Opening Up About My Struggles Becoming Bald At 24

[Sebs]

Hello everyone,

I am a 24 year old student from Amsterdam.

I have to admit I am writing this with tears rolling down my cheeks. This is the first time I'm publicly getting this off my chest.

Being 24 I already have a big bald spot around my crown. My hair is thinning quickly now and I notice it has a lot of effect on my mental stability, especially because of having my first girlfriend for 3 months now.
I am still able to cover most of my bald spot up with my hair after blow drying and using hairspray, I can't do this for much longer though.

Having met the girl I am proud to call my girlfriend now made me a very happy man. But my hair thinning by the day makes me very scared to lose her. She is 22 and I go out with her a couple of times a month meeting new students every time. The idea that she soon has to introduce a obviously balding guy makes me feel very sad. She loves my red hair and I'm still too afraid to bring this up to her because I love her so much and I don't want to lose her.

The past years, from the moment I woke up I was thinking about my thinning hair. Afraid of the rain and showering somewhere else then at home it has had a lot of effect on me. Every time I went away for a few days (with a group of students etc.) I had to bring my hairdryer or cap with me to avoid showing my bald spot after showering. The teasing for bringing a hairdryer I took for granted as long as my baldness wasn't showing. It's very exhaustive and I come to the point now I have to start talking about it. I notice that I actually get emotional and I haven't had that before.

A few weeks ago I went to the doctor for something else but I finally got the courage to bring it up. She told me it happens to more guys and besides very expensive surgery there is nothing to do about it, she told me that some guys just shave it off.

But I don't want to shave it off, besides looking like my girlfriends father it doesn't suit me to loose my red hair which has been such a big part of my identity my whole life.

I know that in this world there are people suffering from worse things than baldness and that if my girlfriend really loves me too that she would support me in every way, still it makes me very scared and it has a big effect on my mental stability. Reading about the side effects of pills and not having the money for a surgery doesn't make it better.

I wrote this as a start to get this off my chest, who knows someone can give me some sort of advice.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Sebs

 

[pizzamanluigi]

Why not give finasteride and minoxidil a shot?

 

[tommyt123]

Hello everyone,

I am a 24 year old student from Amsterdam.

I have to admit I am writing this with tears rolling down my cheeks. This is the first time I'm publicly getting this off my chest.

Being 24 I already have a big bald spot around my crown. My hair is thinning quickly now and I notice it has a lot of effect on my mental stability, especially because of having my first girlfriend for 3 months now.
I am still able to cover most of my bald spot up with my hair after blow drying and using hairspray, I can't do this for much longer though.

Having met the girl I am proud to call my girlfriend now made me a very happy man. But my hair thinning by the day makes me very scared to lose her. She is 22 and I go out with her a couple of times a month meeting new students every time. The idea that she soon has to introduce a obviously balding guy makes me feel very sad. She loves my red hair and I'm still too afraid to bring this up to her because I love her so much and I don't want to lose her.

The past years, from the moment I woke up I was thinking about my thinning hair. Afraid of the rain and showering somewhere else then at home it has had a lot of effect on me. Every time I went away for a few days (with a group of students etc.) I had to bring my hairdryer or cap with me to avoid showing my bald spot after showering. The teasing for bringing a hairdryer I took for granted as long as my baldness wasn't showing. It's very exhaustive and I come to the point now I have to start talking about it. I notice that I actually get emotional and I haven't had that before.

A few weeks ago I went to the doctor for something else but I finally got the courage to bring it up. She told me it happens to more guys and besides very expensive surgery there is nothing to do about it, she told me that some guys just shave it off.

But I don't want to shave it off, besides looking like my girlfriends father it doesn't suit me to loose my red hair which has been such a big part of my identity my whole life.

I know that in this world there are people suffering from worse things than baldness and that if my girlfriend really loves me too that she would support me in every way, still it makes me very scared and it has a big effect on my mental stability. Reading about the side effects of pills and not having the money for a surgery doesn't make it better.

I wrote this as a start to get this off my chest, who knows someone can give me some sort of advice.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Sebs

Hey mate that sounds like a tough time and i can relate, i'm a simillar age and have just been getting more invested in the dating game with short thining hair. For me the acceptance route seems most likely as i've tried finasteride twice (once at a lower dose) and developed side effects that subsided after stopping both times. Based of this post it doesn't seem like you will be accepting the balding process any time soon and there is every chance that treatments could significantly reduce or reverse your hair problem, try to keep positive you have cards in play still ma man .

honestly my best advice to you would be go see a doctor you trust run blood checks to get base line readings then start on a low dose finasteride regime to ease yourself into treatment. Do not obsessive over the potential side effects and avoid internet forums like the plague, try to remain objective and monitor your progress. If you really feel like you are experiencing serious side effects (watery semen and ball ache seems common and normal in the early stages) simply stop taking the medication i don't think pushing through side effects is worth the risk. Also think about minoxidil its pretty cheap and seems like a no brainer.

Good luck mate

 

[whatintheworld]

If it is affecting you that much, I would look into treatment options.

I was also in your shoes and I didn't know what to do. But as I saw my hair getting worse and worse, I realized risking it was worth it. I've been using the big 3 for over 15 months and I have no side effects, and my hair is better.

So evaluate your options and I wish you the best man.