jackisback1

Hahahaha, dude, same thing happened to me! This bald, married-with-kids guy who's approaching 40 and has no doubt been bald since his 20's saw me at about a month post op and was like "hey [my name], why's there a giant smiley face on the back of your head?" I just laughed and was like I have no idea what the f you're talking about!

Man, reading your words, I realize that you think about this in a very similar way that I do. I know everybody here posts things that we can all relate to, but you and I think almost in the exact same way about some of these things it seems as far as the thought pattern, even if it's over something I'd never thought of before. I might be inclined to give that girl the benefit of the doubt about thinking I was injured, but thinking again about it, that may be naive of me. When I said I was glad I went through it, I meant that because I will *never* treat people like that. I held the door open for a very fat girl today as I was walking into the gym even though it was cold. She looked at me like I was crazy she was so surprised. People probably look right through her like she is INVISIBLE (especially at the gym). Obviously, I'm not gonna start hitting on her or flirting with her or shooting the breeze with her for no reason, but I am always going to treat strangers like HUMAN BEINGS. Besides, I know the ego boost I get when a 10 smiles at me. Why not return the favor down the line? haha! I gotta say, though, Syde, why do you sound so angry in your posts? We look GOOD now! We spent all this f'n money for it, so now's the time to ENJOY it, not to be bitter about how shitty people can be!!! Who cares if it looks bad when it gets wet? It looks good 95% of the time! I know you see chicks looking at you in a different way than before. Enjoy that shit!!! I've been working out on the reg, and looking like a BOSS. And I've been catching lots of girls looking at me I had an exgirlfriend who told me at the end of the relationship that she was no longer physically attracted to me and that when she'd first met me she thought I was "so cute" (two yrs prior). And this was coming from an overweight bulimic girl too! After that, and then being the social pariah that is post-OP HT, I f'n thrive off every smile and look I get now! I caught a coworker looking in my eyes in a meeting the other day, and today she messages me asking if I'm single and that she wants to play matchmaker for me. It feels GOOD to be looked at that way again man! And as for sweating in a club or whatever, I don't give a flying F that I'm not the best looking guy in a bar or club, because IT'S NOT IMPORTANT FOR ME TO F THE HOTTEST GIRL IN THE CLUB! I still know I'm a decent looking guy and I'm getting looks from girls that I find attractive on the reg, so why lament that I don't have many chances with a 10 when there are plenty of cute 7s and 8s that would be happy to be with me? I agree with you on everything you say about not wanting to look like a pariah, but we look like bosses now. I look like a boss now. You look like a boss now. CHANGE YOUR AVATAR, BRO, to something that shows how much hair you have better! I'm going to sleep now, because tomorrow I'm going to attack the gym like an animal in the morning just like I did this morning on only 3 hours sleep! PS: If you're receding behind your hairline like I soon will be you better enjoy the f out of it now while you can before you gotta resort to plan B! PPS: anyone reading this who doesn't have the density for a good HT: my personal advice, again, is to get yourself a badass hairpiece and rock that mother with zero shame! The gorgeous people will snicker, and a lot of ugly people will too, but only because they're jealous that you now look better than them again. When I got my HT, I knew 100% sure this ugly F at my office (who happens to have a beautiful, thick, lustrous head of hair) would snipe at me behind my back. Did I run? F NO. I came back into the office at about the 13 day mark, took my seat in my desk right in front of his, and let that c-sucker stare at the nasty scarred up back of my head for weeks!!!! Don't worry about what anyone thinks; do what makes YOU feel better. Sorry for the rant.

Somebody throw me a bone here. Can't find anything on google.

OtherSyde, you should be happy. You look awesome man. Honestly, I'm really jealous of you, because you look like you have a really good style that should allow you to be 100% carefree and not really worry too much what your hair looks like once you go out for the night. What you say is absolutely right. You walk up to a table of girls and say some sexual shit as in the first picture and you will disgust the crap out of them and creep them out. Ironically, even more so than if you were an uglier male, but with a full head of hair. Something about the bald thing. I think it was a smaller deal 50 years ago (look at all the classic celebrities with terrible hairlines), but now it's not acceptable. (case in point: all the TV ads with ugly looking average Joe everymans who despite that have thick, teenage hairlines) What you say about the difference between a laugh and rape is absolutely spot on. That's why this is about more than just getting laid. It's your whole personality and persona. It is infringed upon once your hairloss reaches a certain age-inappropriate stage. Everything changes. I understand it doesn't *have* to if you're still good looking, but I've got the same big forehead and light skin as you. One time when I was about 2 months post-op I said hi to a girl as I walked down stairs at my apartment (forgot I'd taken off my hat). Her response "hi" was absolute revulsion. I can't imagine a tone of voice being more like "get the fuck away from me". I wondered why, then I remembered I'd just taken off my hat. It made me really sad, but it also made me glad I'd gone through with the operation. Strangers in public during that post-op period just treated me terrible in general and it really did impact how I feel about people in general in a way that I admit is not positive. Still, I'll never be bald unless I'm like 50 and I still look good for my age. HTs, hairpieces, whatever I have to do. Accepting baldness when it doesn't look right is like a woman accepting she has to spend the rest of her life in a bikini and she has terrible cellulite. But for those with a good headshape and skin tone, I have loads of envy. That is complete freedom.

