Taking Finasteride has destroyed my life

[Depresszed_Hairloss123]

https://imgur.com/a/ZqsMiKn

(Long Post) Disclaimer: I'm not saying that finasteride is bad for everyone, but in my own anecdotal experience, finasteride has literally destroyed my hair and my confidence. If your planning to take it then know that there is a chance this might happen to you as well.

So i started taking finasteride 1mg EOD since May 2021 (25 Y.O) and my hairline has progressively gone worst. Especially on my right temple. Im not sure why hairloss doesnt progress equally throughout the hairline but it is what it is. (And btw im not stretching my hair with any hairstyle or anything that might pull out my hair)
Anyway I know it works because my hair fall has actually decreased when i wash my hair or comb my hair with my fingers. For the first two months nothing really happened and i was pretty happy seeing that i had less hair fall. (Btw, i have never encountered any sexual sides from finasteride)

But 2 months later i started to see some increased recession on my hairline. It was getting visibly thinner and the bald spot is growing at a pretty fast rate. But the interesting thing is that there is no SHEDDING, just increased miniaturization and recession.

Fast forward to Nov-Sep and my balding spot on my right temple as grown to about 3X4cm. I started to panic and my self confidence was really hitting rock bottom. (Btw at this point i was already on MIN for 1yr plus, didnt seem to do much after a few months)

So i started to google and search for answers and someone suggested that it could be that I was having a BAD batch of finasteride. Because literally i could not find any research article that says that finasteride would cause hair to recede faster. Also, i ruled out the classical case of reflex hyper androgenicity since I wasnt experiencing any shedding, increased acne or scalp burning sensation.

At this point I was using the STERCIA brand which i found out wasnt a very well known brand. So i switched to the brand name Propercia during Dec 21 and after 2 weeks my hairline started to thicken! This was the first time that i actually seen some improvement in my hairloss and i was like this is it!!! The reason finasteride is killing my hair was because i received a bad batch of finasteride!!! (Btw i also added some other stuff like Nutrafol n Revita shampoo)

But freakin hell after around 2-3months of decent run, my hairline started to recede again. And the worst thing is that i didnt change any of my regiment recently (in fact i was still on that same batch of finasteride that i got from my Doctor on Dec)

Now my balding spot has grown increasing in size to around 4X4cm and honestly its been killing me. I have zero self confidence in my self i feel depressed like sh*t. I cant even talk to girls and i think i will die by my lonely self.
I have thought about some theories to explain what's happening to me:

1. My hairline is genetically prone to T in my scalp in addition to DHT. Since finasteride causes a spike in scalp T, it causes the hair in my hairline to die off even tho my DHT is lowered. (But it doesnt really make sense since DHT is more potent than T)
2. The brand name Propercia somehow also doesnt work and i might have to change to another brand (highly doubt it since im from sg and the healthcare system is pretty good here)
3. Somehow my hairloss isnt AAP and something else is causing my hair to fall out. (The chances of this are slim since my hair is receding at the hairline and i dont have any diffused thinning or anything. Altho the majority of my hairloss is in my right temple as compared to the left)
4. It could be that my hair is just genetically prone to hairloss and finasteride isnt strong enough to suppress it (I highly doubt so because I wasnt losing hair to this extent before i started. My hairline was quite stable for a long time altho i was seeing increase hairfall)
5. I have thyroid or vitamin deficiencies (Not v likely since my hairloss is not diffuse but have AAP patterns. And i am on Nutrafol)

Anyway, now that i have taken finasteride for almost 1 yr. I can be certain that finasteride is definitely wracking my hair. But the sad thing is that I cant stop because there is a high chance that if i stop then i would lose my hair even more due to DHT. So i am literally fked.

If there was ever a chance that i can go back and not take finasteride i would pay anything to do it. But i guess by sharing this it helps if there are ppl in similar situation as i am or those that are thinking of starting finasteride can reconsider.

Moving forward i think i would gradually lower my does of finasteride to 0.5mg EOD n see if it helps. I've also added stemoxydine to my regiment and i am starting oral min. I've also ordered RU58841 but i am hesitant to use it due to its shady safety profile.

