Aplunk1's Story - (Pictures)

[Aplunk1]

Hi,
this is my first day on HairLossTalk Discussion Forum. This is my story that I have on my website:

I've been losing my hair since 19. When I was about 19.5, I made the decision to get on Propecia 1/mg. I've been using Propecia for 10.5 mos. with moderate success. Until recently, however, I've decided to switch to Avodart. I'm 20 years old, almost 21.

I've been using Rogaine 5% solution for ~3 mos. so far with great success. It's been very beneficial to my hairline, as well. Unfortunately, it has created a large dandruff problem that is gradually becoming better.

As for Tricomin Follicle Therapy Spray, I can tell that it has created a healthy environment on my scalp, and even better, has grown a number of hairs especially along the hairline. I can attribute most of the density of my hair to the Tricomin Follicle Therapy Spray.

In terms of shampoo, I highly recommend using the Nizoral 1% solution provided at your grocery store. The best price is at Wal-Mart for a large bottle, which lasts for quite a while. In addition, I often rotate my Nizoral with T/Gel .5 Coal Tar and Head and Shoulders.

In all, I've created this biography because I truly want to see the difference with these proven hair care products, especially with Avodart. Hair can really improve one's self esteem, and I had been bummed for the longest time due to my thinning hair. Until recently, I've been drinking lots and lots to help drown my sorrow.

I've made several lifestyle changes, however. Because I've stuck with my treatments through the shedding and whatnot, I've noticed that I am gradually reversing my hairloss. I've cut down on the drinking very much, and I'm beginning to notice how good things are becoming.

My advice to all those who are beginning to lose their hair or have already have bald patches formed/forming, please give your treatment the necessary 6-12mos. before you can expect anything. I know how upsetting this can be, but remember that hair is just hair, and there are still a number of things you can do.

In light of losing my hair, I've realized some wrongs that I've made in the past. I used to make fun of bald people until I realized that I myself might one day be bald, much like my father who is about 60% bald. I now accept people for who they are, and not their appearance. This journey will not be over for a long time, but I hope that everyone who incurrs this upsetting obstacle will learn, and, most of all, learn to be happy.

Good luck to all,
and feel free to e-mail me with comments, suggestions, or questions.

My website is located at:
http://www.hairlosshelp.com/websites/aplunk1/

 

[Britannia]

Thanks for that. Should really be posted in success stories.

 

[Swede]

Nice to hear that the tretments are working for you. Two questions. When do you apply tricomin before or after Rogaine? Do you think it is necessary to apply tricomin twice a day?

 

[Aplunk1]

Tricomin

I always apply Tricomin after Rogaine. I usually wait about 5-10 minutes to let the Rogaine absorb into the skin. Then I apply the Tricomin liberally. I don't rub it into the scalp, except on the hairline.

As instructed on the bottle, it is recommended to use it twice a day. This better suites me because I use Rogaine 2x/day.

Tricomin works systematically with Rogaine in the sense that:
1) It will help relieve symptoms of irritation.
2) It will help to create a healthier environment for the scalp, thus providing for the better absorbtion of Minoxidil treatment.

I hope that this helps, and I highly suggest that if you use Tricomin Follicle Therapy Spray, that you use to twice per day, liberally.

Andy

 

[Swede]

Thanks. I was wondering because I didnt know if they could work together.

 

[Aplunk1]

Results:

Nothing short of great.

Top/Crown
To see my scalp, one must take an extremely bright light and hold it close to my hair.

My hairline:
It's coming down fast. It used to be more V-shaped, but now it looks like an elongated U.

Status:
Norwood 1.5

Expectations:
Stay right here, or maybe even Norwood 1.

 

[Aplunk1]

I've just added topical 2% spironolactone for the anterior and crown and topical 5% for the hairline and temples. After application of the 5%, I tend to get a couple very thick hairs coming out of my hairline (shed?). I am shedding nowhere else on my crown at the moment except the hairline.

I must admit, after being on Avodart for nearly 3 months, my hair is thicker, and my hairline is more broad. Another 3 months, and I hope for better coverage.

 

[hellohello]

Jeez your results have been good... maybe I'll switch to Adovart- its just the risk of killing whatevere's left of my sex drive that bothers me...

on another note, you pull of the shaved look okay, so future baldness shouldnt' be too much of a worry - at least when your much older.

 

[warnietheoldpro]

you hairy bugger!!

