I'm a 23 year old Northern European man, and I've recently noticed many of my peers to show early signs of balding. This has gotten me paranoid about my own situation. I've always had thinner hair on the right side of my head, but at the moment it still seems like my hairline would've receded a bit on the right side, though it still looks relatively good from the frontside. Is it normal to have an uneven hairline like I do? I'm not sure if my hairline has always been like this, or if I'm just freaking out because I see so many men balding at my age. What I can say for sure is that I've always had a naturally high hairline. Balding is also really common in this part of the world, but my mothers father never lost his hair. Should I be safe with these genetics? Anyways all help will be highly appreciated.
Am I Balding Or Just Paranoid? Has My Hairline Receded?
- Thread starter nordic
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I'm a 23 year old Northern European man, and I've recently noticed many of my peers to show early signs of balding. This has gotten me paranoid about my own situation. I've always had thinner hair on the right side of my head, but at the moment it still seems like my hairline would've receded a bit on the right side, though it still looks relatively good from the frontside. Is it normal to have an uneven hairline like I do? I'm not sure if my hairline has always been like this, or if I'm just freaking out because I see so many men balding at my age. What I can say for sure is that I've always had a naturally high hairline. Balding is also really common in this part of the world, but my mothers father never lost his hair. Should I be safe with these genetics? Anyways all help will be highly appreciated.
Yeah, I get that from time to time actually
You're not the only one.Are you sure? I think I've had this hairline at least from the age of 18 or even earlier. I'm not the slightest bit concerned about the left side, it's only the right side that seems problematic, but it might be natural...
CliffLee
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No, I'm not sure. The only real way to be sure, would be to visit a specialist who, after inspecting the area, could tell you whether there was any miniaturisation. All I can do is give you an objective opinion.
I can tell you that I have read a lot of stories from people who say that their hair has "always been a bit thinner in the temples", or that "one side was always weaker", etc (I also convinced myself for a long time!) but more often than not, there is early signs of hairloss. Your hair is still excellent; great density and (perhaps) only minor thinning on one side. finasteride/minoxidil alone could potentially fix this back to its formal glory - if there was hairloss.
If I was you, I'd either 1) visit a specialist and seek their opinion, 2) take a close up picture, in good lighting, with the hair fully scrapped back - then take comparative pictures, on a monthly basis. In the meantime, research the big 3, should you want to start this down the line.
CliffLee
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I'll also say that the human eye can only detect 'hairloss' once approx. 50% has been lost! That's way hairloss transplants only give you partial density, but that's all that's required, since it gives the illusion of full density.
For most people (some have aggressive hairloss), hairloss occurs at a very slow rate - it can literally take a decade before you know you are losing your hair. That's exactly what happened with me. I'd convince myself that my hair had always been a bit thinner, or that when it's wet, hair should look thinner - because the light from the bathroom comes down on the top of your head and not the sides, blah blah. It's easier to convince yourself everything is OK, since the alternative is accepting hairloss and seeking treatment, which is taunting (at first).
For most people (some have aggressive hairloss), hairloss occurs at a very slow rate - it can literally take a decade before you know you are losing your hair. That's exactly what happened with me. I'd convince myself that my hair had always been a bit thinner, or that when it's wet, hair should look thinner - because the light from the bathroom comes down on the top of your head and not the sides, blah blah. It's easier to convince yourself everything is OK, since the alternative is accepting hairloss and seeking treatment, which is taunting (at first).
Thanks a lot for your advice! I understand what you mean, and I by no means think that lying to yourself is a good idea. Reality is harsh, even when it comes to hair loss, but it's still always reality.
For me it's still definitely true that the hair on the right side of my head has always been different. When I was a kid it even used to be significantly blonder. It's also a lot more sensitive to damage and dryness caused by sunlight. Some barbers have even suggested that they'd cut my hair to different lengths on the left and right side, since my hair curls so differently on the right and left side. This is due to my hair being dryer and thinner on the right side. And by this I don't mean the temples, but that the whole right side is like this. In the pictures my hair is a bit wet so the difference isn't as clear, but once my hair is dry it's almost like an afro, even though I'm completely white....Here's a recent photo of me with completely dry hair, so you'll get the idea of what my hair type is like.
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CliffLee
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It does all look very thick. I wouldn't panic anyway. I don't know where you're from but you may be able to have a free examination by a specialist (if you're happy to be put on a waiting list) who can determine, officially, whether there is miniaturisation. Alternatively, just monitor your hair after the coming months and years and act accordingly. Good luck !
Thanks again, what are these specialists called? Health care is free here, so I could possibly book an appointment if it's covered by the health care system here. I assume we are still talking about medical doctors, and not any type of grooming services/plastic surgeons? In lack of a better term I'm using plastic surgeon to refer to doctors that do hair transplants etc.
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I don't know where you are from, but here in Germany I went to the doctor and he prescribed me a visit to the dermatologist
Yeah, my father started balding noticeably around the age of forty. I'd say he's about Norwood 3 or 4. He's pretty much the only man that has lost his hair of my close relatives. Isn't the balding gene for the most part inherited from the mothers father? And thanks for the tip. What do you think of my hairline?
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I would definitely say genetics is on your side currently. No, I don't think that the hair of the mother's father is more decisive and in my opinion you could start balding later in life at 40, but yeah that's actually pure probability. But speaking of probability, how likely is it that you' re balding at your age? Very, very low. Your hairline is fine and if it's receding a little bit , that's probably because you're getting a mature hairline. Just a question, can you grow a beard and if yes, at a slow or fast rate? That could suggest if your hair follicles are sensible to DHT.
I find the tips you got are very useful. Continue taking a photo on a regular basis (every 6 months) and go to a dermotologist.
That's relieving to hear! And no I can't grow a beard. I started getting a little bit of beard around the age of 14-15 and yet to this day I still haven't gotten that much more beard. Only the quality of the hairs has gotten thicker and darker. The growth is quite slow and the only places where I get beard are on my lips jaw and under my sideburns. So there are huge bald patches. Mostly no beard at all infact.
When it comes to body hair I'm very different to my father. My father has a very thick beard, I have none. My father has lots of arm and chest hair I have almost none. For some reason he has very little hair on his feet, and that's pretty much the only place where I have a lot of hair. My hair is also very different to my fathers hair which is completely straight. I inherited the curls from my fathers father and he never lost his hair.
How is beard growth related to hair growth?
So it's a natural deficiency? Nothing nutritional or anything like that? That's good news and it makes sense. It's quite usual to se bald or thin haired men with very thick beards, and quite rare to see men with really thick hair also with very thick beards.