GrowHairGrow's story - (new pics 2007-05-20)

[Guest]

Hi guys, I'm new in here. I've been reading this forum for a couple of weeks now and finally decided that I should start posting. So here we go.

I'm a 23 year (24 this November) old male from Finland. I first started losing my hair at around 2003-2004, I'm not 100% sure since I never ever thought I was really losing it (denial, I know). I have sported long hair since 2003, and kept it tied in the back (ponytail) since early 2005 so it was really hard to notice the hair loss. I decided to go for a short hair in early May 2006. And that's when it hit me: I'm going f*****g bald! Only one of my like 10 uncles is bald, and he started balding at his 30's so I thought I'd be safe. How f*****g wrong was I!

I'm a diffuse thinner, which sucks... I'd rather be a receder, since they look normal much longer. Last month I decided to attack male pattern baldness by starting finasteride 1.25 mg daily (5 mg cut into 1/4, skip every 5th day). Now, after a month on finasteride I have decided that it's just not enough. I just ordered me a 4 month package of Kirkland minoxidil 5% and can't wait to get the delivery and start using that sh*t. I still have some healthy hair everywhere but too much of those weird, thinning miniature hairs that basically make my hair look sh*t. I have a strip of miniaturised hair down the center of my head + some further thinning on vertex. My hairline is still pretty much intact.

The weird thing is that I'm not really shedding, I lose about 30 hairs when shampooing and around 10-30 during the day. I almost never have hair on my pillow (well, this morning there was ONE).

In conclusion, the hair loss has made my life a living f*****g hell. I'm a passive, frightened shell of my former self. I'm wearing a cap every time I go out (I never wore one before). I play soccer a lot so my friends have seen my hair many times, but no one has commented anything yet. I just hope the big 3 does some wonders for me and I can start enjoying life again. Well, I guess that's about it... I keep updating my situation.

Thanks for reading and sorry about my english.

EDIT: Pictures (with flash):



The first 2 pics are f*****g horrible... my hair is all clumped because of AM minoxidil usage and wearing a cap at work. Also, I do have miniature hairs everywhere so the areas where the scalp is shining are not slick bald, hehe. The last picture is for you guys to judge if a shaved head could look okish on me?

EDIT: More pics (without flash):




You can see the tiny miniaturized hair in these pics... I'm not quite as bald as the first set of images made me out to be.

 

[-Andrew-]

^wow. im in exactly the same position as you. strip of thin hair down middle and vertex, hair line in tact.

have u got any pictures? i have pictures over in ANDREW'S story.... .

iv had to change my username since then, but thats me there.

i am 20years old. im taking propecia 1mg, minoxidil 5% and nizoral.

 

[Guest]

Andrew, I've seen your pictures and I'd say were pretty much on the same boat. I've never had a buzz cut so it's hard to judge, but I'd guess it would look kinda same.

EDIT: After taking a closer look at the Norwood's scale, I think I'm thinning in the Norwood V pattern... Or actually, it's hard to tell. I'm thinning on top of my head but not in the back.

 

[Guest]

Bump.

 

[briancl]

Good luck with your regimen. I think if you buzzed your hair down to maybe a #3 or so it would look really good. We can only do our best with our meds, the rest is up to mother nature.

 

[Guest]

Good luck with your regimen. I think if you buzzed your hair down to maybe a #3 or so it would look really good. We can only do our best with our meds, the rest is up to mother nature.

Thanks for the reply and encouragement, mate. I don't wanna sound stupid, but how long is a #3?

 

[ANDREW_J_I]

^a number 3 mate is about 9mm long.

ur hair aint too bad serious. i cant remember what my hair looked like long. have u seen my 5 week pics? coz i been growing it. gonna carry on growing til like 6 months.

 

[YoungAndThin]

that's a weird pattern of hairloss.

Most people wouldn't be able to tell you are losing hair unless they were looking down at your head.

 

[Guest]

that's a weird pattern of hairloss.

Most people wouldn't be able to tell you are losing hair unless they were looking down at your head.

Yeah I know, man. And that sucks.

 

[Guest]

A little Kirkland minoxidil 5% 2 weeks update:

Shedding more than I used to before starting minoxidil. Have 1-5 hairs on my pillow at morning. At least 70% of shedded hair is vellus hair, short/thin. So I think it's nothing to worry about, should be a sign of minoxidil's effectiveness.

 

[still_trying]

A little Kirkland minoxidil 5% 2 weeks update:

Shedding more than I used to before starting minoxidil. Have 1-5 hairs on my pillow at morning. At least 70% of shedded hair is vellus hair, short/thin. So I think it's nothing to worry about, should be a sign of minoxidil's effectiveness.

shedding is not a good way to monitor your hair loss..

a lot of people on here lose 50+ hairs a day!!

there's about 100 000 hair follicles on your head remember!

aslong as you're regrowing, then losing hairs is fine.

And remember, it's gonna take a LONG TIME before you start to see improvements. I've been on a regimen for just over 6 months and my hair has got worse. It was really hard to come to terms with, but now i think that things have started to stabilise. I'm expecting results to show from 9-12 months.

 

[Guest]

Is this the Ludwig type of hair loss? My father had the same type starting at your age. Good Luck with your regimen!

 

[Guest]

Is this the Ludwig type of hair loss? My father had the same type starting at your age. Good Luck with your regimen!

Yeah, it is Ludwig type. My mother has the same thinning pattern, but obviously not so severe.

 

[Thin]

good luck buddy. i'm on the same boat. except mine is worst

 

[templemonk]

im reading your story.. please keep updating.. and good luck wish you best result

 

[Ray777]

I think your hair looks fine, I dont think anyone will think you were going bald, but if your uncomfortable like that shave your head. I do it and I'm only 17 and I think its alright.

 

[Guest]

Hey growhairgrow, imo you are one the few persons who look better with a shaved head. You are truly lucky that you can take the shaved look like that.

 

[ToupMaster]

With your bone structure and fine looks.... I personaly think you look better with your head shaved down than with hair.

You've got a great Face and hair or the lack of it isn't going to change that.

 

[Guest]

Hey, thanks ToupMaster and Taugenichts, that's really positive stuff... made me happy.

 

[Dutchguy21]

Yeah you can pull of the bald look very easily, you've got the face for it. Unfortunatly I have a rather big forehead which looks even bigger with my receiding hairline, so shaving it wouldn't look good at all.

Nice to see a fellow European here btw!