What should my expectations be with finasteride? (Pics)

[PappinAce]

I've been going bald for about 2.5 years, and just last week I've officially determined that it's male pattern baldness. I have a massive bald spot on the crown, thinning on the right temple, and diffuse thinning all over the top. Pics are included. My hair is wet and under harsh light in them.

Such a superficial thing shouldn't bother me, but it really is devastating! A lot of us are going through the same thing. It's tough to accept that I've gone from a handsome guy to this, in such a short amount of time (the last pic is from fall 2012, I think before any hair loss or just at the beginning). Even more frustrating is that NOBODY, not males or females since my great-grandparents generation, showed even a HINT of hair loss! They could all grow beards too, which I cannot. I got so lucky in the gene pool, eh? :turned:

I went to the hair club for a free consultation and they recommended the extreme hair therapy, but I'm not about to commit thousands of dollars to that. From the research I've done, it seems all that stuff can be purchased online for like 1/50 of the price. I keep reading that Minoxidl is effective, but it's more of a superficial solution. I'm leaning more toward something like Proscar, because it actually regrows the hair. Two questions about it though:

1. Where can I get it? How can I know, before going to a dermatologist, whether or not they will prescribe it? Propecia is more specific to treating hair loss, but it's out of my price range, and Proscar cut into pieces does the same thing.

2. What sort of results should I expect? Will I simply keep the hair I have now, or will it actually regrow the hairs I used to have in the thinning areas?

It's tough to commit myself to schoolwork and jobs when this is always in the back of my mind. I don't have the face to pull off baldness! I might have to come to terms with it.

Thanks for reading, and for any advice / support you offer!

 

[Virginityrocks]

One of three things will happen:

1. You will regrow hair
2. You will keep what you have left
3. You will lose hair faster

Propecia can be prescribed by any general practitioner (at least in Canada, assuming US as well) and they will usually write you a prescription just because you asked for one.

I highly recommend you give yourself a buzz cut before starting, for the sake of keeping your hair off your mind while it sheds and regrows, and seeing how you look with shorter hair before committing to the risks of side effects. You may look better bald than you think. And if you do look fine, and your friends think you look fine, then maybe you can spare yourself the burden of hairloss treatments altogether.

I personally experienced side effects and stopped taking the drug after 9 months. I was very optimistic, but ultimately your mental and physical health trumps your own insecurities. And remember, generally all women over the age of 25 put a man's hair below personality, physical strength, and energy level. Don't undermine your other characteristics in the name of a good hair style. It's optimum to have everything, but you can still achieve great success without hair. The mental struggle of hairloss is greater than the physical one.

 

[PappinAce]

Don't undermine your other characteristics in the name of a good hair style. It's optimum to have everything, but you can still achieve great success without hair. The mental struggle of hairloss is greater than the physical one.

Most definitely! Even thinking logically and knowing all this is true, it's still tough to deal with :/ mostly because we associate hair with youth, and at 27 I feel too young to let go of my youth.

Propecia can be prescribed by any general practitioner (at least in Canada, assuming US as well) and they will usually write you a prescription just because you asked for one.

So it doesn't have to be a dermatologist? I'm a student and I only have insurance for emergency procedures. If I were to give Proscar a try, would you happen to know how much it costs out of pocket, with no insurance?

 

[Virginityrocks]

In canada I pay/paid 80 dollars for 300 days worth of proscar. I imagine in the US it is significantly higher.

 

[Folliman]

I've been on finasteride a bit over a month and I think it's already thickening existing hairs, not a cosmetically significant difference yet though. People say you reach your peak at the 2 year mark so I'm staying positive. Finasteride will not likely regrow hair in areas where you are already bald, except for a few lucky people. But since you still have a lot of hair, you can give it as shot for thickening. It's known to work well specially on the crown!

AVOID HAIR CLUBS. They will pressure you into giving them money with confidence tricks and sell you overpriced products that you can get for a lot cheaper.

 

[balding2early]

In canada I pay/paid 80 dollars for 300 days worth of proscar. I imagine in the US it is significantly higher.

Woah bro how did you get that did your doctor prescribe you proscar?

Im paying $130 for 90 day supply of finasteride 1mg

 

[PappinAce]

I've been on finasteride a bit over a month and I think it's already thickening existing hairs, not a cosmetically significant difference yet though. People say you reach your peak at the 2 year mark so I'm staying positive. Finasteride will not likely regrow hair in areas where you are already bald, except for a few lucky people. But since you still have a lot of hair, you can give it as shot for thickening. It's known to work well specially on the crown!

AVOID HAIR CLUBS. They will pressure you into giving them money with confidence tricks and sell you overpriced products that you can get for a lot cheaper.

Right, even on "bald spots" there are still velus hairs or hairs in transition that make you look bald. Finasteride thickens those into healthy hairs again, right? I'm guessing I have a lot of those fine hairs throughout my scalp where you can see the diffuse thinning, which finasteride can still likely save.

 

[Folliman]

I wish good luck to your little soldiers, hope they get stronger.

 

[Virginityrocks]

Even in areas that are bald, preserving the hairs you still have will significantly decrease the cost of a hair transplant if you choose to fill in those lost areas. Not all is lost.

Woah bro how did you get that did your doctor prescribe you proscar?

Im paying $130 for 90 day supply of finasteride 1mg

Where abouts? I'm in the NWT, and we may have a more subsidized territorial healthcare system than, say, Ontario. 75 pills of proscar at 5mg split into 1/4ths lasts 300 days at 90 dollars after GST for me.

 

[balding2early]

Even in areas that are bald, preserving the hairs you still have will significantly decrease the cost of a hair transplant if you choose to fill in those lost areas. Not all is lost.



Where abouts? I'm in the NWT, and we may have a more subsidized territorial healthcare system than, say, Ontario. 75 pills of proscar at 5mg split into 1/4ths lasts 300 days at 90 dollars after GST for me.

Damn I live in Ontario I wanna ask my doctor for proscar but I don't know if he would be up for it.

 

[PappinAce]

Damn I live in Ontario I wanna ask my doctor for proscar but I don't know if he would be up for it.

Try calling a dermatologist's office and asking a medical assistant if they're willing to prescribe you the generic finasteride. That way you find out before you go in and spend the copay. Just mention that propecia is out of your budget. Most doctors should have no reason not to, considering it's the same active ingredient.

UPDATE: I just started taking finasteride this week. Quick question: lots of people are using the "big 3" of minoxidl and nizoral in combination with finasteride. Will this make any difference in the quality / quantity of regrowth in the long run, or will it simply make the process move faster? For now I'm just going to stick with finasteride alone. Would I theoretically get the same results as big 3 users, just slower?