Sly Bald Guys Forum
Discussions About Being Bald => Bald Stories => Topic started by: HoodooMan on March 03, 2009, 03:50:14 PM
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hey fellas. i have what i think may be a touchy subject for some of us. nevertheless, i think it would be beneficial to share our stories with one other.
*so, what drastic (or not so drastic for some!), measures did you go to to first try and conceal your balding head?*
when i first noticed my " M" pattern and overall thinning developing at around 18, i started to grow my hair longer. i grew it longer for a couple years, combed it forward to try and conceal the receeding, and tossed it around with ALOT of hairspray. i mean, my hair was like a brick. whenever i'd ride my motorcycle (especially if i had a girl with me) i'd bring along a hat to quickly put on once i got my helmet off. i wore hats everywhere. and when hats weren't appropriate, i used all that hairspray, spending a good while in the mirror to *try* and cover it up. once the receeding got really bad, i started trying different hairstyles to no avail. i'd run into old friends and some would say "wow what's going on on top?!" my uncles (who always like to give everyone a hard time, in good fun) would also make comments. and though i know they were just goofing around with me, it did bother me. one day after my uncles made some comments, and on a day that i thought i did a pretty good job "fixing" my hair, i realized i wasn't fooling anyone. so i went to walmart, bought a cheap set of trimmers, and buzzed it down slowly to a zero guard, then got out the mach 3. i felt very liberated! just knowing that my hair could not control me anymore made me feel great. and although i usually buzz to a no guard, and only ocassionally shave fully, i still feel as liberated each time i get out the clippers or razor.
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Well my hair line was receding more on the crown than anywhere else so I would let my hair grow long on top and brush it forward. I would basically get my sides buzzed as close to the scalp as possible. One day I went to teh barber and they cut to much off and it became noticable, and just was never able to get ti to grow back to that "proper" length. After that I would get a High and tight that pretty much went up to my receding point. Recently I started letting my hair grow out to see how it would look, and I got a view of the thinning hair on the side :( Thinning to the point that there were gaps in it. So I went to the store and bought myself a headblade, and than to the Barbers where I had them buzz me as far down as possible. Went home and Shaved the rest off.
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FrankyG, "Well my hair line was receding more on the crown than anywhere else so I would let my hair grow long on top and brush it forward"
we have very similar stories! when i look back at doing that myself, and all the things like that i did it makes me feel so vain! i'm sure you feel the same way!
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I may be atypical (actually, I know I'm atypical) but I never freaked out about my hair. When it started thinning I just said "meh" and started buzzing it off. I liked the look and I kept it for about two decades before deciding to go all they way sly.
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one of the reasons I never considered I have MPB despite receding at the temples was that, like bootedbear it really was a non-issue for me. I never tried covering it up: just let it recede, then later had a shorter cut, but it was shorter because I liked it shorter first and foremost, not because I was trying to hide anything.
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Balding was a non-issue for me also...... it's about confidence in who and what you are Lads!!!!!
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I have lived the last two years of my life in a hat. Then about 4 months ago I was in my cousins wedding and could not figure out how to work a baseball cap in with the tux I was wearing. So I tried combing my hair forward and noticed that the back was thinning too. So I took a ton of time trying to make sure every hair was in the right place. The whole night I felt really bad about my hair. I decided to search the internet for MPB and stumbled across this website. Lurked for a while a while. Joined and shaved my head about a month ago. And today as the sun was shining on my chrome dome I realized that the mach 3 was the best thing for me. 8)
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I did combovers (not superbad ones, but bad enough). Also tried to sort of puff the hair up with a blowdryer and hairspray. Eventually I went the way of the buzzcut, which I liked well enough until I saw the back of my head and the large bald spot clearly visible only a few days after a #1 or even closer buzz. So I bit the bullet and shaved the noggin. That solved everything. O0 Now I love all the perks of the shaven dome: the smooth feel of a bowling ball, the cool breeze on the skin, rain or snow coming down on the noggin, and, of course, the occasional head rub that a lady just can't resist giving me, as well as membership in the brotherhood of the sly. 8)
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hey 20, bald and loving it... i lived the last 2 years of my life under a baseball cap as well!
mine started at 18 with a receeding hairline... back then i just assumed i had a high for head and left it at that, but when i turned 20 i noticed that i was thinning right down the center of my scalpe only slightly at first then as time went on the worse it got. over winter break it got to the point i was willing to go under the knife and get a transplant which ended up costing my 1k of my own money cause i signed to do it and bailed out of it 2 days before and money was non refundable.. :(
But honestly id rather have spent that and deal with it then spend 6k on the proceedure and live with a butured scalp...
in feb i started buzzin it short at first it was with a 2 as in my pic here.... then i graduated to just the clippers then just last week i went completly sly and ill say i have mixed feelings... i like it when i see myself and i love touching it it feels like nothing i have expirenced before... but i got a less then warm welcome from family and a few friends... tho most of my contacts have not seen it yet...
