Point of no return

[ZZmop]

Hi everyone, first time poster here, hope you're all doing well. I'm in my late 20's and my hairloss has reached a point where I feel if I don't act now it may progress beyond a point of no return in terms of a pharmaceutical countering. I have some questions I hope the fine folks on this board can help me with. First I'll establish some details about myself.

I first started noticing a change in my hairline at 27. Prior to this I never even considered I'd ever suffer hair loss and, if it ever did happen to me, it would happen in my 40's or later. I thought my hairdresser had botched my haircut because it was becoming weird to style at the temples. So I first noticed a slight receding there. About a year later a slight sparse patch was starting to become noticeable to me if I stood under a light. It's now a year on from then and the pictures show the current state of my hair (note: that's the worst it looks, in the mirror away from light it's not that noticeable)

http://imgur.com/a/q0206

Now, I understand the usual protocol is to start the 'big three' regimen, finasteride-minoxidil-nizoral. I'm just beginning to use nizoral. I've never used finasteride or minoxidil. And here's where I stand on finasteride: I don't want to use it. I've been successfully scared away from it by a plethora of TV news reports, morning chat show horror stories and forum postings all over the web, not to mention the doctors I've seen claiming finasteride is a poison that can completely disable one's endocrine system. I understand these side effects are in a small minority of cases but I really would rather not risk it. So, with that in mind, some questions:

1) Who should I go to to discuss the hair loss? I went to my GP and he said it was male pattern baldness without really checking my head. Should I see a Trichologist? Dermatologist? Endocrinologist? And can any of them give me useful information outside of "get on the big three?"

2) Is it at all advisable to get a hair transplant without using finasteride? I've got up to £4000 to spend on one and I'd be willing to travel to Turkey. However, most people have the transplant and use finasteride. Anyone here or any examples of transplants without finasteride?

3) Is it even worth using Minoxidil without finasteride? My concern is that the results will be minimal and it could make it worse it I stop using it.

4) Given the pattern of my hair loss, is a transplant even a good idea? Should I wait or act now?

5) Does my donor area look ok?

6) Any opinions on black seed oil? I've used biotin for months and seen no changes

Thanks guys, lot of questions I know

 

[ZZmop]

No opinions on any of that at all?

 

[Dikek]

Your head looks like mine, the best for us is try finasteride and add minoxidil after a couple of months, it's possible to do a hair transplant without medications but it's not reccomanded, you most likely will lose more ground in the next years and the results will be a ****

 

[TD500]

Hi everyone, first time poster here, hope you're all doing well. I'm in my late 20's and my hairloss has reached a point where I feel if I don't act now it may progress beyond a point of no return in terms of a pharmaceutical countering. I have some questions I hope the fine folks on this board can help me with. First I'll establish some details about myself.

I first started noticing a change in my hairline at 27. Prior to this I never even considered I'd ever suffer hair loss and, if it ever did happen to me, it would happen in my 40's or later. I thought my hairdresser had botched my haircut because it was becoming weird to style at the temples. So I first noticed a slight receding there. About a year later a slight sparse patch was starting to become noticeable to me if I stood under a light. It's now a year on from then and the pictures show the current state of my hair (note: that's the worst it looks, in the mirror away from light it's not that noticeable)

http://imgur.com/a/q0206

Now, I understand the usual protocol is to start the 'big three' regimen, finasteride-minoxidil-nizoral. I'm just beginning to use nizoral. I've never used finasteride or minoxidil. And here's where I stand on finasteride: I don't want to use it. I've been successfully scared away from it by a plethora of TV news reports, morning chat show horror stories and forum postings all over the web, not to mention the doctors I've seen claiming finasteride is a poison that can completely disable one's endocrine system. I understand these side effects are in a small minority of cases but I really would rather not risk it. So, with that in mind, some questions:

1) Your GP is a smart man you clearly have male pattern baldness, I'm almost certain all would give you the same answer finasteride/minoxidil.
2) Look up FredtheBelgian he got a hair transplant without meds
3) minoxidil would buy you some time, but ultimately doesn't stop the root cause which is DHT
4) can't answer
5) can't answer
6) snake oils

 

[shookwun]

Only choice is to succumb to being bald, because finasteride is the only reasonable medication we have. Topicals by itself won't do much, but in hand with oral sytematic medication makes a big difference. The key is inhibit it both systematically, and topically.

