Back Again!

[ROKBaldie]

Hey everyone! I posted once on this site about 1 year ago, but i'm back due to the progress of losing more hair!

I'm from Seattle but i'm 23 and currently living in Korea teaching. It's fun but man this place is hair capital of the world! very hard to fit in! And i'm still struggling emotionally with the hair loss

Anyways i have lots of questions among them are

1. I'm having trouble with Rogaine, i don't know if i should just give up with it or not, it does work a little bit but i know it's useless in the long run, i am having a lot of issues with the side effects such as pimples on the scalp and dark rings under the eyes. So should i just give it up and embrace the baldness?

2. I have a very unique situation to begin with, i had a Subdural Hematoma when i was a child and it has left me with 3 scars on my head, two of which are indentations, needless to say i envy the smooth scalp, i have had surgery to make them less visible which have work to a degree but i'm still not satisfied with them

3. Also i have a tough time when i do shave my head it seems like it always leaves razor burns and doesn't seem like i can get a close shave and my head isn't shiny like i see many other bald men

4. Sorry it's a long post!! 

5. And finally! i have huge eyebrows and i'm trying to accentuate my physical features if i'm going to be bald any suggestions??

Sorry if i come off as a paranoid person but it's tough making the transition!!

Thanks for reading if i should post these questions another place let me know or MODS can move it to the correct location!!

PEACE from KOREA

[marty22]

welcome once again!

[Stu]

Welcome back!  For questions 1 & 2 -- Ditch the drugs.  You look to have quite a bit of hairloss, and even if there is some growth from Rogaine, it's never going to give you the look you had when you were younger.  So there's no point to using it and plenty of reasons not to such as side effects which have been discussed in other posts, especially sexual side effects.  Don't worry about scars; very few guys have perfect heads.  Mine is pointy in the back from a side view... nothing much can be done about that.  Question 3 - you might have razor burns because you don't shave every day or every other day, so your head is not used to the shock.  Read through the posts on how others have dealt with razor burn if it continues to be a problem with regular shaving.  Question 5 - If you think the eyebrows are too big or bushy, use a beard trimmer to tame them, but start with the higher setting, and go lower as needed.  Acceptance of your balding situation, although sometimes hard, is the first step in getting on with your life.  At 23 you have a lot of living to do.  Be grateful that head shaving is basically mainstream these days, although maybe not in Korea.

[baldguynextdoor]

Hey ROK,

Stu’s giving you some great advice there, man. 

To be honest, it sounds like your big hurdle is accepting your hair loss, which is tough for any guy, but probably especially tough for a young guy living in the “hair capital of the world”.  I think once you process that, everything else will fall into place.  You won’t need the drugs, you’ll find a shave routine that works for you, and your eyebrows won’t look huge to you any more (they look fine to me, but if they’re really bugging you, Stu’s advice on the beard trimmer is spot on). 

As for the scars, if you’ve already had them surgically reduced, I’d say it’s time to stop beating yourself up about it.  I’ve got a couple myself.   They’re just part of the package.  From what I can see in your pic, you’ve got a good lookin’ noggin, man.  The scars won’t detract from that. 

Going bald is just a natural part of being a guy, and eventually it will just feel like a natural part of being you.  A couple of years from now, you probably won’t even be able to really imagine yourself with hair (and people who know you won’t be able to picture it, either).  You’ll be the guy your friends ask for advice when they start losing their hair (send ‘em to SBG, by the way) -- and trust me, LOTS of them are gonna be joining you in the bald guy club in a couple of years.

Just keep it tight, hang in there, and give yourself a little time.  You’ll be fine. 

[Mikekoz13]

Welcome BACK to theForum ROK! Great to have you back.

Listen to brother Stu...... he said prtty much what I had in mind. One thing that you can be sure of on this Forum.... If STu and I both say it, it HAS to be true!!! 

Seriously.... ditch those drugs and enjoy that extra cash every month. Embrace your new "do" my friend...... that hair does NOT define you, what you do as a person defines you.

[OzPete]

Welcome back!

[ozzie]

Sounds like it's time to rock the sly look in Korea, mate! 

[PBurke]

shave it, hold your head up high and stand out!!!! welcome back too!

[ROKBaldie]

Hey guys thanks for the encouraging words! it makes me feel great to hear positive responses! i'll give the suggestions a shot and i'll keep you up to date with my situation!

Thanks again!

[fireman]

Always great to get a SBG back!Welcome back.

[wpruitt]

Welcome back ROKBaldie

[TheImperial]

Hey dude,

I can sympathize with a couple of your points, so hopefully this will help you out.

While I didn't have any medical surgery as a kid on my dome to get to blame it on, I've got two pretty pronounced canyons - for lack of any better term - running down the sides of the top of my head. I think it's because I have such a massive melon (had to special order my football helmet from texas in high school and hats aren't made that fit my head) and there was some kind of cranial plate something or other going on there.

At any rate, I've just had to suck it up that they are there to stay and I just have to own it (just like the bald thing, even though I'm mostly BBC).

As far as the eyebrows, I know how that goes. For me, having some facial hair helps offset the big bushy brow thing visually. You might want to try that.

[tomgallagher]

Welcome back dude and shave those eyebrows off.

[Arnie]

Welcome back...like everyone is saying, just shave it!!!  You won't regret it!!!

[D.A.L.U.I.]

Good to have you back-and like all the guys--shave it, put mpb behind you get on with life.  By the time you're 30, a lot more of your friends will be thin, getting ready to shave, and you'll be the Leader of the Pack. 

It really is better on the Sly Side,  , we promise.

Toss the drugs--I did the Rogaine stuff to try to fill in the "hole" in back.  It filled it alright, a rash so bad I wound up at the doctor getting other lotions to heal the damage.  No scar--just learned NO DRUGS. 
Scars--I've got two from skin cancer--one in front, left a dent, one in back, dent and funky skin.  No one has commented, only compliments--wife excepted--but she's finally quiet if not happy.