The television he makes awakens a mix of emotions in the viewer. A smile is preceded by a tear at least as many times and vice versa. That is why often intense topics are discussed. One subject is central: the human being in all its facets. In the human interest programs Radio Gaga or The Weekends the people he talks to often dare to put their deepest feelings on the table. The always sympathetic Hessels succeeds time and again by displaying a large portion of empathy. But the actor and presenter also knows how to gain the trust of his interlocutors by giving an insight into his private life, his person and the things that affect him.
Also in the latest episode of his latest achievement Taxi Joris let Hessels look into his heart. In one of the taxi rides, the cheerful TV maker talks candidly about an insecurity that has been living in him for several years: his increasingly thinning haircut. Hessels receives a call from the Antwerp Jens, a young man in his thirties who, like many other men, is starting to suffer from hair loss. “It has gotten worse in recent years,” he says. “I used to have a lot of thick hair and now it’s very thin and you can see through it.”
“Now it’s all over because I’m going there anyway,” says Jens about his upcoming surgery in Turkey. “At the back they take her away and then they put it in from above one by one. That will take a while,” explains Jens. “It takes two hours to take the hairs out and four to put them back in. So you’ve lost six hours.”
So why did he move specifically to the Middle East? “Because it is slightly more expensive in Belgium. With everything included, flight, hotel, and the operation itself, it comes down to about 2,500 euros.
“More confidence”
Jens indicates that he is very fond of his appearance and since he became visibly bald, the idea of having her implanted took place. “It starts because you start to see it yourself in the mirror. Especially when I was sitting at the hairdresser, with that light on, I noticed that I could really see through it. And that became more and more. I started to fall more and more about it,” says Jens.
The fact that the thirty-year-old attaches great importance to his appearance is apparent when he talks about his passion for sport. “I used to be a bit chubby, which is why I want to exercise so much. I also have a personal trainer,” says Jens. “I’m especially afraid of getting too fat. I used to not belong to the most popular group. You always want to belong to the tough guys”, he shows himself vulnerable.
At the age of sixteen, he completely immersed himself in the fitness world. “As you see your body change, you automatically get more self-confidence,” says the Antwerp resident. “But sports is also a very external world, isn’t it?” Joris adds. “Did that speed up your decision?” he wonders. “I think so. People who look good get more attention from others,” is the telling answer.
Hide coves
And that is why, after years of doubt, Jens thought it was high time to take the step. “I do expect when I get back, that I can go to the hairdresser again to have something decent done again, and to lay my hair properly.”
After the confessions of Jens, Hessels also has to get something off his chest. “I also look in the mirror and then I think: ‘it is very thin’. In addition, I spend a lot of time on TV and you start laying your hair in such a way that you can’t see the coves or see through them,” the presenter admits readily. “I think that’s very bad about myself, because I think: ‘Who is working on that now, besides yourself?’”, says Hessels.