Am I the only one that thinks shaving your head is not embracing baldness?

[GoneTodayToo]

Is anyone else as tired as I am about hearing the old "just shave it all off" line from people with hair or even women you know wear wigs/extensions? Well, I guess I should just start with the people that have hair that give you the shave it advice. I've shaved my head a few times over my eighteen year journey with hair loss, and let me tell you that most of the people that tell you to shave your head don't really care about your situation. Once, I heard two women in the office talking about how I should just shave my head. So, one day, I did just that. Then, later, after I had shaved my head, I could hear them talking about how bad it looked and that it was sad and obvious I did it because I was going bald.

 

The truth is that there is a known prejudice against bald and balding men. Sorry to say it, but I think most of us are here because of this prejudice. We get jobs less often, we get promoted less often, and we get dates less often. We're not considered as attractive as men with full heads of hair. And before any positive thinking guru comes in with a sunny, "it's all in your mind" defense, there are really scientific studies to prove that what I am saying is all objectively true. Now, I'm not necessarily a pity-monger. I don't feel that sorry for myself. I just don't think that "shave it all off" is necessarily a solution. I also don't feel like shaving your head is embracing your baldness.

 

I think shaving your head is just another form of hiding from the problem. Maybe it seems officially sanctioned because it's "natural" and unlike using a hair system or having an HT--in fact, I think that's it: society sanctions it, at least seemingly. Maybe it's just that shaving your head seems to put you in control, but in fact you would still be in control if you used a hair system or got an HT. Maybe it's Dunning-Kruger Effect: people with less skill believe themselves to be highly skilled and highly skilled people believe their skills easily attained--so they believe they have the solutions to problems that they don't. Possibly, it's a combination of the above. At any rate, I am tired of hearing this as a "solution." It's not embracing your baldness to shave your head; it's still going to an extreme to fight your baldness while pretending you don't care. It's all too easy to shave your head and forget that you were losing you hair.

 

Then, there's the women that wear wigs and have extensions that belittle bald and balding men. I just don't get that. I do understand that society has different norms of women,and women must look a certain way to please society, but come on...

 

Sorry about the rant, but we all need one from time to time, don't we?

[hadenough2014]

Some heads look great shaved, especially if the person is in great shape. Whether I am in great shape or not, my head shape looks terrible shaved and it is boney in all the wrong spots. You never know what really lies underneath until you shave it. I think people should try a shaved head to see if its fits them before they go into a HT decision.

 

No woman in the civilized world has a right to be critical of a man going for a HT, unless she wants to strip herself of makeup, hair coloring, high heels, push-up bras, and all the other visual enhancers/deceptors most use. Fortunately, the majority of women are good and do not care whether or not her man has hair!