I never had a full head of hair. But partly as a result of psoriasis and partly due to my genes, I started losing my hair in my late teens. Nothing could have been worse, the Elton-John-fate – bald and glasses – was looming (I still wore contacts most of the time then), my worst nightmare. For years, I simply avoided facing the facts simply by not using a mirror. It is amazing how you can do this. By my mid-twenties I was practically completely bald on the top of my head.
Life became a bit easier when I bought my first shaving machine. I never shaved my head completely, but I kept it very – 3mm – short (and I still do).
At some stage in my life, I don’t know why, a girlfriend loving me despite my baldness and Andre Agassi, the first guy I found attractive because rather than despite his baldness and despite the fact that he was naturally bald, I came to terms with my hairlessness, trying to feel attractive (rather than actually being it) as far as possible. If I could choose, I would choose hair over baldness, but then it probably would not be me. So the Elton-John-fate is not so bad after all. The lesson is not to be afraid to face who you are, and starting to like yourself, no matter what.
