Ajnar's Story - ( dutasteride/nizoral/minoxidil)

[ajnar]

hello there

23 yo from poland. have been loosing hair since i turned 22, started with terrible scalp pain,greasy hair and itching. i always had great hair that made most women jealous, then the shitstorm kicked in and in blitzkrieg speed i went from super-awesome-teenager-hair to nw2-3 with terrible thinning on the top in like 8-10 months. i also lost some hair at the back of my neck which is a bit strange. it hit me out of nowhere, i could touch my head and pull out 20-30 hair with ease. one week and my floor would turn into a carpet made of my own hair, hairballs the size of my fist flying everywhere. ive had long hair for about 10 years and hair is a important part of my image that i dont want to loose. a year ago i started gathering information how to deal with my problem, i used to lurk on a polish hair loss forum for a long time but that forum is full o ppl that say finasteride will make ur penis disapear etc, the attitude there and quality of information is very bad. then i found this page, all the info i needed gathered in one place presented in good fashion + success stories that backed them up.

the whole hair loss problem really screwed up with my confidence,since 2007 i suffer from depression and have problems with my concentration and memory so the last year has been really bad for me.

started with my regimen two weeks ago (09.04.2009):
0.5mg finasteride - propecia cut in half since my derm did not agree to prescribe proscar (ill finish the propecia i have and then find a generic version of finasteride).
nizoral - every second day
pregaine gel shampoo - every day
5% minoxidil - every day

14.04.2009 - 4 day instant shed (i think i can call it like that), pulled out about 100-200 hair in the shower,
18.04.2009 - shed stopped, right now its about 20-30 hair in the shower
20.04.2009 - my scalp doesnt itch so much as it used to, the pain also went down
27.04.2009 - no sides from finasteride, pain and itching is back
29.04.2009 - started using 5% minoxidil



i hope i can regain a lot of ground after adding minoxidil, at least on the top, since ive been loosing hair only for a year or less. i have buckets of peach fuzz hair on my temples so i hope they can cycle and grow out terminal.

right now im out of my home town at uni, when ill come back ill add some good quality photos of my scalp.

crappy photo made with my cell phone

the red line is my hair line a year ago, all this loss in just a year :shakehead:

02.02.2010 Update

still on 0.5 mg finasteride.

pics or it didnt happen, red line is my natural hair line, yellow marks a very thin area . hair is wet after showering. ill provide dry hair photos later.

current state of afairs
front

left side

right side (sorry for the light)

how much hair i loose when showering, doesnt count the 20-30 hair i loose when brushing ;(

i still feel terrible itching and pain, it drives me nuts some times. my main problem is the front, it thinned terribly, i can live with the loss of volume on the back of my neck. i had to stop using minoxidil, it made my skin red and very very flaky, lots of white skin falling of looking like dandruf.

still no other sides from finasteride than low sperm volume. finasteride actually made my libido sky rocket ...

 

[neuromet]

Re: ajnar's story - my fight

Good luck, ajnar!

 

[ajnar]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 23 - first pic) - update

bump for update, still looking for a way to get rid the pain and itching

 

[postit15]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 23 - first pic) - update

hey! HOw are ur temples doing now? In previous pics it seemed to me that they were fillling in at least although, it was not to the red line where ur natural hairline is. I still think its better than before. Are you just applying minoxidil along ur temples?

 

[ajnar]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 23 - first pic) - update

shedding shedding ... pain pain ... burning burning ...

temples are terrible, the top is bad (even if i comb all my hair one side i still have less volume than i had before with half the side ;( ), sides quite too, back of my head also thinned a lot.

overall its a total failure.

 

[Vanzzzz]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 23 - first pic) - update

I believe people do not normally lose hair at the back of their head.

My temple is somewhat similar to yours, and Im thinking of starting finasteride. Hopefully it will work for both of us. :jackit:

 

[ajnar]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 23 - first pic) - update

small update:
- no change in regimen (1mg finasteride and rogaine 5% two times eod)
- zero progress
- shedding non stop
- gained about 20kg while beeing on finasteride
- front and top went down the shitter
- doesnt look so bad in some of the photos as i comb my long hair back

most damage has been done on the top, hairline did not move a lot but i started to loose hair in a diffuse fashion all over the place.

a bit overbright

should i consider quitting ?

 

[deadlocks]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 24 ) - update

f*** finasteride, jump on dutasteride now.

 

[FSHGLD]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 24 ) - update

How severe is the 'pain'? Surely all most of us feel is a little itchiness...Maybe there's something else going on. Also, your English is amazingly good...

 

[ajnar]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 24 ) - update

Sever enough to loose a whole nights sleep. Getting dutasteride might be a bit more tricky where i live but ill consider it since currently i have no alternative as my regimen seems like a road with a dead end.

