Epic Shed After 10 Months on finasteride. What's the Prognosis?

[BruceLeroy]

Had some noticeable loss in the crown beginning 2-3 years ago. Went to a dermatologist and got a prescription for Propecia, which seemed to slow/halt any additional loss. I even started to see some regrowth on top. After 10 months, this past April, I started seeing a ton of hairs in the shower. My guess would be 40 minimum, 100 max: enough to make a good-sized ball in the drain after every wash. (Typically I shampoo with Nizoral every other day and have for years.) The hair also winds up on my hands and even falls out after I towel off.

Visually, my hair seems to have receded considerably at the temples/hairline, and I can see the pale white of my scalp down my part. The shed has lasted a solid four months now. What I don't really know is what "kind" of shed it is, or if it matters in the long run. Is male pattern baldness just accelerating? Could it be stress-related? I thought that was more of a delayed reaction, but 2-3 weeks prior to the shed, I had a flooded kitchen, family issues, etc, that really drained me. Also started a new job. Those are the only differences from the first 10 months of relative success.

Not sure if I should ask for a DHT test, or consider dutasteride. Do dermatologists typically prescribe that even though it's not indicated for hair loss?

Sorry for all the questions. Just experiencing the typical depressed mood and looking for some kind of hope. Thanks for any info.

 

[Illu2ion]

Stress can cause hair loss (telogen effluvium, Telogen Effluvium) but I believe you usually need a fair amount of stress to cause this as your hormones have to be disrupted a bit to get Telogen Effluvium (I think). Think of someone having a car crash and having to undergo multiple surgeries. That causes a great deal of stress to the body and could cause Telogen Effluvium.

On to your hair loss. You say you can now see your scalp and that you have receded, but Telogen Effluvium won't cause any recession. Telogen Effluvium is often diffuse throughout your whole scalp, even the back of your head and sides of your head. All with all, I think it's pretty safe to say it's not Telogen Effluvium but I'm no doctor so don't take my word on it.

You could be going through a shed, though that wouldn't cause your temples to recede and it would be a bit late (though definitely not impossible) in your treatment to have a shed. Do you happen to be on minoxidil as well?

It could be natural progression. I think it's best if you post some pictures of your current hair state and some pictures of the state of your hair of right before you started treatment (if you have them). Sometimes people start seeing things that are not really there, you might not have receded but think you have just because you're worried/paranoid. Often happens to me and to a lot of others as well!

 

[smyth01]

How long has the shed lasted? from experience a shed lasts 2-5 weeks. Any longer than 5 weeks I would recommend maybe the dutasteride switch. 40-100 hairs is not actually that much.

 

[BruceLeroy]

I think it's best if you post some pictures of your current hair state and some pictures of the state of your hair of right before you started treatment (if you have them). Sometimes people start seeing things that are not really there, you might not have receded but think you have just because you're worried/paranoid. Often happens to me and to a lot of others as well!

Never tried Minoxidil. Attaching some comparison photos. I took the left-side images in April 2014 prior to starting Propecia. The images on the right were taken this morning, post the current 4-month shed and 14 months on Propecia total. I don't know if it's a perfect comparison: the latter hair is a little greasier, angles aren't exact, but it should give some general idea.

 

[TD500]

I don't believe it has gotten any worse from baseline to current. You might want to consider dutasteride.

 

[BruceLeroy]

Yeah, it's kind of weird. I think I've shed the equivalent of an entire cat in the past 16 weeks. How is dutasteride obtained? I also see some people taking it in conjunction with Propecia. What's the logic behind that? Wouldn't the dutasteride be more than enough to suppress DHT by itself?

 

[Illu2ion]

I don't think your hair loss has progressed man, it seems about the same. If you really want to compare the hair line as well as possible, you could take pics at the exact same angle and you migt see a few hairs more or less compared to baseline, but that really is nothing.

I personally get my dutasteride just through my dad (he's a pharmacist, lucky me) but I did get a prescription for it by my derm, it's just that it's more convenient this way for me. Anyway, you might have trouble finding a derm who's willing to prescribe you dutasteride for hair loss as it's not approved for hair loss. In that case you could get it online but I can't recommend it to you as I don't know ANYTHING about getting meds online. I'm sure there are threads about it though or others with experience on the subject. However, be very careful when buying meds online. Always.

The logic about taking both dutasteride and finasteride is that in some cases, finasteride works better for people because of fenotypes, making it more effective for hair loss than dutasteride. Therefore, to be absolutely sure about getting max protection, some people take both together. It doesn't matter for your DHT inhibition though I believe, if you take dutasteride you won't have any benefit from adding finasteride DHT inhibition wise (except for the fenotype thing I just told).

I don't know if the finasteride/dutasteride fenotype thing is actually legit, maybe you can find some studies or more info on it?

 

[BruceLeroy]

Two months later and the loss is still going strong. Shedding a good deal in the shower, on pillows, etc, and hairline is noticeably thinner. Dermatologist kind of shrugged her shoulders and told me to hop on minoxidil. I'm not exactly sure how that would help, though, if I'm overly sensitive to DHT: wouldn't any hair grown just fall out anyway? Is there any point in testing my DHT to see if it's being suppressed, or does it not matter? If it's low, I suppose I could just be getting more sensitive. But if it's high, wouldn't adding dutasteride be advisable?

Sorry for the questions. Bummed out Propecia seemed to be working and now I'm headed in the wrong direction.

 

[Adil Rizvi]

What happened next?

 

[Bryant12]

give us an update, you should have added minoxidil... that would have def. boost up your regrowth

 

[Funkymonk1]

I have a similar problem. After some great results on finasteride (including, I believe, some noticeable regrowth ) I experienced a massive shed at around the 10 month mark. It still hasn't stopped a couple of months later. Apparently sheds at this stage arn't uncommon, I've been told, and they can even be a good sign, but still, it doesn't stop it from being demoralising.

 

[Adil Rizvi]

I have a similar problem. After some great results on finasteride (including, I believe, some noticeable regrowth ) I experienced a massive shed at around the 10 month mark. It still hasn't stopped a couple of months later. Apparently sheds at this stage arn't uncommon, I've been told, and they can even be a good sign, but still, it doesn't stop it from being demoralising.

Same thing here also, 10 months after good results, massive shedding happened. Cut my hair really short. But I guess they are still shedding. I hope it is a good thing and I'll get my lost hair back

 

[Fatherbalding17]

Hey did any of you guys see an improvement in shedding?

 

[Adil Rizvi]

Hey did any of you guys see an improvement in shedding?

started shedding at 10 months mark in january, continued shedding till april, i shaved off my hair. as of now it looks okay. may be my hair is too short that is why. will be able to tell you the results in a month. Daily do 30 minutes of exercise, eat 2 boiled eggs and 3 bananas. that is what i did for first 10 months with finasteride and minioxidil. Gave me superb results but after that for some reason wasn't able to continue my regime and got fucked pretty badly since january. Started it the same regime since april i hope i will again get the good results. will keep you updated.

 

[Vindiesel11]

How did it go after the shedding ? Did one of you guys got your shed hair back ? Im at 8 months and losing my hairline quick.. hope u guys had some positive results !

 

[KSA]

I love how no one gets back after the shed. My idea is that it did regrow and they had no reason to be here anymore? Well never know.

 

[Jpon541]

I love how no one gets back after the shed. My idea is that it did regrow and they had no reason to be here anymore? Well never know.

Well I can tell you that every shed I've had hasn't come back. Just keep receding and thinning. And I've been on finasteride for 9.5 months. I've lost more hair than from before treatment.. It's insane..