Advocate/Educator of Hairloss... Hairtech

[Razor X]

Razorx, I thought I read in this thread that I needed to shave more than just what I did. Like no stubble.  Am I wrong?"

No, you're not wrong.  If you have stubble, you are not shaved.  Scrape it smooth and then and only then will you understand our obsession with our slick noggins.

Dude speaks the truth!!!! You have to shave smooth brutha, to fully understand!

All the mysteries of sly will be revealed once your dome is completely smooth.

That is the case, you will never kn ow what it is to be sly until you are

I don't know how some guys can stand it to come so close to completely smooth but stop just short of it.   Two weeks in a row I was at the barbershop when the same guy with very tightly buzzed MPB came into the shop and asked for a zero-blade all over.  How do you go so far and just stop?  The first time, I was going to stop at a no-guard buzz, but that lasted about 5 minutes.  I just couldn't do it.

[Cam]

Razorx, I thought I read in this thread that I needed to shave more than just what I did. Like no stubble.  Am I wrong?"

No, you're not wrong.  If you have stubble, you are not shaved.  Scrape it smooth and then and only then will you understand our obsession with our slick noggins.

Dude speaks the truth!!!! You have to shave smooth brutha, to fully understand!

All the mysteries of sly will be revealed once your dome is completely smooth.

That is the case, you will never kn ow what it is to be sly until you are

I don't know how some guys can stand it to come so close to completely smooth but stop just short of it.   Two weeks in a row I was at the barbershop when the same guy with very tightly buzzed MPB came into the shop and asked for a zero-blade all over.  How do you go so far and just stop?  The first time, I was going to stop at a no-guard buzz, but that lasted about 5 minutes.  I just couldn't do it.

Yeah, that seems stupid to me, especially when someone has MPB, I mean, you can still see the horseshoe, so what's the point?!

[Razor X]

Yeah, that seems stupid to me, especially when someone has MPB, I mean, you can still see the horseshoe, so what's the point?!

Especially when you take into account that this place charges $18 for a haircut.  Hopefully they're giving him a break on the price since there's very little work for them to do.  Can you imagine paying that every week to get that little bit of hair cut?

I guess for some guys it's a pshychological thing; they still feel like they have some hair.

[Tyler]

hairtech, there's a huge psychological reaction to shaving your head while dealing with Male Pattern Baldness (MPB).  Buzzing has some effect, but no where near shaving it all the way down.  We can all describe the feeling, but it's hard to explain why it's such a powerful thing to do. 

As for being on your show, when would you like me on it? 

[schro]

Hey Hairtech, I do owe you an apology for my initial post. The point of the post was that I felt you were selling the idea of hair transplants. After reading your posts, I was wrong. My bad. 

Here's my story on going SLY. Who knows, it might of use for your radio show.

Although I have totally embraced the shaven head and LOVE the look & feel, I was actually comfortable with my MPB. I just kept it cut short and was fine with it. However, I suffer from sebhorreic dermititis (hereditary). It's a painful, dandruff-like scalp condition that results in sores and severe itching. There was really nothing I could do to "cure" it. Prior to shaving my head, I found SLYBALDGUYS.COM and started participating in the forum and asking questions about shaving, maintenance, etc. I also asked about dandruff. A few of the guys did find that their dandruff basically disappeared once they began shaving their head.

Well, on New Year's Day 2007 I shaved my head for the first time. I truly loved the feeling and the look (although my wife hates it  ....her problem, not mine). Although it's more work to maintain than just running a brush over my "horseshoe of hair", my scalp condition has completely disappeared since going sly. In fact, I did some experimenting with shaving every other day vs. daily, and found that shaving is like exfoliating your scalp. My scalp is at its healthiest with a daily shave. During the summer, I made a deal with my wife; I would grow it back to a #1 buzz cut as a compromise because she just doesn't like the look on me. However, she saw the effort I made for her (tee tree oils, medicated shampoos, other remedies) to get relief from the SD. Even though she truly appreciated the effort, she knew the relief I got from shaving it and I told her "Sorry, I just have to keep it shaved". On the morning I returned to SLYNESS, I let each of my two kids buzz one half my head with the clippers (no guard). When it was my seven year old daughter's turn to use the razor, while she was buzzing my scalp, she commented "Dad, you have a lot of dandruff", despite all the topical things I used. Well, I think those 7 words spoke volumes.