Most optimal hair loss stack

RU58841 Mixed with minioxidil solution
S5 cream
Nizoral
Finasteride. 1mg ed
dutasteride .5 E7d

This is the strongest stack

I'm sure the side effects of being bald will be much more in your favour then trying out finasteride, and potentially having no sides like most :roll:

 

[ZZmop]

Thanks for the responses guys, I appreciate it.

Only choice is to succumb to being bald, because finasteride is the only reasonable medication we have. Topicals by itself won't do much, but in hand with oral sytematic medication makes a big difference. The key is inhibit it both systematically, and topically.

I'm sure the side effects of being bald will be much more in your favour then trying out finasteride, and potentially having no sides like most :roll:

If I were to try finasteride, what are the wisest steps to take before beginning treatment? I see a lot of people advocating having a blood test prior to starting in order to establish baseline hormone levels; the thinking being that if something were to go wrong, an endocrinologist at least has target numbers to return to. With that said, does anybody know what I should be testing for when I go to the doctors? I assume test and DHt levels but is there anything else I should be charting?

 

[winnyblues]

You're scared to use finasteride cause you heard some wishy washy bull**** online? Please
I've smoked meth and I'm still here
finasteride is sweet **** all bro its a 1mg pill a day which 99.9999% of the times you won't get sides

 

[shookwun]

Just go on the medication, and if it doesn't work out come off.

This finasteride scare rele is funny. Jeez christ U can go on steroids, completely shut down your HPTA function, and come off cold turkey. Sure your estrogen will spike, dht and test plummet like a roller coaster ride but eventually the body will reach homoeostasis, and recover. Do u rele ****ing think finasteride will do any more harm then that? this medication is mild as hell.

 

[Conpecia]

I personally would try finasteride for a few months in conjunction with minoxidil and nizoral. I know a lot of guys barely hanging onto their hair because they were scared off finasteride for years, kept balding, then freaked out and started taking it, only to have absolutely no sides. The level of anger they have toward the people who steered them away from finasteride is incredible.

The truth of the matter is that without finasteride dutasteride or ru you will most likely lose the majority of your hair before 35. If you're ok with that then it's not a big deal. if you're married and look good with a shaved head and what not... don't bother. But for every dude out there saying finasteride did this or that to them, there are a hundred guys like me who say finasteride saved their entire 20s and beyond from the serious depression hair loss was causing them. If you start having issues just taper off and hang on until something safer comes out. But I would definitely try something.

 

[sportsfan12]

Hi everyone, first time poster here, hope you're all doing well. I'm in my late 20's and my hairloss has reached a point where I feel if I don't act now it may progress beyond a point of no return in terms of a pharmaceutical countering. I have some questions I hope the fine folks on this board can help me with. First I'll establish some details about myself.

I first started noticing a change in my hairline at 27. Prior to this I never even considered I'd ever suffer hair loss and, if it ever did happen to me, it would happen in my 40's or later. I thought my hairdresser had botched my haircut because it was becoming weird to style at the temples. So I first noticed a slight receding there. About a year later a slight sparse patch was starting to become noticeable to me if I stood under a light. It's now a year on from then and the pictures show the current state of my hair (note: that's the worst it looks, in the mirror away from light it's not that noticeable)

http://imgur.com/a/q0206

Now, I understand the usual protocol is to start the 'big three' regimen, finasteride-minoxidil-nizoral. I'm just beginning to use nizoral. I've never used finasteride or minoxidil. And here's where I stand on finasteride: I don't want to use it. I've been successfully scared away from it by a plethora of TV news reports, morning chat show horror stories and forum postings all over the web, not to mention the doctors I've seen claiming finasteride is a poison that can completely disable one's endocrine system. I understand these side effects are in a small minority of cases but I really would rather not risk it. So, with that in mind, some questions:

1) Who should I go to to discuss the hair loss? I went to my GP and he said it was male pattern baldness without really checking my head. Should I see a Trichologist? Dermatologist? Endocrinologist? And can any of them give me useful information outside of "get on the big three?"

2) Is it at all advisable to get a hair transplant without using finasteride? I've got up to £4000 to spend on one and I'd be willing to travel to Turkey. However, most people have the transplant and use finasteride. Anyone here or any examples of transplants without finasteride?

