Unsure about how to go about treating my hairloss.

[Moormada]

Hi, to start things off, I'm a 19 year old male in the Cincinnati area. Recently, my hairline seems to be receding quite quicker than I anticipated. On my dad's side, all the men have full heads of hair. However, on my mother's side, all of the men are at the horseshoe stage, and started losing their hair at my age.

Well, I've done quite a bit of reading over the past two months, and I've decided that regardless of whether my current loss is due simply to a maturing hairline, I'd like to start finasteride and maybe even menoxidil treatment. Most sources say that starting propecia around my age gives me a high chance of retaining all or most of the hair I currently have. Honestly, I would be overjoyed with that. But, I can't find anywhere or anyone to get a consultation about my hairloss, let alone a prescription for the drug.

I'm very interested in getting my hair mapped for miniaturization as well, but it seems as if the nearest place that offers that is on the west coast. I called Bosley to schedule a consultation thinking they'd be able to perform the test, and they'd never even heard of it and told me I'd have to go to Chicago for a Propecia prescription! They seem to be nothing more than money-grubbers from my experience.

So, my question to you all is, where's the first place I should start on my path to hair maintenance and recovery? And is miniaturization mapping bogus, or what? Any help would be appreciated, and the sooner I find anything out the better

Thanks all,
Moormada

 

[jh]

You certainly don't need to go all the way to Chicago to find a doctor to prescribe you Propecia. You could start with a family doctor or a dermatologist. On the Propecia webpage (do a google search), you can find a list of doctors in you area that will prescribe it - I'm certain there are some in Ohio. I looked and found a number near Columbus.

Don't know about the mapping - why do you think you need it?

 

[Moormada]

Oh, also some additional info. I appear to be a progressive Norwood II, with extensive shedding occuring. I generally find about 20-30 hairs in my towel after I shower, and every time I run my fingers through my hair I usually pull my hand out with 2-3 hairs stuck to it. I don't want to even look at my pillow.

I don't seem to be losing any on the crown, but I've got relatively long hair for a male, so it's hard to tell. But my hairline has without a doubt receded. Looking at it up close, I can still see two or three stragglers per horizontal inch from where it used to be.

Some more questions I'd like to ask, too:

How effective are off-brand treatments? I mean, is it necessary to stick with Rogaine and Propecia? I'm a college student, struggling financially. I've got a decent job, pays about 9 an hour, but I don't work as many hours as I'd like to. It seems that Propecia would be around $60ish a month and Rogaine would be around $30. I think I could afford that, but if off-brand substitutes are proven to work just as well, I'd rather go for the cheaper stuff.

Also, with the shedding that occurs during the early stages of treatment, I see a lot of people saying that you should buzz your head. Is this because your hair just looks flat out goofy because of the shedding? Or just for your own peace of mind by not seeing a ton of hair fall out?

And the big three are minoxidil, finasteride, and Nizoral? How essential is Nizoral? I had never even heard of it before I came to these forums. What exactly does it do?

And on the subject of Finasteride, when you say it helps you maintain the hair you have now... Does that include hairline recession? I'm sorry if the answers to these questions are fairly obvious, but everything I read is fairly vague. I know there is very little chance of regrowing my hairline, and I'm fine with where it is now... but should it recede any more I'll probably go crazy

I don't know, I guess I wouldn't be so freaked out, but my hair is probably my favorite feature. I'm the guitarist for a rock band that has a fairly visual look, and I don't want to be known as the bald member :cry: Especially at 19. This is all fairly recent too. I never worried about it until people started pointing out my receding hairline to me.

I apologize for not having any pictures for you guess to make assessments to or anything. I don't have a camera at my dorm, but I go home on weekends so I should have some up by Sunday.

Also, sorry for being so spazzy, but when you're a college student with little to do but work, do homework, and worry about your hairline... it gets a little depressing :lol:

 

[Moormada]

You certainly don't need to go all the way to Chicago to find a doctor to prescribe you Propecia. You could start with a family doctor or a dermatologist. On the Propecia webpage (do a google search), you can find a list of doctors in you area that will prescribe it - I'm certain there are some in Ohio. I looked and found a number near Columbus.

Don't know about the mapping - why do you think you need it?

Thanks for the info. Every time I try to find a doctor for it, I just get recommended for a consultation at Bosley, and quite frankly they're no help.

The mapping is a technique invented by Dr. Rassman of the New Hair Institute. What it does is take a microscope view of your scalp in places where balding generally occurs (cro...w.baldingblog.com/2006/08/04/m ... ization-2/

In retrospect, just posting the link would have saved me a lot of typing

 

[Follically Challenged]

Order some Proscar online at www. elite net pharmacy .com and you'll save a lot of money. Just cut the 5 mg tablets into 4ths. Not only will you save money, you'll be using 1.25 mg of finasteride instead of 1 mg, which can only help your hairloss. Plus you won't have to waste your time seeing a doctor.

Now, if you don't have a credit card, just go to a walk-in clinic.

 

[jh]

Let me give it a try:

I think people advise cutting hair short because it makes thinning less noticeable.

Not everyone sheds. Some do. In my case I noticed an increase in hair fall out, but nothing noticeable in terms of hair coverage.

You can save money my cutting your pills in half or in quarters - the results in DHT suppression are very close with 1 mg, 0.5 mg. and .025 of finasteride. (Try a forum search and you can find the exact numbers). You can get generic minoxidil for about $6 a month at Target or Kirkland brand for
about $7 a month on Amazon. (You can use both for as little as $22/month).

finasteride helps with hairline recession, minoxidil works on the hairline as well.

Personally, if you know you have hairloss and want to treat it, I don't see the value of the mapping. With pictures you can gauge how treatment is going and make adjustments accordingly.

