18 Years Old and dealing with hair loss

[Firebid]

Hi all, I recently discovered that my hairline had been receding for some time.. I looked at myself in older pictures and could see the change over time in my hairline. The funny thing is, up until discovering the recession, I never focused on others hair, but now all I do is draw my eyes towards peoples hair, or baldness. Now all I think about is the future of my hair. A month or so later I went to my doctor and he prescribed me 5% Rogaine, I've been using it for just over a month and the shedding has begun. I understand shedding means it is working but I am noticing shedding in areas that I am not applying it to as well, such as my crown, and I mean A LOT of shedding, it seems my crown is getting thinner and I'm starting to see scalp.. but maybe its just my imagination? My next course of action is most likely to get on Finasteride. All that occupies my mind is losing hair, and its stressing me out an unbearable amount, not to mention I am already a naturally stressful person in my first year of university. I should mention baldness is common on my father side of the family, my grandfather is fully bald. Would getting on finasteride be a good idea at my age? My doctor did recommend it at first but I hesitated because of the side effects I've found out through research. Any input, similar stories or suggestions are greatly appreciated, Thank you.

 

[GoldenMane]

Finasteride will only block the formation of dihydrotestosterone, not testosterone, and at 18 you've probably done most of your developing by now. If it was me, I'd take the finasteride, and while you're going through shedding, try some nanogen, it does wonders for thickening up thinning hair. Make sure to wash it out before applying minoxidil though, the powder can get on your scalp and block minoxidil absorption. Don't worry about the side effects,. chances are you won't have any, and even if you do, they will subside if you quit finasteride, but hopefully you won't have to do that. Good luck!

 

[Firebid]

Thanks for the reply, do you think there is a correlation between the minoxidil and shedding even where I don't apply it? I've also noticed very bad scalp itch and tingling, could that be a symptom of crown hair loss?