Ill have some pics up by friday lemme shave it again so i know i got a good close shave ;)
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You know I always swore I would never be that guy to do things to cover up my baldness and just deal with it. But surprise when it came to it I couldn't just deal with it. But I definitley had no issue taking a blad to my head and remove what I do have on there :x!
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The receeding and the bald spot in back, which appeared in my 30s never really bothered me and I never did anything special to "deal with it", other than short, neat haircuts. However, when the hair in front of the bald spot thinned out so much that I could see through it and it looked like a combover, 15 years later, I went the buzz route, getting shorter over the years. It took me about 2 years to get the courage to do the buzz after I started thinking about it. I, for one, would have appreciated more direct advice from my barber, friends or wife sooner than it occurred. However, when I received that advice, it gave me the final push that I needed to switch to a buzz. And that's been great.
So, if you see a friend who needs a push to adopt the clipped or shaved style (no "bald joking" allowed), I say give your friend that advice in a sincere, friendly way. Admitedly, being 'sincere' about ones looks among male friends is not considered "macho" by many men, so we don't do that. Instead, we resort to the sarcastic, joke format to covey our opinion, and it ends up hurting our friend.
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never had issues with balding. I had a receeding hair line , but that wasnt what prompted me to shave. I was cutting it short with the buzz/clippers and just said hell with it one day in the shower and shaved it off.
So now you know........the rest of the story. Good Day!
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hey 20, bald and loving it... i lived the last 2 years of my life under a baseball cap as well!
mine started at 18 with a receeding hairline... back then i just assumed i had a high for head and left it at that, but when i turned 20 i noticed that i was thinning right down the center of my scalpe only slightly at first then as time went on the worse it got. over winter break it got to the point i was willing to go under the knife and get a transplant which ended up costing my 1k of my own money cause i signed to do it and bailed out of it 2 days before and money was non refundable.. :(
But honestly id rather have spent that and deal with it then spend 6k on the proceedure and live with a butured scalp...
in feb i started buzzin it short at first it was with a 2 as in my pic here.... then i graduated to just the clippers then just last week i went completly sly and ill say i have mixed feelings... i like it when i see myself and i love touching it it feels like nothing i have expirenced before... but i got a less then warm welcome from family and a few friends... tho most of my contacts have not seen it yet...
Ill have some pics up by friday lemme shave it again so i know i got a good close shave ;)
I hear ya. Some of my friends really liked and some didn't say anything. My family likes it but I haven't seen them all yet. I like it tho and thats all that really matters because what I have learned from this site is that hair or no hair its all about how you carry yourself and how you feel about yourself.
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im in the same boat as many of you. although i've always worn caps since i was like 10, but i would always wear one when possible so i didnt have to "style" my hair so much. finally i was like screw this, got on this site, got some tips, and did the deed last st. patty's day. coming up on one year for me and i couldnt be happier. even if i had a completely perfect hairline, i would still be shaving my head. no hat hair and no need to use hair products.
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its odd, everyone here says that going sly was a non issue for their family, friends, and co workers. but i've gotten NOTHING but flack from everyone i know. i've only met one person that said they liked the look on me. everyone else has been very negative, even more so than when i was just balding. but i like not having to deal with my MPB hair, so now this is me! whether they like it or not.
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its odd, everyone here says that going sly was a non issue for their family, friends, and co workers. but i've gotten NOTHING but flack from everyone i know. i've only met one person that said they liked the look on me. everyone else has been very negative, even more so than when i was just balding. but i like not having to deal with my MPB hair, so now this is me! whether they like it or not.
Sorry bro...I think that is sad...the peeps around you should be supportive and know that you feel better having the buzzed sly head...and you look GREAT bro...you REALLY do...
don't they see any other buzzed cut or buzzed bald dudes...anywhere on TV on the internet or anywhere in ads?
I just find it weird when there are so many sly and buzzed guys runnin' round (and lots of ages) that you and Ghost should have it so hard with the people around you...
it's just weird? :/O
and sorry you have to deal with it...life's too short not to do what makes YOU happy!
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Andre, funny you should say that. I've been dealing with the same issue; what makes me happy. My wife even sent me to a blogsite about it, find my happiness, which is sly, and she absolutely hates me being sly. But, you're absolutely right, a person has to figure out what makes them happy, and go for it! Life is too short. Carpe' Diem, seize the day! Enjoy the moment! It's my life baby; not yours! :)
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Since I was always into outdoor sports, I always wore a baseball style hat. That was mainly for sun protection but, now that I'm sly, it apparently was for being a bit self-conscious about my MPB. I draw that conclusion because now that I am sly, I love being outdoors without a hat (but definitely use sunscreen).
