My dad at the beginning had mostly recession but then went to full NW7 early in life. There is a high probability you have the balding gene but it might not manifest itself until much later in life. And you might never reach the same as your dad if you use treatments. Unfortunately, you will never know until it happens. But looking at your hair, I think you will be fine now for many years as long as you continue with finasteride.
If my dad was nw3 at 21 yet I am still nw1 at 26, shouldn't have I started really balding by now as I am already 26 years old? That's the thing that I cannot wrap my head around.
You may have gotten most of your hair genes from your mother, grandparents, etc.
Well i did get my moms fine hair traits as my dad had more coarse/wavy hair. But this doesn't matter I think. Baldness only runs on my dads side, no balding at all from my moms side. There is more than one hair gene for hairloss?
Hair is polygenic, from my knowledge.
I forgot you were 26. You definitely did not get an aggressive balding gene but you still carry the gene most likely. I told you before, I don't think you will ever be a high Norwood. Most likely you will still be a NW2 at the most in your 50's if you stay proactive with treatments. You are in good shape at 26.
It's how it works, is not exact science. By grandfather went NW7 in his 40s while 2 of my cousins went in their 20s. One of them is a NW6 while his own father, son of my NW7 grandpa is a NW5.
Well the good thing is my finasteride shedding has kinda stopped at the start of month 3. My crown looks super thin though it’s tough going out in public I feel very conscious about it. Here’s how the top of my head looks. First two pics in red sweatshirt are today, last two in blue sweatshirt were back in December.
No change. Did not get worse. And all you have to do is sprinkle some toppik on that spot and you won't see scalp if it bothers you that much. Don't over think it. Come back in 6 months again for another update. Don't spend anymore time on here. Enjoy your youth as much as you can.
Do you think my hair loss could be telogen effluvium and not Androgenetic Alopecia? as the back donor area is thin af too. I just wish I knew what could’ve triggered it. Now that I think of it my hair went from thick to thin in just 2 months! I just wish I could see a derm or trichologist I just don’t have insurance.
You are not thinning in the back area. You have natural low density and straight fine hair. It's not a trait that guarantees you will be bald or it would have happened to me already. Your density seem even all over. You have an obvious cowlick. Your dark hair shows great contrast with your scalp so that fools you too. Like I said you are fine now. Take a photo of you hair wet and post it. It shows more of what is going on. Dry hair is very deceiving.
Wet hair pics
Proves my point. You are not balding just yet. Your density all over is still excellent for your age. Trust me on this.
What about the streaks where you can see scalp?
Not wanting to be cynical but do you have any evidence that this sort of routine can work? (Note, I would love it to work as well as finasteride...I'm just quite doubtful). I'm also someone who has never taken finasteride but my hair has definitely thinned out over the years and it probably wouldn't have with finasteride.
That's what you have to watch. Keep taking photos in the same lighting with the same hair length and compare it in 6 months. Hopefully, it might reverse or stay the same with finasteride. Your goal is to stabilize as regrowth is not always easy to achieve if you have minimal loss to begin with. Be patient as it its along process. It takes years to know how well it's working.
Is regrowth faster if there is more loss to begin with?
Regrowth is hard to predict for anyone but is easier to see improvement with someone who has major loss as opposed to minor loss. The rate of regrowth depends on how well you respond to medications too. Most people don't show signs of regrowth until at least 6 months due to hair cycles. I would at least try finasteride in a topical form to see how you do first. If not then you only have minoxidil which does not influence DHT so the gains never last long term. There are a few doctors who specialize in PRP that actually might help like Dr Greco. There may be some new treatments in the future but so far all you have is experimental treatments from China which I would never trust at this point after seeing how they created a virus that was meant to reset the world.
Thanks. The trouble is that even topical finasteride supposedly goes systemic and lowers internal DHT levels the same way as oral finasteride. For me the issue isn't just about the sides but because I'm an athlete I have a vested interest in keeping my systemic DHT at normal levels.
Its not that I don't believe in it, I just found what works for me. You can try Proxiphen from Dr Proctor. Its not cheap but it does work for alot of people who tried it. I use Proxiphen too as I was told I would be a poor responder to finasteride. Dr Proctor claims that Proxiphen is more effective than finasteride according to what he learned in his practice. I do use a keto shampoo and other hair loss shampoos. I use a kitchen sink approach to my situation. You just have to be open to try new things. Most people won't do that.
