Da Bears's Story - (1 Year Update pg. 5)

[Da Bears]

Hi Fellas,

First of all, I would like to thank everyone that has contributed to this forum for their experiences and encouragement in dealing with this curse. Every time I felt like I needed some support, I read the success stories and could relate to guys in this position that I have been dealing with for the past 10, yes I said 10 years. I am currently 28 years old and I noticed I started loosing my hair at the young age of 18. My temples went rather quickly and then my hair on top began to slowly thin for the next 10 years. I lived in denial for a long time since the process was so slow. After doing some research on this site, I started the Big 3 on 8/25/08.

I noticed some early signs of improvement at 2 weeks when I got a bunch of peach fuzz on both my temples that were previously bald. At around 2 months I noticed that my hair was starting to get a little darker and felt silky and not dry and wispy. I believe that my hairline has also come down about a centimeter or more all around!!! I also stopped shedding as much as I used to. When I run my hand through my hair a bunch of times or am in the shower, I now only get a few hairs to come out. Previously I would get about 50-60. I know it is still early but I am excited to see this early improvement.

This is my first post to this forum because I promised myself that if I had some improvement that I would come back and report to help out others that have to deal with this poop. I know how important it was for me to come around here and read the success stories of others to keep me motivated.

Posted below are the pictures I have taken of my progress. I realize that I still have some way to go, but none the less, I feel like I am on the right path. Please note the length is not identical in all the pics. On the baseline, I needed a haircut. Hair was probably 1.25 inches. On month 1 and 2, hair on top was a fresh G4 after I got out of the shower and dried my hair and got a haircut that same day. In month 3 it was a fresh G6 so it is a little longer. All of the pics were take in the same lighting conditions with the bathroom light on and flash on. I know that this makes the hair look worse than it is, but I figured it would be easier to judge improvement if I was more critical in the pictures. Please let me know what you think. :mrgreen:

 

[OverMachoGrande]

Re: Da Bears's Story - (3 months of pics included)

Great job!!! I can definitely see the difference, keep it going!!!!

 

[treeshrew]

Re: Da Bears's Story - (3 months of pics included)

another testament to the power of finasteride!

 

[JWM]

Re: Da Bears's Story - (3 months of pics included)

Or the power of minoxidil!

 

[Hammer87]

Re: Da Bears's Story - (3 months of pics included)

Good job man! The front's thickened up loads! Hairline looks great (Although thin, the shape of it didn't look too bad to begin with).

And now rather than clearly balding - It's one of those that you'd have to look closely to see anything, and even then you aren't sure if it's just the light or not.

 

[Grantspots]

Re: Da Bears's Story - (3 months of pics included)

Congratulations. Stick with it. It will be 2 years before you see your optimal results.

There may be sheds. Ride them out.

 

[Da Bears]

Re: Da Bears's Story - (3 months of pics included)

Thanks for the encouragement guys! I am glad that I took pictures so I know that this improvement is not all in my head. A couple of things that I forgot to mention is that I have never had any side effects, and that I started off on Propecia but later switched to quartering Proscar when my 3 month supply of Propecia ran out. This has saved me a ton of dough and I am sure that it will be just as effective.

Also, one thing that I have read over and over again is that guys that are follically challenged sometimes feel insecure around women. Let me tell you this, women are not attracted to insecure males. They are generally attracted to men that are confident and alpha males. My current g/f told me that she did not care if I went completely bald because she would still think that I looked good, and she is a very attractive woman. She never mentioned this to me before but she was going through my sock drawer and found my Propecia that I was hiding. She did not know what it was, but I came through and was honest with her and said it was b/c I did not want to be bald before I turned 30. She told me that she has always thought that bald men were sexy and I think she really meant it. I guess her dream man was a bald firefighter or something but she will eventually have to settle for the bald insurance agent when this poop eventually gets the best of me.

The best advice I can give would be to keep your head up, get into the gym 3 times a week to stay in shape, and to be confident in yourself. If you are capable of this, then I think it makes life that much easier and sh*t will fall into place!

 

[Hammer87]

Re: Da Bears's Story - (3 months of pics included)

Thanks for the encouragement guys! I am glad that I took pictures so I know that this improvement is not all in my head. A couple of things that I forgot to mention is that I have never had any side effects, and that I started off on Propecia but later switched to quartering Proscar when my 3 month supply of Propecia ran out. This has saved me a ton of dough and I am sure that it will be just as effective.

Also, one thing that I have read over and over again is that guys that are follically challenged sometimes feel insecure around women. Let me tell you this, women are not attracted to insecure males. They are generally attracted to men that are confident and alpha males. My current g/f told me that she did not care if I went completely bald because she would still think that I looked good, and she is a very attractive woman. She never mentioned this to me before but she was going through my sock drawer and found my Propecia that I was hiding. She did not know what it was, but I came through and was honest with her and said it was b/c I did not want to be bald before I turned 30. She told me that she has always thought that bald men were sexy and I think she really meant it. I guess her dream man was a bald firefighter or something but she will eventually have to settle for the bald insurance agent when this poop eventually gets the best of me.