The most grief I got about my MPB was in college. There were a couple of guys that gave me s**t about it. But the funny thing was, I dated some pretty hot gals in college and they were struggling on Friday nights!
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Hoodoo, just wait, some of your friends will be in the same boat some day as MPB hits a lot of men. You're ahead of the curve on the best way to deal with it, and your friends/family will just have to get used to it. Just keep strong with that attitude that this is the new you!
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when i said it was a non-event, I meant for me rather than those around me. Even so, very few people made major comments: most just accepted it. My mom wasnt that keen, but after three years she has just accepted it. My dad said nothing, my sister said it suited me and that now she can't imagine me with hair. I'm in an amateur musical society, and most people there said nothing, though a few producers have asked that i grow my hair or wear a wig for certain shows, which I found annoying but understandable.
Apart from that, and the odd comment like 'when you gonna get your hair cut?! :D'
It really was a non-event. 8)
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There are some good points here. My hair had been receeding slowly over the years (I'm 67 now) and starting abou 10 years ago I started having it cut shorter and shorter, not so much because of the redeeding but I simply liked it that way and my dear wife seemed to also like it. As it became shorter and shorter I decided it was time for a buzz and the reaction of the hairdresser was really strange. I remember asking for a #2 all over and she replied that that was too short she would make it #3 on top and #2 at sides. It was only when I went to a new hairdresser and the young stylise simply sais I think it should be #1 -and I said go for it. I gues my point is that apart from that last example I never had a hair dresser say "say, you're getting a bit thin on top let's buzz it right down". Anyway, now my Fusion gets the noggin nice and smooth, and it has never felt better, and it costs me a lot less than going to the hairdresser.
WAY TO GO!!
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Huh, what is it about hairdressers?
Way back in the ice ages when I had enough hair to cut, I'd always get the "I don't like to cut it too short" crap. I finally found a barber who gave a mean flat-top (at about 1/4 the price of the hairdresser).
That only lasted a few years before I started thinning out and just started buzzing it with no guard in the bath tub.
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i appreciate all the good comments, baldandre, stu, as well as the rest of the fellas. i hope some more guys have some good comments/stories to tell as well. i believe especially us young guys can benefit from the things the experienced sly guys have to say! thanks again, and keep them coming!
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My hair had been receeding slowly over the years (I'm 67 now) and starting about 10 years ago I started having it cut shorter and shorter ....I decided it was time for a buzz and the reaction of the hairdresser was really strange. I remember asking for a #2 all over and she replied that that was too short she would make it #3 on top and #2 at sides. It was only when I went to a new hairdresser and the young stylise simply sais I think it should be #1 -and I said go for it. I guess my point is that apart from that last example I never had a hair dresser say "say, you're getting a bit thin on top let's buzz it right down".
I had experiences similar to kenrh, but a bit different. I am 57. At 52, I started getting shorter. The barber suggested a buzz a few time, but I was not hearing him. Guess I wasn't ready. Then my wife suggested a buzz. Looking back, I wish the barber had been more direct sooner. Eventually, he did give me a 2-3-2 that I really did not ask for. I loved it. Two months later, I got a #1 for a vacation, but then went back to #2 for a while. When I asked for a #1, he said let's try #1.5 and see how that looks. Then I went to #1.5 on s&b#2 on top; then #1 on s&b#1.5 on top; you get the idea. Along the way, he occassionally went shorter than I asked. It was like I was a fish on the line that he was reeling into the tight buzz. He made me want it. Once, on a whim, I asked him to cut the top shorter than #1. He said, "take it all off?" I said yes, and he did (top only) without hesitation, which surprised me at the time...not even an "are you sure?" Now I am #0A on s&b & edger on top. Once he realized I was Ok with the tight buzz, he pushed me along, but at my own speed. He doesn't do shaves, but sites like this got me to go ever shorter, so that now I am occassionally self buzzing. Would like to be #1 or less all the time, but I really enjoy the old time barbershop experience. So, I agree with kenrh, more barbers should be more direct about the benefits of the tight buzz for us balding, thinning guys. If barbers and stylists were more proactive about the buzz, hairloss would not be viewed so negatively.
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I went wearing a hat all day, the only time i took it off was when i was sleeping, i still do this today. My family and friends are un-suppsortive of the fact that i trim my hair so short. My mom thinks i need to let my hair grow out, and that ill look fine, and my hairline will grow back, same with my dad..hes been rocking the comb-over for a long time,but it suits him. So all this sort of shot me down, and now i have no confidence when taking my hat off. I quit my varstiy basketball team becasue of my hair. During baseball i would always hold my hat when it was windy, and i woud wear a hat undernath my helmet at all times. This summer i have to attend a wedding ( cant wear hats there). So im trying my best to avoid it, even tho i want to be there. I just cant see myself wlaking around bald, and letting my friends from when i was little see me. lol. My friends in at my uni. really dont care, they just ask me why i do it. so yea, just wanted to tell you guys my experince.
