4 years on finasteride and Rogaine [NEWEST pics page 14, May 12 '12]

Rawtashk

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4 years on finasteride and Rogaine [NEWEST pics page 17, Sep 4 '12]

(EDIT: It's been over a year since I made this original post. I've tried to keep things updated, but I can't constantly put new pictures on this first post. I try to put the page of the most recent pictures in the post title, and the date that I posted them as well. I'm updating this today [May 12, 2012] to include a picture of my half-brother and younger brother and what their hairloss is, just to give you more of a clear picture of how aggressive male pattern baldness is in our family. I try to stay active, so feel free to ask me any questions!)

Baldness runs in my family. 1 of my mother's brothers is a NW6 at 45 years old, her other brother is a solid NW4 at 47 years old.

My dad is NW6
5769_1150966013014_1193520550_30584512_6232315_n.jpg


My older brother was NW5 at 23 years old
rx.jpg


My older half-brother is 43, and this is his head
MsLyV.jpg


My younger brother's hair looked like this at 23
86jpr.jpg


I've always had REALLY thick hair. Like, I could never pull off the Justin Beiber or Zac Effron look 'cause my hair just *poofs* when it dries. (side note, I can't stand either of those guys....it's just a hairstyle example)

I think I started noticing my hair falling out when I was about 18 or so. It wasn't anything super horrible, but I was noticing more and more hairs in my hands after I would shampoo my hair. It got to the point that I would see a decent amount in the towel after I dried my hair also.

I moved out on my own (actually with 2 friends) when I was 21, and then I REALLY started noticing it in the tub drain catch. I didn't know much about hair loss, but I know about propecia. I read up about it online...but happened across "propeciahelp" forums. That scared the **** out of me, so I got rogaine instead.

Now, at this point I hadn't even started to think about the hair going on my crown, I was just looking at the hairline. I was putting Rogaine on the hairline and that was it.

Jump forwards 2 years. I had just gotten back from a weekend at my girlfriend's parents' farm (who are now my in-laws). My boss was standing over my shoulder instructing me how to create firewall and VPN rules. I can remember his remark like it was yesterday.....
"You must have spent the weekend outside. It looks like your thin spot got a little sunburned."
:shock: :shock:

I instantly ran into the bathroom to take a picture of the top of my head. I was shocked.
before.jpg


Now, you might say "that's not bad", and it probably isn't. But I was 24, it freaked me out. Also, there were WORSE pictures than that, but I've since lost that old phone and the photos that were on it. Trust me, seeing it from the top down (instead of an angle like that) was MUCH worse. You could easily see the scalp.

So, a few days later I got a haircut (thinking that having my hair "down" was making it more visable) and went back to my old "spiky" look. I figured that the messed up hair would cover the thin spot a bit better. I was wrong
before2.jpg


You can easily see the thinning, even on a picture with poor resolution. The next day I tried it with some product in it and kind of messed it up forward, hoping that would cover it some more. MEGA WRONG!
before3.jpg


I went ahead and bit the bullet with finasteride. I ordered it from 4rx.com the very same day that my boss made the "thin spot" comment. I got it back in May of '08 and started into it as soon as it arrived.

Initially I had some "ball ache", and it freaked me the hell out. "Propeciahelp" was still fresh in my mind, so I ended up cutting the pills in half. The ache subsided after about a week or so (which, in retrospect, probably would have happened had I stuck with the 1mg dosage.)

So, 3 years later....no sides. Never had a problem getting it up, still horny as usual (probably jack off more now than I did 3 years ago), no brainfog. So, was it worth it? I dunno, you tell me

Wet hair 3 months ago
now.jpg


Dry hair 2 months ago
now3.jpg


Dry hair last month
now2.jpg



My hairline has not regrown, and I've seen a gradual loss...but it is NOTHING like what it used to be. Whereas I would get hair on my towel when I'd dry off, I now get nothing. I would put conditioner in my hair and be able to count 20+ hairs, but now I get a couple or so. The hair trap in the tub would catch probably 50-70+ hairs (the stainless steel kind with large holes in it), but I now get even less than that and I've switched to a plastic one with MUCH smaller holes.

