djarr's story - (Just started treatment)

[rider88]

Hey Guys,

After much denial, I must admit I'm losing it. Started off noticing my temple recession about 3 years ago (sophmore year in college) but I let it go because the middle was still very thick and i had longer hair which mostly covered my temples when styled.

I've been lurking on here for a few years, so I had already obtained Fincar but I definitely felt sides when i first started taking 1.25mg a day. I discontinued use but saved the stuff incase I decided that hair > sides.

Fast forward to now. My hair is pretty brittle, can't style it worth sh*t, and everyone asks me if i dye it blonde because I've lost a lot of density and color. I still thought I would be fine because I kept it longer and what grew in from the back covered my temples... but after this haircut I just don't know anymore. I can see my scalp through the hair pretty much everywhere except in the vertex, back, and sides.

Could this all be due to starting a new job in a new city, having a lot of stress for about 8 months of my life due to the job and my old living situation? Having a somewhat poor diet (i was vegetarian for about a year, 2010-2011). Drinking moderately and often with new friends? I definitely don't drink as much as I did in college though. Coffee?

Its hard to say, but what I do know is that if I don't get a jump on this thing I may not have anything left to save. After going through these stories, there are so many threads with obvious success I would be a fool not to try. I'm 1/2 a month away from turning 23, but I feel/look like i'm 50 because of balding.

I've been taking 1.25mg fincar per day for about two weeks now with no noticed sides. I guess my body is making more DHT now than earlier when I tried to take the stuff?

Should I get on minoxidil, and if so, should I only apply it to the temples (which have completely lost hair) or would you recommend doing it to the entire scalp? I don't mind waiting for the finasteride to do its job on the middle part of my scalp, but I think i might need help on the temples. Is it normal just to put it on part of scalp? Or will that make a noticble difference?

 

[hugeleap]

Re: Just started treatment

Hey djarr!

I'm happy to hear that you're not experiencing side effects from the finasteride. Maybe the side effects you experienced before were more psychological too? That's pretty much what happened to me.

You and I have a very similar hair loss pattern, and what I have been doing is applying the rogaine foam to the whole front of my scalp. I have not seen much thinning near the back, and I'm hoping finasteride will take care of the mid-back of my scalp in terms of thinning. You might be better off using the liquid minoxidil, as some guys have had more success with that. I can't use it because of irritation, but I can't speak for everyone.

I also recommend you start using ketoconazole shampoo 3 times per week in order to cut down on inflammation and itchiness etc.

In the future, you may want to try using spironolactone or another topical anti-androgen. Spironolactone as far as I've read will sequester any free androgens within the scalp and stop them from interacting with the follicles which causes hair loss to proceed. It may not be as effective as it's marketed, but I've heard good things from a few guys on here.

Anyways, good luck! Take pictures, don't count hairs, stick to your regimen, and enjoy life!

 

[rider88]

Re: Just started treatment

I just received the 6 month supply of kirk 5% minoxidil. Not sure I actually want to start now though... please hear me out.

I've always seen hairs growing on my hairline - they have just usually been getting thinner and lighter than the ones that came before them. It's only been like 3 weeks
since starting on finasteride, but the hairs that have grown are looking dark and thick - just like hairs on the sides and back. This is only like max 10 hairs across my entire hair line (so nothing to write home about), but it is a start. unk:

I also feel like my hair is getting thicker up top too when i run my hands through it. Maybe it's all psychological, but I'm crossing my fingers that this stuff is actually working.

Thus, I hesitate to even touch minoxidil yet, because once you start you can't stop. I bet I could have perfect hair if I started using the minoxidil, but I am worried about having to use it continuously (i am strangely not too concerned about taking a pill forever).

I don't use nizoral anymore because it severely dries out my scalp something awful. I think it has to do with having psoriasis or some genetic skin disorder on my scalp. Sun exposure and strict nutrition plan has helped a lot with my symptoms though, and i hardly notice it anymore.

Anyways, still no noticeable sides... although I was reading some scary stuff about how finasteride can elevate some of your liver enzymes and I hear that is not good in the long term. I should probably lay off the sauce or stick to light beer and never touch the hard stuff anymore. I should also probably get a legit Rx since I have a job and insurance these days, and have all the blood tests done so in a year I can come back and test again to make sure nothing bad is happening.

Thoughts?

 

[rider88]

Re: Just started treatment

About 2 months into finasteride now, and 1 month using Neutrogenia T-Gel (coal tar) shampoo.

Besides watery semen, I haven't felt any sides from the finasteride. Still taking 1.25mg /day of generic proscar. I have also noticed dark/strong hairs are poking out all over the hairline and mid scalp region unk: . The number of hairs I see on my comb are also going down.

The T-Gel has been a life saver, my scalp has gotten more irritated lately and without it I get a really bad red rash and itches. Also, I haven't had any coffee in about a month =).

Still haven't touched the kirkland minoxidil that I ordered... I want to see if finasteride can fill my temples in without it.

 

[takenick]

Re: Just started treatment

Could you post before and after pics? I've been using finasteride for over a month and I might be noticing increased density in the crown.

That's good you're not experiencing sides (I'm not so lucky). 1.25mg might not be necessary though. I noticed 95% stoppage of itching/shedding even when I was using .25mg every other day. As far as long term, my doctor said to not use it for more than 6 months. I think I'll use it for a max of 6 months. If I don't have satisfactory results by then I'm going to start minoxidil. If I see good results in say, 3 months, I'm going to lower the dosage and cycle on/off every 3 months. From what I've read, any hair you gained from finasteride will be lost within 6-12 months of stopping use, so I'm just trying to be safe while using the least amount of this drug as possible.

 

[rider88]

Re: djarr's stpry - (Just started treatment)

i would be down to reduce the dosage, if not to make treatment more cost effective. I just don't think i can cut the pills in more than 4 separate pieces without crushing it completely.

Current pic as requested. I seem to have lost the baseline pic from August.

 

[rider88]

Hey Guys,

I've been lurking around recently and read a lot of negative posts about finasteride. I just wanted to chime in and give an update. I'm almost 3 months in to starting finasteride (1/4 generic proscar per day) and I have noticed new/thick hairs growing in pretty much everywhere, but especially along the frontal hair line. I just got a haircut so these hairs are actually noticeable now. These new hairs are not only thick, but they are dark like the hair on the sides and back. They're growing between my thin strands of existing hair, and also in new territory on my scalp (below existing hairline) and temples.

Over the past few years the top/front has been growing really thin and almost clear strands of hair, so I can honestly say finasteride has made a difference in the quality of my hair overall. I have not experienced any sort of shed, impotency, or brain fog issues. I have started getting with girls again for the first time since the hairloss started. Although my hair isn't close to NW1, I would definitely be happy with a thick Norwood 2.5.

In addition to the finasteride, I've been showering with T-Gel, which has made a huge difference in scalp skin condition. I used to get horrible rashes and flakey skin all the time and now I would consider my skin health to be perfect.

Advice to new guys who want to do something about their hairloss: go see a doctor, try finasteride, and monitor yourself closely.

 

[rider88]

Just got a hair cut, I think finasteride by itself is working. My hair seems a lot stronger and thicker. What do you guys think?