The beginnings of balding (pix included) - what should I do?

[bojangles]

You say "see if I can get a prescription for Proscar"....would there be a reason I couldn't get a prescrip for proscar? And if I should be taking 1mg a day, wouldn't 1 quarter of a 5mg pill be 1.25mg a day?

 

[Siberian]

You say "see if I can get a prescription for Proscar"....would there be a reason I couldn't get a prescrip for proscar? And if I should be taking 1mg a day, wouldn't 1 quarter of a 5mg pill be 1.25mg a day?

Proscar is "indicated" for treating enlarged prostates only, so most docs won't prescribe it for hair loss. It's the same exact drug (finasteride), just Proscar pills contain 5mg while Propecia is 1mg. Merck swears taking more than 1mg won't fight hair loss any better.

Yes, you'd be taking 1.25mg. I suppose that *slightly* increases the risks of side effects, as Proscar side effects are more common than Propecia, if I remember correctly.

 

[bojangles]

Yes, you'd be taking 1.25mg. I suppose that *slightly* increases the risks of side effects, as Proscar side effects are more common than Propecia, if I remember correctly.

Ugh, great. So how much per year is propecia?

And if they're the exact same drugs, why more side effects with proscar?

 

[Siberian]

Yes, you'd be taking 1.25mg. I suppose that *slightly* increases the risks of side effects, as Proscar side effects are more common than Propecia, if I remember correctly.

Ugh, great. So how much per year is propecia?

About $150 per 90 days (90 pills in one bottle called a ProPak) from most pharmacies, including drugstore.com. Merck usually offers a small rebate on this, like $10 or something. I forget, I never used it.

You can get it cheaper. MUCH cheaper, if you turn to more-questionable online sources.

But drugstore.com is legit, and they'll call your Doctor to do refills and so on.

 

[bojangles]

Thanks.
You might not have seen my edit-- why are there more side effects with proscar if it's the exact same drug?

 

[Siberian]

Thanks.
You might not have seen my edit-- why are there more side effects with proscar if it's the exact same drug?

You'd be taking a higher dose.

I figure if 5mg (Proscar) per day causes more sides than 1mg (Propecia) per day, I'd imagine 1.25mg (cutting Proscar into quarters) is *slightly* riskier than Propecia at 1mg.

The cool thing, as others have noted, is that side effects usually go away within a month or two, and ALWAYS go away (with the possible exception of breast growth) if you stop taking it.

I myself got the "testicular ache" side effect early on, but it went away within a few weeks and never returned.

 

[bojangles]

Oh, so it's just a matter of dosage then? Why can't you just cut the pill into five peices then? Or skip a day once or twice a week?

 

[Siberian]

Oh, so it's just a matter of dosage then? Why can't you just cut the pill into five peices then? Or skip a day once or twice a week?

Yup, just a matter of dosage. From what I hear, cutting it into 1/5ths ain't easy

Skipping... hmmm, in theory, you'd end up taking one Proscar every five days to maintain the dosage. But it's complicated. Finasteride only stays in your system for like 8-16 hours (forget which). So I have no clue what would happen or if it would be as effective.

 

[bojangles]

But I've read several posts saying that missing a few days here and there shouldn't really have any effect. So why should skipping, say, every sunday be any different?

ugh, and I keep reading posts about libido and johnson problems. I know the statistics say it's rare, but I can't help but be scared by that. Does this l-argenine stuff really work?

 

[Siberian]

ugh, and I keep reading posts about libido and johnson problems. I know the statistics say it's rare, but I can't help but be scared by that.

And right there you have the cause of the supposed libido problems. It's not the drug, it's the fear! It actually *raises* your testosterone, after all! DHT is pointless except for making us bald and making it impossible to pee

 

[Siberian]

But I've read several posts saying that missing a few days here and there shouldn't really have any effect. So why should skipping, say, every sunday be any different?

