A Clients Journey
The Beginning
What follows is my personal story of hair loss. I started gradually losing my hair from about 16 years of age. It started out only thinning at a slow rate for a while and at first I did not even notice it. It was only whilst on holiday in Turkey and a person’s comment about my hair being thin that made me first notice it. Before that point I had not really spotted it at all. I started looking back through some phone photos which showed my hair looking thin in wet pictures and also when I spiked my hair. I felt that horrible gut feeling of feeling down, and was paranoid about looking at my hair for the remainder of the holiday and for much time to come. This was the start of the journey.
The First Solution
After the holiday, I think I had points where I noticed and then did not notice that my hair was thinning, it would be perhaps most noticeable when I came out of the shower and I started to think; I really need to do something about this. I first started looking online for solutions and on help forums which made me feel much better. I realised that I was not alone and this was a common issue. My first solution for this hair loss was using some shampoo which supposedly helped to stop hair loss and could even help grow back some hair. This was much more expensive than normal shampoo but of course, this was a price worth paying so I thought.
I used this shampoo for a while and then started my first main solution that had a visible impact and initially whilst using it resolved so many of those negative feelings. The solution was a product that sprinkled fibres over the hair in the colour of your choosing which adhered to your hair and made it look thicker. This really worked quite well and after I first looked in the mirror – a huge weight seemed to lift from my shoulders in worry. I thought I had found a solution. It wasn’t until I went fishing with a friend and saw a picture he had took of me in the sunlight that completely negated the cover up effect that this solutions weak points were all too obvious. My hair also looked strange in certain light, something about it did not look right. It was however good at looking more natural in less bright settings but outside, the effects were not so good. What would be next thing to try I thought to myself?
My Next Solution
I next found another product which I used for a long time, as well as using the same shampoo I started to use a solution where you literally coloured your scalp the colour of your hair so it was less noticeable. This was quite messy and took a little time to apply but the results were very good. The results were better than the previous solution as this looked better in brighter conditions and was perhaps less noticeable from the rest of my hair. There however were a few problems. I would need to wash my hair more frequently as the texture of the hair was not so great when using this makeup like material which of course was coated on the hair when applying to the scalp. Despite trying to wet my hair after, the hair always felt and looked a little dirty or perhaps greasy but it wasn’t too noticeable. During washing my hair, the dark colour on my scalp would of course come out onto the shower floor which was not too pretty to look at and I always felt like I was damaging my hair washing so frequently and applying that solution to my scalp. I thought I might be stopping hair from growing or undoing what the shampoo might be trying to do in terms of growing the hair back or at least in successfully stopping growth. I was using this product for so long that I could not stop using it as people were now used to me with the added effect of having more hair and when I washed it out, there was a big difference, I felt trapped using it and as I had to shampoo literally every day or 2. I was always aware of it. I even went to Florida and New York using this setup where on the night I would sneak away after the others had slept and would shampoo my hair going to sleep with no product on which would make me feel like I was letting my scalp breathe. I would then get up early and apply the product. I was starting to feel a slave to this setup; It was time to look at other hair loss solutions.
Hair transplants & Drugs
I next looked into the world of hair transplants which at first I was very keen on after reading a few blogs of people who had had this done, but was always weary of the cost and having to have a week off work or so to have this done and in order to recover. In reading other blogs and hair loss forums I was started to be put me off due to the hit and miss nature of of how much coverage there is after the operation and how other balding could require future further operations. I did seriously consider doing this for a period of time and was going to keep using the shampoo and scalp product until I stumbled upon both hair systems and regrowth products such as Regaine. I had also looked into pills that could be taken with FDA approved results of gaining hair but was put off with the possible listed side effects and perhaps further unknown consequences of taking such drugs. I was also put off by the fact it could take a long time and in that using my current product might be damaging to whatever benefits there would be. I also did not want a period of time where my hair looked thin again as I had been using the scalp colouring product for a long time and stopping using that would as mentioned earlier, show a drastic change. Every time I showered and saw my hair, it really did depress me.
Hair Systems
Finally, I came to the world of hair systems. It was after watching a documentary on ITV with the doctor from the ‘This Morning’ programme who was testing hair systems; he deemed those tested safe and recommended these systems for use. I was able to see from a much more trusted source than random internet websites that these hair systems were real hair that looked great, whilst also being durable enough to withstand a wind turbine at high speed and having buckets of water chucked at them whilst being worn. This really gave me confidence in these systems. I got past my prior beliefs that hair systems were just wigs that looked fake and would come off the head easily. Not long after watching this TV programme and doing extra research, I decided to enter the world of hair systems which was indeed a big decision and one which I have not regretted in the slightest.
