Finasteride during a telogen effluvium

[wotsthedeal]

Hello all,
I've been going through a Telogen Effluvium for about 8 months now. Before it, I had never shown a single sign of balding and had a full head of hair. This Telogen Effluvium has really kicked my *** though, I feel like I've definitely lost over 50% of the hair on my head. Anyhow, I've become worried because of thinning in the back of my head around the crown area and I want to start using finasteride because I've read that Telogen Effluvium can bring on male pattern baldness early. The thing I'm worried about is how effective it will be while I am still going through this shed. Can finasteride prevent hair lost during a shed miniaturizing? And will the shedding caused by it combined with the Telogen Effluvium make my hair look terrible? (I still basically look like I have a full head of hair right now) My goal is to stop the telogen effluvium, stop any further hair loss due to possible male pattern baldness, and hopefully regrow most of the hair that fell out during the Telogen Effluvium. Can anyone comment on how well you think finasteride will work for me?

 

[Brasileirao]

First and foremost, what is your family history in regards to male pattern baldness? Age?

This is a tricky question....

 

[wotsthedeal]

I'm 19. My dad is in his 50's with a full head of hair. His father is in the 80's and bald. My mom has all her hair and her father had a full head of hair as well. I don't really seem like an male pattern baldness candidate, as I'm very lanky, without much body hair, and up until about 8 months ago (when the Telogen Effluvium started) I always had an incredibly thick head of hair. There's a chance I suppose that this is not male pattern baldness, but just the chronic Telogen Effluvium, but I really want to be safe and try to keep good coverage just in case. My hair line has not moved at all, I've just noticed a few spots in the crown that look too thin, and I have miniaturized hairs basically everywhere on my head AND body (I think from iron deficiency). Thanks

 

[Brasileirao]

My friends, if you have Telogen Effluvium you should hold off on the finasteride. Have you gone to the doctor...

I would wait until things stabalize as far as the Telogen Effluvium and then perhaps add the finasteride. The finasteride may make things worse as it can possibly induce another shed. Improve your diet, add more iron if you feel that is your problem. Any who, perhaps someone could some more insightfulllll ideas.

Till then...

Tony Montana

 

[wotsthedeal]

I've been to two doctors, both insist that the hair will regrow, but I am worried. For starters, the miniaturization of the hairs can happen from iron deficiency, but I think male pattern baldness is probably contributing as well. Also, I have no idea when this Telogen Effluvium will end. Doctors tell me it can take a year for a Telogen Effluvium to recover, and I've been taking iron supplements for about 4-5 months now, so I'm hoping it happens soon. I'm just worried that when I do finally recover, not all my hair is going to grow back. I was hoping taking finasteride, although it wouldn't stop the Telogen Effluvium shed, would prevent my follicles from dying if I actually do have male pattern baldness.

 

[wotsthedeal]

I should also mention two things:
1. I've had some recurring seborrhea that I've used Nizoral on off and on. I'm going to rotate between T-Gel and Nizoral for awhile to try and get rid of it for good.

2. I can feel new hairs growing in the spots without much coverage, the problem is I can't tell if they are healthy hairs or not. Would this mean taking finasteride would make more sense, seeing as these follicles are clearly still producing?

I'm really hoping that since my hairloss started at the very most 8 months ago, that most of my hair follicles are still in OK shape at least.

 

[juststarting]

Wait a second, you had a full head of hair and you started finasteride?
And you now say finasteride caused you to loose 50% of your hair!!!!????

This sounds weird. YOu should go see a doctor.

 

[wotsthedeal]

No, I should have been more clear.
I had a full head of incredible hair with absolutely no signs of male pattern baldness 8 months ago. Then all of a sudden my hair started to shed like nothing else. I was losing hundreds of hairs in the shower. I thought nothing of it and just figured the hair I lost would grow back. A few months later, I think due to hygiene issues, I developed seborrheac dermatitis. Now I am still losing hair from the Telogen Effluvium that was due to iron deficiency (I got my blood tested), and possibly now the seborrhea is contributing as well. My hairline has not moved at all, and my hair on the whole basically still looks normal, however when I look closely I can tell the crown area seems too thin, and the hair all over my head (and my body, actually) seems thin and lifeless.

My fantasy is that this Telogen Effluvium will just resolve itself and my hair will go back to normal, but after reading a lot about the subject, it seems like no matter how a man loses hair, there's a good chance at least some of it isn't coming back.

My point is, I have a fine looking head of hair right now that I want to keep and I don't like the thought of doing nothing and just waiting out this shed if it's possible that male pattern baldness is also going on.

My other hope is that even if I do have male pattern baldness, I've lost so much hair due to the Telogen Effluvium that when it grows back the male pattern baldness won't be noticeable, and I can start an effective treatment until something else comes along.

Another option would be rogaine, or some sort of topical that isn't a DHT blocker. Since I've lost little visible ground, this could probably be applied to places that are feeling thin exclusively, to avoid the massive shed.

Thanks for any advice, guys.