Absurd 1000+ Hair/day Shed, Hairs Falling Out At Record Rate

[SausageDawg]

Wow really? That's interesting. Something to think about for sure. My density is a little bit worse at the front since I started finasteride 10 months ago, but not really noticable when hair gets longer.

Who knows maybe your density hasnt even been affected.. I'm on no treatment whatsoever and I wake up some days thinking my hair looks absolutely fine and then other days I think it looks horrendously thin and sparse.. my point being that your mindset definitely affects your opinion. Good, solid photo evidence that's peer reviewed is your best bet as strangers have no reason to lie.

 

[doflamingo]

yeah...you dont wanna shed until you're head is rotten like this

 

[kafka12]

Brutal.

Anyway, still experiencing significant shedding. Lowering finasteride dose to 1mg 3x a week instead of daily. Seeing if that makes any difference.

 

[jumptr]

I had a similar experience on finasteride, though I only used to microdose 0.25mg twice a week:

A day or two after taking the first dose, I started shedding lots of thick terminal hairs. Before being on finasteride, I would only shed around 10-20 thin hairs in the shower, so it was definitely an obvious change. I remember noticing a pattern that I would shed more hairs the day after taking finasteride, and the shed would slowly reduce until my next dose. But after about 6 months of taking it this "pattern" disappeared, I would just have a constant shed of 60-70 hairs every day. I quit after 12 months of no improvement and persistent shed.

As a side note, I experienced pretty significant sides (low libido + gyno) while taking finasteride too, so it was definitely lowering DHT even at that low of a dosage.

If your hair starts to noticeably get worse and there's no sign of the shed stopping over the span of a few months, maybe take a break for a week or two and see what happens. I'd also recommend starting minoxidil and microneedling as soon as you can-- it was way more effective for me than finasteride, and the earlier you start the more hair you'll keep/regrow.

I believe understanding why finasteride causes a massive shed for some, yet fully regrows other people's hairlines to NW1 is crucial to solving this disease. There needs to be a better way of classifying male pattern baldness into different variants, so we can find the best treatment plan for ourselves instead of having to use trial and error.

 

[bluecyclone]

First post, bit of background: 5 months ago I noticed the first signs of male pattern baldness so I thought it would be smart to do something about it early on. Went to the Doctor, got a prescription for Finasteride 1.25mg/daily. Decided there was no need for minoxidil or anything else, so skipped that, hoping finasteride alone would keep balding at bay. First 3 months everything was perfectly fine, no lost ground, no lost hair. But then month 4 during a shower I noticed that there were 20-30 hairs in the tub when before there were none. Next day there were 60-70 hairs. Day after that there were a good 200.

Soon enough I was losing 700-1000 hairs a day, easily. It's just falling out at an insane rate, all over my bed, chair, keyboard, desk, floor, sink -- I have to be careful when I eat so I don't end up with hair in my teeth. It falls out from every area of my head, including the back and sides, where it shouldn't be possible to bald. I have extremely thick hair so it hasn't been too bad of a visual hit, but if it continues at this rate without stopping, I'll be slick bald in less than a year. Plenty of big, perfectly healthy hairs are falling out, so it's not just like it's sick dying strands being replaced or whatever -- and each one tapers and has a little white bulb at the end.

Called up my Doctor today and he told me he's had quite a few instances of this in his practice, but in his opinion it's "less than 10%". He said that half the men in his experience are beyond hope, while half recover. He said to keep taking the drug for another 2 months and report back then. If the massive shed continues, he says to stop taking finasteride for a month and see what happens, then maybe start up again.

The situation is so insane it's almost comical. I'm like a cat; hairs just fall out at random; I saw 3 drift down in front of my face as I typed this out. Today I switched from generic to brand Propecia in some vain hope it'll make a difference. Unlike so many other people to whom this happens, I promise to actually report back here in however many months and share my results, although I have very little hope it will get better for some reason, it's just too insane, pure madness.

Anyone else experience THIS HARDCORE of a shed for this long and live to tell the tale?

This happened to me as well. I had insane density and now I’m noticeably thin in the entire NW7 region. It is a f*****g nightmare that has driven me f*****g crazy.

 

[kafka12]

Still shedding at a decent pace, nothing like the initial 1000 daily, but definitely a couple hundred--and yet my hair seems perfectly fine. I notice no density issues and my hairline has not receded a millimeter since getting on Finasteride a year ago. Mysterious, but I'll take it?

 

[kafka12]

This happened to me as well. I had insane density and now I’m noticeably thin in the entire NW7 region. It is a f*****g nightmare that has driven me f*****g crazy.

