Author Topic: I just....I just can't do it, I just can't find the confidence to do it at 23yo.  (Read 10459 times)

Offline Switchy

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Thanx, how about some pic's.
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Offline Argyle

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Hi DRQ

I am sorry I am probably repeating much of what other people have said, but haven't had time to read through the whole thread.  

I was very similar to you, my hair went significantly in my early 20s and by the age of 27 well there was little to talk of.  I suffered like crazy until about the age of 33 at which point I decided enough was enough and that I had to do something about the way I felt.  The tall and the short of it was that for anyone to feel the way I did about the way I looked was irrational.  Don't get me wrong, I am not the best and I suspect not the worst looking guy in the world.  However I have a wonderful wife, and two wonderful kids all of which came a long when I had pretty little hair.  

I decided to tackle it head on so to speak.  Drugs and surgery were never an option for me and besides I thought the underlining issue was in, rather than on my head!  I took the bull by the horns swallowed some serious pride (I am British, talking doesn't come easy) enrolled myself in some psychotherapy and finally accepted that for whatever reason I had become depressed.  I took some drugs for a whole to get my chemical back in line and I learned a lot during the therapy I got. Now, I am happy, relatively carefree but most importantly aware of what is rational and what is irrational and how to respond to each.  I used to obsess about everything from shadow to head shape to god knows what else, and I would be lying to say that the odd mad thought doesn't creep into my mind from time to time but I take a breath and move on from it now, whereas before it would ave sent me crazy!  

I am not really keen on giving people advice as such but I hope that some of my experiences relate in some small way to how you feel and that it isn't a lost cause.

PS this site was also a massive support!  

Take care

Chris
A SBG's head shines so other SBG's always have the opportunity to see the reflection of how good they look!

Offline palmerproject

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Hey bro, I'm 23 too. And I was scared to death to shave my head. But now I am so glad I did it. I feel more confident showing the world who I really am and that is a smoothly shaven bald man. Everything is going to be alright. Be blown is apsolutely right. Plus why worrie about hair when we have our whole lives in front of us.
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Offline Bald Hobbit

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Dude, just show us a picture of your head shape, and if you're feeling sorry for yourself before the shave... you won't afterwards...
« Last Edit: December 31, 2012, 12:08:45 AM by Bald Hobbit »

Offline Crusher0209

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Ok well I am going to let you know this I am a few years younger than you and I am still in High School and I have no hair what so ever on my head and I love it. You may love it too you will never know until you do it. You will help your confidence if you cut your hair short with the clippers or just go ahead and shave it all off. If you need any help we will be here to help you. O0

Offline Bald Hobbit

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1# It's socially acceptable now.
2# It looks amazing on virtually every man who's tried it.
3# It requires no cofidence, only will. This is a hill where you find the confidence you've wanted so long after climbing it.

I'm 19, and do it by choice. It's only caused very good things to happen. Confidence will explode.

Offline TxTa2Guy

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Hey DRQ!

Man you have received an amazing amount of support and advise. You have totally aroused the troops here.

I would like to emphasize what Argyle said in his post to you.  I am going to add some bole italic emphasis to some points he made:


my hair went significantly in my early 20s and by the age of 27 well there was little to talk of.  I suffered like crazy until about the age of 33 at which point I decided enough was enough and that I had to do something about the way I felt.  The tall and the short of it was that for anyone to feel the way I did about the way I looked was irrational.  Don't get me wrong, I am not the best and I suspect not the worst looking guy in the world.  However I have a wonderful wife, and two wonderful kids all of which came a long when I had pretty little hair.  

I decided to tackle it head on so to speak.  Drugs and surgery were never an option for me and besides I thought the underlining issue was in, rather than on my head!  I took the bull by the horns swallowed some serious pride (I am British, talking doesn't come easy) enrolled myself in some psychotherapy and finally accepted that for whatever reason I had become depressed.  I took some drugs for a whole to get my chemical back in line and I learned a lot during the therapy I got. Now, I am happy, relatively carefree but most importantly aware of what is rational and what is irrational and how to respond to each.  I used to obsess about everything from shadow to head shape to god knows what else, and I would be lying to say that the odd mad thought doesn't creep into my mind from time to time but I take a breath and move on from it now, whereas before it would ave sent me crazy!

DRQ, I know exactly what Argyle is saying. While my "issues" did not include hair loss (at the time at least), I was affected in some of the same ways Argyle mentioned. But I didn't get help until 25 or so years after I should have done so. I use the quotation marks because my issues were in my own mind, just as Argyle said, "in" my head. My "issues" affected my self-esteem, created fears, and led to alcoholism, all of which were completely destroying my life. And all of my "issues" and my reactions and "coping mechanisms" were totally irrational. And if I had faced my "issues" honestly before I succumbed to depression and alcoholism, none of the consequences I faced (or rather ignored) would have occurred or affected me or those around me as terribly as they did.

