youngintrouble90
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Hi guys,
First post on this forum so please be gentle! I’ve recently turned 22 and am suffering from aggressive hair loss – something that is now completely consuming my life. I feel physically unable to discuss this with friends & family so hoping to ‘let loose’ here in the hope that someone may have been through the same or may have some advice (at the least the chance to offload some of this will be a small relief!)
I suppose it’s best to start with some pictures to give you all an idea about how things are looking right now:
And these are three pics from the last 30 days so you can see what I look like 'out and about'
I come from a family line where the men have suffered from advanced hair loss from a young age, my mum has previously commented by dad rapidly lost his at around 25. I’ve noticed my hair starting to thin from around 16, and took the radical step of starting on Propecia from 17. Over the past 7-8 months I have been on Dutasteride (Avodart)
I have noticed over the past few years significant hair loss – my hairline is now completely destroyed and the temples are back a fair bit. I’ve gone from having thick, curly hair in my youth (hairdressers used to comment & it used to get it knots it was so thick) to what you see today. More concerning than the hairline / temples is that I have suffered and continue to suffer from pretty heavy diffuse thinning all the way back to the “safe†areas.
For the last four years I have not styled my hair and kept it brushed forward which has led me to be able to mask the severity of my hair loss. Unfortunately over the past three/four months or so, I have experienced significant & rapid hair loss in the central front region of my head which has completely altered the hairline, meaning I can no longer create a ‘non-suspicious’ fringe and my problems are becoming ever more visible.
Psychologically I am finding it increasingly difficult to cope with these physical changes – I fret and worry constantly about my future, the relationships I have with friends and how they’ll be impacted, my social life, what I will now miss out on compared to a ‘normal’ young man in his 20’s, how losing my hair will affect my success at work, whether I’ll spend the rest of my life alone & in isolation, whether people will accept me, whether I can deal with the shame of being in public amongst my peer group of a similar age whilst looking and feeling hideous.
The stress has become unbearable & there are so many ways in which this is currently impacting my life / behaviour, such as:
- Not feeling able to commit / move into a relationship with someone I’ve been dating for quite some time for the fear that I’ll not be able to keep them as a partner as my hair loss rapidly progresses.
- A fear that I’ll lose a significant number of my friends – not in any sort of malicious way but through their gradual reluctance to want to go out with someone who looks so different to them & ‘cramps their style’. Not only this but I am increasingly finding it difficult to go out in a social / public setting and I have always been a very social person.
- Developing an increasingly bitter view on the world – finding myself feeing intense jealousy of others, resentment of my father for these genes, depression in its most extreme form, anxiety and paranoia etc.
- An incredibly strong and constant feeling of self-loathing, feeling physically repulsed at my appearance.
- Not being able to ever truly relax / feel comfortable in a social situation. If it’s sunny, can people see through my hair? Needing to take an umbrella on every trip out in a bag in case it rains. Worrying about how much I might sweat in bed when having sex and how that would impact on my hairline. Freaking out in wind – everyone in front of me will see my hairline. Can’t go to water parks, can’t enjoy rollercoasters, can’t go to the beach, can’t share a shower, can’t let a friend ‘style my hair’, worry about when I’m out clubbing whether sweat makes my hair loss obvious etc etc.
- Financial – all of these treatments are very expensive for a 22 year old and I feel like I’m pouring my money away. It is so difficult to sustain my regime and I have no help.
Increasingly I am losing all of my motivation for anything in life & constantly think ‘ what’s the point?’. I fear massively that I will soon be alone and unable to integrate in society as I feel so ugly / different. The worry of everyone talking about me ‘have you seen what happened to him?’ is an ever growing concern on my conscience.
I have never felt this level of unhappiness before and it’s physically exhausting to have this stress, anxiety and strength of emotion every day. The helplessness of my situation, the sheer speed at which I am losing my hair and the feeling of unfairness at how young I am & what I am going to be missing out on in life is pushing me into a pretty dark place. I am struggling to cope & often fantasise about death & the end of life – I can’t imagine ever finding happiness again, every day is a step closer to a horrible fate and a gloomy future.
I know nobody in my age range or under 35 who is experiencing hair loss like me and feel totally isolated with this.
My regime is:
Avodart daily
Rogaine most nights but not when people stay over, also can’t wear it in the day as it makes my hair ‘see through’ to my scalp
Revita RS Laboratories 2 x per day
Supplements
I am seriously considering hair transplant surgery to try to restore some of my hairline.
