At what Norwood did people start treating you differently?

[Archon]

Poll question: what Norwood level did you reach before people started treating you different?

Explanation..

So I read these stories here all the time from posters who share their life experiences of how people treat them different now because of their balding/bald status.. everything ranging from girls don't flirt with me anymore, people make mean comments, give condescending looks/stares, etc.. so many other things. Even two recent posts describing how if they're around a mother with her child the mother sees them and pulls the child closer while giving them a dirty look!

Now I have to clear this up right now - I don't doubt these people at all. What makes me curious though is I've already been deemed an NW4 when I posted my pics well over a year ago on this site, and while I'm always worried about people making remarks or starting to treat me differently now, even after all this time it still has yet to happen. (even though I've become hypervigilant about such things) So I was just wondering how bad it had to get for people here before they started to notice these things? Also, what did the first negative experience involve if you can remember. Thanks guys.

 

[GeminiX]

Re: At what Norwood did people start treating you different?

I suspect that in most cases it's the individuals themselves that may change and cause people to react differently to them.

While I don't doubt that in many cases the hair loss may be the trigger for the change in behaviour and insecurity, I have more faith in the human race to believe that society has a pack mentality and roams our streets and countryside looking for "baldies" to single out, psychologically attack and humiliate.

As a species we generally poke fun at all differences equally, be it race, gender, sexuality or even appearance. This behaviour is a corner stone of non-pc humour.

 

[MrBastard]

Havent noticed it yet... I think it is all about looking confident, but not a duche and just be normal and most people dont see the reason to bully you.

I am surprised that not even one single person in my family have pointed out that i am losing hair...

 

[toocoolforhair]

The biggest difference for me was getting a buzzcut. Before when I had grown-out hair a lot of guys would actually try to push me around in night clubs. When I buzzed my hair to a grade 2 suddenly I was getting a lot of 'sorry's when people accidentally knocked into me. Of course, the female attention also lessened with the buzzcut.

 

[s.a.f]

This question is only really relevent to people of a higher Norwood level. Its unlikely that below Nw3 people will notice. But from my experience when I shaved it down at Nw3-4, it changed overnight, thats when I officially became bald.

 

[FSHGLD]

When I first shaved my head is when i noticed a difference, but that's probably because I wore a hat outdoors all the time beforehand. I was about NW3 vertex.
It has its pros and cons. There have been a couple of occasions when I think people acted differently, but they're the minority. The main one I remember was at a New Years' Eve party. A younger girl, prob about 19 was basically chatting me up, we were outside, it was cold, I was wearing a woolly hat and she asked if she could try it on. I let her and she said 'God you're bald' (not really in a mean way). I wasn't that into her and the conversation would have fizzled out anyway, but she kinda lost interest then.
I think women over the age of say 25 don't really act all that differently, a little bit, but not as much as younger ones. I'm 23 though, and don't particularly want a woman who's much older than me.
I feel like people are slightly more likely to assume that I'm intelligent now though, and I probably look a bit tougher too.

 

[uncomfortable man]

Advanced NW4.

 

[Nuli]

If I had to guess, I'd say NW3 or so. I'm 41 now, but I was NW3 at 19/20 years old, which is rather odd at that age. None of my friends at that time had any signs of male pattern baldness whatsoever, and it made me feel like a real freak around people. That is why I always wore a hat (even indoors) and it became rather awkward aftger a while. This was back in the late 1980's, and "bald" was not cool. Not even shaving was cool then. Eventually, I became "not cool" enough for people not to invite me to parties and stuff anymore (since none of my friends had any signs of baldness and I started looking like I could be their father), and so I gradually became more and more of a loner.

Are you just trying to make people stoop down to your level of self-loathing?
Anything you post on this site is fuking depression. Yah im 20 years old and a NW3 heading toward NW4. I got balding comments in high school, but i didn't let it control my life. Dudemon the stuff you write in your posts, I could not think of a more BETA male. Holy sh*t dude, so what you lost your hair, do you ever stop and think how much worse things could be? Would you rather have been born in some 3rd world country or not have function of your legs? Its just f*****g hair, you are healthy in every other way so be fuking thankful for it.

Im tired of coming into this forum with people posting for support/going through hard times then comes Dudemon and UCman, Mr and Mrs negative nancy, have to show how much hair loss has ruined your life and its gonna do the same to everyone else just wait! I dont know what you get out of posting sh*t like this, but maybe you should GTFO this forum and go find out how you can become happy.

 

[Boondock]

Dudemon and UCMan are actually two of my favourite users here.