I have no doubt that I would be much MUCH balder than I am now if I hadn't jumped on the finasteride, and I'm glad that I did.


What did I use?
1: finasteride, .5mg every day
2: Rogain foam, at LEAST 1x a day, usually 2
3: Nizoral 1% shampoo almost every day
4: Nioxin hair system shampoo and conditioner


I have now switched off to dutasteride and am trying minoxidil 15% and spironolactone S5 on the hairline to see if I can get some of my hairline back. I do a lot of local acting, and me and about 4 other friends are going to make the move to LA next year and try our luck. I know you don't HAVE to have hair to make it out there...but it sure as hell helps. I'm not Patrick Steward or Jason Statham :-/
 

TheGrayMan2001

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Re: 3 years on finasteride and Rogaine (with pics)

Nice job! Keep us updated on your new regimen and tell us if it works out for you. If you find any way to post hairline pics I'm sure people here would appreciate that too.
 

Rawtashk

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Re: 3 years on finasteride and Rogaine (with pics)

I'm really not sure when I noticed the crown filling in a bit more. I would take a picture of my hair probably 4-5 times a DAY when I first started, I was that troubled by it. I didn't notice anything for the first few months, and then I kinda just forgot about it (the whole "a watched pot never boils" concept). I think I really noticed that it was a bit fuller probably 6-8 months after I started.

Also, it's still thinner than the rest of my hair, but I now have enough there that I have decent coverage. It's not a miracle drug that is guaranteed to regrow 100% of your hair. Just remember, it's 500x easier to MAINTAIN hair than it is to regrow. I wish I could turn back the clock to when I was 22 so that I could start before there was any noticeable loss.
 

mothernature

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Re: 3 years on finasteride and Rogaine (with pics)

your brother looks double his age due to his hair loss, and you look much much younger due to ur hair. Its weird isnt it. Anyway great success i was actually shocked to see ur hair after first seeing ur dad and ur brother wereNW6 i was expecting u to be NW3-4 but u seem to be quite lucky so far keep it up :punk:
 

terrapin12

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Re: 3 years on finasteride and Rogaine (with pics)

mothernature said:
your brother looks double his age due to his hair loss, and you look much much younger due to ur hair. Its weird isnt it. Anyway great success i was actually shocked to see ur hair after first seeing ur dad and ur brother wereNW6 i was expecting u to be NW3-4 but u seem to be quite lucky so far keep it up :punk:

I hate to nitpick here, but don't insult his brother by saying he looks 46. He looks older, but not nearly that old (I'd go with 30). There's clearly a pessimistic attitude on this board, something that needs changing if anyone here is going to get on with their lives.

But to the OP: Congrats man. You're living the dream haha
 

Tyler_Durden

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Re: 3 years on finasteride and Rogaine (with pics)

terrapin12 said:
mothernature said:
your brother looks double his age due to his hair loss, and you look much much younger due to ur hair. Its weird isnt it. Anyway great success i was actually shocked to see ur hair after first seeing ur dad and ur brother wereNW6 i was expecting u to be NW3-4 but u seem to be quite lucky so far keep it up :punk:

I hate to nitpick here, but don't insult his brother by saying he looks 46. He looks older, but not nearly that old (I'd go with 30). There's clearly a pessimistic attitude on this board, something that needs changing if anyone here is going to get on with their lives.

But to the OP: Congrats man. You're living the dream haha

If he thinks his brother looks 46, why shouldn't he say it? No use sugarcoating the situation.
Pretty sure he was just saying it for effect anyway. Yeah he probably doesn't actually look double his age, but the point is the same; he looks significantly older without hair.
 

cristi2011

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Re: 3 years on finasteride and Rogaine (with pics)

Good results!
I agree with the fact that there's too much pessimism here... even the page is set so that, when you enter, those hairloss stories and pictures pop right in front of you...i don't think this helps at all...
And about the brother, the dude doesn't look bad at all, in spite of his hair loss.
 

moseymoose

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Re: 3 years on finasteride and Rogaine (with pics)

thanks for linking me to this post dude, it's calmed my nerves a little.

