6.5 Months: Low Dose finasteride Report, Considering Higher Dose?

[gingerdude]

Figured I would chime in with my results so far.

I have been taking .25mg of finasteride/day and using 1% OTC Nizoral shampoo every other shower since July 1, 2019. Both purchased at Walmart. GoodRX made the 90 day finasteride around $22 and the nizoral is around $14 a bottle.

I switched to 2% prescription Nizoral at the end of November as my insurance has a much better price.

It's pretty much stopped my hair loss in its tracks. Very little shed at this point. Maybe some peach fuzz growth around the hairline and a little denser in the back.

I'm basically somewhere between Norwood 2 and 3 (right side is more receded) in the front and have a small thinning spot starting to show on the crown. The thinning area on top is when I finally called it and accepted it was time. I'm okay with the outcome since I caught mine decently early.

No serious side effects to report. Occasional ball ache here and there, but that might be the only thing so far.

Still debating sneaking up to .5mg a day to see if I can squeak some growth out, any thoughts?

 

[Manochoice]

Figured I would chime in with my results so far.

I have been taking .25mg of finasteride/day and using 1% OTC Nizoral shampoo every other shower since July 1, 2019. Both purchased at Walmart. GoodRX made the 90 day finasteride around $22 and the nizoral is around $14 a bottle.

I switched to 2% prescription Nizoral at the end of November as my insurance has a much better price.

It's pretty much stopped my hair loss in its tracks. Very little shed at this point. Maybe some peach fuzz growth around the hairline and a little denser in the back.

I'm basically somewhere between Norwood 2 and 3 (right side is more receded) in the front and have a small thinning spot starting to show on the crown. The thinning area on top is when I finally called it and accepted it was time. I'm okay with the outcome since I caught mine decently early.

No serious side effects to report. Occasional ball ache here and there, but that might be the only thing so far.

Still debating sneaking up to .5mg a day to see if I can squeak some growth out, any thoughts?

No erection issues?

 

[gingerdude]

Seems normal, which is why I'm considering the bump. I can always fall back.

 

[sam333]

Do you have oily scalp??

 

[gingerdude]

I wouldn't say it's any more oily than normal.

 

[Ollie]

Is the low dose purely because of side effect potential ?

 

[Topher]

You could space them out to .25 morning and evening?

 

[gingerdude]

Yes to minimize side effect potentials and save a little money.

My hair loss has been really slow and is really mild. I think I would have followed the path of my dad who just has a receded hairline with some minor thinning up top, but didn't progress into full NW7 hair loss. To the untrained eye he looks like he has almost no hair loss. That's why I think the .25mg has worked so well for me in maintaining.

Versus his brother (my uncle) who did progress the entire way. But my dad told me my uncle's hair loss was swift and in his early 20s. I'm almost 30 and mine has just been a very slow march.

My mom's side of the family doesn't seem to have hair loss.

I might try the .25 morning and evening. Just curious if I can squeak a little more hairline regrowth or not.

I do have minoxidil as another option. I have two cats, and found out it's pretty toxic to them, so I am using that as the last resort.

But I'm pretty okay with my current loss, as it can be covered up pretty effectively. Maybe at some point I will get the hairline repaired.

 

[Topher]

I don't like minoxidil it's a chemical wig, stop using it and you lose all your gains. Morning and night is also inconvenient and problematic. I'd increase finasteride, you could also do scalp massage, micro needling, improve sleep, reduce stress, eat liver, eggs, oxtail, and avocados.... Maybe inversion therapy.

 

[gingerdude]

Agreed. I don't like min because you have to keep using it and it's a pain. I can deal with a pill but having to apply topical every day sounds time consuming. But regardless it is an option I still have in the back pocket.

I think I will up my dosage of finasteride starting on the 1st.

Microneedling is another thing I have considered as well. I will *try* on some of the other things like reducing stress, but no promises. Haha.

 

[Derelict]

You could see if your doctor will prescribe you low dose oral minoxidil if the topical is a pain.