Short update with new photos.

[Guest]

Started Propecia in April 2003 because my hair became thinner (View photos).

http://uk.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/gooner_yddo/album?.dir=/7ed2&urlhint=actn,ren:s,1:f,0

Used minoxidil later that month for a further 4 months in combo with Nizoral. I then stupidly stopped minoxidil in October 2003 (but carried on with Propecia), which resulted in a massive shed of hair in December, due to stopping minoxidil. (View photos for evidence).

I then re-started minoxidil on 27th Dec 2003 and use it to the day with the finasteride, which I used anyway, but it has not got back to how it looked in August 2003. Was it as effective 2nd time around? No it wasn't is my experience.

I've used some kind of finasteride (Propecia, Finpecia) for 2 years, but have been off it for 10 days, in order to take dutasteride.

I've now been 10 days on dutasteride, also using minoxidil, spironolactone and Nizoral. Had no sides from dutasteride thus far.

My hair has got worse basically, you can see at the famous horseshoe. My hair is diffused and has to be shaved because with the recession, it looks terrible once grown out, murdering my confidence.

Basically, treatments have been useless.

 

[Red_eye]

right

Your hair looks fine to me.

 

[neomonk]

Gunner, you look fine with your current haircut man. Your head has a good shape for shaving. Keep it nice and short and tidy and just enjoy your life man.

 

[Red Rose]

Gunner whats that awful black sh*t on your face, a kind of rash or something? :lol:

Your hair looks fine. The way you carry on 99% of people here probably think you're completely bald, but your hair looks ok - seriously.

I cannot believe that your boss would take the piss out of your hair? Are you sure thats its not all in your head?

 

[Guest]

Diffused, recession, thin.

Why do you think I keep shaving it?

When light shines on it really does look laughable.

Pattern is there.

If I grew it out, you'd see the pattern in an obvious state.

Thing is, it isn’t all right. I cannot get away with a shaved head. I'm naturally thin, making a shaved head less passable. It isn’t as simple as getting in the gym because like I say, I'm naturally skinny.

 

[Red Rose]

Well then Gunner, what is the solution?

 

[Trent]

dude, i think i know what you're problem is, only because i share the same problem. I think you're building up this huge fear of rejection and unacceptance from society, you're building it up in your mind as this end-all thing, that if someone notices your loss, or god forbid, comments on it, you'll be devastated. Your life will be over. but the truth is you won't, you could go on living your life and 98 percent of the people either won't care or won't even notice. and the ones that do are pieces of sh*t insecure assholes with nothing going in their stupid lives but hair. I've found that when you finally sac up and face the sh*t that's scaring you so much, you'll find it was never nearly as bad as you thought it was going to be. if someone makes a comment, just say hey man don't pawn your insecurities out on me. end of story. make them feel like sh*t for making you feel like sh*t. so try just for a week never wearing your cap, just going out and pretending like you have this thick brad pitt hair, and see what happens? just walk around like you're the sh*t, for just a week. i guarantee you'll find that this huge fear that you're building up in your mind is just that, in your mind.

i know this is hard, but have some courage man. I'll have mad respect for you if you can do it.

 

[Guest]

Your hair isn't bad at all - one advantage you have even if you go norwood 6, is that you have blond hair. When you shave it down its much harder to see thinning /bald areas.

You are obviously very depressed by the whole male pattern baldness situation and i think you need to a doctor, counsellor, psychiatrist or even a hypnotherapist.

Although male pattern baldness is a problem for you, i feel its not your main problem.

Your main problem is lack of confidence and low self-esteem.

I have read your posts on this site and on HLH and people have tried to offer advice and help to you but your defeatist attitude to pretty much every post is your own downfall.

People have repeatedly tried to help you with encouragement, advice and suggestions and you generally never take anything on board.

That's not your fault, it may be the fact that you need some help to sort your head out. It's good that you're fighting your male pattern baldness and dutasteride may work pretty well, so don't throw in the towel yet.

Go to your doctor and tell him exactly what you have told so many of us in your posts. Tell him how you feel and tell him what your life has been like for the past couple of years.

He will prescribe you something to get you out of your male pattern baldness-obsessed shell and start doing something with your life.

male pattern baldness may make you less attractive than you were before but it doesn't actaully stop you from doing anything.

You can still get a job

You can still get a girl

You can still be successful

Confidence is the key and you don't seem to have much at the moment but once you realise that male pattern baldness does not mean you have to stay in with no job for the rest of your life you may start doing something with it.