3) Is it even worth using Minoxidil without finasteride? My concern is that the results will be minimal and it could make it worse it I stop using it.

4) Given the pattern of my hair loss, is a transplant even a good idea? Should I wait or act now?

5) Does my donor area look ok?

6) Any opinions on black seed oil? I've used biotin for months and seen no changes

Thanks guys, lot of questions I know

Im only speaking from my own experience here, but im 25 and i prolonged taking finasteride for almost 2 years because i was scared. I used minoxidil during that span but if anything it just slowed it down.

I was flat out depressed daily as it got worse. I finally caved into finasteride. Im 4 1/2 months in and i take a pill a day like its a multivitamin and go about ny day.

I already have great crown progress, you cant even tell it was thinning there. Hair on top has thickened too, im just hoping for one of my corner/crowns to fill in more.

Still new to finasteride but no sides at all. Only regret at this point is not starting earlier

- - - Updated - - -

Thanks for the responses guys, I appreciate it.




If I were to try finasteride, what are the wisest steps to take before beginning treatment? I see a lot of people advocating having a blood test prior to starting in order to establish baseline hormone levels; the thinking being that if something were to go wrong, an endocrinologist at least has target numbers to return to. With that said, does anybody know what I should be testing for when I go to the doctors? I assume test and DHt levels but is there anything else I should be charting?

Also, i saw 2 different derms before starting finasteride. Both willing to write the script, one who had been taking it himself for 10 years. Helped reassure me

 

[hmm]

Been on finasteride nearly 10 years no negative side effects. Only thing out there right now that actually stops hair loss.

 

[xRedStaRx]

It's just funny to read people claiming to have no sides out of a drug shutting down hormones seriously. You all got sides, you just choose to ignore them. The so called sides are just the drug working. No sides my ***.

Haha. Well, yes that is true.

Slowing down androgenic hair loss is a side effect of finasteride. Most people choose to ignore the 'bad' side effects.

 

[sjbuk]

At 27 a hair transplant really seems a bad move to me as you are way too young to get a feel for how much hair loss you will experience. You will be faced with a choice of doing an hair transplant and likely having a few down the line or waiting to see if you can get on with either a bald look or piece. I would wait on this one.

- - - Updated - - -

I agree re the sides. Merck have WAY undereported on this. Its more like 2% didn't get sides.

 

[overzealousfollicles]

I hear all these horror stories about side effects from finasteride, and the sides I got from 1 mg of finasteride daily were there, but not nearly as damaging as losing my hair at 21. The only thing I noticed, personally, was that my libido was maybe 50 % less noticeable than prior to taking finasteride. No side effects associated with actual sex, but I was simply generally less interested in having sex. I started taking .5 mg per day and this side effect has pretty much gone away, with seemingly no / very little difference to my actual hair density. Side effects vary from person to person, and also, any side effects you experience from finasteride stop once you stop taking the medication. If you're not willing to at least try finasteride then you'll have very little hope of keeping your hair.

 

[ZZmop]

I hear all these horror stories about side effects from finasteride, and the sides I got from 1 mg of finasteride daily were there, but not nearly as damaging as losing my hair at 21. The only thing I noticed, personally, was that my libido was maybe 50 % less noticeable than prior to taking finasteride. No side effects associated with actual sex, but I was simply generally less interested in having sex. I started taking .5 mg per day and this side effect has pretty much gone away, with seemingly no / very little difference to my actual hair density. Side effects vary from person to person, and also, any side effects you experience from finasteride stop once you stop taking the medication. If you're not willing to at least try finasteride then you'll have very little hope of keeping your hair.

I'm just a fairly conservative person when it comes to risk. I understand the side effects only happen in a small minority of cases but my sex drive is more important to me than my hair and I'd rather go slick than jeopardise it. Many guys on this forum and elsewhere take the drug with apparently no negative effects and that's great. It's wrong to say that the sides are always reversible when taking finasteride though. There are countless documented cases of them continuing years after cessation. Just a few youtube vids for reference:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXxUpiExMtQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1pb4RSGe_E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEGCTMtlgoc

Again, small minority but still a risk and one I'm not willing to take. I'm going to start using minoxidil plus nizoral and see how I respond to that. If that doesn't at least slow the loss in the next 6 months then I'll buzz the lot and weigh up a hair transplant in the future.