Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

[Boondock]

It's at the stage now where things are getting ridiculous. This past month I've given serious consideration to:

- ordering a compound untested in humans from China (RU58841), at a cost of several hundred dollars a year, and preparing this in a custom topical every morning

- getting a hair system, applying it while travelling, then coming back home and claiming I had wild success with finasteride to any friends who ask

- experimenting with a gluten free diet to see if it will stem my loss somehow

- getting a hair transplant, and mitigating the risk of future loss by going crazy with concealers and possibly applying a partial hair piece behind the hair line if I recede further

- accepting the sexual side effects and brain fog I got on finasteride, and taking it anyway

- ordering a mixture of fluridil, spironolactone, and Dr. Proctor's products in an attempt to halt my hair loss, in addition to the minoxidil I already use - resulting in the use of four topicals daily

- cancelling my summer travel plans entirely so I can afford all this stuff

This is no way to live, guys. If I could pop a finasteride every day and stop my loss with it, I'd do that at the drop of a hat. But I can't. I've tried it twice, varied the dosage, taken it every other day, and I still felt like crap.

I hate hair loss as much as the next guy, but there comes a point when the cure is worse than the disease. We laugh at people like CCS who seem obsessed with their hair and put their life on hold till it's sorted out, but in reality I think many of us are like this to some extent. I'm 23 now, and I can see myself in a situation five years down the line where I'm still not attracting the girl I want, where I'm still unhappy, where I still worry about people judging me for my hair, and where I've wasted thousands of pounds on hair treatments for a result that - while I still have hair - honestly doesn't look very good. I don't want to be that guy.

Right now I'm thinking of doing the shave, working on other areas of my life, being happy again, and getting on with things. If HM comes good several years down the line, or if by some miracle my loss stops in its tracks at NW4, who knows, I might be able to get a transplant and get my hair back. But I don't want to be the guy who waited and waited and waited for that to happen, only to realise that by the time he got it it was too late. How many 20-somethings wait till their 30s to get hair transplants, only to realize once they've got them their life hasn't really changed?

Maximum respect guys, but I'm going to the bathroom now with a pair of clippers. No, I'm not going full out yet, but I am going guard 2. In time I will just get rid of this sh*t.

Peace,
Boondock

 

[king-]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

im not gonna say dont worry about it because everyone would like hair back but buzzed cuts are IN now

I see every1 buzzing it now looks good

 

[Cassin]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

Well said, Boondock.

We all need to know where our limits are with this crap.

I'm on finasteride, minoxidil, copper peptides and Nizoral. Pretty tame relatively to what some do on hair loss message boards but insane to the general public. When this regimen stops working its clippers or bust for me. I won't go any further

 

[Smooth]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

You do the right thing Boondock :bravo: i've done the same, had sides fro nizoral and no way in hell im going to put that poison propecia/finasteride inside my body *only* to slow the process down abit, i think that if its written in your genetics then you cant do anything to stop it. so the best alternative would be to save money instead and hope that future will bring something good, if not, atleast youll have money for a decent hair transplant down the road.
and work on other things in your life, im working hard to get my degree and the gym these days, in 3 years time things will get better for me when im done with the degree, eitherway its good to build your future while at it.
gl! you made the right choice in my eyes.

 

[OverMachoGrande]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

I could not have said it better myself Boondock.

 

[Boondock]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

It is done.

I went upstairs with the clippers and started on a #3. I decided that wasn't bold enough, so I went down to a #1. I've never had my hair anything like this short, ever.

Am I bald? Not yet. I probably have a good two years before I enter NW4-ville. But that's not why I did this.

I've reached a stage now where I have to comb my hair forward to cover my temples, and find myself adjusting it in the mirror to keep up the act. Because of the length, I can visibly see the 20-30 hairs that fall out every time I'm in the shower, and see the hairs come out when I rub my hands over my head. The minoxidil flakes that get stuck all over the place are just the icing on the cake.

So partly, I wanted to say: f*ck you to having to mess around with this. At the same time, I wanted to give myself some idea of how I'd look like this, and so ready myself mentally to not be so afraid of it when the time comes. It's the fear that's making me consider all these rash measures right now. The unknown. I want to say: this is how it will look, so that I know the worst is nothing like as bad as shelling out a thousand bucks a year to go to desperate measures.