For the record, I agree with what Dudemon said above. Women do remain selective as they age. In fact some of them get MORE selective, since they're looking for 'marriage material'. It's not as if they hit 30 and don't give a damn if their man is a fat, bald, sweaty putrid blob.

 

[GeminiX]

I have to be honest here, I'm surprised at the numbers so far; I expected a much higher percentage in the "no difference" category.

 

[Vox]

I have to be honest here, I'm surprised at the numbers so far; I expected a much higher percentage in the "no difference" category.

Well, I just added my voice in this category not because I want to change the result but because it is true for me; and I am happy about that.

 

[Vox]

For the record, I agree with what Dudemon said above. Women do remain selective as they age. In fact some of them get MORE selective, since they're looking for 'marriage material'.

Speaking generally (not necessarily about baldness) and from personal experience I would say that you are both wrong and out of touch with reality. I know at least three cases of women that settled down for something below their wish and expectations since women are like this: they come with expiration date. If they wish having children, they will do it the soonest trying to avoid ages beyond 35-37.

The more recent example (from this year) is one girl of around 32 who decided to go with a guy I know approaching his 40. He is NW3 now with potential to go higher, emotionally immature in a serious way, has debts, she is however attracted to him by some personality traits he likes on him. She got pregnant in the span of just three months since the moment they were together (not married yet) apparently because that's what she wanted, have a child as soon as possible and be done with it.

That said I don't doubt a second dudemon's story; there certainly are women in this category but there are also others quite different. And they are many. How to get to them is another problem. Such a (female) friend told me last year that she sees me as a very good "package" for some woman to built a family with. And I repeat that I am beyond NW6 now.

I don't like my baldness and I wish I could have my hair back. But how and why feel depressed and let this take over my life when I see such things around me and I enjoy the esteem of people I know more than ever?

 

[Mens Rea]

If I had to guess, I'd say NW3 or so. I'm 41 now, but I was NW3 at 19/20 years old, which is rather odd at that age. None of my friends at that time had any signs of male pattern baldness whatsoever, and it made me feel like a real freak around people. That is why I always wore a hat (even indoors) and it became rather awkward aftger a while. This was back in the late 1980's, and "bald" was not cool. Not even shaving was cool then. Eventually, I became "not cool" enough for people not to invite me to parties and stuff anymore (since none of my friends had any signs of baldness and I started looking like I could be their father), and so I gradually became more and more of a loner.

Are you just trying to make people stoop down to your level of self-loathing?
Anything you post on this site is fuking depression. Yah im 20 years old and a NW3 heading toward NW4. I got balding comments in high school, but i didn't let it control my life. Dudemon the stuff you write in your posts, I could not think of a more BETA male. Holy sh*t dude, so what you lost your hair, do you ever stop and think how much worse things could be? Would you rather have been born in some 3rd world country or not have function of your legs? Its just f****ing hair, you are healthy in every other way so be fuking thankful for it.

Im tired of coming into this forum with people posting for support/going through hard times then comes Dudemon and UCman, Mr and Mrs negative nancy, have to show how much hair loss has ruined your life and its gonna do the same to everyone else just wait! I dont know what you get out of posting sh*t like this, but maybe you should GTFO this forum and go find out how you can become happy.

Sorry, I was just sharing my own personal story of how baldness affected me, and at what Norwood level and age.

I guess my situaton is different than most here because I went bald back in the late 1980's/ early 1990s, when there was no Propecia or Rogaine. I was a full-blown NW5 by the time both of those hit the market.

Also, back in that era, bald simply was not cool. "Head shaving" was not acceptable back then for the mainstream. Guys who went bald at a young age (early mid 20's) back then, most of the time, were lumped in with the (much) older crowd. (like 40-50 somethings). Most of the 20 something crowd that I hung out with back then, equated "older" people with parents, teachers, cops, etc...basically everything in society that was "uncool."

So it majorly sucked being bald back then, not to mention that I was literally the ONLY guy in all of my entire circle of friends (which was fairly large then) that was going bald. I was looked upon as some kind of "freak" or something.

I wasn't about to get tattooed from head to toe, and join some gang just to get respect. Therefore, I digressed.

Mate im sorry but i think you've branded yourself as a freak more so than anyone else actually has.

GUYS dont care, worst case scenario you might be the butt of the odd joke. You social circle with guys shouldn't change one bit. What did change is how you coped and how you reacted.

Some of the coolest dudes i know are bald/balding, noone cares. In fact usually if they're cool and caresmatic that is even enough for girls.