Good blog Andy - I have a salt water bath once in a while for relaxation and keeps dandruff from minoxidil under control. :hairy:

 

[Aplunk1]

I started Remeron Anti-Depressant/Anti-Anxiety medicine last night. It has amazing sedative qualities to it, which definitely helped me chill out. I bought a new computer game, Counter-Strike: Source, to help take my mind off my hair, too.

Things are definitely shaping up, although I could be doing a lot better in school.

As far as hair goes, it's looking marvelous! I haven't pulled it in a week. Occassional hairline shedding, but the regrowth is much greater than the hairs coming out!

Pics and more updates will continue into my treatment. Only 3 more Avodart pills left until my third month completion. No sexual sides! (Knock on wood)

 

[Aplunk1]

Hey guys,
just a quick update on my story.
Today I finally resolved a long-time issue that had been bothering me. For the last 6 years of my life (14-20) I've had to wear dentures because I had 2 front missing teeth. It's been embarassing, and a lot of girls knew, although they didn't really care. Still, it bothered me a lot.

I finally could afford dental work to be done. It looks great. It was a traumatic 4-hour event at the dentist, and he installed a bridge in. It really does look good, and these are just the temporaries! I get my permanents in 2 weeks.

Nonetheless, it really has lifted a tremendous burden off me. My smile looks friggin' great. It takes my mind off my hair about 100%....

Still taking my anti-depressants, which seem to be working.

As far as my hair goes:

I shed about 2-3 hairs on the hairline a day. Today, I pulled about 10 ones out (with bulbs on the end-- a sign of shedding to come?) trying to get some of the minoxidil flakes out of my hair.... (I gotta stop doing this)

But, it seems that the frontal thinning has been haulted, and things are actually looking a lot thicker, even at a 3mm buzzcut.

Still trying to get the brown off my scalp... I think it's because some of the plastic from my applicator was eaten up by my spiroactalone bottle-- and that turned the solution brown. I'll write to Dr. Lee, nonetheless, because it might be an allergic reaction.

I'll just cap it from now on.

I'll take pics in about 2 weeks so that I can post another monthly update on my website.

Cheers.

 

[Pob]

Good news on the teeth Andy. Really glad that it's making you feel a bit better.

Hey, and just seeing a couple of hairs being lost each day is excellent news. You're making great progress. I suspect people with 'normal' hair will see that being lost a day. In fact (and I know this may sound weird!) if I get into the bathroom after my room mate Sarah has showered and before she's had a chance to clean it, there's normally half a dozen of her hairs lying there. Still, that's not the weirdest thing I do that she's not aware of....

 

[Aplunk1]

lol, thanks.

I've noticed that women tend to shed A LOT of hairs- brushing, showering, shampooing, etc...

 

[EasyEd]

Yeah, great news about the teeth man, that's definitely help with the confidence...and as far as girls shedding hairs, I live with my fiance who has some awesome, thick-*** hair and when she is done either showering or brushing her hair, there is hair all over the place...so don't worry about losing a few here and there. Again, congrats on the teeth...

 

[Aplunk1]

Maybe I should update you guys on my current hair status:

It's been about EDIT: 100 days (as of 3/12/06) of my .5/mg Avodart a day dosage, and the Avodart is now starting to kick into major gear:

I am constantly urinating. I've gotten to take a piss more than 10 times in the last 2 hours.

The acne that I had on my back has about 95% vanished-- only until recently did it become almost COMPLETELY unnoticeable.

I know this is difficult to explain, but I feel a lot healthier inside- where my prostate is and everything.

And the best part-- the hair:

I have about 90-95% complete regrowth on my left temple. It looks like my pre-male pattern baldness days. My right temple and portion of the hairline took the greatest hit. However, the good news is that there is so much regrowth there-- and most of it's turning terminal! I can see it before my eyes... (Me knocking on wood while writing this post)

My hairline has an area less than 1 cm of thin terminal hairs that are sprouting all over the place. It looks as if someone used a pencil and shaded in an area below my hairline and around my temples. I really think that the topical spiroactalone solutions have been making them grow faster.

I haven't noticed any hairs lost in the shower, applying my topicals, etc, for the last week or two, and before that I was only losing about 2-3 hairs daily.

I'm going to stop cutting it short, now that I believe my treatments are working (knock on wood again!), and will let it grow long for the summer.

In all, I'm very satisfied with my dutasteride, and mostly glad that I haven't experienced any negative side effects, only positive!

