I Prevail. The End Of A Long Agonizing Road.

[Derelict]

I've actually been lurking for about 6 yeara and sorta followed your story. I'm on a similar regiment, minus the cypro, I do 1.25mg finasteride in the form of proscar and 5mg of oral minoxidil in the form of loniten. I also cycle various supplements scheduled around my growth phases. I started far worse off than you were before I started to fight back. I had aggressive diffused thinning all over. But now I went from having to shave my head to the illusion of norwood 1 with the help of a little bit of caboki. 1 bottle lasts roughly 3 months, applying every 3 to 4 days. Without it I can do a little combover and just have a spot that is like an inch forward of the crown which is about an inch and a half in diamater... this is coming back from almost nothing and having to shave.

I just introduced the oral minoxidil in about 5 months ago and have seen a huge difference. For me it is a double benefit from having high blood pressure. I go from 160/95 70 heart rate to 125/80 80 heart rate. Seeing your success post makes me want to try to up my dosage. While I'm very pleased with my results, I'd love to knock out my last problem area.

If anyone is desperate for their hair, oral minoxidil is worth at least a shot. If you have high blood pressure then it is a double benefit. They use 40mg to 100mg when prescribing it for heart issues, so small 5mg to 15mg dosages are safe even without a diuretic, imo.

Unfortunately, I can not risk trying cypro because if anything happens to my dick my girlfriend will be pissed. She is very supportive of my hair issues, knows my struggle, watched my regrowth, knows I use concealer (after hiding it for 9 months), but already said she draws the line at sides that effect that.

Why do you drink topical instead of buying the tablets? ADC has them.

When did you first start noticing the benefits of oral minoxidil? i have been on 10mg for four months, it has helped thinning on the top of my head somewhat but my crown is still a mess. Here is a pic just after needling https://imgur.com/AQ97e4H

Im starting to think it may not be as effective as topical for the crown area.

 

[AnxiousAndy]

I've actually been lurking for about 6 yeara and sorta followed your story. I'm on a similar regiment, minus the cypro, I do 1.25mg finasteride in the form of proscar and 5mg of oral minoxidil in the form of loniten. I also cycle various supplements scheduled around my growth phases. I started far worse off than you were before I started to fight back. I had aggressive diffused thinning all over. But now I went from having to shave my head to the illusion of norwood 1 with the help of a little bit of caboki. 1 bottle lasts roughly 3 months, applying every 3 to 4 days. Without it I can do a little combover and just have a spot that is like an inch forward of the crown which is about an inch and a half in diamater... this is coming back from almost nothing and having to shave.

I just introduced the oral minoxidil in about 5 months ago and have seen a huge difference. For me it is a double benefit from having high blood pressure. I go from 160/95 70 heart rate to 125/80 80 heart rate. Seeing your success post makes me want to try to up my dosage. While I'm very pleased with my results, I'd love to knock out my last problem area.

If anyone is desperate for their hair, oral minoxidil is worth at least a shot. If you have high blood pressure then it is a double benefit. They use 40mg to 100mg when prescribing it for heart issues, so small 5mg to 15mg dosages are safe even without a diuretic, imo.

Unfortunately, I can not risk trying cypro because if anything happens to my dick my girlfriend will be pissed. She is very supportive of my hair issues, knows my struggle, watched my regrowth, knows I use concealer (after hiding it for 9 months), but already said she draws the line at sides that effect that.

Why do you drink topical instead of buying the tablets? ADC has them.

Im so glad to hear you came back from nothing, major congratulations I would be thrilled! I drink topical over tablets as it works our far cheaper. Drinking liquid at my dosage will make a 1 month supply of topical last 8 months!! That's like £40 for a year and a half of minoxidil!

 

[alibaba92]

Hey man, appreciate if you could summarize your story in a timeline form, like how many month into finasteride, oral minoxidil, etc. and its corresponding effects like shedding, etc. Btw, a few things to ask:

1. How do you get Cyproterone acetate ? need prescription ?
2. The liquid min got many other chemicals like PG and other thing, is it safe to drink ?
3. I remember you mentioned some liquid min brand give you bad effect ? Does it still hold true ? Which brand do you suggest ? Kirkland ?
4. Do you think finasteride alone + liquid oral min work ?

 

[Lurker85]

When did you first start noticing the benefits of oral minoxidil? i have been on 10mg for four months, it has helped thinning on the top of my head somewhat but my crown is still a mess. Here is a pic just after needling https://imgur.com/AQ97e4H

Im starting to think it may not be as effective as topical for the crown area.