The best advice I can give would be to keep your head up, get into the gym 3 times a week to stay in shape, and to be confident in yourself. If you are capable of this, then I think it makes life that much easier and sh*t will fall into place!

Agreed fella unk:

 

[hhj1247]

Re: Da Bears's Story - (3 months of pics included)

After reading some of the other success threads, your well on your way to having a ponytail. Congratulations dude! This gives me hope, because I have it this on top much like yours and am starting (again) now.

 

[Da Bears]

Re: Da Bears's Story - (3 months of pics included)

After reading some of the other success threads, your well on your way to having a ponytail. Congratulations dude! This gives me hope, because I have it this on top much like yours and am starting (again) now.

Consistency is the key and it takes some time to see results. Since things move so slowly it really is important that you take pictures so you can see the difference and stay motivated. I think that I have responded well due to the fact that my situation is not all that aggressive since it took 10 years to get to the depressing state that it was 3 months ago. I will keep posting a picture every month to keep you guys informed and hopefully my progress will continue... :freaked2:

 

[Da Bears]

Re: Da Bears's Story - NEW PIC ADDED (3 months of pics included)

When I looked in the mirror yesterday, I thought my hair looked darker. I was curious so I snapped a quick pic. I cannot believe how much it has changed in 10 days since my 3 month update. My hair could not have grown that much to have this kind of effect could it?

 

[mj9]

Re: Da Bears's Story - NEW PIC ADDED (3 months of pics included)

:bravo:

your hairloss and hair gain same as mine!

 

[Da Bears]

Re: Da Bears's Story - NEW PIC ADDED (3 months of pics included)

Can one of you guys please tell me what norwood I am? I am not sure how that scale works. Thanks!

 

[Petchsky]

Re: Da Bears's Story - NEW PIC ADDED (3 months of pics included)

You look to be a NW2 to me, before a NW2 diffuse, you were heading for a NW5! Good turn around, and what you said about women not liking insecure men was so bang on the money, yet lots of guys seem to ignore this fact and can't be told.

Keep it up dude, you have more growth to come yet i'm sure.

 

[Da Bears]

Re: Da Bears's Story - NEW PIC ADDED (3 months of pics included)

Thanks Petchsky. Well I made that comment because I meant it, and I thought some guys need to read that because it is what I know to be true. I have been noticeably loosing for the past 6-7 years and never had a problem. There is a fine line between having a little confidence and not being a cocky douche bag, if you know what I mean. Don't get me wrong, I would love to have a thick head of hair but there are definitely people out there dealing with worse things. Hopefully I can continue to regrow, but if not f-it I'll just shave er down and I am sure things will not change that drastically for me!

 

[monitoradiation]

Re: Da Bears's Story - NEW PIC ADDED (3 months of pics included)

Best mentality ever. It's even better than your results.

 

[treeshrew]

Re: Da Bears's Story - NEW PIC ADDED (3 months of pics included)

...but if not f-it I'll just shave er down and I am sure things will not change that drastically for me!

i'd be curious for uman and HP to comment here.

honestly, you appear to be a good looking dude with or without the hair loss.

for some - it's not so easy to just say confidence is key. physical appearance dictates confidence in a lot of ways. it's easier to just say have confidence when you've got those good genes, and some people just don't.

your GF saying she would love a bald guy is sort of crap.. if you were a scrawny, pale dude, with circles under your eyes, and your hair was your only, or best asset, i doubt she'd be so quick to say such a thing.

yes, confidence is key, but let's be honest here.

that said - you are a good model of what the meds can do. when i first researched here, i felt like the success stories were few and far between. the more i hang out here the more i realize that for most people, if you start on meds early, it's not that much of a miracle that it works. it's just science.

grats on all your success.

 

[monitoradiation]

Re: Da Bears's Story - NEW PIC ADDED (3 months of pics included)

I'm with you tree, there are no miracles for hairloss. A miracle would be me waking up tomorrow and all my hairloss were gone without me having to do anything at all.

 

[Da Bears]

Re: Da Bears's Story - NEW PIC ADDED (3 months of pics included)

your GF saying she would love a bald guy is sort of crap.. if you were a scrawny, pale dude, with circles under your eyes, and your hair was your only, or best asset, i doubt she'd be so quick to say such a thing.

Tree, you bring up an interesting point. I guess I never really thought about if this way. I am not scrawny by any means (5'10" and 195lbs) I have olive skin (Ma is Italian) and living in Florida compliments it, and I do not have circles under my eyes. BUT with that being said, aren't there things that you can do to change all of these attributes? If you are concerned about being skinny, eat a lot of protein and pasta and get your *** to the gym. Hit up a tanning bed every once in a while, and as your skin darkens up your circles will be less noticeable. Also, make sure to get a good nights sleep to help out with this and try to eat healthy. AND if all else fails, adopt a dog. What better way to show your sensitive side, and women love this. I did not adopt my dog for this reason since I already have a girl, but they do like Boston Terriers! Keep your head up bro! :mrgreen:

 

[Gboy2k8]

Re: Da Bears's Story - NEW PIC ADDED (3 months of pics included)

I dont get it
Am I the only one thinking this is amazing?