Haven't Logged in Here in Over 6 Years. Success Story with Pics!

[KlotzConchord]

Like I said, this is a success story. But this is probably not the success story that some of you think is possible. Well I used to be you. I started losing my hair just out of high school in 1995, it started at the temples and went back and thinned me out all through the top.

 

In 1998 I joined Hair Club for Men and wore a glued-on, taped-on "hair system". I was excited about it at first because of the change in my appearance. But the hair system has it's limits. I was too afraid to get to into a relationship with any girls I met for fear of that intimate moment they would try to run their fingers through my "my" hair. I felt (and feared) that I was a very shallow and phony person.

 

In 2001 I decided to shave my head for the first time. I had trouble getting used to it so after a week I decided to grow my hair out and see what I was left with after 4 years of wig-wearing. Well to my surprise I wasn't completely bald. I had a thin layer of hair that covered most of my head. It was enough that I could use Toppik fibers somewhat successfully. I continued dusting my head with Toppik for the next couple of years, during which time I joined this website.

 

My hair loss was getting worse and it was getting harder and harder to try and create a phony hairline using Toppik. I was single at this time and worried about how I was going to find a girlfriend who could possibly love a guy who was losing his hair (this sounds ridiculous to me now). I frequented this website for about three or four months. By the time spring and summer had come around I had enough of my self pity and just decided to shave my head and go for broke this time. It was the best thing I ever did.

 

See, the first time I shaved my head, I never gave myself a chance to get used to it. I now love shaving my head and not worrying if someone can see that I have lost hair. I love being able to go swimming and not worry if my "hair system" is going to fly off. I love the fact that I never decided take out an automobile-sized loan to go though with hair surgery. Most of all, I love the feeling of being real, not trying to cover up what some see as a fault. It just doesn't matter. HAIR doesn't matter. Later that year I met my wife. She didn't care one bit that I had male pattern baldness. Most women don't. We dated for 5 years and were just married this past October.

 

I don't know how the moderators and admins will take to this kind of a post. It works against all of the people who advertise on this website to to try and convince you that you have a problem. Maybe this thread will be deleted or locked. Who knows. I just wanted to share my thoughts with you and tell you that you are more than your hair (or lack of). YOU CAN GET OVER THIS.

 

My wife and I:

 

With one of my two pugs:

 

Wedding day:

 

With a few friends:

[KlotzConchord]

Like I said, this is a success story. But this is probably not the success story that some of you think is possible. Well I used to be you. I started losing my hair just out of high school in 1995, it started at the temples and went back and thinned me out all through the top.

 

In 1998 I joined Hair Club for Men and wore a glued-on, taped-on "hair system". I was excited about it at first because of the change in my appearance. But the hair system has it's limits. I was too afraid to get to into a relationship with any girls I met for fear of that intimate moment they would try to run their fingers through my "my" hair. I felt (and feared) that I was a very shallow and phony person.

 

In 2001 I decided to shave my head for the first time. I had trouble getting used to it so after a week I decided to grow my hair out and see what I was left with after 4 years of wig-wearing. Well to my surprise I wasn't completely bald. I had a thin layer of hair that covered most of my head. It was enough that I could use Toppik fibers somewhat successfully. I continued dusting my head with Toppik for the next couple of years, during which time I joined this website.

 

My hair loss was getting worse and it was getting harder and harder to try and create a phony hairline using Toppik. I was single at this time and worried about how I was going to find a girlfriend who could possibly love a guy who was losing his hair (this sounds ridiculous to me now). I frequented this website for about three or four months. By the time spring and summer had come around I had enough of my self pity and just decided to shave my head and go for broke this time. It was the best thing I ever did.

 

See, the first time I shaved my head, I never gave myself a chance to get used to it. I now love shaving my head and not worrying if someone can see that I have lost hair. I love being able to go swimming and not worry if my "hair system" is going to fly off. I love the fact that I never decided take out an automobile-sized loan to go though with hair surgery. Most of all, I love the feeling of being real, not trying to cover up what some see as a fault. It just doesn't matter. HAIR doesn't matter. Later that year I met my wife. She didn't care one bit that I had male pattern baldness. Most women don't. We dated for 5 years and were just married this past October.

