by Ben Hughes

Created on: January 14, 2008   Last Updated: October 31, 2008

My hair started thinning when I was at school and now I'm in my thirties I have a distinct bald patch around my crown, with hair slowly disappearing on the top of my head. In a few years my forehead will probably join up with the back of my neck, but out of everything in my life it's something I'm not bothered about at all.

There's no history of baldness in my family so I've no idea why I've lost my hair. And I find it strange when someone tells me I'm bald, as if you'd tell me I've got brown eyes or two legs. Sometimes people feel as though they need to make a comment, which isn't surprising as I'm a secondary school teacher, but it's so rare it's hardly worth mentioning.

Baldness is something which I've accepted and never had a problem with. I suppose part of it is because it's socially acceptable to be bald, rather than be something like overweight which there's a real stigma about. Being bald isn't going to bring the laughs and jokes that other things do. But I have to be honest that being a man also makes going bald more acceptable.

To use a clich, I think baldness is a state of mind. If I'm happy with myself then being bald doesn't matter to me. It doesn't make me a worse person or a better person if I have hair or not, just as being black or being a Muslim shouldn't be held against someone.

So I've never been interested in hair restoring products and given up any previous hope it will grow back on its own. I suppose some people might use them because of vanity but many use them to boost their confidence, which can only be a good thing if they feel happier and confident with themselves. Now I'm starting to think that baldness is a sign of distinction!

Surely if someone feels better about themselves, that's all that matters whether they're bald or not. I just wish everyone could be judged by their actions rather than their appearance, especially when they don't have a choice about how they look. Baldness isn't something I chose; it chose me.

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