story of a 20 year old

[Natedawg]

Welcome, Nathan! Like your name  .
Thanks for sharing your story with us. I'm glad to hear you feel good about taking off your hair. I hope this serves as a good source of inspiration for other guys in similar situations. I have to tell you, you look much better with shorter hair.
Please do keep us updated on your progress. Looking forward to seeing you with a smooth dome. 

[Oto]

Nice! Once you went so far, now try a complete smooth headshave!You'll enjoy it! You havel almost nothing to lose!

[Laser Man]

Welcome and kudos for taking control of your life.  The fact that you realized your MPB was getting in the way of living the life that a young guy should live is a big step.  Whether you decide to keep the buzz or shave completely is your choice, you should feel good that you are back in control.  Most people will quickly adjust To your new appearance and it will become the norm to them.  You may get a negative comment or two, but just ignore them.

Good luck and again, welcome.

[xnewyawka]

Welcome to the forum Nathan. Nice to see you take control of the situation. You're going to love the new freedom you have, and once you decide to shave your head smooth, you'll love it even more.  
Let us know how it goes.  

[waine]

Welcome Nathan, a bold move and thanks for sharing your story and pics.

[balddoc]

Welcome, Nathan. Congrats on taking control.

[Beardman]

Welcome mate, I am 25 and wish I had done it at 20 myself, I had never even considered it until a sly friend of mine made the suggestion late last year.

It is good to see you are going to read up and make the jump to full sly, there is an abundance of information here, but if you need help with anything you can't find then ask and someone will be able to answer it!

I look forward to seeing the final sly result 

[AdnanShafi]

Hey Nathan.... i Just joined this group too..im 19 years old and i started noticing my MPB at age of 15 as well...my mom noticed it,,then my relatives and then i became the joke of my school....names like ''virtually bald still haunt me'' ive tried many things like homeopathy and saw palmetto treatment....they just delayed the inevitable..i hardly take photos of myself at gathering or party's because my thinning hair ruin the photo cause it looks look so ugly.....i come from a family of members with amazing silky straight hair and was once envied as a toddler for having such amazing hair so this androgenic alopecia attack was unbelievable...and this is my first time opening up too.. i came across this site when searching for bald men hairstyles and im glad i did...seeing all of the members here so open and carefree about their problems might just inspire me to go buzz or sly bald...oh and i thought i was the only teenager here with the problems so ur story is a moral boost...thanks and cheers mate

[Razor X]

I know that it's hard for a 19 or 20-year-old to believe, but hair is not nearly as important to your appearance as you think it is.  The things to remember are:  (1) nobody looks good with thinning hair, (2) once your hairline has receded past a certain point, there's no way to make your hair look good and (3) bald is better than balding every time.

It's summertime. It's the perfect time to shave your head without getting a lot of awkward questions about it.  At your age,  even though you're experiencing some thinning, I imagine that you still have fairly decent coverage on top.  That being the case, I would buzz it all off with a zero-guard.  The end result will be very short stubble all over.  The short length has the effect of concealing the thinning somewhat and it makes it look like it's just a haircut choice.  Then all you have to do is keep it that way beyond the summer.  At some point when the thinning and receding gets worse, you can try shaving with a blade.  At that point the difference will be very subtle and most people won't even notice the difference.

Nowadays it is not a problem for a guy to be without hair, no matter what his age. Just take that leap of faith; you'll be glad that you did and we'll all be here to talk you through it.

[Frontier Guy]

The other thing which doesn't get mentioned often enough is this:

The only people who may comment on your decision to either buzz or shave are those who know you previously, because it's a surprise (some would say shock, but I'm sticking with surprise).

All the rest of the world, who haven't met you yet, will see you as Sly and not even consider what you may have looked like with (thinning) hair. And they will be assessing you for being you, not based on your hair loss/style.

[Alabama2012]

Hi, Nathan.  I'm new to the bald community too!  I'm 25, and at your age I was going through a lot of the same stuff.  I was real tender about the subject, and I remember holding grudges against people for being insensitive to my situation.  Over the years, I have stopped caring as much, but it's always been something I've had trouble talking about.

Thanks for sharing your story.  I just took the leap yesterday.  So far, I feel great about going sly, and I wish I would have done it five years ago when I was your age.

[KG]

Nathan, great story.  I also was sick of hiding under a hat.  Nice to be liberated, right?  Enjoy the sly life.

[Tyler]

This is going to sound odd, but you should be glad you're deciding to shave at 20 rather than 25.  I WISH I would have shaved my head while in college now that I know what type of response I got after shaving.  With the increased confidence you'll get, I'm sure you'll have a great time finishing out your college life.