@tacolinowest: my T went down a little. I felt very sluggish and down and depressed. This could obviously be due to tons of factors in my life, but I'd been hitting the gym very well and then a month in being consistent I lost drive/motivation. Also, a new line of some sort started to grow on the left side of my penis where I hadn't seen one before and I felt like I was losing a little hardness so those things together I said it's not worth it. I'm sure that wouldn't have happened if I was just starting out for the first time though... I developed some kinds of either thrombosed veins or scar tissue that affected my penis before I even lost my virginity and it wasn't until I had a 2 year relationship with tons of amazing sex that I gained my confidence back from that BS. I think people should get their Testosterone and DHT levels checked before taking Fin. If you're at 800, then I'd say take the risk, but if you're at 400 like me....well, take the risk very seriously.

Awesome, thanks. I'll try incorporating this.

I've used Toppik for a while with Fx molding wax pliable hairwax, but this stuff doesn't work with Caboki. It makes that nasty stuff come off, and it is nasty. What do you guys do? What works the best? Also, do you use a brush or comb? I've been considering both light brushing and very light hairspray (in conjunction with Caboki to keep the Caboki stuck to hair) now that I'm post-op and have a tiny bit to work with in the hairline department. Would love to know how other people are dealing with this, though.

Don't use concealers until you're way out like 3 months post op. Why risk it?

BILL, my good man! Why am I just now hearing about this? Where can I buy this?? (in the US, preferably online)

My friend, I went through hell from what I attributed to Propecia. Then I got back on top (well, everything's relative....I've had failures to launch, but they've been rare). Then after my HT, I tried to take 1/4th. It just doesn't work for me. And if it doesn't work for you, don't do it, man. People in the gym come up to me sometimes when I'm putting in Rogaine telling me about how great Propecia is. They always have terrible body composition. Maybe that's a coincidence (older male, more likely to have worse composition), but DHT is actually an important male hormone, and not one I'd like to reduce unless it was only being reduced in an isolated area--my scalp. I can tell you my friend, it is not worth your penis. It really is not.

ActionPlan, my man: Try out the hairpiece. WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO LOSE? Actually, if you haven't shaved the dome completely, I'd recommend that first, but I want you to try the piece for selfish reasons. I'm 6 months post-op for a hairline procedure and while the hair looks OK, it is continuing to thin behind the transplanted area. I'd love to hear a report on your New Roots experience. Please let me know where else you've seen high quality systems, because the videos I've seen of Joe on New Roots are the best I've seen anywhere. In response to Shampoo's point: even after $13,000 and 6 months I *still* have to pour concealer in my hair and style it just right so it looks good front on (could look like shit from the top for all I know). And then I *still* always have to worry if my hair looks OK of if it looks stupid. If I had a HQ piece like the one ActionPlan references it would probably look totally stupid a lot less often than my real hair does or has for the past 5 years, so worrying about how people are looking at it is nothing new. And, it would probably look awesome a lot more often than my current hair does. I was too scared to take the plunge, though....didn't want to be a 26 year old with a hairpiece. And I am VERY concerned about how realistic it is to maintain the thing while working out. If I had to just work out with a hat or bald and not wear the piece I'd be cool with that, but the daily application...it has to be able to look real within a reasonable amount of time (not 30 min/day). It comes down to this? Do you want to occasionally have to wonder if someone's examining it and occasionally having to fix in the bathroom and being a little embarrassed? Or do you want to always know how it looks and know that the way it looks is not acceptable to you? Again, if you can rock it bald then go for it, I'm just saying if you're in my boat and don't feel you pull it off well.

