to stay or not to stay

[jd24]

i know you must be sick of these sorts of post but i am really confused
ive been on finpecia for 7 months
went down to 0.5 dosage 2 months ago
and have really good results
lots of re-growth... its not too thick yet but it seems promising
im only 21 and first noticed my hairloss 2 years ago
but i cant grow a proper beard yet which would suggest my secondary sexual characteristics stil need some development

i havent really had any sides except the new eyebrow hair which would suggest something is not quite right as its still expanding a little bit

what would you do?
continue, or switch to rogaine foam, fully develop and then go back to finpecia?
its very tricky and im not too sure what to do

 

[Pondle]

You're 21 so you should have stopped growing by now. Maybe you just have a weak beard; some men do.

I would stick with finasteride. Rogaine foam provides temporary hair growth stimulation, but doesn't stop the underlying balding process. A good adjunct to finasteride though.

 

[jd24]

i think i was late (not too late) at puberty
i also think my baldness was jump started by several bad life style choices

which is why im not sure whether to stay on it
could the rogaine maintain for 2 years???
ive responded beyond my expectations to finasteride which leaves me hoping i would respond the same to rogaine

 

[Pondle]

i think i was late (not too late) at puberty
i also think my baldness was jump started by several bad life style choices

which is why im not sure whether to stay on it
could the rogaine maintain for 2 years???
ive responded beyond my expectations to finasteride which leaves me hoping i would respond the same to rogaine

Minoxidil works in a very different way and has a higher percentage of non-responders than finasteride, so it's risky. Plus it demands a higher level of commitment - two applications everyday, for a lifetime! I'd stick with finasteride as your main weapon.

 

[Guest]

i think i was late (not too late) at puberty
i also think my baldness was jump started by several bad life style choices

which is why im not sure whether to stay on it
could the rogaine maintain for 2 years???
ive responded beyond my expectations to finasteride which leaves me hoping i would respond the same to rogaine

Minoxidil works in a very different way and has a higher percentage of non-responders than finasteride, so it's risky. Plus it demands a higher level of commitment - two applications everyday, for a lifetime! I'd stick with finasteride as your main weapon.

Let's examine this case.

He's been on finasteride for 7 months. The logical thing to do would be to give it 5 more months for a total of 1 year. Then, if he isn't satisfied with his hair at that point, he should add the minoxidil. He should take pics monthly to see if he's getting any results from it. If he's not, he can stop it, with no harm. If he is getting results, he can keep on using it to maintain those results and maybe get more. If he stops the Rogaine, the only hair that will fall out will be the hair that he regrew from Rogaine, if he regrows any. finasteride will protect the rest.

The only people who are screwing themselves with Rogaine are the ones with moderate to minor loss who are starting it at the same time as they start finasteride or dutasteride. They will never be able to differentiate which product is giving them regrowth so some of them could be stuck using Rogaine for life never knowing if it did anything for them at all. That would truly suck, no? But if you give the finasteride or dutasteride a full year before adding Rogaine, 95% of any growth you get from those drugs will be be done by then.

I also do not recommend using Rogaine without finasteride. It is better than nothing but without using an oral 5ar inhibitor(finasteride or dutasteride), or some topical anti androgen, the male pattern baldness will continue to progress until it reaches its final point. Continuing loss can be masked by the regrowth you get from Rogaine, making you think that your hair is doing better than it actually is

 

[jd24]

i rate the finasteride highly
im more concerned about it affecting the final stages of my development

the increased eyebrow hair above my eyebrows makes me thinks that im messing with my hormones a little bit too early... as it is a bit odd!

but i dont know
i dont have a derm / cant afford one so im relying on all of your kind advice to help me

 

[Pondle]

i rate the finasteride highly
im more concerned about it affecting the final stages of my development

the increased eyebrow hair above my eyebrows makes me thinks that im messing with my hormones a little bit too early... as it is a bit odd!

but i dont know
i dont have a derm / cant afford one so im relying on all of your kind advice to help me

Like I say you're 21, you should have stopped maturing by now. So I wouldn't worry about it!

 

[jd24]

yeah it would appear so but wouldnt me growing new facial hair suggest though that i havent stopped maturing?

 

[Pondle]

I think eyebrow hair thickens with age anyway. It's not necessarily significant.

 

[jd24]

i mean in the beard area

 

[Knendell]

I have patchy spots in my beard area and on my chest. It seems hair wasn't meant to work properky for me. Kinda sucks too because if I want to cahnge up my look with a beard or something it will look stupid. I recently grew sideburns and one side is way thicker than the other...Sad