I went for a consultation and was greeted by a friendly face that was able to understand what I was going through, it really did put me at ease. After seeing the systems in person and much thinking I took the plunge and paid for a system that would be able to be fitted within 6 weeks. A mould of my head was taken that made me feel that this system was going to be custom made with me in mind from the start. A small lock of my real hair was taken to ensure there would be a good natural match in hair colour that was seamless. I walked away from the Studio that day feeling happy whilst a little anxious. It was going to be an interesting wait until the big day!
The Fitting
Finally the day came when the system had to be fitted. My head was shaven and at this stage I knew there was no real going back. I did not want to even look into the mirror to see my balding head so the stylist covered up the mirror so I did not have to see myself. I do no longer feel this way anymore but at the start I did not even want to see myself looking properly bald just like my dad, no offence dad! When the system was put on and styled after being cut down to a smaller size as original systems come with long hair, the temporary towel covering the mirror was removed and I saw my new hair, my new look. I was amazed and smiled probably bigger than I ever had before. I finally had thicker hair and it was real hair, I could wash it, I could style it etc. and most importantly right then in the mirror – it looked real! These feelings stayed with me until I was walking back to the train. When I looked into a mirror at the train station – my head with this new hair looked so much bigger, it looked so obviously that it was not my hair I thought. Everyone is going to see straight through this I kept thinking. That train journey was filled with frustration and worry about how people who I knew would instantly know that it was not my hair.
Worrying times
When I got home, I spoke to my mother and told her about my hair as I needed someone to know, I had to share this issue with someone so I told her that I was wearing a system and that part of my hair was of course my own but most of the middle of my head was the system. This was surprisingly a hard thing to do, but once I had told her, a huge sense of relief came to me. During this first night of having my new hair I could feel the system constantly. The feeling that something was on my head would not go away which probably added to me thinking others would know that it was not really my hair. I called the hair studio the next day and asked about this feeling. I was told that this was normal and that it would wear off within a week at most in normal cases and then you would not be able to feel it at all. This was indeed true and on reflection I think was a very important change for which I will explain more about later. The next Tuesday I went back to the real world of work which running up to I was absolutely dreading. No one other than my mom had seen my hair up until that point.
Liberation
Before I went to work on that Tuesday, I told the guys there that I was going to London to a fancy hair place to get my hair styled and done differently. I had told them that I was getting it volumized to try and at least get them ready for the change. When I got into work early in the morning, I saw my manager in the car park who when he first spotted me said ‘I thought you were getting your hair completely changed? It looks different but I was expecting something totally different’. I literally felt amazed that he viewed it only as slightly different or at least he just had not noticed my hair style and volume as much as I thought he did. There was however one person at work who I thought would spot it regardless of this first positive interaction. This fellow work colleague was someone who used to notice everything and would ask endless questions about things to do with your look and style or lack of style. When he first came into our office and looked at me, he simply said, ‘nice hair bud!’ I felt liberated on the spot. People had clearly not noticed things as much as I thought and the system obviously to them had looked like my real hair. It was a perfect moment, especially considering the feeling that something on my head had almost worn off by that point too.
The Big test
Since this day, I have had 5 systems, having one every 6-10 months. I have been to New York again and to Florida with these systems. Going to Florida is of note because this really was a full test of the systems durability. I went for 18 days and wanted to go to water parks and of course on all the roller coasters I could find. We literally visited all the parks including Busch Gardens, Typhoon Lagoon and all the Disney’s and Universal Studios sites. I went down the water slides and swam. I was of course more knowledgeable that I was protecting my head a bit more when hitting water hard and sometimes on roller coasters I wanted to cover my head thinking it might come off which it never did I can gladly say. I even went on an airboat ride without any issues. My system stayed on the whole time and the holiday was not negatively affected in any way other than being a little conscious of my hair when as mentioned - hitting water hard on some water park rides. I was really impressed by this which made me think I had found the right solution.
The final solution - Hair system
The biggest seller of having a system for me is that I forget that I am wearing it most of the time, I cannot feel it, I do not need to really worry about it apart from certain situations which very rarely have come up. I am only really reminded of it when I need to shampoo my hair which has to be done been a little more slowly and carefully than normally would be the case. In between doing these and perhaps water rafting though, I really do forget all about it and do not have any worry that people know I am wearing it or that it will come off. I really feel I made the right decision in having a system as I do not think anything else can get close to a full head of hair that feels and looks real. The added maintenance that is required with monthly re-grooms does not negate any of that. I think I have find the final solution.
Thanks for reading my story!