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I started doing the messy, spiky look and then one day the lady that cut my hair said, "I think you're starting to thin, let's dye it blonde." I said OK and went with it for a couple of months. Then it came hunting time and I shaved my head. Been shaving ever since. I guess that was the only time I thought I was covering it up. But, if I look at pictures before then, I was going bald for a couple of years before. I just never noticed.
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the lady that cut my hair said, "I think you're starting to thin, let's dye it blonde."
Dyeing it blond. That's one remedy I haven't heard before. Thinning never really bothered me. and I never obsessed about it, or covering my thinning hair. My barber did suggest shorter styles, and as I, and others here have said before, I wish he had been more direct, in suggesting the buzz sooner. I got to the buzz when I could see through my hair and it looked like it was heading to a combover. I did however have hesitation about embracing the clipper shaved look. I thought it would make me look older, but my barber said it would make me look younger. I still wrestle with the concept, but he was right, it makes me look younger... just bald & younger. But looking younger, (or maybe it's just difficult for people to guess my age) is not a bad outcome. I'll take a clipper shaved bald head in exchange for looking younger any day. For all you younger bald guys that obsess with your situation, I think many of you look more mature or older, which can be an advantage, workwise or socially.
One other comment on "dyeing it blond". I doubt a real old fashioned trained barber would suggest that. Brings up another issue... the take-over of barbering by beauticians. It's sad. I realize many men dye their hair to cover gray, but that's not for me. Might work for some people, but for me that's no different the rugs, plugs and drugs.
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I went back in you post history since your profile doesn't say where you are geographically. People are funny in different areas, from different backgrounds, and different social situations. But, I digress, because I found in your posts a statement that really got me relating to a serious problem. You said that you had high blood pressure, and that the doctor wanted you to take medication. Putting aside your relative minor problem w/ mpb, I hope you've made the decision to work on the blood pressure. Being told that you need to take a medication that is "old folks" medicine is a shocker--I've been there, done that. Hopefully you've followed the dr's prescription and started working on getting the BP under control--it is serious, but a pill in most cases resolves the issue. Generally there 's no effect, just the little machine has good rather than disturbing news. If you've got that under control, mpb is a walk in the park.
You and the people around you are going to accept it, and while you're sly mpb continues its work--but you don't have to watch and your friends won't see. Within a year, possibly two the people you know now won't remember you w/ the remnants of your hair and your new friends and acquaintances won't know you any other way. It's your minor issue.
Recommendation--take the meds, shave daily or at least every other day and get on with life, and to quote that great line from Auntie Mame, "Life's a banquet and most poor fools are starving to death!" Get your plate and get in line for the banquet.
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Thankfully, I never tried to conceal my balding head. My stepmom did suggest that maybe I eventually get a toupee, transplant or rogaine! Instead, I went sly!!! She is not crazy about that, but she still loves me and give me no more flack about it!
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Huh, what is it about hairdressers?
Way back in the ice ages when I had enough hair to cut, I'd always get the "I don't like to cut it too short" crap. I finally found a barber who gave a mean flat-top (at about 1/4 the price of the hairdresser).
That only lasted a few years before I started thinning out and just started buzzing it with no guard in the bath tub.
Haha how did you not electrocute yourself clipping in the tub bear?? LOL
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I never really paid it any attention until I was in my late 40s. After I retired from the PD (age 45) I let my hair grow for 3-4 years with no cutting. Saw a picture of myself with this REALLY long hair on the sides/back and a shiny dome on top. I had started watching "The Shield" and was kinda drawn to Michael Chikliss' (spelling?)/Vic Mackey's sly look so I went from hair down to my shoulder blades one day to shiny sly the next. Really not much thought went into it for me, I've been sly or buzzed ever since.
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Not an issue with me. Kept it buzzed real short , or shorter and shorter, until I decided to go full sly.
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the lady that cut my hair said, "I think you're starting to thin, let's dye it blonde."
One other comment on "dyeing it blond". I doubt a real old fashioned trained barber would suggest that. Brings up another issue... the take-over of barbering by beauticians. It's sad. I realize many men dye their hair to cover gray, but that's not for me. Might work for some people, but for me that's no different the rugs, plugs and drugs.
I'm sure an old fashioned trained barber wouldn't suggest that, but that's probably one reason you don't see many of them around these days...they're not adapting. I'm not saying that because I think they should tell guys to dye it blonde, but because once I hit high school, I could never find a barber that would/could cut my hair in one of the more trendy styles.
And while I would never recommend dying your hair blonde to cover up thinning, it did get me a lot of chicks in that couple of months.
I think I have a picture of it somewhere. If I can find it I'll post it.