I don't think that this will work without estrogen and I don't think that there are ways of doing this effectively without feminization. Some times there are reasons why a thing isn't done and it is because it just doesn't work. We have known since the chemical identification of estrogens about 90 years ago that supplementing estrogen was effective for hair loss. Why didn't it become a thing, then? Because estrogen supplementation is feminizing for XY's.
I continue to seek pictorial evidence that using AA's without estrogen supplementation will result in any sort of cosmetically significant hair regrowth or improvement and I have seen little or none. AA's can halt hair loss; they don't seem to regrow hair or improve it's quality. If an XY individual wants to see hair recovery, then feminization, usually meaning breast growth, is part of it. For most XY's, adult breast growth tends to be minimal but there are no guarantees. I know of only a handful of people who have provided substantial pictorial evidence that copious use of HRT medications can fully restore XY hairlines and virtually all of them have presented with substantial feminization, including facial feminization, breast growth, gyno, substantial fat re-distribution and loss of body hair below the neck. Some even experience loss of virtually all beard growth.
The founder of this thread had amazing hair regrowth and restoration. Virtually everyone agrees that this person,
@bridgeburn vastly improved his physical appearance but virtually everyone also agrees that
@bridgeburn became thoroughly feminized in terms of appearance. He continued to go by male pronouns but experienced substantial breast growth, facial feminization and a loss of virtually all beard growth while also appearing far younger.
There are ways to do this and still be able to produce children and engage in procreative activities but they require careful planning and disclosure to potential partners. Many females who might be attracted to such "improved" XY's, might not choose them for mating purposes, however.
My hair and feminization results continue and I am thrilled with them but I struggle now to present as male. That's simply a cost of doing this. I did not experience any diminution in beard growth but my belief is that either beard growth removal or diminution is a part of the hair improvement process that might not be avoidable. Some people shrink in stature from the effects of female hormones, from one to three inches! I started my hair loss journey with HRT not being sure whether it would be substantially feminizing or not. It is and it was only after I vastly increased my estrogen supplementation and added oral minoxidil that I began to see my way to full recovery, which continues, in a thrilling fashion. I add pictures every few weeks as indicative of this.
I try not to be cagey about any of this. People message me and compliment me on both my feminization and my hair results but this has turned into all but a full time job for me and it will for most, at least until reaching some sort of maintenance level. I expect to max out on my hair improvement, perhaps in six more months or a year and this includes count, coverage, hair quality and anagen. My hair length continues to grow without diminution in quality but this is not an easy road to hoe. I had an embarrassing shed to baldness about 18 months ago, which appears to have been completely beneficial and benevolent but how many XY's are prepared to go from mere thinning to complete baldness, if that is part of the journey? Very few and most XY's seem to drop out as soon as they see signs of shedding.
I note that
@bridgeburn was already essentially horse-shoe bald (unlike me) when he started his HRT journey, so shedding was really not an issue for him. In a certain sense, people already bald beyond the pale and MtF's have an enormous advantage here since stopping HRT to hopefully stop a shed is not really an option.
For me, a lot of this is about the science and about regaining control over my looks and feelings and I have experimented and continue to, freely, hopefully to improve knowledge and to help others and anyone may PM me for help related to any aspect of this but it isn't easy, lamentably. Because I view this thread as being a success thread, I largely now post here: