Before I take the finasteride plunge, I need some advice....

[killbill123]

First off, my story is here: http://www.hairlosstalk.com/discussions ... hp?t=35798

I am probably about a NW2. I am about to start taking finasteride, but I wanted to get some final things out of the way...

1) What's the best online pharmacy to get it at? I've heard inhouse, but it looked fairly sketchy to me.

2) Would alternating generics be an issue if I find cheaper versions of finasteride elsewhere? Say I start with fincar for a few months then switch to finpecia, for example.

3) Will finasteride transform my vellous hairs back into normal ones? I know finasteride is mainly for maintenance, but I have a lot of weak thin unpigmented hairs around my temples that I'm hoping will come back strong.

4) Are there any early warning signs that finasteride may not be for me that I should look out for?

Any help would be great, guys. And I promise if finasteride works out for me, I won't be one of those guys that never comes back to help noobs like myself.

 

[killbill123]

Oh, and there seems to be a lot of debate about propecia's effect on receding hairlines/temporal recession. Well, that's pretty much all I have at this point. My crown is fine. Am I playing with fire getting on finasteride?

 

[killbill123]

Don't everybody respond at once!

 

[jakeb]

1) inhousepharmacy is where I always go. Never had a problem and they have really good prices.

2) Just make sure you take the same dose. The finasteride itself is still the same whatever the packaging.

3) No idea... if you're a great responder, then maybe.

4) I'll just say... don't freak yourself out about the sides, they will be obvious if they occur. I think everyone gets them to a degree, but for most people, it's not noticeable or at least not bothersome. My brain fog was too much for me to handle, so I had to quit.[/i]

 

[Knendell]

I started finasteride about 8 yrs into my hairloss journey probably at about a NW3.5 or so. I can say it is doing nothing to slow down the balding process. Then again I had to cut down to .5mg because of sides and may have to cut it down even more or stop. Especially if the male pattern baldness forces me to buzz my head. I think of all of the success stories rogaine is the contributor. I am doubting fins realistic goals. Thats just me. Maybe in a few months when I hit the 8-9 month mark i will have better news. Sorry.

 

[Pondle]

How lond have you been on the finasteride, gsxr? Remember it takes 12 months or so to establish whether you are a responder. 80-90% of guys do respond to finasteride eventually. It's a much better success rate than minoxidil.

 

[Knendell]

How lond have you been on the finasteride, gsxr? Remember it takes 12 months or so to establish whether you are a responder. 80-90% of guys do respond to finasteride eventually. It's a much better success rate than minoxidil.

I have been on finasteride for about 4 months now but I had to decrease to .5mg and still have to put in more effort than I want in the erection department. I can definitely get away with it (I think I have not had the opportunity to try it out yet) but it is not like before taking the drug.

I am also pretty salty because at christmas my hair started to diffuse on its way to a NW5A and it devestated me because of how quick it happened. Up unitil then the front was thinning and receding but now I can see scalp all the way back. I am going to stick with finasteride for a while to see what impact it will have. I will update when the time comes.

 

[Barry_Blue]

My advice on finasteride is to be patient.... very very patient. I remember the very first day I took my first Propecia pill, within 4 hours I went running up to the mirror in my bathroom to check for regrowth lol :lol: Which is ridiculous. Give it a year and the only sides I got were very minor and decreased over time.