As far as lifestyle goes, I'm happy with the current anti-anxiety/anti-depressant that I'm taking, Remeron, and may want to add Xanax as an adjunct to help remove any anxiety attacks that arise... unfortunately. Now, I just gotta hit the gym a little more, eating just a bit healthier, and stop obsessing about my hair and these forums.

I hope that this sheds some light on the fact that treatments DO work given the necessary time.

Any questions, comments?

Goodluck everyone,
Andy

 

[Pob]

We're not worthy

 

[Aplunk1]

Hey guys,
I thought I'd just chime in and share a bit of info:

I'm going to start using PPG minoxidil-- to help remove all those DAMNED minoxidil flakes from my hair.

Tonight, I pulled about 100 hairs out of my scalp while trying to get the last of the minoxidil flakes out. I've had enough, and I'm ordering some quality minoxidil products from Dr. Lee.'

In all, I can tell that my hair is getting a lot thicker. A lot. I feel I'm on my way to almost full recovery... If I could just stop pulling my damned hair out. This was the first time in maybe a month, so I'm doing a lot better.

Anti-anxiety meds are working like a charm. I still get anxiety attacks, but they're not as bad or as frequent. Now, I'm starting to be in a good mood all the time. I never used to experience moods, so now I kind of feel "alive" again. (I won't talk about this subject too much)

I've had a crapload of regrowth on the temples-- almost 100% recovery there.

The hairline is about 80-90% covered with new, thin vellous and terminal hair. I pulled out a crapload of it tonight because I think I apply too much minoxidil. Even 1ml of the PPG solution might be too much for my scalp.

In any case, I just thought I'd report how dense my hair is becoming. My crown is super, SUPER thick. I couldn't ask for more on the crown.

The regrowth on the front of my head is thin, turning terminal. I can reasonably expect another 2 or so months until a lot of these hairs turn terminal. I'm 6 days away from my 4-month Avodart mark. Things are looking up. No gyno as of yet! (Knocking wood) No side effects, maybe a small decrease in libido. (I'm going to try Enzyte or something)-- at least I don't have impotency, like I had on Propecia.

I regret not shampooing as rigorously as I used to-- I used to cake my head with minoxidil-- probably resulting in greater amount of hair loss.

Nonetheless, I feel like I'm learning from my mistakes. My scalp feels a whole lot better-- I've eased up on the topicals, applying the shampoo more rigorously and working in for 5 minutes.

Several things I might work into my hairloss regimen (if I can):

Emu oil (for really bad itching-- which is almost zero, now)
AC Revitalize SERUM for the hairline and temples.



Truly, I'm tempted to buzz my head with a 0, then use my MACH 3 Turbo to shave it clean. I'd really like to start from new, but I know that wouldn't go well with my friends and whatnot right now.

Oh well, I can wait, I guess.

In other news, since taking my anti-depressants, I've identified almost all the causes of stress in my life. Things seem a lot more clear to me. I feel better all around. I've been drinking off and on-- smoking off and on (I hate weed, but do it if I have to)-

I'm possibly thinking about quitting my job, taking out loans, and attending UNR-- living in the dorm rooms. It seems like my treatments are working, and that I might be able to survive up in Reno-- finish my degree, then get some Hair Multiplication by the time I'm out of college.

Any thoughts?

Guys, I'm really upset that I pulled out hairs tonight, but I'm also glad that I didn't pull THAT many out, and I'm also glad that I am seeing a lot of regrowth. In addition, I'm also happy that I'm feeling better in general.

Could use some honest feedback and reassurance, guys.

Thanks.

 

[Lessofarockstar]

Lots of hair --> new confidence - and all in all you sound like things are going your way now. Ride the wave --> hit up reno and get back to school.
Sounds like a f*****g brilliant idea to me.

 

[EasyEd]

Yeah man, you sound much, much better. You should definitely go to Reno and live it up in the dorms. I can almost guarantee you won't regret doing that. As far as the hair, great to hear that you're doing really well but more importantly, awesome that you're doing well mentally. You sound like a new man. Keep up the treatments and the positive attitude!!

 

[powersam]

aplunk i just looked at your pictures for the first time, and what i see is a mature hairline not a balding head. does anyone in your family have male pattern baldness? possibly its because of the lo-rez of the camera but i see absolutely no difference between before dutasteride and after dutasteride, and neither of them looks like the head of a balding man. has anyone made a comment about your hairloss before? in person i mean and blatantly, not something you may have construed to be about your hair.

nb/ all these remarks are based on a couple of low-rez shots taken in a pretty dark room so i apologise if i'm way off the mark.