Am I wasting my time?

[Dashtoronto]

So far, my regiment is

Topical Dutasteride - once a day (just to see if it helps)
Topical Xandrox15 plus - twice a day
Topical Spironolactone #205 Lotion 5% w/o Propylene Glycol - twice in the afternoons

Thinking of adding nizoral shampoo or whatever form its available in to add thickness and volume to hair. (Does this stuff really add thickness and volume to hair?)

Timeline:

I started on regular topical minoxidal bandwagon in the...

summer of 2008: Topical minoxidal 5% solution. I was only applying it once a day. That turned out to be ineffective.
winter of 2008: I upgraded to applying Topical Xandrox15 plus 15% from the 5% once a day.
January of 2009: I read KielMcK's posts and the phenomenal response he's having. So I upgraded to Topical Xandrox15 plus twice a day. I'm getting results.
June of 2009: Added Spironolactone #205 Lotion 5% w/o Propylene Glycol - twice in the afternoons - hoping to get some better results.
July of 2009: I'm thinking of adding nizoral shampoo to add thickness and volume. To at least cover the scalp that is clearly visible through my minimum regrowth. Does that stuff really work to add thickness and volume to hair???

Progress report is that I am getting regrowth. The results are not cosmetically appealing. (I wouldn't walk into a club or bar or a workplace or anywhere outdoors without a hat. Still highly dependent on a hat to go places.) Their is very considerable regrowth however. Lots of hairs but not cosmetically appealing, at the moment. The scalp is still visible. I am aiming to at least cover up the scalp. Not looking for jon bon jovi hair. (Even though if i can achieve that, eventually - i'll try for that.) So, I still have a long road ahead of me. I still need get more hairs. Not cosmetically appealing yet or even good enough to show in public.

My question is:

Am I wasting my time NOT taking finasteride internally? As you have noticed, I do not take finasteride internally in my regiment. Is this the "missing link"? KielMcK takes a double dosage of finasteride per day. He takes it internally and he has a dosage in the topical Xandrox 15plus.

Am I wasting my time with all these topicals?? Since I can see my scalp and the regrowth isn't of any significant cosmetical value.

ps. I'm thinking the nizoral will at least add volume and thickness to the hairs I have - to at least cover the scalp.

 

[somone uk]

yeah i would keep the 5AR inhibitors inside the body, they are not much use applied topically because after all finasteride and dutasteride inhibit 5AR NOT DHT, in other words topical finasteride and dutasteride will do nothing to prevent DHT production elsewhere in the body and that would eventually make it to your scalp and do damage, soo you want to keep with an oral treatment

 

[Bryan]

I think there's very credible evidence to suggest that serum DHT is MUCH less of a significant androgenic stimulus than DHT produced "locally" within the hair follicles. Therefore, I don't doubt that a topical 5a-reductase inhibitor (if you can find one that actually works) would be very helpful to fight balding, and should have no systemic side effects.