My short (but long) history with baldness and confidence

[Glottonym]

If you are losing your hair as a man in your early twenties, then this might mean that you have noticed first signs even before that. And however standards of beauty have changed over the years, it really drags you down. I spent years avoiding mirrors whenever possible because I felt terribly unattractive, terribly self-conscious (interpreting any giggling as a sneering comment on my lack of hair), not worthy of the loving attention of anybody.

It somehow changed over night, I do not know why. Possibly Andre Agassi played a major part in this, because suddenly there was somebody genuinely bald, somebody my age, and somebody that not only many people but also I found really attractive despite or to a certain extent also because of his baldness. And one day I took a digital camera and took photos of my head, from every possible angle, from any possible perspective. What I saw was not what I would have liked to look like when I was 16, but what I saw was me, my authentic self, bald, but not completely ugly, not completely unattractive. I saw flashes of a beauty that was mine and mine only.

Today, I can face any mirror, I can face myself, I'm bald, but I'm attractive in my own way with it, physically, mentally and socially (hopefully ;-)

[Paul the Headblader]

straighten up
bald is the way.

[TheSlyBear]

Welcome to SBG, Glottonym!

Good story. Good to hear that you've discovered yourself. Some guys have a hard time making that journey.

[BaldRunnerFL]

Welcome, Glottonym!

Hopefully your story is an inspiration to those on the fence.

[Skimdude]

Welcome! That´s the right attitude

[-Doug-]

Glad to have you with us Glottonym. Fencers should read your intro.

[Hingatao]

Welcome to the club, glottonym.

[Andrei]

Welcome to the forum!
Nice post. It's important to be pleased with who you are, to feel comfortable in your skin. If a haircut helps then it's great, but usually greater issues are involved.
Glad you found your balance.

[Slynito]

Welcome! Sitting on a fence can hurt... 

[xnewyawka]

Welcome to the forum.

[Frontier Guy]

Welcome Glottonym ... if your comfortable, how about a picture? That's the great thing about bald - there's always room for one more photo in the Sly album.

[warhawk]

Hey Glottonym:  Welcome 2 the sly fraternity.  Glad that ya joined us.

WARHAWK

[Sir Harry]

Welcome aboard. Nice first post!

[Glottonym]

Thanks for the welcome.

I wished describing how I went from despair (it is very difficult to actually describe how great the problem was at the time) to some kind of confidence (still being self-conscious in some situations and catch myself putting on a cap) could be an inspiration. I just fear that you have to go through it yourself. If you had offered me propecia or one of the drugs that are a safer bet to actually have some effect, I would definitely have taken it (if I had dared to go to a doctor and somehow admitted that I knew that I was losing my head - I was in denial mode for most of my life).

As you can see from the photo, bald and glasses, my childhood nightmares come true. And I'm still alive and much more comfortable with myself than I was 20 years ago.

[mrzed]

Welcome! Sitting on a fence can hurt... 

Especially if it is a white picket fence, or has razor wire on top of it!

Welcome.  The guys here are very supportive of those with bald heads, or those wishing they would have the ... to shave their heads.