Please understand that I am not saying that I know you are depressed or alcoholic. What I am saying is that when people allow their "issues" to take on exaggerated or irrational importance, then undesirable consequences follow. But if those "issues" (and this is true whatever the "issues" may be) are dealt with honestly, rationally, and fearlessly, then they become "non-issues" as in fact they really were before we allowed them to consume us!

I am also not saying I think you need psychotherapy or drugs to deal with your issues. In fact I would expect that you do not need any kind of treatment other than a little self-inflicted reality check (aided a little by your friends here who have been where you are and "share your pain)."

What I am saying is that you should look at your self and your situation very carefully, honestly, realistically, fearlessly, and with a very healthy dose of humor. By humor I refer to the old saying, "don't take yourself so damned seriously!"

Look at the alternatives available to deal with your "issue," that is, your hair loss. As others have mentioned, are many alternatives:
1.  There is surgery to transplant some of your remaining hair from some place it still grows and implant it where you want it.
2.  You can tattoo your scalp to simulate the shadow you might have if you shaved your remaining hair.
     That does not mean to suggest you get a great big piece of "art" up there like I did (though I would not discourage that!) :*))
3.  You can try drugs, which vary in their effectiveness and side effects (some of which are potentially not pretty).
4.  You could try a hair piece, as you mentioned. Those are pretty expensive initially and forever.
5.  You can just take a deep breath and ignore it.
6.  Or you can buzz or shave it all off.

I think number six is the only one that makes sense for you right now. I think you ought to do it rather than take the option of ignoring it because that could lead you to the consequences and remedy I found necessary. All of the other options should not even be considered, in my opinion, until you have tried shaving, or at least buzzing it.

Whatever you decide to do, just remember that we are all God's children and He wants us all to be happy. You are not happy, so do something about it.  About thirty guys before me have made the same simple suggestion to you that I am offering. We all agree that option number six is the best alternative for you at this point. It is the only option that is 100% guaranteed to be reversible, with no ongoing consequences if you don't like it.  It is cheap. And it is effective for almost 100% of those who try it!

Try our simple program for thirty days.
If you don't like the results, just don't do it any more.

Offline Sly Red

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Sadly, the original poster has been absent since January 3.  His interest level was a mere 6 days.

Perhaps he'll re-visit the issue.

Red
In matters of grave importance, style, not sincerity, is the vital thing.” Oscar Wilde

Offline palmerproject

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To benlen sorry I just re read my post on this topic. And I in no way meant to butcher your name like that. Dumb iPhone auto correct. (Shaking head)
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Offline buddha

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I suppose what I'm looking for is the confidence to shave my head and just not give a f**k what people think.


I know this is going to appear odd but try to get what I'm saying in the following.
It seems to me as though you may have just had the great good fortune to have stumbled upon the proverbial chicken/egg challenge. Right now, with all the other $h!t going on you seem a little overwhelmed to begin with. Now throw in the Norwood 4 (I never really got the importance of the Norwood scale in the real world but that's just me) and your pot just boiled over. This has depleted whatever confidence you feel you had before and now you lack the wherewithall to go ahead and shave.
OR:
You could go ahead and shave your head with full knowledge that there are people in the world who just aren't happy unless they are criticizing someone else's choices. They love to rain on other peoples' parades. The thing they hate most of all, or at least in the top 3, is someone who has the ability to just open an umbrella and come in out of the wet. So you might want to shave your head and decide to not give a f**k what anyone else thinks or says. What have you got to lose? You describe yourself as having no relationships or friends so who is likely to leave you if you go ahead and shave. And the act of shaving and not caring might be the thing that starts to inspire confidence. So you just walk away from anyone negative. You don't have to joust with them. Remember that we all come equipped with baggage and that baggage manifests itself in the way we deal with others. So you can hear someone send a jab about shaved heads your way and feel compassion for what they must have been through to cause them the type of pain that shows itself in this manner. And then smile and walk away.

The alternative is that maybe you are genuinely not ready to do the shiny dome. In that case be gentle with yourself and don't rush. But keep in mind that all this is is a haircut, nothing more. It grows back.
"Certainly there is no hunting like the hunting of man and those who have hunted armed men long enough and liked it never really care for anything else thereafter."
Ernest Hemingway, On The Blue Water.

 



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