save me!! (picture included)

[stupendousman]

Hi Guys,

I've been in denial... and am paying for it.


I'm 25, usually have long hair so i can trick myself into ignoring the problem most of the time. I got paranoid today, finally facing the truth, went searching the net and found this site. I plan to see a dermitologist, but i figure the collective practical experience you guys have might be more useful. From what i've gleaned from browsing around the big 3 is a combination of minoxidil, finasteride and nizoral shampoo? Is this what i should start using? At the same time, or should i pick either min or finasteride?

I have to say.. the posts in the shedding forum scare me. I'm so frightened that i may shed hair and not regain it. Any advice is appreciated. And if you save my hair, ill be forever in debt. haha
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[person]

First things first; start Nizoral simply because its a shampoo and has no negatives of using. Use it no more than twice a week. Minoxidil would also be a good choice but bear in mind that minoxidil is a growth simulant and does not block dht which is responsible for hairloss. You will also need a dht blocker. The obvious choice as you mentioned was finasteride however you might want to try topical dht blockers first and see if they help because finasteride may give you sexual side effects and do you really want to pop a pill for the rest of your life? I myself as looking into Eucapil and spironolactone.

 

[flimflam]

do you really want to pop a pill for the rest of your life? I myself as looking into Eucapil and spironolactone.

haha, popping a pill once a day is harder than smearing a topical over your scalp? okaayyyy..

I've been on propecia for months, it's no problem. no side effects or any of that crap, no shedding either. to be honest, I'm starting to think people who worry about side effects are the ones who end up getting them.

but to the original poster.. yeah, you'll want a dht blocker and if you want to grow those temples back minoxidil is your best bet.

 

[antonio666]

first of all,you look like you caught it very early,if the rest of your hair is thick then maintainence should keep your hair looking very good.

receding hairline is horrible,but start panicking only when you start to lose density,if the receding hairline bugs you that much get a transplant i think you would only need about 500 to 100 and you would be a perfect norwood 1,there are some guys on here who have no chance of getting there hair back to a decent standard ,your not one of them,get on the propecia to prevent any furter loss

 

[stupendousman]

first of all,you look like you caught it very early,if the rest of your hair is thick then maintainence should keep your hair looking very good.

receding hairline is horrible,but start panicking only when you start to lose density,if the receding hairline bugs you that much get a transplant i think you would only need about 500 to 100 and you would be a perfect norwood 1,there are some guys on here who have no chance of getting there hair back to a decent standard ,your not one of them,get on the propecia to prevent any furter loss

and with the propencia i would have to steel myself for the horrible scary shedding right? Actually it do feel like my hair is starting to thin too, which is why i'm panicking. Also.. if i put myself on a DHT and propencia at the same time, would that give me double the amount of shedding? Or because the amount of hairs on my head in that phase is the same number anyway, the shedding will be largely the same?

 

[Guest]

you took it damn early. don t reproach yourself. you caught it early!

look if your hair is thinning. if not i think you dont even need treatments, despite some topicals for your hairline. if you dont mind taking finasteride then take it, it cant harm your hair.

dont know if you want to go hardcore. if you want a good compromise then use the big three, like you suggest. you cant do much wrong with them.

i dont think you need more. just so you know ...good treatments are even anti-androgen's like spironolactone topical , eucapil or flutamide and copper peptides like folligen or tricomin.

 

[flimflam]

and with the propencia i would have to steel myself for the horrible scary shedding right? Actually it do feel like my hair is starting to thin too, which is why i'm panicking. Also.. if i put myself on a DHT and propencia at the same time, would that give me double the amount of shedding? Or because the amount of hairs on my head in that phase is the same number anyway, the shedding will be largely the same?

erm, you need to do some more research.

and from what i've seen, and experienced, propecia does not make you shed.

 

[Follically Challenged]

Propecia didn't make me shed, and i got good regrowth.

 

[stupendousman]

erm, you need to do some more research.

and from what i've seen, and experienced, propecia does not make you shed.

Oh! I guess in my frustration all the forum threads kinda blended together and the worrysome parts were the ones that stuck in my mind. That is a big relief however.

 

[Nathaniel]

first of all,you look like you caught it very early,if the rest of your hair is thick then maintainence should keep your hair looking very good.

receding hairline is horrible,but start panicking only when you start to lose density,if the receding hairline bugs you that much get a transplant i think you would only need about 500 to 100 and you would be a perfect norwood 1,there are some guys on here who have no chance of getting there hair back to a decent standard ,your not one of them,get on the propecia to prevent any furter loss

and with the propencia i would have to steel myself for the horrible scary shedding right? Actually it do feel like my hair is starting to thin too, which is why i'm panicking. Also.. if i put myself on a DHT and propencia at the same time, would that give me double the amount of shedding? Or because the amount of hairs on my head in that phase is the same number anyway, the shedding will be largely the same?

Oh no no no, you don't put yourself on DHT, you naturally produce it and want to stop or reduce its presence near your hair follicles thats why you take finasteride (brand name propecia, proscar, fincar yadda yadda).

About the shedding you might shed, but so what? From my experience, those who start freaking out about sides are the ones who are not successful with treatments. Just relax and start your regimen. You'll be fine.

