First want to say, thanks to all the smart people contributing on this forum and interpreting the latest research/studies for ways in which we might be able to practically apply.
I’ve been giving myself a crash course over the last month but I still have a lot to learn.
My primary goal is to reverse the thinning on my crown, which with my dark hair is starting to look like one of the worst hallmarks of male pattern baldness… the good news (hopefully) is that there is still hair there, it is just much thinner/more diffuse than the surrounding areas and skin shows through.
As a secondary goal I would like to halt the hairline recession (my forehead has become pretty d@mn big) and maybe even get some regrowth/advancement if I’m lucky. So basically the same thing everyone wants.
On the anti-androgen front -- I’ve been taking 0.25 mg finasteride daily (titrated down from 1.0mg daily). I do have sides (minimal libido, no morning wood, lack of sexual interest). As a result I am soon switching to a once-per-week application of 0.5% liposomal topical dutasteride (compounded by Farmacia Parati). My hope is that this will be effective for keeping scalp DHT in check while giving my serum DHT some room to recover (stay tuned)
I’ve been applying ~1ml of RU58841 one time daily (purchased from Chemyo, it is the pre-mixed solution). I might start mixing RU into my daily topical instead. I also apply minoxidil twice a day, one of the two daily applications is usually the MinoxidilMax “Dualgen-5R” (contains 5% azelaic acid and 0.025% retinoic acid). Also recently started applying 1.0% hydrocortisone (Scalplin) ~3 days a week.
On the needling front, for maybe a year I have been doing once-a-week at 1.5mm using the Dr. Pen A7. Admittedly haven’t been super diligent about it. I’ve recently switched to a protocol more closely resembling Follica (1mm, every two weeks, ~15 minutes on the Dr. Pen A7 medium speed setting). I’m also planning to begin doing some light daily needling, maybe 0.5mm - 0.75mm for 5 minutes per day.
Which brings me to the reason for this post -- I want to devise a topical regimen for daily application after light needling that covers as many bases as possible to give the greatest chance for regrowth. At this point I think I’m willing to entertain most research chemicals, but want to avoid potentially feminizing stuff and riskier approaches like hedgehog signaling.
Disclaimer -- I really don’t know how solubility works for various compounds, absorption, stability constraints, receptor site competition, affinities or how various molecules interact with each other in good or bad ways so I would welcome any input on those fronts.
Let’s assume for this exercise that I am going to mix batches daily and apply after light needling. Also for the moment let’s ignore cost and supply chain (sourcing is my next problem…)
I would also be super grateful if those of you smarter than me could 1) double check or suggest dosage on some of these, and 2) tell me what insanely dangerous mistake I’m about to make my putting this on my head
Gen 1 Regrowth Topical Regimen (for a single application):
My plan would be to add these things incrementally to a topical as I am able to procure them. I have a lot of questions about how well these would be absorbed vs. wasted.
I will be happy to take detailed photo documentation and timeline to track any (hopeful) progress. Thanks all for your input.
I’ve been giving myself a crash course over the last month but I still have a lot to learn.
My primary goal is to reverse the thinning on my crown, which with my dark hair is starting to look like one of the worst hallmarks of male pattern baldness… the good news (hopefully) is that there is still hair there, it is just much thinner/more diffuse than the surrounding areas and skin shows through.
As a secondary goal I would like to halt the hairline recession (my forehead has become pretty d@mn big) and maybe even get some regrowth/advancement if I’m lucky. So basically the same thing everyone wants.
On the anti-androgen front -- I’ve been taking 0.25 mg finasteride daily (titrated down from 1.0mg daily). I do have sides (minimal libido, no morning wood, lack of sexual interest). As a result I am soon switching to a once-per-week application of 0.5% liposomal topical dutasteride (compounded by Farmacia Parati). My hope is that this will be effective for keeping scalp DHT in check while giving my serum DHT some room to recover (stay tuned)
I’ve been applying ~1ml of RU58841 one time daily (purchased from Chemyo, it is the pre-mixed solution). I might start mixing RU into my daily topical instead. I also apply minoxidil twice a day, one of the two daily applications is usually the MinoxidilMax “Dualgen-5R” (contains 5% azelaic acid and 0.025% retinoic acid). Also recently started applying 1.0% hydrocortisone (Scalplin) ~3 days a week.
On the needling front, for maybe a year I have been doing once-a-week at 1.5mm using the Dr. Pen A7. Admittedly haven’t been super diligent about it. I’ve recently switched to a protocol more closely resembling Follica (1mm, every two weeks, ~15 minutes on the Dr. Pen A7 medium speed setting). I’m also planning to begin doing some light daily needling, maybe 0.5mm - 0.75mm for 5 minutes per day.
Which brings me to the reason for this post -- I want to devise a topical regimen for daily application after light needling that covers as many bases as possible to give the greatest chance for regrowth. At this point I think I’m willing to entertain most research chemicals, but want to avoid potentially feminizing stuff and riskier approaches like hedgehog signaling.
Disclaimer -- I really don’t know how solubility works for various compounds, absorption, stability constraints, receptor site competition, affinities or how various molecules interact with each other in good or bad ways so I would welcome any input on those fronts.
Let’s assume for this exercise that I am going to mix batches daily and apply after light needling. Also for the moment let’s ignore cost and supply chain (sourcing is my next problem…)
I would also be super grateful if those of you smarter than me could 1) double check or suggest dosage on some of these, and 2) tell me what insanely dangerous mistake I’m about to make my putting this on my head
Gen 1 Regrowth Topical Regimen (for a single application):
- 3 ml of 5% generic minoxidil --
- increase VEGF (is this a suitable vehicle? Problems/interactions with anything below?)
- 3 drops Sandalore --
- (I think this equates to ~5%)
- 6 mg Valproic Acid (VPA) --
- activate Wnt/β-Catenin signaling pathway by inhibiting GSK3b (Seen mixed opinions on whether GSK3b is a worthwhile Wnt attack vector i.e. Follica...)
- 1mg PGE2 --
- growth stimulant (is this about the right dose?)
- ___mg Ramatroban --
- PGD2 inhibitor. (What daily dosage is appropriate? How does it compare to OC/TM? Is PGD2 inhibitor even necessary?)
- 3mg WAY-316606 --
- Wnt signaling -- from what I gather reduces the wnt inhibitor SFRP1
- ___mg Rapamycin -- mTOR inhibition. (Does this fit into the puzzle? Picked it up from a mouse study below…)
My plan would be to add these things incrementally to a topical as I am able to procure them. I have a lot of questions about how well these would be absorbed vs. wasted.
I will be happy to take detailed photo documentation and timeline to track any (hopeful) progress. Thanks all for your input.