What is it like to have a shaved head?
This weekend I was out and about with my family and we decided to go to a flea market. I love old stuff and flea markets are full of old things like safety razors, old advertisements, and other things that I geek out about. Anyway, I was walking around a flea market and this guy walked up to me and asked about my shaved head. I’m not sure exactly how he said it, but it was something along the lines of how to you keep it maintained.
My head was nice and smooth since I shaved it that morning, but I was confused why this guy was asking. He had long hair poking out from his hat, which was exact opposite from my bald head. He asked again, “I mean how do you maintain it?” I replied that I just shave it with a razor every few days. He didn’t seem to be too interested in any specifics like the type of razor, shaving oil, or anything else, but he was interested in what it was like to have a shaved head.
As the questions kept coming it became apparent that the long hair under his hat was most likely very bald on the top and he was using the hat to cover his bald spots. I guess the random questions were because we was contemplating shaving his head. Liberating and freeing is how he said it must be to shave your head. To be honest the discussion was just so strange that only after it was all over I had a chance to think about what he was asking. I’ve been shaving my head for so long I just don’t think about all of the stress and concern that people have when thinking about shaving it all off.
This guy was obviously tortured by hair loss where he let it grow out and used a hat to cover up what was underneath. He wanted to shave his head and be done with it, but was afraid how he would feel and what others would think. It was so much on his mind that he approached a random bald guy “me” and asked questions about shaving his head.
Random guy at the flea market, here is my afterthoughts for you if you happen to ever read this.
I went through the struggle that you are going through right now and wore hats to hide the hair loss that was happening underneath. It happened to me in my late teens and early twenties, so not sure if that makes it better or worse, but I feel your pains. The BEST thing that I ever did was decide to shave my head. It helped me get over all the fears of losing hair and I’ve never looked back. You can start buying products to regrow your hair, or buy a hair piece to make it look like you have a full head of hair, but I say shave it. Just do it and I promise that you will thank me down the road!
Hopefully you can share the same advice to another random guy at the flea market that will ask questions about your shaved head.
4 Comments
Good for you. I don’t understand the men who are obviously bald on top, and think because they grow long hair down the sides, that their baldness won’t be noticed. And as for the ones who wear baseball caps ALL THE TIME…..well, in a weird way, I understand, but then again, I don’t. A buzzed or shaved head is MUCH nicer looking than greasy, scraggly hair descending from under a sweaty baseball cap.
It’s easy to say a shaved head is better looking than not and I fully agree with that statement. Unfortunately, it is much more complex than a simple black and white statement.
Actually in the beginning you are not even sure that you are losing hair. Sure you see some extra hair in the drain or on your pillow, but this happens to everyone. The hair doesn’t just fall off in one big clump, so it’s a gradual process that we must suffer through while figuring out if we are really losing our hair.
Your car gas gauge shows you that it is going empty and the bathroom scale increases as you gain a few pounds here and there, but there is no real gauge for your hair. It could take years and sometimes even decades before you lose it to the point of where it’s noticeable. Due to the gradual nature of hair loss you don’t really notice how bad it is. Look in the mirror and see if you looked older than yesterday and it’s hard to tell, but look at a picture from 5 years ago and it’s obvious.
At some point you do realize though and it’s clear that you are losing your hair and covering it up is not going to work any longer. This is the time when you need to bust out the clippers and buzz it all off and accept the new you. You will be very happy that you did!
Man up,be bold, GO BALD & be proud !!
Ware it like a helmet going to battle.
Look up tweezing method also.
I’m 52 and I’ve been bald by choice for about 14yrs now and I love it! I shave everyday because since I still could grow my hair the stubble is like Velcro. I was buzzing mine really short and one day couldn’t find my trimmer so I just shaved it and been shaving ever since. I have no desire to to grow my hair back, my wife likes it this way and I feel more confident this way. These poor guys that struggle with trying to keep the vision of themselves from high school or college, well all I can say is I like the man I became. I like being bald, and just to mention I had really long hair back in the day. I’ve had many compliments from females no less about the healthy, clean look of the ole’ noggin, it’s cool!