thatoldchestnut

I am far from an authority but it looks to me like you're already making visually significant progress! Hoping everything continues to progress nicely for you

As already noted, you have some pretty boss hair! Look forward to seeing the finished article, heal/grow well

All the best Matt You seem to be taking a really analytical approach and based on everything I've ever seen (results-wise), have chosen a great surgeon! Hope everything works out for you.

I'm not really the most qualified to comment but i think the design looks nice. Congrats on taking the plunge and here's hoping you get the result you were after

Hugely impressive! Very sensible hairline

Great news man, your hair looks terrific

Fantastic, thoughtful post Fortune. Although your perspective is certainly not unique among the patrons of this site; it's definitely nice to read such a considerate approach. I hope it will provide others with some (at times, much needed!) context if and when they decide to undergo surgery, or anything of the like. Even though I'm not quite as young as some (or as I'd like to be for that matter ) I'll definitely be trying my best to take these matters in hand, if and when that fateful day should arrive!

As someone who has dealt with depression for many years and someone who, like you, was unwilling to share my unhappiness with the people I love I would say that the advice above is sound. I won't repeat all of what's been said but I will emphasise one point and perhaps add one of my own. Seeking professional help is something you should definitely consider. The single biggest factor in helping me come to terms with myself has been engaging with counselling/mental wellbeing services at university. I realise you may not be in a situation where you are able to easily procure such a service but if you do have the opportunity I would highly recommend it. Furthermore though, if and when you do choose to seek help (and this is crucial in my opinion) make sure that you actively engage with that help. Do not expect (and I take my own example here, I'm not saying you will necessarily make the same mistake!) to passively take part in therapy and think you'll magically get better. Heed their advice and act on it, it will be so, so worth it. Secondly, unless you feel you absolutely cannot I would attempt to disclose your problems to your family and perhaps a trusted friend or two. These people may not offer you 100% sound advice but have the potential to be a source of great strength if you allow them to. I was always terrified of letting people know how I was feeling for fear of upsetting them, being perceived as weak and myriad other concerns. That said, it was one of the most important things i did. Things will get better for you my friend, knowing yourself and seeking advice is a sure sign of that. All the best!

If i'll look that cool wearing it, who cares if it promotes regrowth?! (seriously though, not cool)

Thanks so much for the kind words

Love the hairline design, very natural! As others have noted that scar is completely undetectable, keep up the good growth!

Hey Yaz. I've been reading through your journey and it sounds as though despite having some times where things felt bleak, you're firmly through the worst of your struggles. I can't comment on your decision to have a further HT so I'll leave that to those more qualified. What I will say is: great result, you deserve it mate!

Thanks for the response Garage. I don't really have a problem with how "Low" my hairline is, as I say, i've always had quite a big forehead (I think?). Incidentally only my father started losing hair around my age (My mother's father didn't suffer hairloss beyond what we'd think of as normal, afaik) but I can see having re-read my initial post that it's not at all clear (and either way, your point obviously stands ). I think for now I will consider meds and see how that works out. I'm certainly not going to be rushing into a surgery anytime soon since quite simply i couldn't afford it even if i wanted to!

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Thanks Fortune, the sound advice continues! I guess still being in a relatively youth dominated environment at university is not helping me. Maybe if i was already a professional of some sort i wouldn't be thinking twice! That said, I don't crave a "juvenile hairline", per se. I'd just like my temples to be more symmetrical and filled in. Also fwiw, I actually think a nw2 looks better than a nw1 on most men, maybe that's just me!

I'm from Barnoldswick, though I don't study here so I'm generally in Wales! As for the HT thing, I know i mentioned it in the initial post but obviously it's not something i'm considering just yet. Think of it as preparatory research rather than a genuine, burning desire to undergo a HT at present. Maybe in the years to come depending on a number of factors it's something i'll do For me, it's more about forming a plan and feeling like i'm proactively tackling something that is obviously starting to bother me tremendously, even though I realise i'm not as seriously afflicted as some.

Thanks a lot '66, I'll do that. In Lancs myself actually, all the best

Thanks all so much for the responses. Don't worry about the whole "body shaming" thing, i didn't take offence - I appreciate any advice that's offered, as long as it's considered/genuine! I'll definitely bear that in mind, though I have tried and failed to "get fit" before because i suffer quite badly with social anxiety and don't really feel comfortable in the gym. However I know that's not really an excuse as I don't need to go to the gym to get fit! As for the hair itself, I was extremely apprehensive about broaching the subject of fin because everyone has been so dismissive about my hair loss (in my "real life" experience). I guess it's time to stop being a baby and just go ask though, even if it's for my own peace of mind. Where should i go for that? Derm and a GP? Just a GP? Thanks to anyone that took the time to read or reply to this thread!