Just so you don't get left empty-handed, here's a shot on my knackered 5mp camera from a few minutes ago.

Aaaaand it's gone.

 

[OverMachoGrande]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

Looks good bro unk: , you pull it off well and IMO, the hair is not bad at all yet.

 

[Boondock]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

Looks good bro unk: , you pull it off well and IMO, the hair is not bad at all yet.

Cheers man. Yeah it's not quite curtains for me yet. Funnily enough, though, the hairline looks stronger when you buzz it. You'd think that low-density longer hair covering the temples would conceal things, but it can actually accentuate what you've lost.

I suppose what I'm doing with this is similar to what Joe-91 did. Giving it a try before I need to, as a way to lower the shock-value when it happens.

Can I add that a #1 feels awesome to touch.

 

[OverMachoGrande]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

YEP!! #1 feels awesome, honest and not as bad as expected IMO. Congrats for "having a set" and going for it.

 

[Axl_Rose]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

Congrats man, acceptance can be really hard for some people to do but when we learn how to it makes our lives so much easier.

You said you might have a good two years before you hit a nw4, is that just how you feel your hair is going end up or is there a family history behind it?

Just asking because in your pic your hair looks great.

 

[BornIn89]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

Suits you! I tried a #0 a few weeks ago and actually didn't mind it too much. One thing is for sure, if you keep your hair really short then it will be less traumatic as you lose it. No spending ages styling it to hide the thin parts. No being scared of going out in the wind or rain. Being able to wear hats without them ruining your hair. No constant thoughts in the back of your head whether people can see your thinning hair. While a "buzz cut" would never be my ideal choice of hairstyle (mainly because it's quite boring) it does look good on most men, and neat!

 

[Boondock]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

Joe:

Yeah I've tried rogaine. I'm still thinking of dabbling with other topicals here and there, but I'm not getting too hopeful about them. I definitely won't go onto RU58841.

At least for me the problem with hair loss is partly that I looked so much better without it, but also that hair used to be part of my identity. I think for many users here their 'self-concept' is a person with hair, and when they start to thin on top that change threatens their own self-identity. But it depends.

Axl:

Actually my family history is for very limited loss. Mother's side no hair loss; father's side recession and thinning to approx NW4, although uncle is NW5/6.

My estimate is based on the rate of the loss so far and the level of thinning I've got all over the top. I'm pretty much diffuse everywhere besides the horse-shoe, and the recession goes back quite a bit every year. I do harbour some hope that I'll be the rare young guy whose hair loss started early but stops at quite a low Norwood, but I think that's probably unlikely based on the minituarization pattern I have. It's a bit worse than it looks buzzed, as you can see in another recent pic:

 

[Boondock]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

Suits you! I tried a #0 a few weeks ago and actually didn't mind it too much. One thing is for sure, if you keep your hair really short then it will be less traumatic as you lose it. No spending ages styling it to hide the thin parts. No being scared of going out in the wind or rain. Being able to wear hats without them ruining your hair. No constant thoughts in the back of your head whether people can see your thinning hair. While a "buzz cut" would never be my ideal choice of hairstyle (mainly because it's quite boring) it does look good on most men, and neat!

Definitely. In fact if I had a full head I'd probably try it from time to time. It's not my favourite style but I don't mind it either, and I was never someone who suited long or swept emo hair.

 

[DoctorHouse]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

If you are willing to spend some cash, try Proxiphen. I quit almost everything now and went back to the Proxiphen cream instead of the liquid. I still take Propecia. I am barely even shedding anymore now and my hair is thickening back up. I think sometimes you have to keep it simple. Those other products with retinol messed my scalp and my hair up big time. I also still love the Renepure shampoo. Your buzz cut looks great. Its suits you well. I could never buzz cut my hair because I have such a long face. If you think you can deal without doing anything but keeping cut like that than do it. If it were me, I would definitely try Proxiphen.