 

I don't know how the moderators and admins will take to this kind of a post. It works against all of the people who advertise on this website to to try and convince you that you have a problem. Maybe this thread will be deleted or locked. Who knows. I just wanted to share my thoughts with you and tell you that you are more than your hair (or lack of). YOU CAN GET OVER THIS.

 

My wife and I:

 

With one of my two pugs:

 

Wedding day:

 

With a few friends:

[thanatopsis_awry]

Congrats! A *true* success story, indeed.....you look good -- likewise for the wifey!

[Mr. GQ]

congratulations to you and your wife on your recent marriage.

 

i'm glad you feel comfortable with your shaved look. however some of us are not "brave" enough like you to even get the razor nowhere near the dome and try to pull something like that off. i buzz mine with #1 and #2 and it looks good on me (so people say) but still nothing beats full head of hair which you can make go bald again on demand or as you wish. my girlfriend likes my shaved look also, but too bad i'm still obsessing with the full head of hair. some guys never change no matter what.

 

cheers!!!

[lost my swagger]

congrats man...... this IS the best way to beat hairloss still, in many cases... you look great, and your wife is ok too.

 

had i not foolishly jumped into the HT world at the age of 21 and given myself an uneven long scar from ear to ear, id more than likely have the same look right now.......

 

the thing is even with my scar my BEST look in the future may still be a shaved head, once my hairloss progresses to far

 

as i read your story with no idea where it was going i thought, 'geeze, this guy only gave his shaved head one week before he grow it back out!'.... i happy for you that you gave it another shot. thanks for sharing what worked for you. all the best

[cody]

First off I dont know why you would grow your hair back when the bald look actually suits you very well..

 

Secondly.. your wife is a babe.

[lost my swagger]

Originally posted by cody:

First off I dont know why you would grow your hair back when the bald look actually suits you very well..

 

Secondly.. your wife is a babe.

 

truth is cody this look would suit MOST people you dont know...... if you had this look i would bet i would think that "it suits you"...why? cause i dont know you and have nothing to base your look apon.. to me your look would be the shaved look......... IMO this look "suits" him because he wears it proudly.... you can see in his eyes hes happy this way.... and he kicked a little ass because hes got nothing(atleast not his hair) keeping him from not being confident.......

 

frankly, his head shape is NOT ideal IMO, but its not bad either.... but one thing is for sure... he sure as hell is not SUFFERING anymore.

[mmhce]

Damn dude your wife is hot!

Nobody here is looking at your bald head.

[Bill - Seemiller]

WolfsmansBrudda,

 

It's nice to see members from the old days come back and visit us every now and again to share their own personal hair loss and recovery stories.

 

Now onto this statement:

 

I don't know how the moderators and admins will take to this kind of a post. It works against all of the people who advertise on this website to to try and convince you that you have a problem. Maybe this thread will be deleted or locked. Who knows. I just wanted to share my thoughts with you and tell you that you are more than your hair (or lack of). YOU CAN GET OVER THIS.

 

For the record, nobody here sells the idea or concept that balding men or women have a "problem". The problem people have with hair loss is formed by their perception of their own appearance based on how they view balding, which is then further exacerbated by outside influences. Some are affected so much by it, that they'd do anything to get their hair back while others aren't as concerned.

 

Shaving of the head is certainly a viable option and many men not only do it, but carry it off very well. In fact, a few in shape men at my gym carry it off well, wielding confidence, and have beautiful wives. You and your wife certainly seem to fit into this mold :-)

 

This forum community is about helping men and women deal with their hair loss in a way that's best for them. Some will choose to shave their heads and be done with it while others will try non-surgical treatments, hair restoration surgery, hair pieces, or topical concealers.

