I have come to expect it but I never realized the extent of the damage until I was shown the crater sized bald patch on the dome of my head. I can’t exactly see the top of my skull myself so I’ve always assumed it was of little significance, until I started getting more and more comments about it. -_-
This is compounded by the fact that I’m a typical male – using soap for everything. Yes, I use soap to wash my hair too. I don’t have shampoo or other hair care products coz I’m lazy to go through the laborious steps in the shower.
I had all the signs – dandruff, oily scalp and visible balding. I am balding from the top and front so I figured there’s nothing much I can do anyway. In fact, I think I’ve come to accept that I’m balding and would go for hair implants when it shows too much.
However, I was galvanized into action when I heard the balding process CAN be reversible, if treated early.
I have to admit, I have my doubts about baldness prevention treatments due to the plethora of offerings out there claiming to be able to give you a robust mane of hair – the fountain of youth for follicles, if you will.
I was introduced to Svenson (which started out in London) and decided to give their hair treatments a go, to see how well it performs. I reckon I didn’t have anything to lose anyway (no pun intended) so I made an appointment and headed over to their center opposite Boulevard Hotel in MidValley.
Mary was the consultant that I encountered during my first visit there. I was impressed that she gave me all the facts and made no extravagant claims or promises. She did a scan of my scalp using this magnifier which enlarges everything to 200x magnification.
My scalp really looks horrible – it’s clogged with sediments and the new hair follicles are getting thinner and thinner – a sure sign of unhealthy hair and impending baldness.
Before
She was very straight with me – she told me the treatments can save the hair that’s still alive and healthy but they’re not miracle workers.
The bits where the follicles have totally closed off is un-salvagable. I really appreciate the honesty of Svenson – they don’t make ridiculous promises they can’t keep, unlike other hair treatments I’ve heard about.
The first session involved an intensive therapy to get my hair back in order.
The nice lady attending to me first shampooed me twice before applying conditioner.
My head was put under a steamer to open up the hair follicles.
I was then treated with cooling saline solution – this was done via a pen like contraption ejecting a fine stream of mist.
This procedure is to wash away and clean the gunk off my scalp.
Svenson then applied their serum using the OxyDH machine after all the washing for better absorption. The precision of the pen allows them to go through my hair and scalp inch by inch.
Corrective fluid was then applied using a brush without washing off the serum…
…and massaged into the open and inviting hair follicles.
A machine vibrator (get your mind out of the gutter) is then used to massage in all the goods. You’re supposed to leave the treatment in for 8 hours before washing.
I was given shampoo and conditioner by Svenson (which costs RM 80 each) to use in an effort to salvage what’s left of my hair and return it to it’s former crowning glory. 😀
After
There was a post-treatment scan and the difference, as they say, is crystal clear. You can’t even see my scalp from the scan before the procedure and now you can see the natural pink scalp vividly like a raunchy cabaret show. 😉
I am pretty impressed with what I’ve seen so far. I am scheduled for 10 treatment sessions and I’ll write a review about it when I’m done with it to see how it goes in the end. It’s all about constant maintenance though, as Mary reminds me, so I’ll have to do my part in shampooing twice a day and applying conditioner properly as well.
The treatment sessions takes an hour each and there’s consultation before that so it doesn’t take up a lot of time but it’ll require commitment. I’m going twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I’ll be honest with you guys – I am worried about going bald despite the stanch don’t-give-a-shit attitude that I exude.
I think it does subconsciously affect my self confidence since I’ve long thought about hair implants when I started balding started during my university days. I’m glad to report that there is a way to stop baldness but you’ll have to go before it’s too late.
…and with that, I have a bit of good news to share. Svenson is having a Save My Hair contest on their Facebook page – drop by and see if you can if can win the full hair care treatment prize. There are 10 to be given out and if you’re ever curious about the state of your hair, just join their Facebook page and vote for one of the contestants to get a complimentary hair and scalp analysis.
I’ve always distrusted “Before” and “After” photos coz they tend to be Photoshopped and/or taken with bad angles/lighting/dressing. However, considering the fact that you all know my Photoshop skillz is practically nonexistent – I present to you:
Word.
for one moment i thought you got cancer and had gone through some chemo treatment or something. there i was clicking away thinking “oh god, is he dying? will he survive?, let him survive!”..grahahahahaha!!!
only think hurt is his ego, ha ha
HAHAHA no la bro, my ego is not so easily bruised. 😉
Heh! Well, I DO have a predisposition for cancer – both genetically and due to lifestyle but that’s a seperate issue. 🙂
I’ve seen what chemo does to people, I’ll rather opt for invasive full surgery.
