new thread
I'll get a pic up tomorrow, but I've seemingly noticed thinning at the crown area. Is it possible that because the hair has been growing for so long, it could be 'tugging' at the crown area, thus putting more gaps and thinning the hair.
Hi Dave,
Actually, growing long hair does not cause it to thin at all. Thinning in the crown area is unrelated to the length of a person's hair, but any thin area in the crown may show more because of the way the hair is parted, etc. when one has long hair. I know that I have some thinning in this area myself, probably related to the fact that I have some early symptoms of MPB (I am nearly 54), and I have only noticed this as my hair grew longer.
Hope this helps, and keep us updated,
David
Hi David N; statistically, if you've made it past 50 and still have the hair that you now have in the amount that you have, you will never be bald or much thinner at the crown than you are now. I think you have nothing to worry about. If you were 25 or 30 and had similar symptoms, then you might have something to worry about.
Yes, Bragi, I think you are dead-on right about this. What I've always been told about MPB is that whatever thinning/balding areas show up on your head by age 30, those are the areas that will continue to lose hair; but that not much more will occur in general, --- and that it's unlikely that any area of the scalp that still looks normal by age 30 will lose any at all.
A good example is that of my own hair...
I have to a small degree a receding hairline in front, mainly at the temples. I first noticed something happening in this area when I was about 24. By age 30, I was combing my hair slightly differently, because the hairline of my youth that used to go straight across my forhead, now was indented at the temples. Since age 30, that's the only area of my head that has continued to have some hair loss. There has probably been some thinning in general (I used to have VERY thick hair as a kid); but, other than that, most of my mane is still attached to my scalp, thank goodness!
When I was 19, I remember going into a barber shop for a trim. I was living in a new state (temporarily), so this hair stylist was new to me. He took one look at my hair and said, "Well, you'll never have to worry about going bald, --- maybe some receding hairline in your future; but other than that, you've got a lot of hair here!" How he could predict that so accurately, I'll never know (I guess barbers must just see a lot of heads of hair over the years - lol). But, the interesting thing is that his prediction cmae true.
- Ken
Hi Ken and Matt,
Thanks for the encouragement, guys! Hopefully, I WILL keep most of the hair I have, as you say, and it seems to be thinning SLOWLY right now, and not much different from 6 months ago. The only fly in the ointment is that my dad had a thick and full head of hair until his late 40's, at which time it started to thin. He was not bald by the time he passed away at age 79, but his hair had receded very badly and his scalp was visible everywhere. My uncle was far worse, a Norwood class 6 by age 50, but my grandfather had a thick head of hair when he died at 85. Hopefully, my dad was an anolomy, and I won't follow in his footsteps. I don't know about my mom's side, as my mom's father passed away at a young age.
David
I also forgot to add that both my brothers are/were "follicularly blessed", so to speak. That is definitely encouraging news indeed. My oldest brother had a full head of hair when he passed away at age 58 last year, and my other brother, at age 56, also has a great head of hair, in fact, his crown area looks better than mine. He has short hair, however, possibly my thinner crown is more noticeable because of the way I part my hair. Naturally, I am a bit paranoid about losing ANY hair, however, due to may desire for a waist or longer length mane.
David
David, my guess is that you may be experiencing thinning but it won't drastically reduce your hair over time. I would say my father has thinned slowly at the crown from about age 55 and ten years later now it has changed little. The people who go go mostly bald like my Bill have it kick in much earlier in life so I'm betting you are safe from that.
One nice thing I'll add is that since growing his hair for a little over a year the thinning is less noticable on my father because the thinner area is getting covered by his growing hair from the front. He sweeps it back over his head and has been getting Don Imus comments lately. this is actually an improvement since the last hair the kids at school thought was similar was the wild haired Professor from "Back to the Future". With long hair like yours, David, it is a safe bet people notice your length more than what is missing.
Elizabeth
Hi Elizabeth,
Thanks for the encouragement and insights. As Ken, Matt (Bragi), and now yourself have indicated, it looks as though I have many happy years of growing ahead of me. Perhaps my goal of belt length is not out of the question!
David
Hair itself is not likely to be pulling unless you are securing an updo at your crown and then an uneven weight distribution can cause hairloss called traction alopecia. Luckily even that is temporary and the hair grows back if the pulling stops. It is what happens to ballerinas who have their bun too tight over and over which causes their hairline to recede.
For you it can be actual thinning as a result of aging or can be other factors causing the appearance of thinning such as a part exposing the swirl of your crown or hair hanging together differently whan when short and exposing more scalp that was there all along.
Eilzabeth