 

Thanks for sharing your story with us and I'm pleased to hear that hair loss no longer psychologically hinders your thoughts.

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill

[hopefull]

excellent post man

 

Well done for shaving ot all off you look cool.

 

What is liberating is that after the initial get used to it period where you check your face 20 times a day in the mirror from every possible angle lol... you slowly find all the advantages coming in

 

1. You stop looking how your hair looks constantly in mirrors

 

2.You stop being afraid of wind, rain and all the elements of nature (sworn enemied of thinnign hair and carefully styled hair to hide thiness)

 

3.you can enjoy sports without caring how your thin hair looks when you sweat or swim or wear helmets of any kind(bicycle, motorbikes)

 

Its undoubtely the best thing to do, transplants can only do so much.In my opinion they just keep you in the fight making you fighting forevert and have the same worries forever (how my hair looks under this light, if i wet my hair they will look thin i have to take care, why is this guy looking at my hairline?, i think my hair are thinning more lately maybe propecia stopped working so good...maybe i should go in for a fill in procedure...maybe i should switch to avodart)

 

these things in these forums that doctors advertise you dont hear them so often and some truths are hidden.I lived this situation in HLH where the doctors where protected first and the patients were always second. You see the patients dont pay the sites bills or the moderators lifestyle

 

Usually all the people who were unsattisfied by transplants were unrealistic or whatever and pretty soon were driven away from the forum...also all the posters who questioned things and raised flags were eliminated (banned or aksed to leave) so that the marketplace will remain a happy shopping experience.

 

Thats how i see things now maybe i am wrong but where there is smoke there is fire they say

[Bill - Seemiller]

these things in these forums that doctors advertise you dont hear them so often and some truths are hidden.I lived this situation in HLH where the doctors where protected first and the patients were always second. You see the patients dont pay the sites bills or the moderators lifestyle

 

Hopefull,

 

Living at Hair Loss Help for awhile, I can understand why you are cynical. But I appreciate that you don't generalize and bring what you've learned from Hair Loss Help and apply it here.

 

As Publishers of this community, there are times when investigation is necessary. However, if something as simple as a balding man or woman shaving his head and being done with it is looked at badly by other forums, then shame on them.

 

Though physicians do sponsor this site (as clearly defined here), we by no means unfairly protect surgeons and put patients second. Here, patients and physicians are free to have a voice and as long as both patient and doctor are genuine.

 

Bill

[hopefull]

Hi Bill its not only hairlosshelp...but hairsite as well.I ve seen posters banned and posts deleted in an effort to protect its new sponsor.(guess who)

 

the only sites that i find different regarding doctors advertising is this site and hairloss talk...where at least you can find many doctors and not just 3 or 4 that share the cake, in hairloss talk i hear he chased all the consultants and salemen away.Its only for patients...i applaud that!!!

[KlotzConchord]

Thanks for the replies guys. I didn't know if I'd be run out of town on a rail or praised for my choices. I actually posted here somewhat by accident. All I was trying to do was clean up my email address and get rid of all of the unwanted mail I get from time-to-time. Once I logged in I looked at my profile it was an interesting experience to see the way I used to think. Sort of like a window to a past I had long since forgotten.

[KlotzConchord]

For the record, nobody here sells the idea or concept that balding men or women have a "problem".

I haven't looked to see who all sponsors this site. But I have seen lots of advertising elsewhere that does exactly that. They show guys with their new hair dancing and flirting with beautiful women, making you feel like you need to have hair to do such things. Then when they show before and after photos, they make sure to show the before picture as a pale, bedraggled loser. They make sure that his hair is combed out and looks stupid like Larry Fine of the Three Stooges. Then after he gets his hair, he's all of a sudden got a nice tan, his hair is combed and styled, and he's an Adonis that women just fall all over. So stupid.

 

And Bill, I saw your pictures of your progress. Your HTs came out very well from what I could see, but you could have made it as a great-looking bald guy.