And there you have it.
Is my attitude better? Yes. 
Do I like the look? You bet. 
Do others like it? Most do (unfortunately, my wife does not...oh well). 
Am I scratching my scalp? HELL NO. And for that reason alone, I plan on being SLY THE REST OF MY LIFE!!!! 

I hope this information helps your efforts and your radio show.

Cheers,
Schro

[Itsonlyinmyhead]

Hey Hairtech, I am a "fencer". I hang out on this forum every so often as I know that I will shave my head eventually.
Basically a fencer is someone thinking of doing it.

My story is that I am a 24 year old who has MPB and it really started to kick in about a year or more ago, so about 8 months ago I started buzzing my head with these guys help. I started with a #3, then let it grow, then started making it shorter and shorter until I was on a #4 but then I started buzzing it to a #2 which I think looks awesome, but I know it will be #0 or shaved soon.

Why am I holding out? Well it isnt that common amongst my age range but a few of my friends #0 every so often and I would like to hold onto some hair for abit since when I start shaving it, I wont ever stop.

 I dont really have bad MPB, I just dont want to get to the stage of a horseshoe as I think it just shows you dont look after yourself, it looks messy and not clean and tidy.

On the pills, HT and wig side - this really isnt an option, as pills may wreck your body for life when they at most will provide 3 more years of hair. HT looks unnatural and the balding will happen around the transplants and make it look ridiculous. Wigs are just trying to trick other people, I appreciate why people wear them as MPB can be traumatic, but if you can not be yourself, then what is the point?

[Marz]

Wow, after being gone since my last post on Friday I see a lot has been unearthed.

Hairtech, if your goal is to council people on the bogus hair replacement industry then I apologize. I (obviously) feel that the hair replacement industry is one of the biggest farce's on the planet and initially I must have misunderstood you for someone that helped "patients" or potentials navigate the products and services of the hair loss industry opposed to someone that addresses the psychological aspects that the purveyors of plugs, rugs and drugs exploit for their benefit.

Rob, you are right, I should have been more inquisitive than accusing and I want to apologize to the board for my lack of initial trust and skepticism.

Yeah, I am passionate about this as it was something I had to deal with with very little support and every time I turned around there was someone telling me PR&D were ok and worked. Had I not went against the grain with that advise, I would not be here now...

[hairtech]

Your telling me Marz!  I see a different set of men/women that have gathered here and has such a drastic different "meaning" for their heads and life.  I knew that the folks I help on the other side of the tracks were an eclectic set of people. I did not realize that this was even here.  I am going to try to bring this topic about tonight... sort of winging it.  Tyler, let me talk to my partner and let's set something in stone soon.  It will be interesting to hear your stories.  Thanks again guys/gals.