 

[Guest]

good post Neiltom88!!

But I don't agree on your point of being less attractive with no hair: there's no relationship between that at all. 3 out of my 5 favourite man are bald/balding.

 

[Guest]

The first thing you need to do is learn to love yourself. Once you achieve this you can then move on and be loved by someone else.

 

[Red Rose]

Gunner why don't you pm socks.

Apparently he used to be in your position with diffuse hair and managed to sort his hair out.

He may have a few words of advice for you?

 

[qqq]

i actually refuse to wear a hat now. i guess after you realize you're going bald and it's been going on for awhile (i mean years, 6 mos doesn't necessarily count) you just become desensitized to it and it doesn't seem like that big a deal. but anyway, yea, i refuse to wear a hat because i always feel like i'm hiding something. i want to be out there and have people see me for me. i don't want to wear a beanie into a club, get a chick, and then have to deal with the inevitable of eventually showing her my true self. you never have to deal with the situation if you show your true self from the beginning.

about being skinny, trust me, you can bulk up. i used to be a skinny chinese kid, and i packed on 20 + lbs of muscle. it's hard work, both in the gym, and most importantly, out of the gym (eat, eat eat damnit !!!). and once you start seeing results, you get addicted to it (in a good way). dont get discouraged if you don't beef up a little in a few months. i've been working at it for years now. make a decision to do good things for yourself and don't ever look back!!! good luck

 

[EliasNJ]

I just want to say good luck with the dutasteride, I hope you see some good results from it.

 

[Guest]

good post Neiltom88!!

But I don't agree on your point of being less attractive with no hair: there's no relationship between that at all. 3 out of my 5 favourite man are bald/balding.

I did write that male pattern baldness 'may' make you less attractive.

 

[chrism]

Diffused, recession, thin.

Why do you think I keep shaving it?

When light shines on it really does look laughable.

Pattern is there.

If I grew it out, you'd see the pattern in an obvious state.

Thing is, it isn’t all right. I cannot get away with a shaved head. I'm naturally thin, making a shaved head less passable. It isn’t as simple as getting in the gym because like I say, I'm naturally skinny.

Your right bro, it's not as simple as going to the gym.. You can work out all you want if your diet is not in check it won't do anything. I worked out for years with little results until I got my diet straight.. I now eat 6-8 clean high protein meals every day and almost on a weekly basis I notice a change in body composition or lifts go up. Check out some bodybuilding forums to get some advice.. Eat a surplus of calories a day and go to the gym 4-5 times a week and you will grow, trust me..

 

[Guest]

Your hair looks good to me, man. I agree with just about everything everyone here has said. I've also been on dutasteride for ten days, sounds like we started at the same time. Hopefully it does something. We should keep each other posted on our progress. All dutasteride users should.

 

[Petchsky]

Your wrong Gunner, when you say treatments have done nothing for you... you would be bald by now otherwise... i just had another, more in depth look at your photos and your hair was pretty bad, but has improved from about 9 months on... plus with it being shaved and blonde it is hard to tell in the photographs that your balding...plus the shaved head looks good on your heed. If you don't clear them debts, you ain't ever going to afford a transplant

Petch

 

[drinkrum]

It isn’t as simple as getting in the gym because like I say, I'm naturally skinny.

That is a pathetic excuse. I know many people like you. But instead of beating themselves into depression, they took weight gainer, protein supplements, hit the gym hard, and now they're huge.

The fact that you're naturally thin is not a bad thing. You can eat all you want, build muscle, and don't have to cut down that much when you try to cut like normal people.

With some elbow grease and a can-do attitude, you can turn your life upside down. Or you can wallow in your own misery and complain all day.

D.

 

[Minox_Baby]

What if you don't want to go down the bodybuilding route? What if it isn't you? Thats the situation I'm in. I'd be a hippy all my life if I could keep my hair, and I don't want to waste my precious time body building trying to atract a girl that I'm not right for. For gods sake what do we do.

 

[drinkrum]

What if you don't want to go down the bodybuilding route? What if it isn't you? Thats the situation I'm in. I'd be a hippy all my life if I could keep my hair, and I don't want to waste my precious time body building trying to atract a girl that I'm not right for. For gods sake what do we do.

Think of it as a blessing in disguise. You don't need to be a bodybuilder. You just can't be scrawny.

D.