That f*****g sucks. I'm shedding a lot but density remains the same it seems to me. I don't get it. I don't get anything anymore. Nothing makes sense to me. The world is unknowable. I've accepted the mystery, as that character says in that Coen brothers movie. =/

 

[kopiko4]

Same here.. Any recovery?
Had good results in min, but finasteride has destroyed my hair. Noticed a huge shed and the last two weeks, alongside with a big libido spike. Now thin all over, also on the sides and back...

 

[kafka12]

Same here.. Any recovery?
Had good results in min, but finasteride has destroyed my hair. Noticed a huge shed and the last two weeks, alongside with a big libido spike. Now thin all over, also on the sides and back...

I continue to shed pretty moderately, but there seems to be no density loss and no recession either. It seems like a stable situation on my part. I've sort of just accepted the increased shedding at this point, but my hair seems perfectly fine.

 

[bluecyclone]

Telogen Effluvium is a myth. Better luck having a beer with Falcor. My shedding started pre-treatments and got worse on treatments. At a similar rate. I had perfect hair when this started and now I’m a diffuse mess. This is my sink 2-3 times each day. Shower is 5x.

 

[kafka12]

Update after a long while: hair is good as ever, no noticeable thinning anywhere, still continue to shed slightly but it seems to have no impact whatsoever. Everything is stable and I'm quite happy. Good luck to everyone

 

[Catagen]

Update after a long while: hair is good as ever, no noticeable thinning anywhere, still continue to shed slightly but it seems to have no impact whatsoever. Everything is stable and I'm quite happy. Good luck to everyone

Did you stick to brand propecia?

 

[kafka12]

I did, yes. Still on the brand name

 

[Notdifferent]

Telogen Effluvium is a myth. Better luck having a beer with Falcor. My shedding started pre-treatments and got worse on treatments. At a similar rate. I had perfect hair when this started and now I’m a diffuse mess. This is my sink 2-3 times each day. Shower is 5x.

Cool apartment I guess

 

[kafka12]

Telogen Effluvium is a myth. Better luck having a beer with Falcor. My shedding started pre-treatments and got worse on treatments. At a similar rate. I had perfect hair when this started and now I’m a diffuse mess. This is my sink 2-3 times each day. Shower is 5x.

to be fair, my situation was never quite THIS radical. maybe half that

 

[Catagen]

I did, yes. Still on the brand name

Do you think it mightve made the difference. Brand is more stable than 1.25mg.

 

[kafka12]

Do you think it mightve made the difference. Brand is more stable than 1.25mg.

I don't wanna speculate too much. Maybe? People get such varying results from everything, this whole thing seems to be such a mystery. Some people shed and their hair improves or stays good (like me), other people shed and just wreck their hair, so who knows WTF is really going on around here. There seem to be very few clear-cut answers. I'm sticking to the name brand though, not gonna change what works

 

[nachos]

I don't wanna speculate too much. Maybe? People get such varying results from everything, this whole thing seems to be such a mystery. Some people shed and their hair improves or stays good (like me), other people shed and just wreck their hair, so who knows WTF is really going on around here. There seem to be very few clear-cut answers. I'm sticking to the name brand though, not gonna change what works

Your hair began to thin from the 'shed', right? Did it ever recover? Or did it just... stop after losing ground, and maintain from there?

 

[kafka12]

Your hair began to thin from the 'shed', right? Did it ever recover? Or did it just... stop after losing ground, and maintain from there?

No, not from the shed. What happened was, about two years ago I noticed the hair at the top of my head was thinning and I had begun to recede slightly. I got on finasteride, but soon began to shed. From the actual shed however I never noticed any FURTHER thinning or recession, and don't to this day. My hair is as stable as it was 2 years ago.

The shedding looks concerning but seems to have no impact. Since starting finasteride, I've remained perfectly stable after 2 years, no further recession or thinning. The shed seems to be benign, though it looks concerning.

 

[shoo123]

No, not from the shed. What happened was, about two years ago I noticed the hair at the top of my head was thinning and I had begun to recede slightly. I got on finasteride, but soon began to shed. From the actual shed however I never noticed any FURTHER thinning or recession, and don't to this day. My hair is as stable as it was 2 years ago.

The shedding looks concerning but seems to have no impact. Since starting finasteride, I've remained perfectly stable after 2 years, no further recession or thinning. The shed seems to be benign, though it looks concerning.

Hey man, how's it going? Any updates since last post?

I'm a few months in taking finasteride 1mg and am experiencing the same degree of shedding as you were. Freaking out and don't know what to do. Do I stick with it? Any advice? Thanks!!