 

[bababa]

Stup... Your hairline looks alot like mine. You caught it early bro, well done. Best thing to do is get on the finasteride and nizoral so you can at the very least maintain what you got, trust me. If you leave it, and if there is male pattern baldness in your family, it will get worse. At 25, these things happen.
Its not hard to stick to this easy regime, plus keep the photos up.

Peace...

 

[stupendousman]

Stup... Your hairline looks alot like mine. You caught it early bro, well done. Best thing to do is get on the finasteride and nizoral so you can at the very least maintain what you got, trust me. If you leave it, and if there is male pattern baldness in your family, it will get worse. At 25, these things happen.
Its not hard to stick to this easy regime, plus keep the photos up.

Peace...

The thing is, altho the men on either side of my family have receding hairlines, none of them are bald. Which mean... if i go bald... am i adoped? haha wow that would be a double psychological blow.

 

[Nathaniel]

No it doesn't mean you're adopted genes act funny. You might be the only balding lad in a family full of thick hair headed men.

 

[kalbo]

erm, you need to do some more research.

and from what i've seen, and experienced, propecia does not make you shed.

Oh! I guess in my frustration all the forum threads kinda blended together and the worrysome parts were the ones that stuck in my mind. That is a big relief however.

Well there are a lot who believe finasteride makes you shed, but there's no real evidence that it actually does that, so for now it's just a myth. Minoxidil on the other hand, will make you shed. I experienced my shed after the third week and man did it suck. But with the regrowth that came shortly afterwards, I'd say it was well worth going through that shed.

 

[stupendousman]

Well there are a lot who believe finasteride makes you shed, but there's no real evidence that it actually does that, so for now it's just a myth. Minoxidil on the other hand, will make you shed. I experienced my shed after the third week and man did it suck. But with the regrowth that came shortly afterwards, I'd say it was well worth going through that shed.

how long did the shed last for? I guess most people post their horror stories instead of ones where the treatments are working as intended. So all the stuff i read is "omg 8 months and i'm still shedding!!"

 

[kalbo]

Well that initial shed lasted for about a week or two. I've come on here a few times complaining about sheds afterwards, but tbh, I don't know which ones were really sheds or which ones were just all in my head. Or maybe they weren't sheds at all. What I do know for sure was that I had an initial shed. Many ppl here had that same shed around the same time when starting minoxidil.

From what I experienced using the treatments and becoming totally obsessed with it, the mind can play tricks on you. Like many ppl, I too thought I had a 3 mth+ shed, but looking back at that, it was probably just all in my head.

My advice would be to get on the Big 3 and forget about all the horror stories. It has been a little up and down for me this past year, but even with the sheds (some real, some imaginary) I still don't regret for a second that I started treatments. The regrowth I've achieved at this point make it all worthwhile.

 

[Guest]

Guys, I don´t think he caught it early. He is already a Norwood 2.5 and should have started treatment already a long time ago. On the pic it looks as if he isn´t thinning, but it is rather dark and we can´t say for sure. Plus some of you guys give him wrong hopes.

You talk as if all he has to do is apply some minoxidil to the temples and they will magically regrow to a Norwood 1 in like 2 months. Sry, but it ain´t working like that. One has to be extremely lucky to see just minor improvements in the frontal area. It is so damn hard to regrow.

Nevertheless my advice for your regimen would be Finasteride, Rogaine Foam and some Ket Shampoo (Revita or Nizoral). Yes, you might shed, but what can you do? If you do nothing at all then you will definetly shed as well but without chances of regrowth.

Good Luck, mate!

 

[flimflam]

stupendousman:

Yeah we all panic when we read the "horror" stories on these forums. To be honest, I think most of them are just pure exaggeration or delusion. People are paying such close attention to their hair everyday and I think they begin to just .. see things. Those same thoughts have occurred to me, but I managed to beat them back down with rational thought

I too was worried about the shed, but I read on these forums that some people never had one. So I assumed that I would be one of those people. Why assume the negative?

When you start your regimen:
Relax, try not to obsess over your treatment. Take photographs, say, every couple of weeks. Don't expect anything until at least three months into treatment.

Oh and ignore taugenichts, he's a bitter NW7.

:lol:

 

[s.a.f]

Guys, I don´t think he caught it early. He is already a Norwood 2.5 and should have started treatment already a long time ago. On the pic it looks as if he isn´t thinning, but it is rather dark and we can´t say for sure. Plus some of you guys give him wrong hopes.

You talk as if all he has to do is apply some minoxidil to the temples and they will magically regrow to a Norwood 1 in like 2 months. Sry, but it ain´t working like that. One has to be extremely lucky to see just minor improvements in the frontal area. It is so d*** hard to regrow.

Nevertheless my advice for your regimen would be Finasteride, Rogaine Foam and some Ket Shampoo (Revita or Nizoral). Yes, you might shed, but what can you do? If you do nothing at all then you will definetly shed as well but without chances of regrowth.

Good Luck, mate!

Taug thats not a nw2.5 and he probably does'nt care as much as you do about being a nw1.
As for your advice about meds and sheds are'nt you not on anything for fear of shedding more?

 

[Guest]

Taug thats not a nw2.5 and he probably does'nt care as much as you do about being a nw1.
As for your advice about meds and sheds are'nt you not on anything for fear of shedding more?

Well, I am on finasteride, changing to dutasteride soon. If my temples would look like that I would get on Rogaine foam as well, just no at the moment since I still have too much to lose.