Anyway now i am legit depressed and i hate my life. I dont know how i am able to continue like this and its killing my self confidence and self worth.
If you are able to help me figure out why and reverse my hairloss it would literally SAVE MY LIFE

If you dont believe what im saying pls look at my photos:

https://imgur.com/a/ZqsMiKn

TLDR: finasteride made my hair worst and i dont know why

 

[Depresszed_Hairloss123]

HELP

 

[20YearsOnFin]

You are unlikely to get a definitive helpful answer as your case will be specific to yourself.

You will still be kind of stuck with one of these trial and error options that no doubt you have probably already thought of.

1)Stop everything.
2)Stop everything apart from finasteride & zinc picolinate
3)keep adding everything and the kitchen sink.
4)Get some blood work and see if it highlights anything useful.
5)Don't change anything & carry on with what you are doing

 

[20YearsOnFin]

This isn't specific to your case, but I personally believe anyone taking finasteride should just take it on its own (or +zinc picolinate) for the first couple of years, (unless you are actually already half bald) as even things like topical minoxidil and saw palmetto (Nutrafol) can make some peoples hair look worse rather than better, so its easier to determine what is going on if people are only on one treatment at a time.

 

[Depresszed_Hairloss123]

You are unlikely to get a definitive helpful answer as your case will be specific to yourself.

You will still be kind of stuck with one of these trial and error options that no doubt you have probably already thought of.

1)Stop everything.
2)Stop everything apart from finasteride & zinc picolinate
3)keep adding everything and the kitchen sink.
4)Get some blood work and see if it highlights anything useful.
5)Don't change anything & carry on with what you are doing

Hi,

Ya i get that adding more stuff might not be good. But im quite desperate now.

I think i might stop nutrafol. But i dont think MIN might cause me to lose even more hair.

Because i was on MIN for quite some time before i hopped on finasteride. But ofcos i did use diff brands of MIN (now im on Kirkland)

 

[Depresszed_Hairloss123]

You are unlikely to get a definitive helpful answer as your case will be specific to yourself.

You will still be kind of stuck with one of these trial and error options that no doubt you have probably already thought of.

1)Stop everything.
2)Stop everything apart from finasteride & zinc picolinate
3)keep adding everything and the kitchen sink.
4)Get some blood work and see if it highlights anything useful.
5)Don't change anything & carry on with what you are doing

I think i will get a blood test done to check my T and DHT levels. Anything else i should check?

But i think i will keep on using stemoxidyine and Oral Min because now my hairline is recceding again

 

[Depresszed_Hairloss123]

Im getting the general sense that somehow finasteride is causing me to recede even more, so now im thinking of slowing stopping it and see if the effect will reverse...

Ill probably lower the dosage gradually

 

[20YearsOnFin]

But i dont think MIN might cause me to lose even more hair.

Its not necessarily just the min, but some ingredients in topicals can inflame peoples scalps and cause hair loss to appear worse (but if you have already switched to oral then that wont be a problem)

Im getting the general sense that somehow finasteride is causing me to recede even more so now im thinking of slowing stopping it and see if the effect will reverse...

It may well be there are others on here that have reported similar things.

Generally when people stop finasteride they will only lose the hair that finasteride has been artificially holding in, so for somebody who has been on finasteride for decades stopping it will be rapid and catastrophic for their hair.

For people who have only been on it for one year, that difference is likely to be far smaller or may not be noticeable.

The catch 22 with stopping finasteride or dutasteride early on, is you don't want to stop it mid way through when its 'still actually trying to work"

if its caused peoples hair to shed or thin temporally, stopping it part way into this process will often mean that the temporary loss wont be reversed.

It's a difficult call either way, as everyone reacts slightly differently, so there are no hard and fast rules.

 

[20YearsOnFin]

I think i will get a blood test done to check my T and DHT levels. Anything else i should check?

There's some other guys on here more knowledgeable than myself on that subject, so hopefully somebody else can add some advise.

 

[Depresszed_Hairloss123]

Its not necessarily just the min, but some ingredients in topicals can inflame peoples scalps and cause hair loss to appear worse (but if you have already switched to oral then that wont be a problem)


It may well be there are others on here that have reported similar things.