 

[SemperFi]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 24 ) - update

Hey ajnar.

Losing hair on you're neck is not an male pattern baldness pattern, I think you should visit dermatologist (some other than the first time if possible) and get some blood test done, because your hairloss may origin somewhere else. In that case lowering your DHT level with Propecia wouldn't work anyway.

The good side is, that you're not nearly a NW3, NW2 and NW1,5 on first pic.

 

[ajnar]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 24 ) - update

i had blood work done a year ago (all was ok) but i guess it wont hurt to get another one. and yea the hairline aint that bad (what i mean by "not bad" is that i could live with it and repair it later in my life when my hair gets stable with a transplant) but the overall loss of volume is a major bummer.

 

[mpbsux20]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 24 ) - update

Man your hairloss is identical to mine!! I have had long hair for the last 5 years and I started experiencing a severe shed when I turned 16.I kept losing an awful lot consistently till I turned nineteen.

You know what I lost quite a bit on right side of my neck which is pretty thin when compared to the left.In fact I would say it even receded a bit there as my hair grows at a slightly elevated position to that of the right.I had the best hair as a kid straight,thick,easily maintainable but my right temple was always a bit rounded and that kinda worried me but everybody kept saying that it was normal until things got really bad.

Anyway I started taking Saw Palmetto and some supplements.My texture got a little better but I continued to recede and I reached a point where I had to wear a Beanie all the time..

Last winter I noticed some minor thinning in the crown as well and I decided to start using Nizoral 2% and Rogaine 5% foam once a day.Although it grew back some tiny hairs at the front,things looked just as bad as before.Maybe I was reducing the effectiveness by having long hair.I was close to becoming a Norwood 3.

So in April of this year I started with a low dosage of generic finasteride...I didn't have any sheds but slowly things started to get better.My hair looks a lot healthier now and I have noticed that my temples look like they are making a come back.
Lets see whether it stays this way.

I totally understand what you're going through but you needn't take the dive and start dutasteride as that stuff could be dangerous to your system.

You're saying that you have gained 20 kilos while on finasteride....I am not trying to insult you or anything but for your own sake,start doing some exercise.I am a really depressed guy with hardly anything going on for me and the only reason why I am still sane is because I exercise regularly.That stuff could do wonders to your overall health.

If you are shy of going to a health club,get yourself a cycle,some weights and make your own gymnasium at home.

If you want serious regrowth,get yourself the Rogaine 5% foam and apply it every day.Every other day wont help as far as regrowth is concerned.If I notice any further deterioration as far as my hair is concerned,I am going to apply it twice a day and maybe increase the concentration.

The Rogaine sides dont last for too long...I had some dizziness,dark under eyes and mild irritation with rogaine for a couple of months but that totally disappeared after that.It takes time for your body to get used to it but that stuff is quite harmless apart from the fact that it can darken your body hair especially hair around your eyebrows a bit.You wont find a better hair regrowth product anywhere.

Sorry for the long response but I just wanted you to not lose hope yet

 

[ajnar]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 24 ) - update

I totally understand what you're going through but you needn't take the dive and start dutasteride as that stuff could be dangerous to your system.

just looking for alternatives as the past year on finasteride did nothing (not maintaining the stuff i had left or halting/slowing down hair loss)

You're saying that you have gained 20 kilos while on finasteride....I am not trying to insult you or anything but for your own sake,start doing some exercise.

i have been exercising 3 times a week for the past couple of years and those 20kg did not go into fat only (nobody sane would call me overweight or even slightly fat anyway ). its just strange that i gained so much in very little time without any major changes in my diet or exercise routine.

If you want serious regrowth,get yourself the Rogaine 5%

im doing 5% minoxidil from the start.

appreciate the tips and encouragement anyway.

 

[mpbsux20]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 24 ) - update

Okay give spironolactone cream a try before considering dutasteride.Good luck!!

 

[malo]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 24 ) - update

Ajnar, I noticed in one of the photos that you tie your hair back. Did you ever consider that you might be getting traction alopecia from keeping it tied back too tightly. Whenever there is tension on the hair there is a chance that it will be pulled out over time.

 

[ajnar]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 24 ) - update

i tie my hair very rarely (no more than two times a month only when my hair is very greasy) so i dont think so.

 

[ajnar]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 24 ) - update

god damn shed drives me nuts, last month on finasteride, next sure switching to dutasteride.

 

[reckless]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 24 ) - update

I think you should get a haircut. It will make your thinning look less obvious.

Try number 4 on top and 2 on the sides. Long hair is the worst hair to have while thinning.

 

[ajnar]

Re: Ajnar's Story - ( 24 / update with PICS!)

been shedding the whole september, stopped for two weeks and im in the shed zone again. started 0.5mg dutasteride daily (been on it 2 weeks right now, no sides).