Before I begin, a bit of info about me.
From the age of 19-20 my hair started to receed at the temples and ever so slightly back from the widows' peak that I had always had. It was not a bad, or ecen that noticable of a recession, but the rate at which it went alarmed me.
I continued to worry. I saw a dermw when I was 23 and he said that there was some loss, that it was that bad, and to start minoxidil if I wanted to, which I did not do.
It has not gone any more at all until now (27 next week). I was even starting to forget a little about the subject. I remember that one of the 'tests' the derm used to investigate my loss was pulling at the ahir from the scalp and seeing how much comes out. For some reasom, God-knows why, I decided to give it a go myself a few weeks ago. I wish I hadn't.
At the left-hand temple area, where the most loss and most noticable loss I managed to pull out 7 hairs in about 5 goes at tugging it. Also, wherever else I tugged at on the top of my head normally a hair or 2 would come out.
The other night I decided (why?) to give it another go, but this time at the side of my head where hairloss does not occur. From a small area, probably less than 1cm squared, I managed to get 7 hairs in 5 goes. Great, I thought - just because I manged to get 7 from the temple area does not necessarily indicate loss, then.
Last night I decided to try it AGAIN. I was managing to pull out 1 or 2 hairs every time from the top of my scalp, but this only happened in about half the tugs I had at the side and back of my hair. My thoughts:
1. I do not comb my hair, I style it with my fingers. The hair is short at the back and sides. When I towel dry I vigourously rub the sides and back but pat the top dry. Do these matters mean that hair that has come to the end of its life cycle naturally (i.e. not due to male pattern baldness) is shed more easily when it dies at the sides or back compared to the top, so that I have a 'buildup' of dead hair on the top to account for the hair I pulled out from the top of my head?
2. My father's hairline went ever so slightly back in his mid-20s (less than mine has). He also started to shed copious amounts of hair and this continues to this day. He shed FAR more than I do - after his daily hair wash the plughole was FULL of his hair to the extent that it used to impede the draining of the water! After my daily hair wash there are about 20 hairs dotted around the side of the bath, none in the plughole.
I can only assume that my Dad's increased shedding was due to the effects of DHT (or whatever else causes/contributes to DHT) on his follicles. Yet he has a FANTASTIC head of hair and he is now 53. When you look at him you would not say he has lost any at all. SO if my increased shedding is due to male pattern baldness can I take some comfort from the fact that this does not necessarily mean that it will lead to noticeable hair loss?
Or should I just give up now?
From the age of 19-20 my hair started to receed at the temples and ever so slightly back from the widows' peak that I had always had. It was not a bad, or ecen that noticable of a recession, but the rate at which it went alarmed me.
I continued to worry. I saw a dermw when I was 23 and he said that there was some loss, that it was that bad, and to start minoxidil if I wanted to, which I did not do.
It has not gone any more at all until now (27 next week). I was even starting to forget a little about the subject. I remember that one of the 'tests' the derm used to investigate my loss was pulling at the ahir from the scalp and seeing how much comes out. For some reasom, God-knows why, I decided to give it a go myself a few weeks ago. I wish I hadn't.
At the left-hand temple area, where the most loss and most noticable loss I managed to pull out 7 hairs in about 5 goes at tugging it. Also, wherever else I tugged at on the top of my head normally a hair or 2 would come out.
The other night I decided (why?) to give it another go, but this time at the side of my head where hairloss does not occur. From a small area, probably less than 1cm squared, I managed to get 7 hairs in 5 goes. Great, I thought - just because I manged to get 7 from the temple area does not necessarily indicate loss, then.
Last night I decided to try it AGAIN. I was managing to pull out 1 or 2 hairs every time from the top of my scalp, but this only happened in about half the tugs I had at the side and back of my hair. My thoughts:
1. I do not comb my hair, I style it with my fingers. The hair is short at the back and sides. When I towel dry I vigourously rub the sides and back but pat the top dry. Do these matters mean that hair that has come to the end of its life cycle naturally (i.e. not due to male pattern baldness) is shed more easily when it dies at the sides or back compared to the top, so that I have a 'buildup' of dead hair on the top to account for the hair I pulled out from the top of my head?
2. My father's hairline went ever so slightly back in his mid-20s (less than mine has). He also started to shed copious amounts of hair and this continues to this day. He shed FAR more than I do - after his daily hair wash the plughole was FULL of his hair to the extent that it used to impede the draining of the water! After my daily hair wash there are about 20 hairs dotted around the side of the bath, none in the plughole.
I can only assume that my Dad's increased shedding was due to the effects of DHT (or whatever else causes/contributes to DHT) on his follicles. Yet he has a FANTASTIC head of hair and he is now 53. When you look at him you would not say he has lost any at all. SO if my increased shedding is due to male pattern baldness can I take some comfort from the fact that this does not necessarily mean that it will lead to noticeable hair loss?
Or should I just give up now?