You make some sweeping assumptions like girls are all after this special prototype of man and every guy have different levels of respect for different hairlines. Thats stupid. I can see how you mind may become distorted over time but it really, really, isnt as bad as you think.

Im balding but even if i went slick 2moro (which would transform my appearance) i wouldn't expect my friends to bat an eyelid in terms of how they treat me. Girls? I dont know, certainly approaching girls might become different as lets be fair, people have to judge you on the first thing they see and that is your personality, but what im saying is , i've learned that even girls (the right kind) aren't half as shallow as you think and i dont mean the ugly ones.

 

[cuebald]

Well, there is a difference here in the UK as far as age is concerned.
Nobody will bat an eyelid at a 30+ year old baldie, it's a common as muck.
Nobody in the street will point and stare at a 21 year old NW6 either - you might get some weird looks, but nothing major.

The worst is probably going bald very young amongst the people you know (friends, acquaintances, etc)
You become the guy everyone else thinks "I'm glad I'm not him".
Even the young girls who purport not to be shallow ("I don't mind if a guy is bald - it's what is IN his head") somehow always seem to make excuses when set up with a mid-20's NW6 - "I'm not looking for a relationship right now". Yet when they meet the friend with NW1 wavy hair 2 days later they jump right in.

You can be as brash, as "cocky and funny" as you like at this age, everyone around you can tell it is a façade. The only women available become the 35+ year olds - you know the type - the ones who smoke 40+ a day, have 5 kids, and leathery skin through sunbed abuse.

 

[bigentries]

The only women available become the 35+ year olds - you know the type - the ones who smoke 40+ a day, have 5 kids, and leathery skin through sunbed abuse.

And baldies are all pedophiles, creepy stalkers and potential serial killers.

I love it how everyone b****s about that here, it's a problem when you see that society thinks about you in a certain way, but no one here has a problem attacking ugly, fat or older women

 

[Obsidian]

Are you just trying to make people stoop down to your level of self-loathing?
Anything you post on this site is fuking depression. Yah im 20 years old and a NW3 heading toward NW4. I got balding comments in high school, but i didn't let it control my life. Dudemon the stuff you write in your posts, I could not think of a more BETA male. Holy sh*t dude, so what you lost your hair, do you ever stop and think how much worse things could be? Would you rather have been born in some 3rd world country or not have function of your legs? Its just f****ing hair, you are healthy in every other way so be fuking thankful for it.

Im tired of coming into this forum with people posting for support/going through hard times then comes Dudemon and UCman, Mr and Mrs negative nancy, have to show how much hair loss has ruined your life and its gonna do the same to everyone else just wait! I dont know what you get out of posting sh*t like this, but maybe you should GTFO this forum and go find out how you can become happy.

I wouldn't bother dude, trying to reach the misery crew is like talking to a brick wall or better yet like the quote from Douglas Adams 'I don't believe it. Prove it to me and I still won't believe it.' To me it's better just to focus on yourself, when people like that will continue to go in circles while other people just move on.

 

[DesertFox]

To be honest, once I started getting my receding hairline a bit people just kept staring at my hair when they talked to me. I am currently not bald but I have been thinning all over and well...I have not received looks like I used to. My friends have even told me they think I will be one of those guys who does a comb-over once I am older.

 

[Ori83]

at nw3 is really when you can feel the impact by the vast majority. but as someone mentioned its individual thing, i guess once you lose the proportion in your face then people will start taking notice.

To be honest, once I started getting my receding hairline a bit people just kept staring at my hair when they talked to me.

i get this alot, i take it as a personal insult and just being rude and insensitive, just as i have the minimal common courtesy not to stare at woman's breasts while im talking to her, i expect the same respect. tbh tho i caught guys doing this way more often then girls...

 

[SemperFi]

And how did those guys' hairs look?

I can speak for myself that I often observe other guys' hairs, merely because of my own hair problem. I can spot a NW1,5 slight receeding hairline from a mile and I can easy diagnose Norwood loss pattern, diffuse thinning, crown problems, and so on... :stupid:

 

[Archon]

I'm not trying to brag or anything, just using this as another example of why I have a hard time understanding all the complaints... but anyway like I said I'm a diffuse NW4 (according to the "experts" on this site who saw my photo :whistle and I still get cute girls flirting with me every now and then without talking to them first. And this is despite the fact that I don't even get out much. I know flirting in itself isn't really a big deal but listening to all the stories here, you'd think any noticeably balding guy should consider himself lucky if an attractive woman so much as gives him the time of day!