they are like, “Oh my gosh, that’s so cool.” Right? I was like, “Yeah.”
Dr. Danyo: So Clark, you don’t know but, yeah…
Clark: Yeah, [crosstalk 00:17:03] me up.
Dr. Danyo: …there’s a guy named Wim Hof, W-I-M-H-O-F, look him up on…you can do YouTube. But anyway, he’s a guy from Holland and he, as a young kid, would go into the snow and get this piece, and then when he was about 17, literally started breaking the ice at a local lake and jumping in, in the winter and doing cold immersion for like 5 to 10 minutes and feeling great. So he’s well into his 60s now, but he’s got 18 world records related to cold and endurance. And he knew that early on with the cold, you needed to breathe. So he came up with these breathing techniques that literally gets you to a level that monks and, you know, these yogis, it takes them 15 to 20 years to get. You can get to that level in about 10 to 15 minutes.
David: It’s really cool. It’s meditative for me.
Clark: What?
David: It’s not just the breathing. I feel meditation and, you know, all the science behind that are great for heart rate, great for blood pressure, so many benefits, right? And so I feel like I’m getting both, because it’s just that really serene feeling, but the breathing, you know, just again, the practice. The first time I did it, I couldn’t hold my breath for almost…I had to struggle for a minute. Now I’m doing two minutes.
Dr. Danyo: Yeah. I’ve actually, Clark, held my breath for three minutes with no air in my lungs after doing it.
Clark: What?
Dr. Danyo: Yes.
David: It’s cool. You got to see it. When I was there…
Clark: So is this something…okay. I’m going to do that.
David: Go to Netflix, it’s “The Goop Lab.” It is the second episode on “The Goop Lab.” I’ve got my family doing it, my wife doing it, and my daughter and stuff, right? And so we watched that and then…
Dr. Danyo: And the nice thing is it’s free.
David: Yeah. Oh yeah. Yeah.
Clark: It’s free to deal.
David: It’s really cool.
Dr. Danyo: I’ve been getting in my pool almost every day all winter.
Clark: Really?
Dr. Danyo: I’m talking, even if it’s in the 40s. Yeah.
Clark: Man, that is so wild. I had no idea. So is the breathing technique, is this just like a bonus thing in life or is this something that’s also…is this something, Dr. Danyo, you’re doing like when you’re doing your procedures. How did this come up?
Dr. Danyo: So I had heard about him intermittently, and then I had a patient who looked great and he said, you know, “I’ve been doing this Wim Hof stuff.” And he said, “You really need to get into it.” And so I downloaded his book called “The Wim Hof Method.” I listened to it then I listened to this other book called If It Doesn’t Kill You by a guy who tried to discredit him but now has been practicing his techniques since 2012. He’s done all these amazing things. In fact, he and Wim Hoff hiked up Mount Kilimanjaro in shorts in 28 hours.
Clark: Jeez.
Dr. Danyo: It usually takes a week.
Clark: What?
Dr. Danyo: Yes. Wim Hof climbed Mount Everest in shorts.
Clark: That’s so cool that you all could connect on.
Dr. Danyo: So the key is the deep breathing, the breath holds. It stimulates your brainstem and it releases norepinephrine, dopamine, epinephrine and it gets you to a very calming state. It gets you ready for the day. It improves your recovery from athletics. It gets you ready for a workout. You’ll be able to work out better. In fact, if you do your maximum pushups and then do one set of Wim Hof breathing, hold your breath, and you’ll double your pushups.
Clark: And so this also helps with recovery?
Dr. Danyo: Yeah. And then the other thing that you do is then follow up with doing a cold shower and that also stimulates… Cold is such a primal…you know, a stressful response. I mean, cold is never pleasant. And your brain emits a stress response, which is more dopamine, more norepinephrine, epinephrine. So when you do the breath holds and the breathing, get in the shower and do a cold shower. You kind of have to pace yourself. You can’t just do two minutes right off the bat. You will come out of that shower and then you will have a day that will be very productive and very stress-free.
David: Absolutely. It made sense to me because I’ve trained for races and taken ice baths, and what it’s done for my body for recovery is amazing. So it was like, okay, I get that part. You know what I mean? And then the breathing, you know, the first time I did it, it was like, okay, this is really cold. And I just focused on the breathing, like the show, but I’ve done it at night too, because it’s been as, you know, a day or I’ve been traveling or something’s going on and it’s like, you know what, I need an extra dose. And it’s just so serene.
Clark: I love it. That’s great. I’ve got one last question. I’m asking this to you, David, on the patient side, pain, how is pain playing a role on this, or how did that work?
David: Oh, I mean just extremely comfortable. All right? You know, I had just a little sting when the anesthetic went in, but absolutely no pain during the procedure whatsoever. And what’s good too, again, you know, Dr. Danyo is, throughout the procedure, he’s asking me, “Is everything okay? Are you fine?” Nothing even significant to me, you know, that would be a factor in this.
Clark: That’s great to hear. Wonderful. Guys, thanks so much for taking some time out of your busy days to connect on this. This has been really fun. And I learned some really cool things about the breathing. Who would have thought?
David: See that? Go a little, get it tonight and start tomorrow. I’m telling you, it’ll change what you’re doing.
Clark: I love that. And I love how the exterior of your body, you know, a hair transplant and hair restoration, there’s also things to do on the inside, and all of this is to help you look and feel better. So I love that we had that theme in this conversation.
David: Absolutely.
Dr. Danyo: David, thank you so much.
David: No, absolutely. It’s been a pleasure, right? The whole experience has been amazing.
Clark: Thanks for listening to “Hair Restoration with Dr. Daniel A. Danyo.” Book your consultation today with Dr. Danyo by simply calling (678) 845-7521 or visit them online at nahairrestoration.com. And be sure to subscribe, rate and review the podcast wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts.