It was around month 5 that I looked in the mirror and actually thought "ok, this is doing something," but that's after years of trying a bunch of stuff. Started with rogaine, saw little improvement after a year, added in supplements... biotin, d3, l-cystein, lysine, and a multivitamin. Then added in finasteride as 1mg using finpecia. After a year and a half of finpecia I used .5mg avodart daily... helped with hairline but nothing else. Then I went to finpecia daily and avodart weekly. Had a cancer scare ( all good now ) so stopped taking avodart and changed from finpecia to proscar after reading about how a patient switched to finpecia drom proscar and lost their gains but got them from switching back.

With all my experimenting it is hard to say exactly when I saw benefits from current regiment, but it was roughly 5 months after my last change. Going to start 10mg oral minoxidil soon I think. Hairline went from non existent to almost perfect... just a slightly thin spot right in the middle... about a half an inch... but unnoticeable once I style my hair.

 

[Lurker85]

Im so glad to hear you came back from nothing, major congratulations I would be thrilled! I drink topical over tablets as it works our far cheaper. Drinking liquid at my dosage will make a 1 month supply of topical last 8 months!! That's like £40 for a year and a half of minoxidil!

Ah that makes sense then. I use the tablets and 10mg would be around $280 a year. Yea, pretty thrilled from coming back from nothing. I thought I was done for sure. Now no one knows I have any hair issues besises my girlfriend. Caboki looks very natural for my stubborn spot, and dermmatch works in it's place on days where I'll get wet.

 

[Derelict]

It was around month 5 that I looked in the mirror and actually thought "ok, this is doing something," but that's after years of trying a bunch of stuff. Started with rogaine, saw little improvement after a year, added in supplements... biotin, d3, l-cystein, lysine, and a multivitamin. Then added in finasteride as 1mg using finpecia. After a year and a half of finpecia I used .5mg avodart daily... helped with hairline but nothing else. Then I went to finpecia daily and avodart weekly. Had a cancer scare ( all good now ) so stopped taking avodart and changed from finpecia to proscar after reading about how a patient switched to finpecia drom proscar and lost their gains but got them from switching back.

With all my experimenting it is hard to say exactly when I saw benefits from current regiment, but it was roughly 5 months after my last change. Going to start 10mg oral minoxidil soon I think. Hairline went from non existent to almost perfect... just a slightly thin spot right in the middle... about a half an inch... but unnoticeable once I style my hair.

Thanks for your reply, im also taking dutasteride, although i haven't been on it as long as oral minoxidil, guess all i can do wait and pray for some results. Glad you are healthy and well with your cancer scare, take care.

 

[AnxiousAndy]

Hey man, appreciate if you could summarize your story in a timeline form, like how many month into finasteride, oral minoxidil, etc. and its corresponding effects like shedding, etc. Btw, a few things to ask:

1. How do you get Cyproterone acetate ? need prescription ?
2. The liquid min got many other chemicals like PG and other thing, is it safe to drink ?
3. I remember you mentioned some liquid min brand give you bad effect ? Does it still hold true ? Which brand do you suggest ? Kirkland ?
4. Do you think finasteride alone + liquid oral min work ?

Hey dude, I'm out and on my phone right now so this will need to be quick.
I started finasteride on mid November 2016. After a month and a half I'd already lost a bit of my hairline and temples were pretty much bald already ( which were full but thin before treatment ) Kept on taking finasteride alone until I added in S5 plus cream to hairline for 6 months ( that sh*t is bunk BTW ) which didn't help, I continued to lose ground. About 14 months into finasteride I decided to try oral spironolactone at 150mg for roughly 4 months but suffered monstrous shedding the whole time which obviously worsened an already bad situation. I gave up on spironolactone and started on Loxidil oral minoxidil tablets which did work great for almost 4 months before my supplier had to change to a different brand due to inability to source more Loxidil. I stayed on these new pills for 8 months but shortly after starting the mother of all dread sheds began.. I was shedding about 200 - 300 hairs daily! Of course my hairline receded even further and the general density suffered. I needed up having to use toppik, thickening shampoos and hairspray to conceal what I was losing.. I essentially had a trendy combover lol. Somewhere in that time frame, (closer to the end of the shed ) I started Cyproterone Acetate. I also started on drinking Kirkland's minoxidil which induced another huge shed which lasted a few months. After the super shed finally subsided I began to see vellus hairs crop up where they had previously been on loxidil. Overtime those velus hairs have grown halfway to terminal and I no longer shed more than 100 hairs a day. That's pretty much my story, hope this helped!

