Feel the buzz

[gmonasco]

Many men handle the pain of losing their hair by deciding to shave it all off.

http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/arti...having_it_off/

[DAVE52]

Yup
If I had the confidence I would and should have doen it 10 yrs ago
Now I'm stuck with a bald crown and a thin frontal 1/2
I keep it as short as possible ( # 2 on the back and sides - the scar doesn't show through YET , and about 1/2 " to 3/4" on the top )
Do I like it ?
No
I am sooooooooo self conscious
But it is what it is and I now have to live and get used to this mess on top of me

[Fixed by 35]

Yes, a lot of men do this. Unfortunately for them, by pretending to like their hair loss in such a way, they make themselves fair game for ridicule in the eyes of the hirsute. In it's own way, crap hair (demonstrating a hatred of hair loss) is a defence. The average person wants to ridicule you because they think your baldness is funny but they tend to avoid risking offence. Personally, I have the confidence to not shave - I hate the shaved head and quite frankly I don't care what others think of me for refusing to adopt such a look. If they have some sort of issue with me not conforming to look like an egghead retard, that's their problem.

Also, as I still have some coverage, albeit thin and diffused (very much so at the front), it can look like an act of choice which means shaving would make me look like a thug. That's not a particularly good image in business.

[Weedwacker]

This article has the same insecure imbeciles and flawed logic that is redundant at this point. The article tries to suggest that shaving the head is the answer and somehow eliminates the problem of baldness.

If a bald man shaves his head, is he no longer bald? How is the problem fixed? One of the idiots interviewed said that baldness bothered him because of the comments from others;that's why he decided to shave it. All this underscores is his insecurity. I thought insecurity was bad in a man? Another guy said, "Who was I fooling by trying to hide my hairloss?" Well, who does he think he's fooling by shaving his head? He's still bald, and obviously bothered by it, or else he wouldn't be shaving.

Another erroneous thing mentioned by idiots is that by shaving your head, you're bald by choice. REALLY??? No, you will always be bald because of MPB! There is no choice.

Another idiotic statement of advice is to grow out a goatee or other form of facial hair if you shave or buzz the head close. This is prime insecurity. By growing out a deliberate facial hair pattern, you are saying that you are trying to hide your face and disguise the way you look. This is also 'following a trend.' I thought the point of shaving or buzzing the head close was to look "neat." How does an afternoon shadow or goatee look neat? It looks unkept, scruffy and connotes laziness. Groom your head but not your face? Interesting. This isn't the 12th century.

This article has the same trite bullshit about shaving or buzzing the head, and only underscores the pathetic insecurity with which many bald men live. It takes more balls to be a natural bald person than it does to try to hide it by shaving. Shaving or close-buzzing is not the issue - the issue is why you're doing it.

[jooder]

Shaving your head obviously does not mean you are no longer bald. But for many men it is a solution.
I guess its a case of 'well im going bald.....just shave it off and minimise the disruption it plays in my life'. Thats certainly the way i felt about it.
No more trying to hide it, no more avoiding the wind, no more panic at the hairs in the shower and no more potentially risking your health for your hair. It lifts a weight off your shoulders and allows you to resume a life that isnt obsessed with your rapidly thinning hair.
It will never be the answer for everyone, but for many men its a good option.

[Fixed by 35]

It definitely serves a purpose for those who simply no longer care. I'm currently trying to reach that stage; there seems little point continuing to focus my attention on my appearance when it's something I will never be happy with anyway. I'd be far better off focusing on what I am good at.

However, the logical conclusion that I have reached is to not shave anyway. What's the point if I don't care about my appearance anymore after all? If we talk in terms of numbers, 1-10 with 10 being most attractive, the best I can ever hope for is a 3 which means there's very little point in expending too much effort and I might as well stay as a 2 (instead, I can focus on a degree and get another first or I can find more clients and grow my business).