Here's what you gotta do, brah: shave your head. Don't be a pussy. Shave that dome bald. Do you like it? Does it look OK? Would it look OK if you hit the gym and got some muscle definition? (but don't overestimate the effects of this. i sometimes see ripped as hell, but skinny bald dudes who I just think look weird) If this look doesn't work for you, you GET AN HT. I'm sorry for the caps. I'll just describe myself now. I cut it, forgot about it, then saw an old pic years later when I was thinking about cutting it again. Not an option. Looked absolutely terrible. 6 month post op. Am I glad I did it?? Yes I am. Do I now have great hair? Nope (well, in poor lighting it can look kind of baller), just looks somewhat OK. Does it look better than before? HELL YEAH. I got to the point I was depressed to even look at myself in the mirror, so I just stopped. Now here's the kicker: am I still losing hair? Unfortunately, yup. I tried going back on Finasteride 1/4ths, but it turned me into a little bitch, so I couldn't stick with. Do I regret it? No. I had implants on the sides to deal with the recession there in addition to my hairline. This is important because hairpieces can be convincingly placed further forward the more hair you have on your sides. In other words, as your side hairline recedes, any hairpiece you wear will have to be worn higher and higher.

@spammedtothemax 1) my original post was a joke. it was tongue-in-cheek. 2) my biggest congratulations to you. I would love to go your route, but right when I was about to do it, a friend of me sent me a picture from 5 years back when I *did* shave my head. It looked like s***. The picture is of me next to my friend's bald dad and his forehead is tiny, and mine is so huge I look like an alien next to him. I would totally love to just shave my head and kick ass at life and never think about it again like you, and I envy you and people who look good bald a lot more than I envy most people who are post-op HT, but unfortunately I look like a complete goon without hair.

Get excited, my friends. PGD2 inhibitors really are going to live up to the hype and be the miracle cure we have all been waiting for to cure us of our lonely nights sitting by the telephone. The future is bright and guaranteed, gentlemen! Happy growing!

WHERE IS THE 2% NIZORAL ONLINE? I ORDERED FROM A CANADIAN SUPPLIER, BUT IT'S GOING TO TAKE FOREVER AND I DIDN'T GET EMAIL CONFIRMATION. WHERE IS A RELIABLE CANADIAN SUPPLIER THAT SHIPS TO USA? Also, where can I even find 1% for a decent price? I was gonna buy that to use in the interim, but i can't even find that anywhere except online...and for $20. Sorry for the CAPS, but it appears it's gotten harder now. And I threw away my Nizoral just a few weeks ago....stupid. You're only supposed to use once a week? I forgot that.

Who the **** cares if something happens and the piece slips out so it's detectable?? How often does that even happen?? I just had an HT that mostly covered my temples, and I'm *just now* coming out of the embarrassing stage, but I *still* have thinning in the front and center. Sometimes I think I look good, then I get to the mirror and I realize my hair was out of place and a bunch of scalp is showing and I look like a big ******bag! And the 3 months post op....don't even get me started! That was **** brutal day in, day out. Had to just keep my head high, and that was not easy. 5 years ago when my hair was thinning, a gust of wind threatened to make me look like a complete ****in creepo on my college campus on a DAILY basis. So I don't understand the paranoia about hairpieces. If you look good, you look good. If I ever wear, and it slips out in an embarrassing way once a month, I will not give a ****. I will just dominate the 98% of the time when I look good in the public eye. John Travolta kind of looks like a ****** in his, but Burt Reynolds has always looked like a G. Everyone knows it's a rug on top of his head, and not his real hair. Do you think he gives a ****? The answer is NO.

Of course some people don't understand it. Look around at all the average Joe's and what do you see? Lots of fat, out-of-shape, ****-health people (at least in the US, you do). Some people start getting fat and immediately realize they don't want to be a fatass and lose the weight. Others say **** it and grow exponentially. So of course with baldness, some people just say *** it and don't worry about it. But to those who actually take pride in their appearance, they sometimes want to *do* something about it (of course there's a third category here I'm omitting, and that is those who don't look too bad with or without hair). Of course the problem is, hair loss is harder to fight than weight gain, sometimes impossible to fight. Your dad can't understand because he knows people who've gone bald and didn't freak out about it. If you move abroad, it would be more accepted. I'm blond, and I personally feel it's the worst to go bald when you're blond, light skinned, and with a big head like mine (except maybe if your east Asian...might be worse since it's so rare for them) It sounds like you don't have the money to consider a transplant for a while (and you aren't a good age for it). Google "toronto movie hair". They make some good hairpieces, from the YouTube videos. I went the HT route, but now in my 20's, sometimes I wonder if I should've just gone the piece route, because my hair won't last forever.

