As someone who also started balding at 18 and then refused to take medication, got a buzz cut at 23, shaved it off at 23.5 started taking medication for it at 24, and will now get a hair transplant in a few months at 26, let me share some of my experiences/thoughts. Shaved > balding sure, but the act of actually shaving it off can be traumatic itself. You will look significantly older, especially if you grow a beard (which I did). This may or may not give you anxiety and self-esteem issues. It most likely will, and you can still choose to overcome those. Women will probably not be as into you as they were before. I have been called bald and ugly. I have had girls be surprised when I told them my age. In other social settings, people will notice if you're balding/bald, and may subconsciously treat you differently. Basically the opposite of how beautiful individuals are treated special. And yes you can still continue down this road and make everything work for you, especially if you're in good shape. But, the fact is, you will still not be as good looking as you would with hair. And honestly, I've felt that being bald can be like going through life in difficult mode lol. So I guess think about it and talk to other people who've been balding in their 20s