Hi there, first of all let me thank anyone that takes the time to read this post. I have toyed with the idea of posting on a site like this many times in the past (I have probably been periodically lurking for upwards of a year). Feel free to skip to the pics below and just tell me what NW I am if you'd like, better than nothing I apologise in advance if this ends up getting a little lengthy, but this will be a somewhat cathartic exercise for me and much as i realise you're probably not too concerned with my "wider background" i feel it will be helpful to me personally to provide a little context. I have struggled with depression and horrible self image issues throughout much of my adolescence and young adulthood having been pretty significantly overweight and just generally feeling repulsive physically. Ironically, the one thing i felt i could always fall back on was my hair since i always perceived it to be my best feature Having been told at 17 by a mate who was on the brink of going bald that i was "definitely receding" i guess at the time i kind of shrugged it off but the seed had been planted. Despite that i was repeatedly reassured over the years that "you'll never go bald", "you have so much hair, any man would love to be "balding" like you", "you've always had that hairline" etc. that i never really gave it a second thought. However, around the age of 26 (I honestly can't say i remember my exact age, i have only slavishly tracked my progression the past year or so) i noticed when i spiked my hair up that i had quite prominent temples. Again the fears resurfaced and again they were largely allayed by the cries from my family that my hairline looked as it always had and i must admit that even when much younger i never had a "classic" juvenile hairline. I found a kind of emo type style that i had always wanted to rock and since my hair was so thick (maybe dense is the appropriate terminology around here? i'm not totally sure how i'd classify it!) i got great coverage and it wasn't an issue for a while though the worries definitely persisted thereafter. Which brings us to now, a couple of months away from my 30th birthday and i am certain that what i am experiencing is beyond maturation of my hairline and that I am balding. It reached a point where the fringe which i was sporting was getting more difficult to style and what i perceived to be slower growth was simply my temples not being filled out as they once were. I want to take the next step, or at least know definitively what the next step could be. I have not seen a derm, i spoke to a GP here in uni but i felt she didn't take me at all seriously and this immediately turned me off seeking genuine help from her. Family My Dad, aged 63 - I think he started losing his hair around the same time as me, though obviously given i don't really know when my hair loss began definitively that's difficult to say. I dont know what exact pattern he balded in but could easily find this out when i next see him. My Dad's father always had hair, i don't recall the specific norwood, he certainly had noticably thinned but not beyond what one might expect of a 70 year old man. Mother's father is similar to my Dad's, though less thinning and fuller. One of her brothers has a juvenile, thick head of hair and the other is closer in characteristics to their father. Questions What norwood do you think i am at present? I feel like i have lost density beyond the hairline but that's difficult for me to objectively know/judge, i have been so obsessive over my hair and don't have a clear point of reference to compare to. The back still looks very thick and doesn't match up to the top, which is what makes me think this. On the bright side i guess this could make for a great future donor area? (fingers crossed ) All pics taken with a somewhat healthy dose of hat hair, it has a little more volume than this but not a ton, being very straight. - Hair normally resting. - Right side resting, cowslick is covering slightly, unintentional.. - Left side resting. - Birds-eye, or as close as i could manage taking my own photos - Left temple - Right temple (I feel like the way i'm holding my hair makes this look better than it is potentially? You can tell it's not taut at the hairline) - Alternate right temple shots, again i feel the angle/light may be misleading. I do feel my right temple looks significantly better than the left, though. I would like to to maximise my potential in terms of both saving what i have left and getting the best result when i am eventually able to undertake a transplant if that's the route i decide to take, what's my best course of action in your opinion? Bear in mind that I am in the final year of my law degree (meaning that I may not be in gainful employment for at least another year) and so money is an issue. To that end, are there options for financing such an operation and do they add inordinately to the cost? It might seem foolish to you but for me it is such an intrinsically important issue that i would be willing to saddle the debt to enable me to enjoy the results while i am younger I think I may get a shorter haircut very soon since the length coupled with my hairline is starting to bother me so i think cutting it will be healthier for me mentally. Any suggestions, is there a style that might flatter what i feel is still a relatively decent head of hair? Finally, let's say in a hypothetical situation i am able to maintain most or all of what i have now and am thinking of undergoing a transplant. Which surgeons would you be considering? FUT or FUE? I believe that when the time comes i will take a "spare no expense" approach, as much as it is financially viable - i want to get this as right as possible! Thanks so much for reading if you made it this far - I apologise for subjecting you to that but i needed to type it all. Kudos to these communities for existing - even for those who don't find their dream solution i am sure they are a source of immense camaraderie and comfort.