Hey folks, I came on here a few months ago and found the place a great help for dealing with my hairloss. I wasn't ready to shave it at the time, but the prospect of having to do it no longer seemed to be such a big deal to me.

Now I'm back, and I'm in a bit of a dilemma and have a choice to make as to what I'm going to do. My hair's still receding, not alarmingly fast (I wouldn't say it's got much more noticeable in the last 6 months), but it's slowly going away. I'd say I'm inbetween a Norwood 2 or 3 right now, so I can't ignore it, and it's getting to the stage where I want to do something about it.

The way I see it, I have two options.

The first is to work to retain, and maybe even regrow my hair. In the short term I could give propecia a try, and then even if I didn't regrow any hair, I could at least maintain it until the Intercytex treatment comes around in a couple of years - at which point I could get it all back.

The second option is to shave it off.

The reason I'm reluctant to go through with the second is that I'm pretty sure the bald look wouldn't suit me. It works for a lot of guys, but I don't think it'd suit my head, and I'm skinny - I tend to think bald works better for bigger guys.

So anyway, I thought I'd pop in here to see what you guys thought, and whether any of you can relate to this situation. One thing I do know is that I want to make SOME kind of decision - I'm sick of letting things just slide along as they are.

MonkeyD   

Hey MD-

                I think many of us probably thought the look wouldn't be good on us..... but those folks were wrong. SLY is a great look on just about anybody. As for being skinny or small..... I'm sure we have some smaller guys on here...... we're really a microcosm of society at large.

Save yourself the cash for hair growth products and give SLY a try. You can always grow back what you have........

Welcome monkeydust,

The prospect of hair regrowth has always been a carrot dangled in front of the balding man... in all actuality if real hair regrowth were to come to be a reality, your hair being shaved should not make a difference. That being said, I can offer you some bits of advise from my experience as a man with MPB and a shaved head.

1. You will never know if the shave look is for you untill you give it a shot. Maybe start with a buzz then go shorter as you begin to feel more comfortable and get used to it.

2. It is a change on your appearance so it is always pretty drastic at first, dont let that be your point of judgment.

3. whatever you decide, keep it short, dont try to cover up your balding areas with sculpted hair styles or strategic hair growth patterns... it may make you feel better but it is horrible looking.

4. Try to shave it down to at least a #0 (clippers with no guard) and keep it for 30 days... thats about how long it takes to really get used to it.

5. Dont risk your health for the "magical cure", there are a lot of crazy thing people do to themselves these days in the name of vanity... they have yet to master the "Happiness Transplant" though and regret is a terrible thing to live with.

6. You make the look work, your confidence and the way you carry yourself is key.

Hope this helps...

post up some pics so we can get an idea.

The second option is to shave it off.

The reason I'm reluctant to go through with the second is that I'm pretty sure the bald look wouldn't suit me.
MonkeyD   

How do you know that the bald look wouldn't suit you.
You don't need to be a big guy to pull off the look.
I'm slim and bald. It works for me.
Give it a try. You won't know for sure unless you give your head a shave.
It's only hair.

I think Paul is right on when he says body type, head shape, etc. have absolutely nothing to do with going sly.  It is all about confidence and attitude.  Believe me, I don't have a perfect bald head, especially in back, where I've got, shall we say, some strong bone structure.  But very few of us have that perfect head.  I have a full head of hair and don't have to be sly, but I still do it.  Forget the hair growing products.  As others have said, they're not good for you.  Give sly a try.  It is a great look on just about anybody.  You can always go back.

Hi MonkeyD,
I think most of us here have been through this.
If you scan this forum, you will find many thought processes going from "It will not suit me at all" to "I love it".
So before you invest your money, (throw it away that is...) your time and maybe your health on expensive "medications"; why don't you give the clipper and then the razor a try ?
For the record :
I am 1.74m for 55 kg, I have the lobes of a Ferrengi and my head is big in regard to my silhouette.
But I will never go back to hair !

The only way to know for sure is to give it a try!!  As a previous poster said, search around the forums and look at the threads from fence sitters.  It's a great inspiration.  Once you finally take it off, all that weight is lifted.

Welcome to the forum. 

Right on! I could not agree more, jhickman!