Need some serious opinions..

[Dedge89]

Ok, where do I start this..
About a year and a half ago, I was at my ex-girlfriends and noticed my hairline was not receeding but it was definately getting thinner at the left and right by a tiny bit, but I never checked my crown, you don't really see the back of your head often so you don't know. Anyway, eventually I bought some minoxidill and I figured this was the beginning of male pattern baldness and applied it to the frontal area and I got some results on the left side but my right is still thinning abit, thats probably because of the direction my hair grows naturally.

Anyway, eventually I realised I was thinning on my crown too, however I mean extreme thinning, out of nowhere really, a large circular area around my ccrown has thinned so much that I got a grade 2 buzzcut and under a light it looks like im basically a monk...I dont get how this happened, I never see hairs fall out on my pillow or in the shower or anything. Im starting to notice that in general my hair is growing kind of patchy, like some areas would be thicker than others. My normal haircut is a number 2 on the top fading to a 0 on the sides and back (bald fade) however the hairs are growing back weird and patchy in some areas and my crown is going insanely thin. I ve started using mino on my crown for about 2months now seriously, and cant really report any seriousss results though some parts of my crown are definately getting thicker than others, but its still patchy, its not growing back evenly.

Im starting to think I may have a zinc defficiency or something, unless its just insanely aggresive male pattern baldness. I am a 20 year old generally healthy male, about to turn 21 soon. My dads pretty much bald on the front and back but still has hair, one of my grandads is bald all on top and my other has a full flock of hair. Here are some pictures too;

SOrry for the long post but my main concern is that I maybe used Minoxidil too prematurely on my crown and the problem might be down to something else? Or should I just stick with it cos its male pattern baldness most likely?

The picture where my hair is kinda thick is 2 years ago...its kind clear that my crown was already thinning then I guess..

 

[The Gardener]

Yeah, it might just be the cut, the angle, the light, etc... but, from those pics there does seem to be some thinning on your crown.

If that is indeed the case, my recommendation would be to drop the minoxidil, and instead get on the finasteride. I think finasteride would be a more effective treatment for that kind of thinning, and besides, its easier to stick to each day that minoxidil.

Oh, and pick up some Nizoral shampoo ASAP. Use it 2-3x a week. If not Nizoral, which is a brand name most common in the stores, then SOME kind of Ketoconazole-medicated shampoo.

 

[Dedge89]

Thanks man, the pictures kind of do it justice, its more obvious in real life but yeah...definately a large area of thinning.

I was thinking about finasteride last night, I could only temporarily afford Fincar (generic) right now though, but technically splitting it up into quarters and using it should be the same as Proscar/Prosperia (this whole USA patent etc is just a money maker, the active ingredient is all I care about)..

Im going away for holiday next week for 3 weeks, Im going to drop minoxidil for those 3 weeks and see what happens, Ima take zinc tablets for 3 weeks while I mthere then when I return jump on the finasteride.

Edit; Also, you refered to it as 'that type of thinning' what does that mean, Just wondering about the different types etc ( I see people use phrases like diffusal etc??!).

 

[The Gardener]

When I was referring to "that type" of thinning, yes, I was referring to diffuse thinning.

One bit of advice... when/if you drop the minoxidil, DON'T do it suddenly. Instead, slowly reduce your application amount over time.

Instead of applying a full 1ml twice a day, cut back to 1/2 ml twice a day. Then cut back to once a day. Then reduce to 1/4 ml. The goal of this is to take the minoxidil withdrawal shed and spread it out over time, so it does not occur all at once.

 

[s.a.f]

Im starting to think I may have a zinc defficiency or something, unless its just insanely aggresive male pattern baldness. I am a 20 year old generally healthy male, about to turn 21 soon. My dads pretty much bald on the front and back but still has hair, one of my grandads is bald all on top ..

Firstly drop the zinc deficiency theory, what you have is plain old m.p.b and that has nothing to do with health or vitamins ect. You answered your own question there you can pretty much expect to follow in the footsteps of your male relatives (did they also have a zinc deficiency)?

Your best hope is the finasteride.

 

[macimate]

Looks like male pattern baldness to me.
When you say one of your grandfathers are bald, which one is it? If it your maternal grandfather then you can be pretty sure you will lose it, if your dad's also bald like you said.

 

[Dedge89]

Haha, Ive pretty much accepted it's male pattern baldness anyway, just want to try Zinc because my hairs going kinda patchy in areas where male pattern baldness doesnt happen ;O

Diffuse thinning right..what other types are there?
Im just surprised at why my crowns going thinner before my hairline? Shouldnt you recede severely on the hairline first? =S

 

[Dedge89]

Haha, Ive pretty much accepted it's male pattern baldness anyway, just want to try Zinc because my hairs going kinda patchy in areas where male pattern baldness doesnt happen ;O

Diffuse thinning right..what other types are there?
Im just surprised at why my crowns going thinner before my hairline? Shouldnt you recede severely on the hairline first? =S

and finally about minoxidil shedding, say you used minoxidil on your crown but nothing grew extra in that time, will it still shed? Will the thin hairs which didn't manage to regrow thicker also shed?

That just sounds like if you use minoxidil and have no results when you stop you end up with less hair than you started due to the minoxidil? That can't be right..that would make this a very risky product =|

 

[The Gardener]

Dropping the minoxidil will give you a shed. You'll notice it. But, considering that you didnt get much result from it, it probably wont do anything to visibly damage your hair. You'll just notice more hairs than usual in the floor of the shower for a few weeks.. but, the shed will stop and the hairs will be regrown.

 

[Dedge89]

ok guys. So I should just jump on finasteride only for now? What can finasteride do for me, will it just stop the male pattern baldness or will it actually regrow any of the hair like minoxidil can?