Has anyone experienced such aggressive hair loss at this young age, should I change my regime, should I pursue the surgery option? Keen to get some advice as I’m totally stuck right now, nothing seems to be working any more L
First post on this forum so please be gentle! I’ve recently turned 22 and am suffering from aggressive hair loss – something that is now completely consuming my life. I feel physically unable to discuss this with friends & family so hoping to ‘let loose’ here in the hope that someone may have been through the same or may have some advice (at the least the chance to offload some of this will be a small relief!)
I suppose it’s best to start with some pictures to give you all an idea about how things are looking right now:
And these are three pics from the last 30 days so you can see what I look like 'out and about'
I come from a family line where the men have suffered from advanced hair loss from a young age, my mum has previously commented by dad rapidly lost his at around 25. I’ve noticed my hair starting to thin from around 16, and took the radical step of starting on Propecia from 17. Over the past 7-8 months I have been on Dutasteride (Avodart)
I have noticed over the past few years significant hair loss – my hairline is now completely destroyed and the temples are back a fair bit. I’ve gone from having thick, curly hair in my youth (hairdressers used to comment & it used to get it knots it was so thick) to what you see today. More concerning than the hairline / temples is that I have suffered and continue to suffer from pretty heavy diffuse thinning all the way back to the “safe†areas.
For the last four years I have not styled my hair and kept it brushed forward which has led me to be able to mask the severity of my hair loss. Unfortunately over the past three/four months or so, I have experienced significant & rapid hair loss in the central front region of my head which has completely altered the hairline, meaning I can no longer create a ‘non-suspicious’ fringe and my problems are becoming ever more visible.
Psychologically I am finding it increasingly difficult to cope with these physical changes – I fret and worry constantly about my future, the relationships I have with friends and how they’ll be impacted, my social life, what I will now miss out on compared to a ‘normal’ young man in his 20’s, how losing my hair will affect my success at work, whether I’ll spend the rest of my life alone & in isolation, whether people will accept me, whether I can deal with the shame of being in public amongst my peer group of a similar age whilst looking and feeling hideous.
The stress has become unbearable & there are so many ways in which this is currently impacting my life / behaviour, such as:
- Not feeling able to commit / move into a relationship with someone I’ve been dating for quite some time for the fear that I’ll not be able to keep them as a partner as my hair loss rapidly progresses.
- A fear that I’ll lose a significant number of my friends – not in any sort of malicious way but through their gradual reluctance to want to go out with someone who looks so different to them & ‘cramps their style’. Not only this but I am increasingly finding it difficult to go out in a social / public setting and I have always been a very social person.
- Developing an increasingly bitter view on the world – finding myself feeing intense jealousy of others, resentment of my father for these genes, depression in its most extreme form, anxiety and paranoia etc.
- An incredibly strong and constant feeling of self-loathing, feeling physically repulsed at my appearance.
- Not being able to ever truly relax / feel comfortable in a social situation. If it’s sunny, can people see through my hair? Needing to take an umbrella on every trip out in a bag in case it rains. Worrying about how much I might sweat in bed when having sex and how that would impact on my hairline. Freaking out in wind – everyone in front of me will see my hairline. Can’t go to water parks, can’t enjoy rollercoasters, can’t go to the beach, can’t share a shower, can’t let a friend ‘style my hair’, worry about when I’m out clubbing whether sweat makes my hair loss obvious etc etc.
- Financial – all of these treatments are very expensive for a 22 year old and I feel like I’m pouring my money away. It is so difficult to sustain my regime and I have no help.
Increasingly I am losing all of my motivation for anything in life & constantly think ‘ what’s the point?’. I fear massively that I will soon be alone and unable to integrate in society as I feel so ugly / different. The worry of everyone talking about me ‘have you seen what happened to him?’ is an ever growing concern on my conscience.
I have never felt this level of unhappiness before and it’s physically exhausting to have this stress, anxiety and strength of emotion every day. The helplessness of my situation, the sheer speed at which I am losing my hair and the feeling of unfairness at how young I am & what I am going to be missing out on in life is pushing me into a pretty dark place. I am struggling to cope & often fantasise about death & the end of life – I can’t imagine ever finding happiness again, every day is a step closer to a horrible fate and a gloomy future.
I know nobody in my age range or under 35 who is experiencing hair loss like me and feel totally isolated with this.
My regime is:
Avodart daily
Rogaine most nights but not when people stay over, also can’t wear it in the day as it makes my hair ‘see through’ to my scalp
Revita RS Laboratories 2 x per day
Supplements
I am seriously considering hair transplant surgery to try to restore some of my hairline.
Has anyone experienced such aggressive hair loss at this young age, should I change my regime, should I pursue the surgery option? Keen to get some advice as I’m totally stuck right now, nothing seems to be working any more L