My hair isn't as thin as yours was at 24. Since I'm only 20, but I get about 30-40ish hairs come out in the shower, though I get more without the use of Nizoral.

In light of your experience however, I'm more inclined to give this a go. Just a little worried about side effects, naturally. I'm just wondering when I should stop using it if I do get them. You said you got "ball ache" did you at any point experience any loss of sex drive.
If not, then if I do find this side, I should stop it right away if I don't want the side to persist?

Also, It's a good point you made about the negative posting online of those that have bad dealing with it. People with success aren't going to be shouting about it all over the internet I guess. I'm just glad you did, and you got some real great results. You're hair looks pretty thick now.
 

Rawtashk

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Re: 3 years on finasteride and Rogaine (with pics)

I was single when I started on finasteride, so I can't give you a side-by-side comparison, but I didn't notice any decreased sex drive when I started having regular sex again (ask my wife, I'm sure she'll tell you that sometimes she wishes I suffered from reduced sex-drive).

No one can really say "At this exact point you should stop on finasteride" 'cause it will be different with every person. For me I would say that a small dip in sex drive wouldn't be a deal breaker. I'd rather have hair on my head and have a little less sex. Now, if I couldn't get it up, I would get off the finasteride right away. But, in case you're wondering, I've never had a problem getting it up. If I think I'm about to have sex...well, I'm good to go in a couple of seconds :punk:

Ball ache is a pretty common side. It's to be expected, seeing as how your testes are what produce the testosterone and they have to regulate it again since it's being messed with. I equate it to when you start working out. Let's say you do 20 pushups a day to start with. Day 1 you're gonna be sore. By day 20, probably not.
(I know it's not a perfect example, cut me some slack)

If ball ache is unacceptable to you, then you should stop. If not, then push through. You know your body best, but I would also encourage you to not associate every little thing with finasteride (which you will be doing if you're constantly obsession over potential sides).
 

Johnx

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Re: 3 years on finasteride and Rogaine (with pics)

Rawtask, I'm also interested in your Rogaine routine. Do you apply it twice a day? Foam or Liquid?

I'm only my third month on Rogaine, but I was wondering, maybe after satisfactory regrowth is reached, once a day for maintenance would be enough? ('cause Rogaine application is such a PITA...)
 

holdfasthope

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Re: 3 years on finasteride and Rogaine (with pics)

Moseymoose if you're umming and arring about getting on finasteride then you know deep down that you will eventually try it, your hair doesn't look bad at all but trust me if you're losing hairs like you say you are then it won't be long before you think that you really need to do something about it and once you do you wish you would have done it months ago.

I was in your position a year ago and it took me 6 months to finally man the fk up and get on the finasteride and I started in October, I regret ever wasting the months debating whether or not to get on it cause as previously mentioned, it's easier to maintain than regrow and if you're got male pattern baldness then you're constantly losing. I've noticed definite improvement since I've started and it's most noticeable when really wet (no longer easy to see scalp)

As OP says, you get ballache at the start but that seems common, and you get watery jizz. Apart from that all else is good, I'm a healthy 23yr old with a rampant sex life.

Give it a try, Nizoral alone will do NOTHING. I wish my hair was as thick as yours when I realised what was going on, but I can't go back and tell my 20 year old self to start taking some drug!

Peace
 

moseymoose

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Re: 3 years on finasteride and Rogaine (with pics)

holdfasthope said:
Moseymoose if you're umming and arring about getting on finasteride then you know deep down that you will eventually try it, your hair doesn't look bad at all but trust me if you're losing hairs like you say you are then it won't be long before you think that you really need to do something about it and once you do you wish you would have done it months ago.