I recently had a surgery for the hairline and I'm in the ugly duckling stage right now. I starting taking Propecia again, but at a much lower dosage to try to avoid sides....I've tried to be positive, but it appears those sides may be coming back anyways, and I probably must discontinue. I am very concerned about how this will affect my hair, as I did not want to see the hair behind my transplant continue to thin and recede, and my father is completely bald. It seems I have no choice though. Right now, I'm just hoping that my HT grows in well, and the surrounding hairs maintain until another treatment (like PGD2 inhibitors) becomes available. If nothing else works, I'll be stuck with getting a piece eventually, but I'm hoping to at least get a few more years of youth with my own real hair before that.

Mikeylad: Please post pics of the hairpiece!!! I have actually already purchased and plopped down $800 for a nice hairpiece...but I decided I was too young to throw the cards in yet...perhaps a mistake, because now post-HT, I'm feeling pretty locked into trying Fin again--something I'd once swore I wouldn't touch again. I think my HT will turn out great, but when I think about the potential for sides, almost makes me wish I'd just gone the hairpiece route. Problem with those is: you really don't have a good idea what it'll look like until you're shaved and the unit is all cut up for you. 21: I started taking Fin at 18. Didn't see sides until I took a month-long break to shock my system when I was 20, 2 yrs later. When I went back on, bad things started to happen. Bob: Thanks for pointing out to everyone. I'd decided the same as well. I'll get my sutures removed next week from a doctor I've not seen too many times, but has a better reputation than my main GP. I already decided to discuss Propecia with him and most importantly get bloodwork done so I can get a baseline for myself.

Thanks for the reply Matt. I'm kind of more wondering about the idea of quitting and then coming back on it later. I firmly believe (based on experience) that once you have sides, you've got to get off the drug completely to give your body the chance to recover. I doubt anyone will see improvement from tapering down unless they take a break from the drug first.

In case anyone wants more backstory in order to answer, long story short: I stopped taking Fin 5 years ago due to some sexual side effects. They were pretty horrible, and if what happened to me was truly caused by the Fin, some of the sides have not gone away. However, I was recently in a longterm relationship and had lots of amazing sex and very few misfires, so I had a lot of recovery. I recently got an HT to fill in my hairline, and I'd like to go back on Fin at a very low dosage, because at 25 yrs old, I know I'll soon be losing more hair, and I'd like to avoid the cosmetic, economic, time-consuming, and pain-inducing factors that go along with a 2nd HT as long as possible!

Has anybody with previous side effects switched to a lower dosage of Fin (I'm thinking 0.25 mg) and avoided the recurrence of sides? This is the plan I've been thinking about. I've been off the drug for 5 whole years now, but I'd like to get back on a smaller dosage. I'm worried now though, because I've seen from a lot of studies that 0.25mg blocks the same amount of DHT as 1mg. Does that mean I'm likely to eventually incur the same/similar side-effects I experienced before regardless of the dosage?

Sirius, you notice a difference in the ladies that look at you in the street? I'll bet you find it very funny the girls that are giving you eyes now that would have been averting them before.

Hi, as we lose more hair or deal with higher hairlines, we may notice that how good our face looks becomes more and more important. Any other feature stands out 10x when you have more scalp showing in my opinion. For this reason, I wonder if anybody here has any advice for good facial cleansers and creams that help keep the face looking young and youthful....even if our hairlines dont.

I'm 25 and my receding hairline has shifted to something a lot more noticeable. I definitely notice a lot fewer glances from attractive women, and part of how I know that is that I see the glances when I'm hanging out with other (I guess you could say now more attractive?) guys. I'm tired of this bullshit. I want to get a piece, however, I've heard that a piece may not be a good solution until my recession is more severe. Anybody every achieve a good result by building up a nice thick, dense hairline, and then 5 years later when you need to just grab a piece and cover up the crown of your head? Since the most noticeable spot is the front of the head, I would think this would be a trick commonly flaunted, but I never hear about it. (Take for example, John Travolta. Most people have seen the pics where they zoom in on the lace at his hairline, but I'd imagine if he had real hair growing out at the front there, nobody could ever detect if he had a piece on in the back.) Can anybody here honestly say they'd rather have their own hairline/style than this guy's? (I'm not saying this dude had an HT in the front, just saying that most people would be able to achieve an acceptable density in the front if they were willing to use a piece in the back.