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

Hairtech--thanks for the information on your head--as you've noted heads are the topic here.  For myself, my issues with baldness w/ the fringe percieved as ugly probably started in the 6th or 7th grade with a teacher, our first male teacher, who was bald, fringed and unfortunately had little or no personality to make the kids admire or even like him.  We had a name for him, almost out of Southpark, Harry Toilet Seat--after the fringe.  That's stuck w/ me, and when I began to get the noticeable MPB symptoms in my thirties it wasn't pleasant.  Fortunately the process was slow, starting w/ the Friar Tuck hole in the head and some growth in the size of my forehead.  Good for me that as that process went on as MPB does, however, the shaved head became less than a Yul and Kojak and skinhead thing for society as a whole and moved more mainstream thanks to the media personalities.  As the MPB clock ticked on, I started to admire the shaved look--but worried about the shape of my head which for some reason I considered to long (That has proved groundless--I get compliments on my head shape!).  Anyway, about two years ago the MPB started to accelerate, and I knew what I was going to do.  Unfortunately, a friend of ours had really bad MPB and shaved, and didn't and doesn't keep it cleanly shaved.  My wife hated it.  But about a year ago I realized I was going to be doing this and in the foreseeable future and I had to have a "wife plan."  So on the web, search words bald, balding, shaved heads, etc.  The more I saw shaved and buzzed heads the more I realized I really wanted to try this out.  I was a lurker here and at a few other sites, gaining some insight into how to shave, products, etc.  By this past summer, I jumped when I saw a Headblade "live" and "in person" at the drugstore, and other products by BaldGuyz ultimately buying my supplies for the "deed."  This fact of the general commercial nature and availability of the products enforced my drive to Sly.  I was lurking here and other places, noticing guys w/ the fully shaved head and liking it even more, the urge was growing stronger everyday.  Then I decided to adopt the buzz process, 3/8", 1/2" and 1/18" until I would finish with a blade--all plans to get over the wife explosion.  On September 7, needing a haircut and really having issues with the combover effect that had developed--I was spending time with a mirror everyday seeing how bad it was getting--I went to my barber of perhaps 15 to 20 years and said, "Buzz!"  He took it to 1/2", and then to 3/8" and I loved it, but once free of the combover, and in buzz time, things went faster than my original plan.  My wife blew up on the buzz, but settled down.  She didn't seem to notice when I got a clipper at Wal-Mart and moved on from 3/8" to 1/4" myself less than a week after the beginning of what I've called the Buzz Time.  The 1/4" lasted until 3 days before 10/12 when I went to 1/8".  Still no further reaction from her, but I loved more and more as it got shorter--[a question for you Hairtech, don't you enjoy rubbing the short buzz?  I did].  Then, 9/11 I decided, "Tomorrow morning it's Sly time."  So #0 buzz before the gym, looking just like you apparently do now.  Getting home after my wife had left for the office I was really hyped.  Shower, gel and then a brand new Power Fusion, and following the information from the web, I shaved clean, slick and smooth.  It was a real high.  The wife went ballistic when she got home, but my daughters didn't say a thing one way or the other.  Within a day, I became a member here, and posted questions--I felt a numbness at first on the non-balding areas and all the cool breezes.  I got answers and encouragement, even relief about the overwhelming urge to rub my slick scalp and I found it to be a common response by the Brothers.  Well that will be 7 weeks ago this Friday, and I've never looked back.  I had and have issues about the "shadow" but that's easier than issues about the combover, and I can time my shave or reshave to pretty much handle that.  Only one bad comment--someone asked if I had cancer--but the rest of the comments, except for my wife--are totally in favor.  Again, from a Brother here I got the answer if anyone ever says cancer again, "No Libra actually!"  The other comments mostly how young it makes me look!  Let me tell you, once you're past thirty, and I'm long past that, you can hear a lot of that without getting upset!  It's especially fun when they say it front of my wife, and they have!  My wife still hates it, but she doesn't say anything unless we've been out and had a few pops, but it doesn't last.  This has been mostly successful, and not expensive either.  Hard for surgery to do that, I've seen too many guys looking like a Gia Pet after expensive transplants and as noted by the Brother, Itsonlyinmyhead, pills aren't an answer either--and who wants to wear a wig 24/7 to hide the fact of MPB.  So that's the story, and with nearly 7 weeks under the blade, I'm one happy camper.  A lot of support here for that option, I didn't ever find any support available for the other "solutions."  That's why one guy w/ MPB did it, but I notice you appear to be more on the BBC side of life, and they get support here too. 
My suggestion, lather up, power up the Fusion, and join the Sly side!  Unless they ask on the radio show, you don't have to tell them unless you want to or they ask for a picture.
This is far too long, but you really seem to be looking for a point of view. 

[warhawk]

saintc....well said.

WARHAWK