I was in your position a year ago and it took me 6 months to finally man the fk up and get on the finasteride and I started in October, I regret ever wasting the months debating whether or not to get on it cause as previously mentioned, it's easier to maintain than regrow and if you're got male pattern baldness then you're constantly losing. I've noticed definite improvement since I've started and it's most noticeable when really wet (no longer easy to see scalp)

As OP says, you get ballache at the start but that seems common, and you get watery jizz. Apart from that all else is good, I'm a healthy 23yr old with a rampant sex life.

Give it a try, Nizoral alone will do NOTHING. I wish my hair was as thick as yours when I realised what was going on, but I can't go back and tell my 20 year old self to start taking some drug!

Peace

Well I wished I'd done something about it 8 months ago when I started noticing my hairloss because I had quite a considerable shed, it was almost instant hairloss like it just kicked in. Since then I've been gradually losing. But even though sometimes I contemplate, it's never enough to make me go out and get this drug. Adding to the fact I can't get any doctor to prescribe it to me and they want me at home to prescribe it, I can't go home because I live at college. SO I gave up bothing trying to get it because GP's make it so effing difficult to get what you should be allowed to have, and I've ordered some spironolactone cream even though it's going to take bloody ages to get here because it's in too much demand and its out of stock for weeks. And then I'm going to get some RU58841 when I can.

I was convinced by finasteride when I first read this thread, but then I thought, why? Why risk sides and why should I have ball ache because I have male pattern baldness. I would rather pay £600 a year for RU than pay a tenth of that for finasteride to have ball ache.

finasteride is my last option, I won't take it unless I literally have no other option.

I'm quite an obsessive person when I notice something like this, if I get sides with finasteride even when I start taking it, I'm likely to become obsessed by the idea of what it's doing inside my body just to save my hair.
 

Rawtashk

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Re: 3 years on finasteride and Rogaine (with pics)

The ball ache is there for a week, maybe 2. It's not persistent by any means. I feel completely normal, the only side effect that I've had from finasteride is a bit of watery semen if I but a nut quickly (totally normal if I last longer), and hair growth.

I hope you don't look back in 2 years (like I did) and go "Damnit...why didn't I start finasteride sooner!?!?"
 

moseymoose

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Re: 3 years on finasteride and Rogaine (with pics)

Rawtashk said:
The ball ache is there for a week, maybe 2. It's not persistent by any means. I feel completely normal, the only side effect that I've had from finasteride is a bit of watery semen if I but a nut quickly (totally normal if I last longer), and hair growth.

I hope you don't look back in 2 years (like I did) and go "Damnit...why didn't I start finasteride sooner!?!?"

I'm going to start minoxidil and spironolactone both 5% once a day. I'll start finasteride if I absolutely must. But I intend like I've said before to start on RU or CB.
 

Rawtashk

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Re: 3 years on finasteride and Rogaine (with pics)

It's going to be a nightmare applying spironolactone to hair as long as yours. Also, if you just do spironolactone then you'll have to somehow get it all over your scalp. Just because right now your crown is falling out doesn't mean that other follicles aren't being attacked by DHT. finasteride helps out in that fashion by reducing DHT to ALL of your follicles.

You need to not worry so much about potential sides. There's about a 97% chance that you won't get anything. There's a further 95% chance that all sides will go away within a few weeks if you keep at it. There's a FURTHER 99.8% chance that all sides will go away once you stop. Those are pretty good odds.

What if I said "I'll give you 10,000-1 odds of winning $250,000....but if you lose I'm gonna kick you in the balls as hard as I can."? Those are pretty damn good odds.

Trust me, I'm not the only one that worried to the point of sickness about taking finasteride. I remember standing there looking at that little white pill for a good 5 minutes the first time I got them. "Should I do this?" "What if....." I finally popped it in....and haven't looked back.
 

Jake97

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Re: 3 years on finasteride and Rogaine (with pics)

I think that it's also normal or in human nature that you try everything before the drug. Pretty much every success thread starts with "first noticed shedding 5 years ago didn't do anything about it..." or " I wish I had started earlier". But I think that it's normal that you check everything else before starting the drug. After all it is a drug and we're pretty much committed to it for life. So I think that it would be foolish to just jump into it without crossing out other things first.

BTW I am taking finasteride myself.
 
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