Thanks for the well wishes though balqishDESIGN. 😀
Dude, there is something seriously wrong with your page. It’s taking forever to load and 100% CPU. Are you uploading super high resolution pictures or something? Perhaps scale back the amoutn of picture.
I know bro…it’s my VPS, I’m switching to a higher capacity one as of next month (April). Sorry for the long load times and appreciate your patience.
It has nothing to do with pictures and all, that’s fine, it’s the amount of people on it, I went for a relatively cheap VPS (paying RM 200+ per month) and now I’ll need to get a higher capacity one.
My VPS is not just hosting sixthseal.com 🙂
duuuuuuude no more soap for your hair pleez. shampooing ain’t that hard T_T
this post is oddly engaging though hahahaha.
Yup, I’ve switched to using shampoo and so far it’s going great! I just went for another treatment today and yeah, the shampoo bit is important! There’s no clogged pores for one.
Thanks Fresh! 😀
Forget about the treatment, It’s genetic! Your dad bald so do u.
All my friends bald at young age coz their dad bald.
Look at Prince William, he’s balding..do i need to mention Prince Charles here? 100% true.
True that, but baldness can be slowed or even prevented even if genetic factors prevail.
…and it’s not just my dad. My grandpa (both paternal and maternal) has male pattern baldness and all my uncles too.
However, you can be the lucky one to receive the recessive gene. 😉
My dad started balding in college, I’m only balding despite my lifestle and lack of haircare at 29 heading to 30.
It can be halted with proper care. 😀
Welcome to the early 30s my friend!
Heh! Thanks bro!
I’ll be pushing 30 in about two weeks. 🙂
HB, thank to many treatments out there for hair loss it no problem to get it taken care of now. My late father had thinning hair and baldness but his two brothers (my uncles) did not have this problem at all. It from great father on his mother side of family. It some time skip a generation.
The movie Red Ridding Hood was awesome horror flick you should go watch it. Right now it a box office hit in states.
Same here! I have male hereditary baldness. 🙂
However, it’s not about skipping a generation. I don’t know, my science can be wonky but it’s about recessive genes. You can be lucky and be the odd one out, getting the recessive instead of the dominant gene. Thus, even if your entire family has the genetic factor, you might not get it. 🙂
I don’t think it’s out here yet, I’m looking forward to watching it too!
When I was a kid I had dandruff and somewhat oily hair. I had no idea those were the signs of balding! My mother always said it came from a bad diet! Well I hope you can grow your hair back!
Hello Jessy!
Yup, all those can be signs that you’re not taking care of your hair well.
I used to use SOAP to wash my hair and I didn’t even do it properly. I now know how to wash my hair properly and all that with the treatments is making it grow back – the hair follicles are now clear and not clogged, a good start towards new hair! 😀
Omigawd! I just mentioned in my reply to your comment in my blog the other day how you are so blessed, like your mum, with luxuriant hair growth (on the head! Dunno anywhere else! LOL!!)…and how lucky you are not to inherit your dad’s genes. Oops!!! Spoke too soon! Welcome to the club! Muahahahahaha!!!!!
HAHAHA!
Well, I didn’t really bother with the balding at first either, it wasn’t very visible. I didn’t know it was a patch until people told me.
Oh well, maybe I’m lucky and I got the recessive gene so this is just balding from hair not being cared for. 😀
We’ll see how this thing goes. 🙂
wah the before-after pictures are quite scary but at least now you know that you have a good scalp! I think mine is worse than yours…
Ya! I didn’t know my scalp was in such bad shape until I went there. 😡
It’s getting back to the normal color now – that first treatment was just to get rid of the gunk, now I can see the natural color of my scalp. 😀
No la, I think your hair looks fine, but you can go for a free analysis. It’s in the link in the post. 🙂
I am balding too but not as visible as yours. I am about your age. 🙂
I will love to join the contest and win the prize. Too bad I am not in Kuala Lumpur.
Hello Louise! 🙂
Hey, no worries, it can be reversible if you treat it early enough.
Oh, you don’t need to be in KL to win the prize – there are Svenson branches throughout Malaysia.
http://www.svensonhair.com.my/contact_my.html
Where do you live?
how much is the damage? $$$
It depends on what kind of treatment you opt for – they have a wide range of treatments, and they’ll provide consultation on what’s the best course of action. 🙂