Receding Hairline

For months I had been feeling that it was becoming more difficult to style my hair with the wax product that was all the rage at the time. Haircuts at the barber shop didn’t give me the same boost that they did previously, and something just didn’t feel right. I was seventeen and as you can imagine my hair was very important to me.

After a couple of comments from my friends, and seeing my hair in photos in various lighting, I suddenly realised that my hairline was receding! I felt a lot of emotions - panic, dismay, helplessness - how could I be losing my hair at such a young age? I instantly began looking for solutions to help me restore my receding hairline.

Hair transplants were nowhere near as advanced or readily available as they are today, and at such a young age with very little income these were simply out of reach anyway.

I continued my research over the next couple of years and discovered various shampoos and topical treatments. I spent most of my spare money on these products and saw very little effect.

At around 21 years of age, I took the plunge and used Finasteride (Propecia). I had heard the horror stories online about its side effects but as a young naive man I simply thought this was nonsense, and quite honestly I would have tried anything to save what hair I had remaining and be able to continue styling my receding hairline effectively without having to shave my head.

If you’ve read any of my blogs or bio in the past you’ll already be aware that I had a horrible experience with this drug. I used it for around only two weeks but seemed to age visually by about ten years! During its use and also upon stopping, for the next year or two, I had a lot of terrible side effects - both mental and physical. I got to the point where I didn’t even care about my thinning hair and bad hairline any longer, I just wanted to feel normal again. I had always been into fitness and understood nutrition and working out, yet this medication caused me to gain weight uncontrollably. I also developed gynecomastia (breast tissue) which I had removed surgically years later.

Now, over a decade later I still don’t feel 100% the person I was prior to taking it, however most things have returned to normal for me.

I’ve met many clients over the years who have used Finasteride. Many of whom have had no side effects, some have experienced temporary side effects, and some are left with permanent side effects. Had I not have experienced it first hand, I would not believe that these reports could be genuine.

So I found myself in my mid twenties having tried virtually everything available to rectify my hair loss. I was using thickening fibres which helped but were completely impractical and high maintenance. The only option was to revisit the idea of a hair transplant.

I visited some top surgeons after much research. The general consensus was that it was simply not possible for me to achieve a full head of hair from transplantation, and this is a predicament many find themselves in. A transplant will often provide an enhanced hairline or sparse coverage across the scalp, yet if your hair loss is advanced, it’s likely that there is simply not enough donor hair to add any significant coverage. I was grateful for the honesty and clarity from these surgeons. Now in my practice I see many clients weekly who have been through the hair transplant process when, like myself, they were not suitable candidates and are left completely disappointed with the results, and still in dire need of hair restoration.

My bad hairline and I were back to square one and longing for a solution. I soon discovered scalp micropigmentation and I felt like I had been thrown a lifeline! I tirelessly researched and looked at images online for weeks. I visited clinics and saw the treatment in the flesh. It looked great. I knew I had to take the plunge.

I have had my SMP treatment, and been carrying out SMP treatments for clients to restore their hairline and density, for almost five years now. I have never looked back or regretted entering the world of SMP. When I reflect on the years prior to this, it’s hard to believe that hair loss worries were such a big part of my life. I no longer have any concerns about my hair, I shave my head every couple of days which takes literally one minute. I have no feelings of self- consciousness regarding my hair and I’m free to enjoy my life and go about my business without ever giving my hair a second thought.

It genuinely gives me great pleasure to carry out SMP treatments day in day out to turn bad hairlines into perfect ones. The contrast in appearance for clients is mind blowing, and you can see examples of this in my portfolio.

If you feel scalp micropigmentation may be the solution for your receding hairline then get in touch. I’ll be happy to help restore your confidence.