You can read more here: http://www.gourmetstylewellness.com/research/me ... nt1men.htm

 

[jh]

Nizoral is an anti-dandruff shampoo and anti-fungal that aids scalp health and helps reduce itching from min and finasteride. It is also a mild antiandrogen.

You may consider finasteride and nizoral and hold off on the minoxidil for now......

 

[Moormada]

Thanks very much guys, any input is GREATLY appreciated.

So, with a bit of luck, and sufficient doses of minoxidil and finasteride (whether they be OTC, off-brand, name brand, what have you), I can almost surely maintain the hair I have now, and possibly regrow some of the hair I've lost?

 

[dietcola]

if your a nw2, then i would recommend starting treatment right away. maybe post some pics if you can. i started finasteride 1.5 months ago and rogaine foam one week ago. so far i have noticed some shedding but nothing that i've been the least bit concerned about. rogaine foam can be bought on ebay for pretty cheap.

 

[Moormada]

Norwood 2 doesn't necessarily mean balding though right? Almost all adult males receive a mature hairline. Bill Clinton being among one of the exceptions, who retained a juvenial hairline.

 

[s.a.f]

Yes many guys receed to nw2 at your age and suffer no further loss. But the change from juevenile hairline to adult hairline is enough to convince them they are going bald. (understandable though). Keep an eye out though for any thinning areas or receeding further than nw2 which could be a sign that it is actualy m.p.b.

 

[The Gardener]

Excellent advice in saf's post above.

Remember, shedding and male pattern baldness are two completely different things.

I think you might have a mild case of some maturing recession... many people get this when they reach a certain age, and it is often not worth worrying about unless it seems to be getting worse, or your scalp gets irritated. Mature recession IS a form of male pattern baldness, but not all people who have traces of male pattern baldness such as a mature recession go on to more advanced states of baldness.

As for your shed hairs, no worries there. Shedding is NOT a measure of male pattern baldness activity, as ALL humans go through periods of hair shedding. They usually pass in the course of a month or two.

Start up using some Nizoral shampoo 2-3 times a week. This is a GREAT first step for a person experiencing some initial changes in the hair. Use the nizoral, and continue to examine your scalp over the next three months. Your scalp should stabilize. If you start to notice more aggressive or visually noticeable thinning (noticeable to another party, that is) OR if you develop any sense of itching or irritation in the thinning areas, then report back here for some follow up advice.

Chances are a wait of a few months, plus Nizoral use, will probably get your scalp back into shape.

 

[Moormada]

You guys are a great help, thanks a bunch ot everyone who has contributed. I know that doctors are a great source for information, but I feel like I can get better advice from you all since you're all either going through or have gone through what I'm experiencing and are veterans in ways to combat it.

I'm sorry if it seems like I'm asking you to hold my hand through all of this, but I'm just really unsure about how to do the things I need to do. And it's really starting to affect my daily life. I spend an upwards of two hours a day staring at my hairline, and I notice myself subconciously staring at people's hairlines when I talk to them instead of staring into their eyes.

So, what I need to do is:

1. See a doctor about my hairloss, and talk about a possible prescription to Finasteride, maybe even minoxidil.
2. Buy Nizoral regardless.
3. Stop worrying and just see how things turn out because I've done all I can do and there's no use worrying about the inevitable.

That all looks good on paper, but I just don't know where to go for any of that. The only doctor I've seen in years is my capus medical center, and something tells me they're not the right place to go. I assume that a plain old doctor's office really isn't the place to go either. So where should I go? A Dermatologist? And can he determine if I'm balding or not? Also, I've heard that one of the most important aspects of fighting hairloss is catching it early. If the treatment works for me, do I have a good chance of maintaining all the hair I currently have?

When and if he prescibes me to Finasteride, I have a few questions about that too...

Okay, so Finasteride is PROVEN to at least slow male pattern baldness in most cases. Some sources, such as Dr. Rassman's balding blog, say that finasteride doesn't help to stop a receding hairline. Which, at the time, is the focal point of my worries. From your experience, did it help with hairline recession? And regarding hairloss treatment in general... Am I safe with going with an off-brand? I mean, the only important thing is that the medication contains finasteride, minoxidil, etc.. Right or wrong?

Say I get prescribed, where would is the best place to buy what ever medication he prescribes me to? And which medications have worked best for you all? I hear people say Proscar and higher doses of Finasteride in general have been more effective than Propecia alone. And for minoxidil, should I just stick with Rogaine?

I guess what I'm asking is, what brand of what medications should I look into buying? And where should I buy them from?

And as for Nizoral, where should I order that? Just the internet?


Thanks so much guys, you really are a great help.

 

[dietcola]

your 3 steps look perfect to me.

a dermatologist is the type of doctor you should see if you don't have a family physician. they deal with baldness regularly.

catching your hair loss early is important in treatment, but doesn't happen very often because people just think they're getting a "mature hairline" until they are half bald and should have started years earlier. or by the time they are old enough to treat it, they are half bald already. you get my point. if you have a family history of balding on either side of the family then it's safe to say there is a decent possibility that you will have it.

yes finasteride is proven to halt, slow down hair loss, and sometimes even regrow lost hair in most people. i don't know what the rate is of people who don't respond at all but it's relatively low. finasteride CAN help with hairline recession and has been seen to in the past.

you can buy an off brand of finasteride or minoxidil, i'm on proscar, and rogaine foam. some are on finscar and kirkland minoxidil. it's all good, each med has pros and cons, price, ease of use. all these brands work well, not just propecia and rogaine.

you can buy finasteride at a drug store with your perscription, or online. you can buy minoxidil at costco, walmart, i dunno where you live but at alot of places. or order it, it's cheaper online.