Is my hairline receding or maturing? That’s a question many people struggle with and obsess over, undoubtedly. Here’s an email I received recently from a young man who states he’s in a “deathly” situation with his hair, plus my response:
Hey there Sir, I’m a 19 year old male and in a deathly situation with my hairline. I always remember having a terrible hairline to begin with, as it’s always been high and my friends use to joke about how they could see me losing it sophomore year. But now it seems as though my hairline corners are starting to go up and my middle part of the hairline is staying in its same position. Am I going bald?
It sounds like your hairline could either be maturing or receding; sorry, I can’t be of more assistance without pictures. Some men retain their forelocks — the central part of the hairline — and recede at the corners. Though somewhat rare, this doesn’t’ necessarily indicate balding and could be part of the hairline maturation process.
Someone like CNN anchor Anderson Cooper, pictured at the top, is someone whose hairline corners have receded back to a “mature” position, or perhaps a bit beyond it, but who still has a low forelock that likely has remained stationary through his life. It’s a classic “widows peak,” which is, contrary to popular belief, a natural type of hairline and not necessarily a form of male pattern hair loss.
Wrapping it up, these articles on the mature hairline and teenage hair loss may be of interest to you. I received a similar question a few years back from a young man who stated he was in a life or death situation with his hair — and that article may also be helpful to you. As always, if you’re concerned, I’d suggest seeing a professional. Best of luck.
Robert Price is a writer, consumer advocate, and hair loss researcher with thousands of hours of experience in the field. His goal is to keep you out of the hair loss rabbit hole, underworld, or whatever you want to call it. He founded Hair Loss Daily, the unbiased hair loss blog, in 2016. You can learn more about Robert in the my story section of this website.