My Story - Balding 16!

[kb24]

Hey Guys!

As a kid had really thick hair but by high school (16-17) I noticed that the top of my head started to thin. Over the years obviously it has gotten worse. For the past 2 1/2 years I've grown my hair out as I've always wanted to have longer hair (not the best idea, while ur balding lol), but i did it anyways as i thought hey I might as well experience it while i can.

My balding is occurring on the entire top of my scalp, pretty evenly. I also have a receding hairline.

Today I'm 23 and conscious of my hair and I am embarrassed that it is thinning so badly, I'm always worried about whether my scalp is visible, and avoid standing under bright lights etc. At the gym i started wearing a hat even though i don't like to, I do it to hide the balding.

At one point i was pretty depressed at the state of things, but just realized that hey its just hair a lot of other people are going thru things way way worse.

Im not sure what the next step should be but I am cutting my hair and going back to a shorter style.

What do u guys think? Would i look good bald?, not sure if i should just shave it all off! There are some pics below.

[Notcoolanymore]

Have you given any thoughts about treatment? I would say give fin and minox a try. If you find it to be too much of a hassle, then quit and except your fate. You might be one of those "good responders". You never know unless you try. I don't think you would look bad with a shaved head, but no doubt look better with hair.

[Dan26]

Shave it off man!

Honestly it will look great on you, and you do actually still have a hairline to frame the face. It will look much better than grown out hair.

You could still treat your hairloss while you buzz it to maintain the stubble, beleive my it will look great on you.

Consider youself lucky bro that you dont have an egg head or are pale/skinny

[kb24]

Thanks for the reply! I have used Minox, don't think it worked but that could be because i wasn't patient enough with it? I have looked into fin and the side effects are something I'm not willing to deal with. But say i do try fin, if i happen to not be a good responder, would the side affect remain? or do they fall away if u stop using? Also I believe the long term effects of fin are unknown so not sure its a risk I'm willing to take

[Notcoolanymore]

I am under the belief that once you stop taking the drug, things should get back to normal soon after. Most doctors will agree with me. There are guys around here that will tell you different. I am not saying it can't happen, but the odds are highly unlikely. I was also afraid of fin because of the stuff I heard online. Finally I decided to give it a try and I am glad I did. Even I have seen regrowth and i have been losing hair for 15 years.

Long term use is also a concern of mine. The drug has been out for over 20 years, I would think there would be evidence if there was problem with long term use, but who knows.

The choice is ultimately yours. If I was in your shoes, I would give fin a try. If you do you have to give it time to work.

[ravegrover]

I think you should treat your hairloss with both Fin and Minox. Here is a link that ought to encourage you.

http://www.bernsteinmedical.com/medical-treatment/patient-photos/

And, yes, definitely cut it short. It's a better look and you wouldnt worry about it as much.

[35YrsAfter]

Hey Guys!

As a kid had really thick hair but by high school (16-17) I noticed that the top of my head started to thin. Over the years obviously it has gotten worse. For the past 2 1/2 years I've grown my hair out as I've always wanted to have longer hair (not the best idea, while ur balding lol), but i did it anyways as i thought hey I might as well experience it while i can.

My balding is occurring on the entire top of my scalp, pretty evenly. I also have a receding hairline.

Today I'm 23 and conscious of my hair and I am embarrassed that it is thinning so badly, I'm always worried about whether my scalp is visible, and avoid standing under bright lights etc. At the gym i started wearing a hat even though i don't like to, I do it to hide the balding.

At one point i was pretty depressed at the state of things, but just realized that hey its just hair a lot of other people are going thru things way way worse.

Im not sure what the next step should be but I am cutting my hair and going back to a shorter style.

What do u guys think? Would i look good bald?, not sure if i should just shave it all off! There are some pics below.

If it were me, I would start on minoxidil and try the shaved look. I began losing my hair at around 16. It wasn't noticeable then and didn't become apparent until I was around 23. When I was young there were no effective treatments available.

Working at Dr. Cole's office, I meet a lot of men and women with hair loss. Propecia and Avodart seem to change scalp characteristics in some men. If you have ever examined a woman's scalp or a male pre-teen's scalp, you'll notice it has a spongier nature, where my thin areas for instance have a tougher feel on compression. Kind of like when you make a fist and touch your knuckles. I'm not saying bald men are knuckleheads by any means, because as they say, "Grass doesn't grow on a busy street". I am wondering though if there is any merit to topicals some doctors have sold in the past that contain both minoxidil and Propecia.

Men make a bigger deal of hair loss and many women find balding men sexy. Try not to stress over this. If you ever watch the TV show "Burn Notice", you'll see the character named Jesse who is a great example of a slightly thinning look with very short hair. In the show, it seems Fiona has the hots for him.

35YrsAfter also posts as CITNews and works at Dr. Cole's office
forhair.com
Cole Hair Transplant
1070 Powers Place
Alpharetta, Georgia 30009
Phone 678-566-1011
email 35YrsAfter at chuck@forhair.com
The contents of my posts are my opinions and not medical advice
Please feel free to call or email me with any questions. Ask for Chuck

[kb24]

Thanks for the replies! Def gunna make an appointment and see if i should get on fin, what stage of balding would you say i am? Pretty bad? How much time do u think I have left? What would my norwood be?

Also I've noticed that my balding isn't only at the crown or the temples etc, and that it is pretty much the entire top of my head. Is this mpb? or is mine something else? as most people bald thru the horse shoe shape (crown n receding hairline, and temples etc.)

I cut my long hair this past weekend, so here I am with much shorter hair(pics below)! Think ill look good as a baldy? Do i have the right head shape? Thinking about doing it at some point.

Thrown tons of questions out there, sorry. Really appreciate the help!

[redy]

Hey,

It looks like MPB, but if you think it could be a deficiency of some sort get some blood work done.

Also, you probably should just buzz it off at this point and let your beard cover more area than just the thin strip you have it in right now.

[Notcoolanymore]

I would prefer having hair, but I think you could pull off the shaved look. If you are cool with shaving, then just go that route. Fin, minox, nizoral, is a life long commitment. If I didn't mind being bald I would have said screw it and shaved a long time ago. I just cant throw in the towel though.

Just remember time isn't your friend when it comes to hair loss. If you are thinking of treating, then just get started asap. The longer you wait, the more hair you will lose and most likely less you will get back.