The Link Issue 46

I found my best option Wearing Hair

By Anonymous

My hair loss journey started around when I was about 19. A friend of mine was cutting my hair and he took a picture of the top of my head. I remember looking at the picture and noticing a thinning spot on the top. Naturally, I was pretty devastated so I started looking for a solution. My dermatologist prescribed finasteride, which in the end helped significantly.

A few years later I decided to stop that treatment after reading about the adverse effects it can have on your sex drive. Being a young male I didn’t think any amount of hair was worth that risk.

Once I stopped finasteride, my hair started falling out again. Desperate for another solution I decided to get a hair transplant. Personally, it was a horribly traumatic experience that left me with a nasty scar on the back of my head and hardly any hair on top. I was distraught, to say the least. The pain of losing your hair, especially at such a young age, is a real and dark struggle.

Someone close to me suggested the idea of a hair system. She had witnessed my struggle firsthand. At first, I immediately shot it down. To me, the term “hair system” was just a less embarrassing way of saying “toupee.” I couldn’t bring myself to the point of trying until one

day I hit a dead end. I figured I could try it once and chalk it up as yet another loss if I hated it. I didn’t have much more to lose at that point anyway besides more hair. Honestly, I was pretty desperate as the thought of being bald was something I could not come to terms

with. I have no reason why other than the fact that I simply prefer hair.

I remember the first time a “hair system” was put in my head and I was honestly shocked. It felt foreign. I looked way different, and it was just too much. I went home and showed my wife and she was a bit shocked as well. That night I couldn’t sleep wondering what the heck I just did. It wasn’t until a couple of days later when I was able to shower with it on that I realized how natural it looked. I stepped in front of the mirror after washing the system and I was amazed at how it looked so real. I asked myself “Could this be the answer?”

Later that day my wife took a picture from behind of me and my daughter walking and showed me. I freaked out. It looked indistinguishable from real hair. It all started to sink in. I honestly couldn’t believe it. It was as if a massive weight was lifted and I could finally look and feel like myself again after so many years of anxiety and stress.

No one has ever asked me about my hair or said anything negative. Quite the contrary actually. I've been complimented left and right on how good my hair looks. When I first started wearing it most people couldn't pinpoint anything. They just said I just “looked different but so good." I would tell them I shaved or got a haircut in response then change the subject. I’ve never felt the need to give away the fact that I wear hair. At the end of the day, it’s really no one’s business but mine. I’ve found that most people could not care less anyway.

I’m so grateful to have the option to wear my hair. It has brought back so much confidence and I’m not always worrying about balding. Just like anything else, it does take a bit of time and money out of your life but it is well worth it. I highly recommend it to anyone struggling for an answer to their hair loss. You won’t look back. I promise.

Photo courtesy of Amani Hair