Inside the rise of female hair transplants: Doctor reveals three things causing women's receding hairlines - as patients claim the £10,000 procedure should be treated 'the same' as breast enlargements

Hair transplants have too long been associated with male celebrities desperate to cling onto their youth.

But with a reported 30 per cent of women experiencing hair loss in their lifetimes, it's hardly surprising an increasing number of female patients spending a small fortune on the traditionally 'male' procedure.

In the past four years, Dr Edward Bell, Medical Director at The Maitland Clinic in Hampshire, has seen a 60 per cent increase in women booking in for hair transplants - a phenomenon he puts down to menopause , stress and scalp-straining hairstyles.

Speaking to FEMAIL, the expert - who oversaw comedian Jimmy Carr 's hair transplant in 2020 - explained: 'There's always been an assumption that hair loss is something that is experienced by men.'

The surgeon, who opened his Portsmouth clinic in 2015, says his female clientele are often struggling with 'the constant gnawing anxiety of hair loss' that seeps into their everyday lives.

He said: 'I see women who who hide their hair loss, even from their partners. If their hairline is very receded, they perceive it as a very masculine hairline.'

During the pandemic, Dr Ball recorded a 60 per cent increase in women asking for hair transplants - with many saying they could not stand to see themselves on video calls.

The surgeon - whose clinic has a separate entrance for celebrity clients - continued: 'It's massively debilitating in terms of the way they live their life, because they can't go out in the wind, they can't go swimming.

'That's why it's such a joy to help women suffering with hair loss because they'll come back to me in a year's time after surgery and tell me that they can literally now just walk out of the door and pull their hair back in a ponytail.'

One of Dr Bell's clients Laura, 38, from Frome, Somerset, told MailOnline that she 'didn't like when the wind blew my hair' and became increasingly worried about showing her forehead.

She said: 'Of course, I believe social media plays a significant role in this, creating pressure to fit in and be "normal".

'I didn't like when the wind blew my hair and would reveal these triangle 'peaks' as I'd call them. I'd always look at Cara Delevingne or Bella Hadid and wish my hairline was the same.

Before taking the plunge, Laura said she spent months 'researching and watching YouTube videos' on female hair transplants.

She continued: 'Just as some girls my age opted for breast enlargements or, more recently, lip and bum injections, I wanted to improve how I felt about my hairline - and that's exactly what I did.'

Depending on the number of grafts you need, and the quality of the clinic, a hair transplant can cost between £3,000 and £10,000. Meanwhile, the procedure itself can take up to 12 hours.

Laura opted for a Strip Follicular Unit Transplantation (FUT), which is the 'more traditional' procedure, according to Dr Bell, and involves taking a linear strip of skin from the back of the head.

This piece of skin is then dissected under a microscope by a team of technicians to produce individual follicular unit grafts - or a naturally occurring group of hairs.

Dr Bell explained: 'Tiny little incisions are made in the area that you are treating and the grafts are then inserted into these little individual holes.

'When we put the hair back in the head, it is put in as it would have naturally occurred at the back.

'Some are little single hairs, some are pairs of hairs, and some are three hairs.'

Alternatively, patients can opt for Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE), which takes individual follicular unit grafts of one, two or three hairs from the back of the scalp.

'We use a punch device that basically cuts around each individual hair, leaving a tiny little circular dot,' Dr Bell said.

Laura added: 'Saying I wish I had done it sooner is an understatement; I spent a lot of time researching and watching YouTube videos of female hairline before and after before bed, dreaming of making the decision to go ahead.

'Now, I confidently wear my hair up, get haircuts without hesitation, and don't mind getting my hair wet, whereas before I would constantly reposition it to cover my bald spots.'

Maria Fowler, who starred in The Only Way Is Essex in 2010, trusted Dr Bell with her FUT after a botched transplant at another clinic.

The former reality star, 38, who is from the Midlands, told MailOnline: 'The actual procedure was surprisingly relaxing, I ate and watched Netflix and my head was numbed so I felt nothing.'

So, is it painful? 'On the day the only unpleasant part is the anaesthetic,' Dr Bell said. 'W e use a little technique where we use a vibration massager on the scalp.

'Patients will feel touching, but nothing stingy and we least them a very low dose of some valium diazepam - so a tablet that just relaxes them and helps them to sit still.

'From that point on, it's a bit like being on a long first class flight.'

Amanda*, who had a hair transplant with Dr Bell at the age of 66, said she 'didn't feel a thing' during her 12-hour surgery.

I slept through most of it because the doctor commented on my snoring.

'I know it sounds a crazy thing, but it really wasn't a scary experience at all.'

Fellow patient Katherine* agreed that the procedure was 'comfortable' and said that the scalp massage helped to reduce the pain of the anaesthetic.

She told MailOnline: 'You can sleep or watch movies while you are sitting in a comfortable chair and the team is taking care of you with drinks and snacks and lunch and cake - more than you need!'

Although the procedure itself is far from painful, Dr Bell admitted that it can be 'a little uncomfortable' after the anaesthetic wears off.

He said: 'T he first few nights will be disturbed partly because it's a little uncomfortable because you lie with the back of the head on the pillow.

'But patients certainly don't lie on the treated grafted area, of course, because you don't want to risk knocking the grafts out.

'The patient won't be able to touch the hair for the first five days because the grafts that have gone in are very fragile.

'They can start washing their hair on the sixth day so they can start to get rid of any dry skin.