Generally when people stop finasteride they will only lose the hair that finasteride has been artificially holding in, so for somebody who has been on finasteride for decades stopping it will be rapid and catastrophic for their hair.

For people who have only been on it for one year, that difference is likely to be far smaller or may not be noticeable.

The catch 22 with stopping finasteride or dutasteride early on, is you don't want to stop it mid way through when its 'still actually trying to work"

if its caused peoples hair to shed or thin temporally, stopping it part way into this process will often mean that the temporary loss wont be reversed.

It's a difficult call either way, as everyone reacts slightly differently, so there are no hard and fast rules.

Problem is that I did not have any shedding, if anything my hairfall has actually reduced. I dont think finasteride will cause thinning tho, and for my case my hair has been going downhill since last july so if anything its not getting better

But bc my hairfall is less, i do think finasteride is working, but just that on my hairline its just making it worst..

I wanna stop finasteride but i am afraid that it might make it even worst... so im thinking of gradually lowering the dose and easing it out of my system

 

[Depresszed_Hairloss123]

There's some other guys on here more knowledgeable than myself on that subject, so hopefully somebody else can add some advise.

Thanks! Really appreciate the help

On my last post u adviced me to change to another brand of finasteride and i thought that was the reason...

But now i am recedding again even on the brand propecia and on the same batch... So i really dont know man

This is depressing

 

[Depresszed_Hairloss123]

If there is anyone else out there who knows why this is happening pls help...

 

[20YearsOnFin]

On my last post u adviced me to change to another brand of finasteride and i thought that was the reason...

But now i am recedding again even on the brand propecia and on the same batch... So i really dont know man

How long ago did you change?

 

[Depresszed_Hairloss123]

I dont think that im having this reflex hyperandrogenicty since i dont have increased acne or burning scalp sensation

Which means that my androgens arent mor

How long ago did you change?

Dec 13

And it actually worked for a few months until April where i started to recede again. Fast

 

[Depresszed_Hairloss123]

I dont think that im having this reflex hyperandrogenicty since i dont have increased acne or burning scalp sensation

Which means that my androgens arent becoming more sensitive or upregulated..

Which means that if i stopped taking it the effects should reverse right?...

 

[Depresszed_Hairloss123]

Oh and im getting the zinc piloraite that you suggested, maybe it'll help

 

[20YearsOnFin]

Dec 13

Hair grows in cycles, so often what your hair is doing today is a result of any changes that happened 3 months ago.

So you are kind of left with the 2 options, either the Propecia is doing exactly what its meant to be doing 4 months in, which is its making your hair look worse before it looks better.

Or you are one of the people who don't respond to finasteride and would be better off not taking it?

I would still be inclined to stay on it a while longer and see if it improves as 4 months is not long enough to draw any conclusions from.

But like I said its your call, as its not an easy decision to correctly advise on.

 

[Depresszed_Hairloss123]

Hair grows in cycles, so often what your hair is doing today is a result of any changes that happened 3 months ago.

So you are kind of left with the 2 options, either the Propecia is doing exactly what its meant to be doing 4 months in, which is its making your hair look worse before it looks better.

Or you are one of the people who don't respond to finasteride and would be better off not taking it?

I would still be inclined to stay on it a while longer and see if it improves as 4 months is not long enough to draw any conclusions from.

But like I said its your call, as its not an easy decision to correctly advise on.

Im guessing that its making it worst.

I experienced the exact same thing arnd Nov last year whereby there was a sudden increase recession without any shedding, and back then i was still on the Stercia brand of finasteride..

Is it possible that since finasteride increased my T, my hair is reacting to it now? Since T also causes androgenitc effects and genetically i may be more prone to T rather than DHT?

 

[20YearsOnFin]

Is it possible that since finasteride increased my T, my hair is reacting to it now? Since T also causes androgenitc effects and genetically i may be more prone to T rather than DHT?

I've no Idea, there are several threads on here where people report 5-Ari's accelerate or increases hair loss.

But I've never read a study on it so I don't know the exact cause.

 

[SoonToBeBaldEgg]

At least you didn't get gyno