[mmhce]

I don't think I will ever shave my head. I started losing my hair when I was a teenager, and I feel like if I've lost out on my childhood.

 

I know that may sound stupid, but it's the way I feel.

 

Kudos to you WolfmansBrudda for your shaved head.

 

And your right chics don't really mind the hairloss thing as men mind it.

 

But we're yuppies or metros or vain....or lost out on our childhood...we do it to satisfy ourselves...

[PLEASE GROW PLEASE]

85 % of white guys look like penises with their hair shaved.

You can pull it of ok but most crackers look ridiculous.

Consider yourself lucky

.

[hopefull]

Originally posted by PLEASE GROW PLEASE:

85 % of white guys look like penises with their hair shaved.

You can pull it of ok but most crackers look ridiculous.

Consider yourself lucky

.

 

thats BS.All the guys will look ok with a buzzed head maybe not that good as with hair but still they will look good.

 

Lets be honest everyone would prefer hair than being bald...but not many prefer transplants than being bald.i actually prefer a clead buzz cut than seethrough hair for young people.

 

now if i am older with kids and i am bored and i want to have a change maybe i would opt for a transplant...but now at this modern age and at our age the rules are simple...Full head of hair or no hair.

[flyby]

Nice work Wolfman! I think the shaved look works great for you and you've obviously found a way to move past being self concious about it. Did you get approval from your wife to post her pic on an HT forum

 

There are so many different variable that come into place for people looking for a solution that is right for them when it comes to hairloss. Here's a list of some of the things I see as some of the variables and these are just my opinions.

 

With regards to NW scales below I usually see these as what you are most likely to become rather than what you are today

 

1. IMO bald is always better than a hair system based on what I've seen and the insecurities that I would have wearing one.

 

2. Shave/Buzz - Try it you might like it! I think it's always best to atleast try the buzzed/shaved down look on yourself atleast once and give it a little time to see if you like it or grow to like. Also, get honest feedback from people you trust. Once you go with an strip HT the shaved buzzed look doesn't really become a good option uless you don't mind the ugly ass scar (regardless of how good it is).

 

3. If the buzzed/shave look makes you look like 8===D head and you just can't learn to live with it, obsess over it and can't move on then maybe it's time to look at an HT as an option. When you do start looking make sure to take your time and only go with Dr's you know are at the top of the HT field. Lots of reasons some people don't look good buzzed shaved. Some people just have bad shaped melons, bad skin, bad propotion to body ratio etc. etc.

 

4. If you're destined to be a NW7 then I think you're better off learning to like/live with the buzzed look because going through 7000+ grafts to achieve a comb over looks wouldn't suit me

 

5. If you're NW6 then this really depends on the donor characteristics of the patient. If you have really bad characteristics (low density, tight scalp etc.) then again I'd prefer not to go through all the time/money to achieve a poor comb over look.

 

On the other hand someone like Nic Nitro had great characteristics and was willing to go through the process and appears to have achieved an incredible result.

 

6. NW4 and 5 again depends on patient characteristics but there's definitely a good chance of achieving an amazing result. Just make sure you do your homework and don't go looking to have a hairline of an 18 year old.

 

7. NW3's in my opinion don't look bad at all. This is also subjective and relative to the persons age. But what the hell! If you're not going to be losing much more hair and go with a great Dr. then go for it if you choose. Still don't think going with an 18 yr old hairline is smart though.

 

8. NW2 - Get over it. That's not hairloss that's just a mature hairline and you're probably the only one in the world who dwells on it. But if you're a perfectionist and must have a perfect hairline just make sure you get the best work possible becuase there's nothing worse then making a great situation worse.

 

9. Before any of the above try the propecia and minoxodil. The majority of us don't have any side affects at all! If you do, propecia is out of your system in 2 weeks and any side affects you actually had (or in some cases thought you had) will be gone.

 

10. Oh! One more thing. If you're a complete mess in numerous other apects of your life besides the hair loss it might be smart to work on some of those things first. The great thing about making things better with apects such as fitness, lifestyle, job etc is that in many cases a little hard work and self discipline can make great improvements. Too bad hairloss doesn't work the same .