I get cypro from InhousePharmacy, the brand is called Procur 50mg.

All chemicals besides minoxidil in the liquid are risk free to drink at the doses I am consuming.

I have only ever used one topical minoxidil brand which is Kirkland, never used topically only drank. The brand of oral minoxidil which fucked me ( I believe ) is Mino10, its a Thai generic of oral minoxidil.

finasteride and liquid minoxidil used topically work for a lot of people, but not all. It made things ( finasteride ) a lot worse faster for me.

 

[AnxiousAndy]

Just wanted to share one more pic. Today I shampooed my hair with my thickening shampoo and the regrown hair looks even thicker! ( the ones I posted in the opening are with regular shampoo )
This made the hairs much easier to apply dermmatch. Once those hairs go terminal this will essentially be the end result. Full NW1!

 

[Tommybommy1363]

Looks good man. Why not get a derminator to really step up the regrowth?

 

[AnxiousAndy]

Looks good man. Why not get a derminator to really step up the regrowth?

What's that? Is it some kind of dermaroller or dermastamp?

 

[Tommybommy1363]

What's that? Is it some kind of dermaroller or dermastamp?

Electronic dermastamp. Supposed to be less painful and quicker than normal dermastamping

I’ve been toying with the idea to give it a try to get a nw1. Regular dermastamping took too much time and was too painful

 

[alibaba92]

Hey dude, I'm out and on my phone right now so this will need to be quick.
I started finasteride on mid November 2016. After a month and a half I'd already lost a bit of my hairline and temples were pretty much bald already ( which were full but thin before treatment ) Kept on taking finasteride alone until I added in S5 plus cream to hairline for 6 months ( that sh*t is bunk BTW ) which didn't help, I continued to lose ground. About 14 months into finasteride I decided to try oral spironolactone at 150mg for roughly 4 months but suffered monstrous shedding the whole time which obviously worsened an already bad situation. I gave up on spironolactone and started on Loxidil oral minoxidil tablets which did work great for almost 4 months before my supplier had to change to a different brand due to inability to source more Loxidil. I stayed on these new pills for 8 months but shortly after starting the mother of all dread sheds began.. I was shedding about 200 - 300 hairs daily! Of course my hairline receded even further and the general density suffered. I needed up having to use toppik, thickening shampoos and hairspray to conceal what I was losing.. I essentially had a trendy combover lol. Somewhere in that time frame, (closer to the end of the shed ) I started Cyproterone Acetate. I also started on drinking Kirkland's minoxidil which induced another huge shed which lasted a few months. After the super shed finally subsided I began to see vellus hairs crop up where they had previously been on loxidil. Overtime those velus hairs have grown halfway to terminal and I no longer shed more than 100 hairs a day. That's pretty much my story, hope this helped!

I get cypro from InhousePharmacy, the brand is called Procur 50mg.

All chemicals besides minoxidil in the liquid are risk free to drink at the doses I am consuming.

I have only ever used one topical minoxidil brand which is Kirkland, never used topically only drank. The brand of oral minoxidil which fucked me ( I believe ) is Mino10, its a Thai generic of oral minoxidil.

finasteride and liquid minoxidil used topically work for a lot of people, but not all. It made things ( finasteride ) a lot worse faster for me.

Thanks dude. I was frightened when seeing your "shedding" thread. Hope that there wont be another shedding thread from you

By the way, I guess, all of your shedding is due to minoxidil, isnt it ?

And to what extent do you think Cyproterone Acetate has helped you ?

 

[DuckThisSheet]

@AnxiousAndy
I consider going for oral minoxidil, but im not sure about 2 things
- Should i start with 2,5 mg and than increase it to 5mg after lets say 1 month, or can i jump immediately on 5 mg dose?
- Also is there any sense to giving a try 2,5mg and staying on that or its too small dose?

 

[Lurker85]

@AnxiousAndy
I consider going for oral minoxidil, but im not sure about 2 things
- Should i start with 2,5 mg and than increase it to 5mg after lets say 1 month, or can i jump immediately on 5 mg dose?
- Also is there any sense to giving a try 2,5mg and staying on that or its too small dose?

