minoxidil users

thinstinks

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hey please give me some help and let me know how it has worked for you guys,
shedding, irritation, stopping loss, regrowth, how long it took you etc etc
i need some advice and i apprecitate it as always
 

The Gardener

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Shedding: Yes, mild at week 2, heavy at week 6, neither did any visual damage to my hairline

Irritation: A mild stinging sensation about 5-10 mins after application. Mild general irritation at week 2 with one bout of flaking. Both subsided.

Stopping Loss: Yes

Regrowth: To soon to tell as it is only month 2 for me... but there are new dark hairs in my bald upper temples, and on the front/center area above my Bruce Willis-like forehead the hairs are now actually growing fairly long! This hair always grew short, then got really curly... so there is a marked improvement in the hair quality there. The hairs, if pulled forward, are now almost half way to my eyebrows which is f*****g fantastic. A few more weeks of this and it will almost be styleable! (well, styleable meaning I'm able to do a Kevin Costner part and sweep, as opposed to the close cut brillopad thang I had going in the past.

However, towards the back of my front forehead patch is a little area of thinness... the area where the two bald temples are on track to meet at my crown... this area is still thin. I would describe my situation has showing significant improvement in existing hair quality, but no impact on increasing thickness in the thin areas... YET.
 

Cassin

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I shed pretty bad for about 3 weeks after using minoxidil for about 6 weeks.

Results are starting for sure. I am seeing the beginnings of some nice regrowth!

I have been on it for about 3 months, but I wasted the first month using 2%.

Best advice possible is to just jump in and give it a go.
 

Japanbound

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I just started. I'm so happy, it doesn't iritate my skin at all. I thought for sure it would screw with me, I have fair skin and annoying allergies. I am using Dr. Lee's formula, so maybe that helps. I am still paranoid im not getting it in the scalp. I apply and rub, I think im getting it all in, but I dunno. I think I will experiment with just dropping it on and letting it dry, although that seems weird, and it's hard because it tends to run on my head.
 

The Gardener

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Japanbound, let me give you the Gardener's theory of minoxidil application.

Think of minoxidil as being three parts. First, there is the minoxidil chemical itself, which is suspended in a mixture of Propylene Glycol and Alcohol. When it is applied, the alcohol (which is very thin and runny, and dries very quickly) runs downhill from wherever you apply it, and spreads the contents of the droplet to the areas of the scalp surrounding where it was placed. As the alcohol either runs off, or evaporates, it leaves little gelatinous globs of the PPG, which has the actual minoxidil in it. As the PPG is thicker, it tends to coagulate around hair shafts and pores... and as the PPG dries, it deposits the minoxidil into the scalp. The minoxidil itself is a crystaline substance, and when the PPG is completely dry, the remaining minoxidil looks like finely ground salt sitting on your scalp.

I'm sure you have noticed this if you have spent time applying and watching minoxidil in your hair. The optimum application lets the alcohol run a little, just enough to deposit the PPG/minoxidil globs in the surrounding hair, and then it evaporates from your body heat. Of course, as the alcohol is runny, it can run PAST your hair and onto your forehead, etc. What you want to do is to keep the drop from running TOO much TOO quickly, giving the alcohol time to dry and the PPG time to find something to hold onto. If you apply in droplets that are too big, the alcohol and PPG/minoxidil runs past the hair and you waste precious minoxidil.

So, here is what I suggest to optimally apply minoxidil to maximize the effect. First off, when you approach the mirror to do this the first time, take your time! Allow 5-10 minutes. Of course as you become more adept with the dropper/dauber and more familiar with which amounts of minoxidil will cause drippage and which will hold perfectly in your hair in the different areas of your scalp, you will get MUCH quicker with it (2-3 mins). But at first, take your time.

Keep a handful of tissue handy, and a hard comb to part your hair. Part your hair into corn rows, and very slowly drop very small droplets into the parts. It is easy to just squirt the sh*t and get it over with, but that will only cause a run on your forehead or somewhere you don't need it. Apply one droplet, watch it hit the skin, and give it a sec to take hold. Then another droplet. Keep the droplets small, because if you place two large droplets next to each other, they will merge and turn into a very large droplet which will run and waste your minoxidil.

Get a feel for the dropper, how much certain pressure will release. Get a feel for your hair thickness in certain areas of your scalp. When applying to thin areas on a slope area of your head (like on your temples), you have to keep the droplets as small as you can, and give the alcohol a little time to burn off before applying another. On thick areas, you can be a little less deliberate.

By doing this, I don't have to touch my scalp and get the sh*t in my hair, which is a waste. It generally keeps my hair fairly dry, which is good because until the hair dries it looks like sh*t!

Also keep in mind that complete coverage is not necessary... there is a layer of soft skin under the hard outer scalp in which the chemical gets dispersed internally.... so even if you don't hit an area directly with a minoxidil bomblet, it will still get chemical through horny layer diffusion. Believe me, I know this to be true because my sideburns and upper beard are getting thicker!

I'm using a generic minoxidil which seems to have the same alcohol/PPG combo as Rogaine. Dr Lee's stuff has a higher proportion of alcohol to PPG. This is good in that it dries faster and has less chance to cause irritation if you are PPG-sensitive.=... but the down side is that with less PPG, the minoxidil-laden PPG globs are smaller and have less 'traction' on your head. This means you have to be even MORE deliberate with your application.

Hope this helps... and saves you some money by avoiding minoxidil waste.
 

WS6-TA

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I have only been on since end of August. Have had NO noticible sheds, NO irritation, Cant really tell if its stopped any loss. It sounds like I have a similar pattern to TheGardner, i have receding temples and thin areas near the back, those areas have YET to fill in. I have also just added spironolactone 2%.
 
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