Giving up

[Kirby]

Surprised finasteride had no impact on your hair loss, it's usually a magic bullet for diffuse thinners when caught early on.

Yeah, that was the assumption I was working under, and why I was so optimistic to start with. Wasn't expecting miracles (i.e. a dense NW1) but something more than I got.

Anyway, update. Been on finasteride continuously (as in only missing 3 or 4 days' dose) since late January 2012, added minoxidil foam at the end of May, and still absolutely nothing. My hair's literally just as thin (see-through thin, obviously balding-looking) as to start with, if not thinner in places. I reached the point by May that I ruled out finasteride alone ever giving me extra hair density, so I got (reluctantly) on the minoxidil bandwagon for regrowth, but after 4 and a half months, I have nothing to show for it, not even a tiny amount of fluffy pigment-less hairs.

Had no mass sheds for at least a year, and there's no hair on pillow, in the sink (etc) so perhaps the treatments just stop the loss with me, or the regrowth/"thickening" will take far longer for me, but there's not much hope of that. Looking back at old photos, my loss was visible earlier on than I thought, now that I am a trained Norwood spotter, but was very slow. It's not actually much consolation to me that the treatments slow or freeze my hair loss, as I'm not sure I'd be any different in appearance if I'd never started treatments, but I'm not willing to risk stopping them either. It's all very depressing.

 

[piacere]

Had no mass sheds for at least a year, and there's no hair on pillow, in the sink (etc) so perhaps the treatments just stop the loss with me

Dude, just be happy with that. I've been on finasteride since Feb 2012 and minoxidil since Sept 2012 and I've been shedding non-stop, zero positive signs, kinda disgusting receding of my hairline and crown, and I STILL get multiple fallen hairs on my pillow, sink, shower, shoulders of my shirt, and every single ****ing time I gently brush my hands through my hair.

 

[abcdefg]

I thought everyone sheds hair. Some people probably shed more then others but if it grows back is that really a problem?

 

[talmoode]

if you shed non stop, then that's a problem because you are not supposed to shed all the time while on treatment. When it happens just non stop, you don't give your hair a chance to grow back!