5mg is still a small dosage.

Things to consider:
What's your blood pressure? If you are at 130 / 90 and above then 5mg will bring you to the low average. If you are over that thsn you can up your dosage safely. Without it I was 150/90 and with it I'm 125/80.
What's your heart rate? My resting went from 70 to 80.

I'm swapping to 10mg this week.. predicting my heart rate going to 85 and blood pressure to 115/70.

When using oral minoxidil you need to keep track of that stuff... but 2.5mg won't really affect anything... including hair.

 

[DuckThisSheet]

5mg is still a small dosage.

Things to consider:
What's your blood pressure? If you are at 130 / 90 and above then 5mg will bring you to the low average. If you are over that thsn you can up your dosage safely. Without it I was 150/90 and with it I'm 125/80.
What's your heart rate? My resting went from 70 to 80.

I'm swapping to 10mg this week.. predicting my heart rate going to 85 and blood pressure to 115/70.

When using oral minoxidil you need to keep track of that stuff... but 2.5mg won't really affect anything... including hair.

<Im 21 this year>
I ll check everything, but even if the blood pressure will be ok, i can be kinda scared, becouse i have heart problems in my family. My Grandfather died when he was 39 becouse of the heart attack. So would rather to not go for 10mg dose :c

5mg is still a small dosage, but i still should see some new results if i will take oral 5mg minoxidil daily and dont stop using topical minoxidil, right?

 

[Lurker85]

<Im 21 this year>
I ll check everything, but even if the blood pressure will be ok, i can be kinda scared, becouse i have heart problems in my family. My Grandfather died when he was 39 becouse of the heart attack. So would rather to not go for 10mg dose :c

5mg is still a small dosage, but i still should see some new results if i will take oral 5mg minoxidil daily and dont stop using topical minoxidil, right?

I saw some decent gains on 5mg with 1.25mg proscar. I'm at about 6 months on 5mg but I'm upping to 10mg today.

 

[lexluthor.12]

You are drinking topical minoxidil? Is that safe? How much do you drink in one dose?

 

[Capone]

In the last pic, either you’ve put on weight or your face has gotten more feminine.

 

[bridgeburn]

Nice to finally see you here Andy!
you look like a fullhead. It sounds like you needed consistency. Maybe for you the treatments even if they work cause long shedding when you make changes.

 

[AnxiousAndy]

You are drinking topical minoxidil? Is that safe? How much do you drink in one dose?

At the dosages I'm consuming all other non active ingredients are safe to consume, unless your allergic to propylene glycol.. I drink 0.25 of liquid from the dropper. 1ml of liquid = 50mg so 0.25ml is 12.5mg.

In the last pic, either you’ve put on weight or your face has gotten more feminine.

Ive put on about 15 pounds since the pic with the red circle. Depression from what at the time was powerful treatments failing me caused a fair bit of comfort eating and alcohol abuse, posted here quite often drunk. Bad times. I don't feel I look more feminine as my face aesthetically has not changed. I have experienced slight fat redistribution but Im not sure if that's due to the extra weight.. Back on track to my goal weight now since I thankfully have no major concerns in my life right now, hope it stays that way.

Nice to finally see you here Andy!
you look like a fullhead. It sounds like you needed consistency. Maybe for you the treatments even if they work cause long shedding when you make changes.

Its been a while bridge! I'm fairly sure but not positive the awful shedding was probably due to Mino10 being bunk pills. Horror shed began shortly after switching and didn't subside at all until I started drinking the liquid. I figured if I was gonna take oral minoxidil I should probably get some of the purest legitimate stuff available. Ridiculously cheaper than the pills! Only problem is the taste can be real bad if was drinking vodka the night before. I'm really glad I stuck through it all. The only thing that kept me consistent was I was terrified that stopping the oral minoxidil would cause an even worse shed.. I was confident Cypro could only be doing good ( which it most probably has been doing ) so I wasn't worried about that.. Eventually I started to get the regrowth back but I was noticeably ( to me ) a bit more bald than in my red circle pic.. The hairs have grown a fair bit since then and are getting longer every day Hairline is coming back too but its going to probably take at least twice as long to regrow it as it did to fall out. Shedding is lowest its been since I started.. Also started regrowing hairs which I forget I ever had to begin with lol but they are still tiny. Pigmented, but tiny. Honestly I'm thrilled to finally be seeing results again after an 80% failure timeline. Hope it stays this way!