 

So bottom line is your decision was definitely right for you and is a valid opinion that others should see and think about and should be a welcome post on this forum. But for others this just might not work for them.

 

L8

[Bill - Seemiller]

And Bill, I saw your pictures of your progress. Your HTs came out very well from what I could see, but you could have made it as a great-looking bald guy

 

As i said previously, the problem of baldness is the perception we have of ourselves, partly exacerbated by outside circumstances. Perhaps you, and others might think I could have looked good bald. However, I didn't like the way I looked bald.

 

Before I started losing my hair, as a freshman in high school, I shaved my head for swimming. I was a "rookie" to the team and wasn't really a fan of the idea of doing it, but went along with everyone else to be a "team player". Not only did I dislike the way I looked bald, my girlfriend at the time (mind you, I know I was young) broke up with me. Coincidence? Maybe.

 

All I could remember back then was waiting desperately for my hair to grow back because I hated the way I looked.

 

So whereas shaving your head worked well for you, it wasn't something I wanted for myself. I found this community when I was searching for real hair restoration solutions, and 3 hair transplants later, I have restored a good portion of my hair and am now the Associate Publisher here.

 

But I have seen lots of advertising elsewhere that does exactly that. They show guys with their new hair dancing and flirting with beautiful women, making you feel like you need to have hair to do such things. Then when they show before and after photos, they make sure to show the before picture as a pale, bedraggled loser.

 

I think you are confusing our educational community with cheesy and insulting infomercials. You won't find anything like that on this community. Frankly, the advertisements you are referring to make me sick too.

 

Bill

[PLEASE GROW PLEASE]

thats BS.All the guys will look ok with a buzzed head maybe not that good as with hair but still they will look good.

 

Now thats BS In high school our whole entire football team shaved our heads and almost everyone looked like goofs.

Yes a shaved head even if it looks bad would still look better then see-through hair in most younger guys, but you seem to think every transplant is see-through.

[thanatopsis_awry]

If you have the donor and the doc has the skill, HTs, over the backdrop of a certain level of loss, can be extremely effective....not just for young guys, but especially for young guys.

[Sir Fivehead]

Dude, how'd you get Jamie-Lynn Sigler to marry you? Nice!

[mmhce]

Dude are you still drooling over the guy's wife??!!

[hopefull]

Originally posted by mmhce:

Dude are you still drooling over the guy's wife??!!

 

 

LMAO guys dont put pictures of your hot wifes here, it might be a hairloss forum but we are still a bunch of wolfs here AOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU

[hopefull]

Originally posted by PLEASE GROW PLEASE:

thats BS.All the guys will look ok with a buzzed head maybe not that good as with hair but still they will look good.

 

Now thats BS In high school our whole entire football team shaved our heads and almost everyone looked like goofs.

Yes a shaved head even if it looks bad would still look better then see-through hair in most younger guys, but you seem to think every transplant is see-through.

 

I think all transplants are see htrough especially in certain lighting conditions and at certain times of the day. I ve seen transplants that were not see through but only because there was many native hair still...though even there at the transplanted section the hair were see through and looked different .The same guys with gel in the hair then you couldnt tell not in a million years that they had a transplant, so the different texture theoretically can be fixed with style aids!!!

 

But the thing is that is very difficult to use gel or styling aids when you are thinning because they stick the hair together and destroy the illusion that transplants try to create.

 

dont get me wrong i am not a hater of transplants.I just think that they SERIOUSLY lack donor to work as they should...this lack of donor has been replaced in the recent years by propecia and avodart and doctors are not anymore afraid to go high in numbers and create better restorations.

 

but will these drugs work forever and these great transplant hold up...maybe they will, its just not a risk that i would ever take.

 

My perfect TRANSPLANT senario would be to have as much donor as we wanted and go for FUE...even if it doesnt yieLd as high as strip i could go back again and again lol