Hairstyles for thinning hair

[Nygeel]

Some of you might be dealing with this, some might not. I've been noticing more and more that my hair is thinning. It's really sad for me because growing up I had really thick curly hair. Right now the hair on my head is about as thin as my 60-something year old father...and that's alarming. So, despite a family history of full heads of hair I might've been dealt the crummy secret, hidden balding gene. I'm not entirely sure what to do about my thinning hair. Spiking it just leads to more of my scalp being exposed...and if it would lay flat that might look better.

Is anybody else dealing with thinning hair? What are you doing about it? Any ideas on what hairstyles will help hide hair thinning without looking ridiculous?

[Arch]

Frankly, I would talk to a barber. People's situations vary too much.

[DriftingCrow]

Balding Gracefully: Tips and Hairstyles for Balding Men
http://www.artofmanliness.com/2010/07/14/balding-gracefully-tips-and-hairstyles-for-balding-men/

"The General Rule. Keep your hair short. According to Tony, short hair minimizes the appearance of balding and also gives your hair some lift which makes it look like you have more hair. Some guys don't believe this and try to hold onto to their old styles. But if you've ever seen a guy with a big curly fro and a bald spot at his crown, you've seen how longer hair simply makes bald spots more conspicuous. So go short."

Any ideas on what hairstyles will help hide hair thinning without looking ridiculous?

Oh darn, I was gonna suggest a toupee! 

[Nygeel]

Yea, I've seen that resource before. It doesn't really help. Short hair looks really bad on me, and my hair line hasn't receded like the guys in the pictures. I also don't have that bald spot on the back of my head. Part of it is the way that my hair grows (it seriously just grows straight up/out).

[spacerace]

shave it.

you have some facial hair right? and you have plugs? you could pull it off

or take propecia and pray

[Nygeel]

shave it.

you have some facial hair right? and you have plugs? you could pull it off

or take propecia and pray

Can't shave it. My head has a weird shape and I don't like the way it looks shaven. Also LAWL I can't afford that sorta stuff.

[Alainaluvsu]

Can't shave it. My head has a weird shape and I don't like the way it looks shaven. Also LAWL I can't afford that sorta stuff.

Finasteride is cheap at walmart... like under $15 cheap for the highest prescribed dose.

[Arch]

I used to buy my finasteride at Costco, and the price fluctuated between about $15 and $25 for a four-month supply. But some guys find that finasteride has too much of an effect on their masculinization. I felt that this wasn't true for me--I didn't start the med until I was about a year and a half into transition and had seen some pretty dramatic changes--but I have to admit that now that I'm off the finasteride, I'm getting more body hair and thicker facial hair, quite rapidly.

Seriously, Nygeel, you can go to a very good barber and get a very good haircut. Then, if money is a problem, take pics from all angles and have a cheaper barber/stylist do it the next time. My barber gave me very good advice about what to do with my hair; he has been barbering for twenty years. I'm not particularly photogenic (head too small, rather odd facial structure, receded hairline), but I like what he does. If I ever have to cut back on the luxuries and go to a cheaper barber or, heaven forbid, Supercuts, I'll know what works for me.

[spacerace]

you said you can't deal with the close cropped super fuzz?  That seems to be how a lot of guys transition to the full-on head shave.  Maybe you think your head shape is weird just because you're not used to it?  Everyone's heads are sorta shaped weird I think.

[John Smith]

Yeah I'm balding bigtime, especially visible from the back where you see a distinct difference from the normally thick hair and the thinning part. Think of The Doctor from Star Trek Voyager, and that's what I'm moving towards. I shave it all, leaving about 1cm.

I also had thick curly hair. So did my older brother, he started losing his at 18. Well at least I got to keep mine longer than he did.

[Nygeel]

My head shape is similar to a lop-sided roof. The top of my head is two flat parts with a ridge from front to back. Then the back part where the whorl is, that's another flat part.

The last time I got my haircut I had mentioned that my hair seemed to be thinning and asked for a cut that would help disguise my thinning hair. I don't really think what I got was something that hid my thinning.

T has been very slow for me in the "masculinizing effects" department. I am still getting misgendered about once a week to once a month after 2 years and 4 months (a massive improvement but still not very awesome). I don't feel like my hair thinning is dramatic enough to take something to counter it. And the anxiety/depression side effects are very not good.

[Ender]

I used to buy my finasteride at Costco, and the price fluctuated between about $15 and $25 for a four-month supply. But some guys find that finasteride has too much of an effect on their masculinization. I felt that this wasn't true for me--I didn't start the med until I was about a year and a half into transition and had seen some pretty dramatic changes--but I have to admit that now that I'm off the finasteride, I'm getting more body hair and thicker facial hair, quite rapidly.

If I may ask, Arch, why did you discontinue the finasteride?

I am on finasteride as well, so just curious if it was because it was ineffective/side effects/other.  I've been taking generic finasteride for around two years.  I stopped for 4-6 months in between there prior to bottom surgery and for a while after.  I restarted when I began noticing that my hair was falling out super fast.  I don't know if I've regrown any hair, but my hair loss seems to have slown down, if not stopped completely.  It's hard to tell.  For anybody curious, I haven't had any ill effects from the finasteride that I can notice.  I have had weight gain, but I also started a desk job and was eating poorly; since I started working out and eating better, I've dropped 10 pounds and still losing, so it didn't break my metabolism or anything.  It may be impeding my facial and body hair growth, given that I have much less hair than other guys who have been on T for as long, but my family genetics also dictate a lack of hairiness.  Sex drive may have decreased but I didn't have much of one to begin with, save for the first few months on T, and I really don't miss it.  Never have cared about having sex.

Nygeel, I too dread the day that I can no longer rock my thick, curly hair in a long style.  I think I look awful with short hair, as it emphasizes my rounded skull.  Perhaps a short cut, but pair it with a cool hat collection when feasible?  I have a friend who is balding fairly young (25); he tends to rock fedoras.  One more thing in favor of finasteride: it works best to maintain hair, which means it is best to start taking it before the hair loss gets dramatic.  I was resistant towards taking yet another medication that carries the risk of side effects, but figured I'd give it a shot; if the side effects were intolerable, I could always just quit taking it.  It seems to be helping so far.  I rather wish I had started it earlier, might've curbed what loss I do have.  I get a 90 day supply at healthwarehouse.com (yes, it's legit) for around $20.

[Arch]

If I may ask, Arch, why did you discontinue the finasteride?

Several reasons, actually. I wanted to be free to donate blood. I wanted my body hair to come in more. I wanted my facial hair to fill in thicker and faster. I wanted to see whether stopping finasteride had any effect on my blood work. And I came to the conclusion that I wasn't really balding, although my hairline has receded and my hair has thinned. The only way to be sure was to quit.

I always knew that I might quit once I had gotten used to the idea of losing my hair, and I told my doctor that I wasn't ready to face baldness at that time, when so many other things in my life were changing. Now that I'm more stable, I can quit. I might not have quit if I had been sure I was balding.