 

[Boondock]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

If you are willing to spend some cash, try Proxiphen. I quit almost everything now and went back to the Proxiphen cream instead of the liquid. I still take Propecia. I am barely even shedding anymore now and my hair is thickening back up. I think sometimes you have to keep it simple. Those other products with retinol messed my scalp and my hair up big time. I also still love the Renepure shampoo. Your buzz cut looks great. Its suits you well. I could never buzz cut my hair because I have such a long face. If you think you can deal without doing anything but keeping cut like that than do it. If it were me, I would definitely try Proxiphen.

Funnily enough I've thought about Proxiphen. My faith in it is 100% due to the fact that Bryan pimps it. If a treatment can pass that man's bullshit test, it has to be worth something.

The price is the only downside for me. If I hadn't just graduated from university, it would be more of an option. But meh. Perhaps Prox-N instead, but we'll see.

Hair meant a lot to me too, and I only recently realized that girls thought my hair was really nice. I never changed styles too much but it's very dark and very thick, and it went curly as it got longer which looked cool. I also looked so much better without hair loss, and firmly believe it will 'ruin me' in terms of my attractiveness to girls my age, BUT it's the hand I have been given. I think like you in that, I want to be done with it and accept my new self ASAP so that I can get on with my life.

Absolutely. I think there comes a point when buzzing becomes the lesser of two evils. If your life is focused on scrutinizing your hairline and applying treatments, it becomes worse than buzzing down.

Buzzing also has the benefit that you don't focus on how much hair count you're actually losing every day, since you can't see it anymore.

I think sometimes you have to take the cards you're dealt and work with them. For me, I'm not going to kid myself and say I look better without hair than with, but I don't think it's the end of the world either.

 

[DoctorHouse]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

Before you decide on RU which will cost you some big bucks and supposedly only thicken things according to el dutasteride, go for Proxiphen. At least you can get about a 4 to 5 month supply for about what you would spend on RU. And you have a chance to regrow some hair with Proxiphen vs RU. I would rather spend on money on something that I know has worked for me. That is why I would rather throw my cash to Proctor than some place in Japan.

 

[toocoolforhair]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

I'd always recommend buzzing/shaving your head as that can feel quite liberating for some people. If you do go for the buzz then make sure you commit to it for at least a month. I've noticed that some people buzz/shave and instantly decide to grow it back because it looks 'terrible'. I personally don't think your mind can adjust to the change straight away. For the first few weeks you'll probably look in the mirror and not recognise yourself.

If you don't want to buzz/shave then I'd go for the toupee. Some of them look very realistic, and more importantly, they don't leave scars like a transplant. If your transplant does not look good then you are snookered.

 

[Boondock]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

Before you decide on RU which will cost you some big bucks and supposedly only thicken things according to el dutasteride, go for Proxiphen. At least you can get about a 4 to 5 month supply for about what you would spend on RU. And you have a chance to regrow some hair with Proxiphen vs RU. I would rather spend on money on something that I know has worked for me. That is why I would rather throw my cash to Proctor than some place in Japan.

For sure, there's absolutely no way I'd go with RU. It's not just the price but the risk. It baffles me that some folks on Hair Loss Help are worried about finasteride sides, but are happy to use a compound which has not been tested in humans, was stopped during animal testing for unknown reasons, and which can only be ordered from an obscure factory in China.

If you don't want to buzz/shave then I'd go for the toupee. Some of them look very realistic, and more importantly, they don't leave scars like a transplant. If your transplant does not look good then you are snookered.

I did think about this, but the toupee isn't an option for me. My friends would realize pretty quickly what I was doing, and I'd never hear the end of it. Besides, I find contact lenses to be major hassle - I can't see myself enjoying the extensive maintenance a hair system requires.

 

[Nene]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

Boondock, I agree with you and everyone here. At a certain point you have to stop obsessing and shave the sh*t. I would buzz it lower so the thinning spot in the back blends a little better.

 

[Boondock]

Re: Thinking of throwing in the towel with fighting this sh*t

Boondock, I agree with you and everyone here. At a certain point you have to stop obsessing and shave the sh*t. I would buzz it lower so the thinning spot in the back blends a little better.

Yeah it's right down to a #1 now. That shot's pretty old, but it does illustrate the loss before i trimmed down.