[mattj]

Yes, a lot of men do this. Unfortunately for them, by pretending to like their hair loss in such a way, they make themselves fair game for ridicule in the eyes of the hirsute. In it's own way, crap hair (demonstrating a hatred of hair loss) is a defence. The average person wants to ridicule you because they think your baldness is funny but they tend to avoid risking offence. Personally, I have the confidence to not shave - I hate the shaved head and quite frankly I don't care what others think of me for refusing to adopt such a look. If they have some sort of issue with me not conforming to look like an egghead retard, that's their problem.

Also, as I still have some coverage, albeit thin and diffused (very much so at the front), it can look like an act of choice which means shaving would make me look like a thug. That's not a particularly good image in business.

If I remember correctly, you're British. Through becoming common I think the shaved head look has shed most of it's thug image in Britain. I see shaved heads everywhere these days.

[Weedwacker]

I think men are too consumed by their appearance and don't realize that women aren't as concerned about looks as men are. Perhaps the prism through which men see the world blights their understanding of the manner in which women think. Women are far more concerned about a man's height, status, wealth, personality etc. than they are his looks. Being tall is far more important to a woman than hair. Hair is primarily important to us!

With regard to hair, one of the main issues for me is what it represents. One's ethnicity, genetics, facial features and biological idiosyncrasies are partially created by it. For instance, if I see an Asian woman, one of the first things I notice is her jet-black hair and dark eyes. If I see a Norwegian woman, I notice her blue eyes and light/blond hair. It's part of your biological makeup. When I was a kid, I had bright blond hair due to my Scandanavian ancestry. When I buzz my hair off(which I do regularly because I have to)I lose a part of what makes me who I am biologically and genetically. I have lost part of my identity.

I saw a report on TV that researchers recently discovered that men go bald because their stem cells do not produce progenitor cells. One researcher said that he thinks they will be able to figure out how to make the stem cells produce progenitor cells within a decade. The good news is that they know that bald men have the supply of stem cells like everyone else;they just have to figure out how to get them to function properly. I don't know if this will come to fruition but I sure as hell hope it's plausible. The story was published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

[Fixed by 35]

Yes, it's some more exciting news building on the past year. Things are definitely looking better than they did a couple of years ago, although it does make the wait even more excrutiating! The scientists claiming it will take a decade really ought to work with Histogen (instead of suing them? Not sure if it's them) - hopefully shared research would cut down the workload.

In terms of appearance, the point I was making is that very few people find baldness attractive, but a lot of people can look beyond such a flaw. For example, women are less attracted to looks than men and will therefore date a man who is bald not because they're attracted to a bare scalp but despite it.

The problem that persists is the difficulty in making a first impression. From a straw poll of women (nothing more reliable) I've come to the conclusion that they're prepared to date a bald man despite his condition but they'd have to fall for his personality and other charms first. So, presumably bars and clubs are generally not a fertile hunting ground for bald men. Instead, bald men are forced to play a much longer, more patient game (but at least they're spared dating the superficial, although I think a lot of younger men would rather like to date a few superficial women before they settle down). Could baldness thus force such a maturity on the 'wearer?'

A bald man's main obstacle though is not women at all, it's making an impression with men who still have hair. I believe that the bald man's biggest disadvantage comes from their lesser ability to make a good first impression in job interviews, when dealing with clients and when networking. Also, do note, men are image focused and hair makes a huge difference. When I wasn't losing my hair, I'm pretty sure I subconsciously pitied the bald. In fact, I even pitied those with hair who chose to shave it off. Presumably many men with hair look at me and pity me now. That's not the best first impression that I want to make at interview.

I've tried to analyse my past success at job interviews to identify any patterns that back this theory up. I've had interviews with seven companies since I began noticeably balding (not a huge sample I know) and the results I've found were as follows:

Successful interviews with men with hair 0 (2 unsuccessful interviews)
Successful interviews with bald men 4 (all successful)
Successful interviews with women 4

I should note that some of the interviews with bald men/women were a panel of two, with one of each. Five successful interviews out of seven, failing only two, which happened to be the only interviews I've had with men with hair.

Based on this analysis, I do wonder what my male 'haired' senior management thought of me at my previous job. No wonder I never got promoted!