33 year old male. Can anyone advise how bad am I balding?

[NewBald12357]

Hello guys. I wanted to get advice on how much am I balding here - can anyone give some honest thoughts?

To start, I generally buzz my hair to a number 0 for years. The last time I had a buzz was on December 21, about 3 weeks ago.

My question is: how bad is this in the Norwood scale? Do I need to grow my hair more to get a better idea? I seem to have a hard time figuring out myself where I am balding lol, maybe because I have been buzzing for so long and I dont think about balding.

Would a hair transplant help, or is this not feasible? Would appreciate some thoughts and ideas please.

I am even thinking whether I should get a hair system too.. I looked at medications like finasteride or minoxidil, but I dont wish to get side effects to those.

Appreciate your guys thoughts please.

[CEO_of_DHT]

Hello @NewBald12357

unfortunately it seems like you’re diffusely balding throughout your entire scalp in a very advanced Norwood VI to Norwood VII pattern.

It‘s not just the standard male pattern baldness but looks like something that requires closer inspection and a diagnosis by an experienced dermatologist.

Theres a silver lining: You appear to still have substantial hair on top which could potentially be saved.

However, there‘s no point in pursuing hair restoration if you're not getting comfortable with Finasteride, Dutasteride (about 50% more potent than Finasteride) and Minoxidil. Dutasteride takes about a year to have an effect and Finasteride even up to two. A dermatologist may prescribe you these.

Going forward, I suggest letting your hair grow out a few months until summer and adapting a cap in the meantime. That way you can get an idea how long your hair still grows and which density it‘s capable of achieving in the back. From there you can evaluate if you wear a low density system on top or if the growth has sufficient potential to justify pursuing surgery, which would in a first step mean consulting with HT surgeons specialised in advanced baldness cases, diffuse balding cases and/or body hair.

Be advised that these ways forward will be costly, lengthy and physically and psychologically challenging.
Having a relatively pristine, tan scalp as in your case is a privilege not every balding guy has. So, if you’re already comfortable with shaving, it may actually be the overall most advisable long-term solution.

Edited Friday at 08:07 PM by CEO_of_DHT

[NewBald12357]

@CEO_of_DHT Thank you.

It sounds like something like diffuse thinning and pursuing hair transplant can extremely costly, it could be bad as well if not done right. My issue with the medications is more of the side effects - I feel that it can be a huge risk later in life if the medications cause issues with your organs or heart later.

In this case, do you believe shaving and growing a beard? My beard grows patchy, but I guess it is better than nothing. I feel that with dating for example, having a head full of hair just can't be beat. There are hair systems that I can look into but those are all temporary.

 

 

[CEO_of_DHT]

6 minutes ago, NewBald12357 said:

My issue with the medications is more of the side effects

Finasteride and Dutasteride are generally safe medications, and even though you would need high dosages you should first try it (for a couple of months) before you knock it. Minoxidil is better taken topically as it indeed can rarely lead to cardiovascular conditions if taken orally.

8 minutes ago, NewBald12357 said:

In this case, do you believe shaving and growing a beard? My beard grows patchy, but I guess it is better than nothing. I feel that with dating for example, having a head full of hair just can't be beat. There are hair systems that I can look into but those are all temporary.

You could use topical Minoxidil on your beard and if that doesn't lead to satisfactory results, pursue a beard transplant which would very likely require less grafts than a HT. You could then shave and get SMP to simulate a healthy hairline.

Yes a full head of hair is a big advantage in dating, but you must not have the expectation that you could achieve a full head of hair, the best case scenario would be to create a conservative hair line which makes it look like you have age appropriate thinning and recession, so that your hair no longer is the weakest link in the chain and a disqualifier. Modern hair systems are very durable and only have to be taken off every two to three weeks. If you manage to regrow your sides and back (with medication), these would be the better option to make it look like a full head of hair. I believe in the long run you'd be happier shaving though, it's less risk involved.

[NewBald12357]

5 hours ago, CEO_of_DHT said:

Finasteride and Dutasteride are generally safe medications, and even though you would need high dosages you should first try it (for a couple of months) before you knock it. Minoxidil is better taken topically as it indeed can rarely lead to cardiovascular conditions if taken orally.

