Should i start getting worried or am i just paranoid? [PICS]

alliwantisbeer · Mar 1, 2007

Hi all,

I'm starting to get worried that im getting early warning signals of male pattern baldness! I'm currently 20y old and I've read alot about male pattern baldness recently (thanks HairlossTalk) but im still very unsure of my own condition.

I've had quite alot of hair loss during this past year (or maybe even longer back, not sure). Wherever I go I can practiclly see myself leaving a trail of hair. Whenever I take a shower I easily loose over 50-100 hairs noticeably all over the bathroom. Whenever I brush my hair with my fingers I see hairs falling off everywere. And if I just brush my hair for a minute or two over the sink I see loads of hair falling off. I also have hair all over my apartment even after just one day of living. I didn't have this type of hairloss when I was younger and this if course isin't a good sign and it has gotten me really worried

I've tried checking old pictures and inspecting my hair on a regular basis for the past few months and I can't really say that my hairline has recessed nor that I've gotten larger "v-patches" on the sides. Neither can I really claim that my hair has thinned out. Even if it feels like it! Compared to most of the people here im probably far from getting bald. But the abnormal (?) hairloss still worries me, alot!

I've also recently noticed that I have single, totally white, hairs in various places on my head. There are not many, maybe one or two at the same time. But they do come and go. They are not light grey but white, like chalk! I don't know what this means but I feel way to young to be getting grey/white haired

Both my father and grandfather are bald. My father started going bald at around his late 20's, early 30's. He blames stress and psychological reasons due to a serious of events but I think he's just still in denial

On my mothers side I'm not really sure as my grandparents passed away at a young age.

I could use a second opinion from more knowledgeable people on this subject. I'm planning to visit a Doctor. as I don't feel that the hairloss is normal even if the hair still looks okay. But I could use your opinion until I get around to doing that (it's easier said than done!). I figure if I can detect any signs of male pattern baldness early I also have a better chance of keeping my hair!

I hope that is enough info? So what do you guys think? Am I beeing paranoid, male pattern baldness or maybe I have some other condition with my hair?

Here are the pics btw:
http://rapidshare.com/files/18847498/pics.zip.html

Password for archive: kLM37f

Thank you in advance!

Johnny24601 · Mar 1, 2007

re:

First of all, the reason you have no responses is because people do not want to have to enter passwords to view photos. You are essentially asking for us to spend our free time evaluating photos, don't make us have to enter passwords.
I took a look and think that you look to be in pretty good shape. If it is male pattern baldness then you are in the early stages. If you are seeing lots of hairs fall out and there is a history of male pattern baldness in your family then I think you can figure out for yourself that you have male pattern baldness. There is a very small chance that you have Telogen Effluvium, but unless you have gone through an extremely traumatic experience lately, then you have male pattern baldness.
You must now research your options and make a decision whether you want to use something to potentially slow down the loss or whether you just want to let nature take its course. Remember male pattern baldness is progressive and the longer you wait, the lesser the chance that you will save your hair for as long as possible. However, most treatments come with potential risks, can be expensive and time consuming, so it is not an easy decision.
If you were to ask me what I would do in your situation.....well (assuming you have completed puberty) I would start using proscar split into 1/8ths or perhaps 1/6ths. Take baseline photos and stay on the medicine for 6 months. At the 6th month mark (and not a day earlier as the medicine takes time) I would evaluate whether the look of my hair has improved and/or whether I have seen a reduction in the amount of hairs lost per day. I would avoid using minoxidil until you have evaluated whether finasteride can control the situation.
Good luck.

alliwantisbeer · Mar 1, 2007

Re: re:

Johnny24601 said:
First of all, the reason you have no responses is because people do not want to have to enter passwords to view photos. You are essentially asking for us to spend our free time evaluating photos, don't make us have to enter passwords.
I took a look and think that you look to be in pretty good shape. If it is male pattern baldness then you are in the early stages. If you are seeing lots of hairs fall out and there is a history of male pattern baldness in your family then I think you can figure out for yourself that you have male pattern baldness. There is a very small chance that you have Telogen Effluvium, but unless you have gone through an extremely traumatic experience lately, then you have male pattern baldness.
You must now research your options and make a decision whether you want to use something to potentially slow down the loss or whether you just want to let nature take its course. Remember male pattern baldness is progressive and the longer you wait, the lesser the chance that you will save your hair for as long as possible. However, most treatments come with potential risks, can be expensive and time consuming, so it is not an easy decision.
If you were to ask me what I would do in your situation.....well (assuming you have completed puberty) I would start using proscar split into 1/8ths or perhaps 1/6ths. Take baseline photos and stay on the medicine for 6 months. At the 6th month mark (and not a day earlier as the medicine takes time) I would evaluate whether the look of my hair has improved and/or whether I have seen a reduction in the amount of hairs lost per day. I would avoid using minoxidil until you have evaluated whether finasteride can control the situation.
Good luck.

The reason why I choose to use a zip archive was because of the amount of pictures included and I didn't want to overbloat the post with pictures. Why i passworded them was just so that only people here could see them, since they are uploaded on a public site. I didn't think of it as time consuming. But I do see your point and I appreciate that you took the time to check the pictures out!

I was hoping that abnormal hairloss could have other "normal" reasons than male pattern baldness. Shouldn't I see a more drastic change in my hairline and such though, considering the amounts I'm loosing for such a long period? Is there some kinnda approximate time between noticeable hariloss and the time that you start seeing changes in your hair? (Denial :wink

I'm still kinnda prepared for male pattern baldness though, thats why I initally made my first post! Cause like you said, the earlier I act on it the better the chance to keep my hair. But in either case, it's the acceptance that is the hardest part imo. :cry:

Also thank you for your advice. The dose you describe, do you mean 1/8th or 1/6th of a normal dose or? I saw that Proscar is sold in 5mg tabs, so that would mean 0,5-1mg daily? I still figure i will go visit a Doctor. before I start any medication. But atleast I have a groundbase to start off from and discuss with him/her about. Still like you said. Even going on medication is a hard decision, considering all the factors you've already mentioned. Maybe I should just shave all my hair off and see how I will look like. :?

Johnny24601 · Mar 2, 2007

re:

The recommended dose of finasteride is 1 mg/day (proscar pill split into 1/5ths). Because of your age and the small degree of loss I suggested cutting the proscar into 1/6ths or 1/8ths for daily dosages of 0.83 and 0.63 mg respectively. At those dosages, you should get just about the same results with less potential sides. You can certainly just start at 1 mg if you please.
male pattern baldness is sort of a mystery because its progressive but sort of random as far as how it progresses. Some people lose a bunch of hair for a few years and the hairloss just stops and others just go slick bald in no time. In its early stages, most people may see extra hairs on their pillow or in the shower but no real change in the appearance of their hair. This is because there are so many hair follicles that it takes time before you can actually notice anything.
Most agree that if you are losing a few hundred hairs a day and have a history of male pattern baldness in your family (mother or father) then you are pretty much assured that you have male pattern baldness, however, you really won't know how fast your male pattern baldness will progress.
Its good that you have recognized your male pattern baldness early as men now have a few options to try to maintain their hair and/or slow down their hairloss. Again, these treatments do come with potential risk and can get expensive over time. They must also be continued if you want to maintain any benefit.
I can understand why you posted the photos as you did, but like I said most people are uncomfortable agreeing to anything or having to enter passwords to view photos.
No matter what you should visit your doctor, though IMO people on this board are more informed then most MDs including dermatologists.