Bottom line is, we just don't know for sure. Yes, there's some data suggesting that even 1mg per day is overkill.

But the thing is, we KNOW that taking at least 1mg per day will prevent hair loss in almost everyone. Everything else is conjecture, theories, and experimentation. And once you lose hair, most of it can never be recovered. It's gone.

So if you try one pill every oother day, or generic finasteride, and so on... and come to find, six months from now, that you still lost hair.. well, it's gone forever.

So my logic is, if you can afford it, is just take the Propecia, once per day as proven, and be done with it. No worries about "am I doing the right thing," no fears of fake pills, no playing amateur endocrinologist, lol.

Sure, it's more expensive than the experiments. But having Peace Of Mind is nice

 

[Thinning]

Better start on the big 3 or you will be bald in no time.

 

[Johnny24601]

re:

Many on this board (including me) bite off a little chip (1/4 or 1/5) every morning. The dosage is not perfect but I only spend about $100 a year for my proscar.
I take 1/5 as I experienced some sides with 1/4 and I am not a very big guy to begin with. Some do not like taking the 1/4 for four days and taking a day off because the half life of finasteride is low and they want to keep a consistant dosage. I think it does not matter in the least. If you are that afraid, remember, studies conclude that finasteride dosage is not exponential so you can adjust.
Contrary to Mr. Siberian I am 100% positive that I have had the occasional labido change and semen volume change and it was not in my head. I also have had a huge reduction in body hair, but when I asked about this side effect on this board, the overwhelming majority had no change in body hair. Again, my sides barely bother me and most report no sides at all on finasteride. I also believe people invent sides. They have one night with they don't feel horney and instantly think it is the finasteride.

 

[bojangles]

Reduction in body hair, hmm....another plus. 8)

Are proscar pills easy to cut up with, say, a knife? I imagine it wouldn't matter too much if the dosage varied a bit over five days, just so long as you get the proper total dosage every five days.

 

[Johnny24601]

re:

If you cut a proscar all at once, it exposes the pills insides to the environment (especially mosture) and that degrades the pill. If you cut a sliver off each morning, I found that the pill tends to crack into tiny pieces. Biting the pill can allow some saliva particles to attach to the pill but I keep the pill covered with a small soda bottle cap ( I know that's pretty getto) to keep moisture out.
BTW, I am not at all happy about having to take a pill each day. I hate the idea of side effects or anything that changes my body chemistry. I do believe long term risks are extremely small based on some research but in the end it came down to me accepting that I did not want lose my hair or perhaps I just don't have enough self esteem to be confident when balding at a young age. I feel like my decision was also largely based on my age. now I am not going to get into a back and forth about how it is hard for any guy to lose their hair regardless of age, but I firmly believe that many younger men with male pattern baldness are unfairly made to feel ugly by our f-ed up western societies. Remeber, this is a purely genetic condiction in which we had no control over. Anyone who attempts to mock a guy for balding is just pissed of because he hates himself...........

 

[Aplunk1]

Amen, brother.

 

[DanHLT]

Thanks for the advice and support guys, I'm in the same boat as dwb although i'm married and a bit older.

I'm just wondering if anyone has had trouble creating babies while on finasteride. I want to start a family later this year but am concerned about using drugs during that time.

 

[Aplunk1]

You're totally cool, man. Go ask your doctor. There's a .00000001 that MAYBE, MAYBE something might go wrong. There's never been a case that something has gone wrong except for a rat taking 500x the normal adult dosage of finasteride having a fucked up baby.

Seriously, ask your doctor(s). There's nothing wrong with it.

 

[Johnny24601]

re:

There are memebers of this board who have had children on finasteride and they all concluded that there was no risk. From what I rememeber, no one on this board has reported problems with their baby as a result of finasteride. Personally, i would take a 2 month break from finasteride before impregnating my lady. However, i am just paranoid as the medical community has said that finasteride should not effect your child.

 

[jayC99]

.

ok