You could use topical Minoxidil on your beard and if that doesn't lead to satisfactory results, pursue a beard transplant which would very likely require less grafts than a HT. You could then shave and get SMP to simulate a healthy hairline.

Yes a full head of hair is a big advantage in dating, but you must not have the expectation that you could achieve a full head of hair, the best case scenario would be to create a conservative hair line which makes it look like you have age appropriate thinning and recession, so that your hair no longer is the weakest link in the chain and a disqualifier. Modern hair systems are very durable and only have to be taken off every two to three weeks. If you manage to regrow your sides and back (with medication), these would be the better option to make it look like a full head of hair. I believe in the long run you'd be happier shaving though, it's less risk involved.

The beard was is a good idea. I am actually trying to grow one - its coming slowly but I will wait for a couple more weeks and give it more time. The positive thing is that moustache and beard connects, but the only thing lacking is the beard on the sides..it is growing but its taking some time. Maybe I can give it some time and see how much it can grow.

I have heard of SMP but I read its like fake paint splashed on your head.. that makes me worry because people will just silently judge you.

For the hair, do you think I should try and grow my hair in full for the next 3 months, and see how much it grows maybe? If it grows long, that could be a benefit maybe with a full beard too.

[CEO_of_DHT]

14 minutes ago, NewBald12357 said:

For the hair, do you think I should try and grow my hair in full for the next 3 months, and see how much it grows maybe? If it grows long, that could be a benefit maybe with a full beard too.

Yes that's the idea. So you have a baseline and an understanding of the texture and other properties.

[NewBald12357]

Thank you. What is the minimum time frame to give for a head full of hair? 3 months? 6 months?

[CEO_of_DHT]

15 minutes ago, NewBald12357 said:

Thank you. What is the minimum time frame to give for a head full of hair? 3 months? 6 months?

6 months with 2.5 mg daily oral Dutasteride and 5 mg oral Minoxidil

[Falling]

53 minutes ago, NewBald12357 said:

SMP but I read its like fake paint splashed on your head.. that makes me worry because people will just silently judge you.

I think you're referring to DermMatch and other similar products.

SMP isn't noticeable as long as you get it done by good artist, go for an age appropriate hairline and then shave your hair every 1-2 days.

[NewBald12357]

38 minutes ago, CEO_of_DHT said:

6 months with 2.5 mg daily oral Dutasteride and 5 mg oral Minoxidil

I can ask a dermatologist to get a prescription and try it.

I guess if I try to grow my hair without it, not much would grow because I am already NW 5/6?

[NewBald12357]

24 minutes ago, Falling said:

I think you're referring to DermMatch and other similar products.

SMP isn't noticeable as long as you get it done by good artist, go for an age appropriate hairline and then shave your hair every 1-2 days.

May I know how to find someone good for SMP? I can do some more research and find out.

I feel that the best thing to do is just call it a day and shave it and grow a beard! Lol. Hair transplant is a permanent solution, but very expensive.

[Falling]

I don't know where are you based, but in Europe the best SMP artist is Mirko from Men's Ink.  He's got his clinic in Milan (Italy) and I think he does a few sessions in Spain every now and then.

[Britanium]

1 hour ago, NewBald12357 said:

May I know how to find someone good for SMP? I can do some more research and find out.

I feel that the best thing to do is just call it a day and shave it and grow a beard! Lol. Hair transplant is a permanent solution, but very expensive.

@hairthere-Ahead Ink, but like the above poster mentions I also don't know where you're based. 

[CEO_of_DHT]

7 hours ago, NewBald12357 said:

I can ask a dermatologist to get a prescription and try it.

I guess if I try to grow my hair without it, not much would grow because I am already NW 5/6?

Alternatively, you can also ask a HT surgeon to prescribe it to you.

Check this out, here you see what it looks like grown out when you’re diffusely thinning:
 

 

 

[Gatsby]

17 hours ago, NewBald12357 said:

Do I need to grow my hair more to get a better idea?

In short yes. It's hard to tell if your hair on your scalp is miniaturizing or just short because it's so short. It would be worth growing it out for at least three weeks or so to see what's going on. I'm not a doctor but if you haven't been on medication you won't know if you will get side effects. If it's due to your belief system then I obviously respect your decision of course. However I would not attempt surgery without medication for a good year prior to surgery. It's just not worth seeing MPB affect the results in the future.