You guys overreact way too much

TakeTwoBreaths

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I've been lurking on this board for two years now. The one thing i've noticed waaaaaaaay too much is how many of you "diagnosers" LOVE to overreact and tell people to "hop in finasteride and minoxidil immediately mate ur balding" to everyone who comes on here with slight recession.


Guess what. Most males, yes, even in their twenties, HAVE SOME TEMPORAL RECESSION. Most guys by the time they are 25 (especially white) are NOT NW1s with perfectly straight hairlines. And most of those guys will never "go bald" in the NW4+ meaning of the word until they are in their fifties or later.

It's really pathetic how many of you think the slightest NORMAL recession is balding. Especially when they otherwise show no signs of thinning in the crown or vertex. It happens to guys a few years after they finish puberty too, not when they are 30.

The worst thing though, was that recent thread someone started trying to guess a bunch of celebrities who were on finasteride. It really was pathetic; basically any actor who wasn't a perfect NW1 or NW2 but still had decent hair was described as "being on finasteride". Give me a break.


Let me show you an example:
tumblr_l5qg1p3WA21qz82gvo1_500.jpg


See that? It's a picture of Orson Welles, from when he was just 21 years old. Now if he had come on this board and posted that, a bunch of you alarmists would be going "yea mate looks like ur showing the first signs of male pattern baldness better get on finasteride now" and other crap like that, telling him with "recession like that at your age means you could be in serious trouble in a few years if you don't jump on finasteride".


Well, here he is at 26 in citizen kane:
orson-welles-1939.jpg



OMG! Look at that recession! Must be approaching NW2.5, right? Only 26? Well he should get on finasteride before he becomes slick bald in five years, huh?


Here he is again as MacBeth at 33 years old:
PRINCE3.jpg


Oh look at that. 33 years old and basically the same hairline as when he was 21. People here probably telling him that he has "great" hair. And if he was a celebrity now we'd have a bunch of you geniuses guessing that he was "on finasteride for sure".


For the record, here he is as an older man in his 50s or 60s:
orson-welles-20090305-161455-medium.jpeg


You'll see his hairline pretty much hadn't changed since he was 21 years old. Hell he was probably 18 or 19 when he first started receding.


The point is, a bunch of you would have screamed that he was losing it and to get on finasteride or he'd be bald in 10 years, even though all he had was some minor recession and THICK hair every where else. A lot of you seem to think that if you're in your early twenties, you are either an NW1 or someone destined to go bald before they are 40. finasteride didn't even exist until 20 years ago and there were plenty of men (famous ones too) like Welles who receded when they were young and had plenty fine hair their whole life. I'd bet not one single person ever described welles as balding. I'd bet 90% of the celebs you think are on finasteride are just aging naturally And we don't even live in a world where you have to slick your hair back for the whole world to see your hairline. Don't give me crap about actors wearing "toupees" then, because it's obvious which ones did, and which ones were just aging normally. Hell you guys would have probably "warned" young frank Sinatra to get on finasteride:
504227_356x237.jpg




MEN, the majority normal men recede some after puberty. It doesn't mean you are going bald (only like 7% ever reach NW6 or 7 anyways). Frankly, if you are receding a bit, yet have perfectly thick hair all over your scalp including crown and vortex, and someone tells you to hop on finasteride just because you're 21, you should tell them to shove it up a tailpipe.


Unless you are already at NW3 or something before you're 25, or are thinning in the crown and vertex, there is NO reason to get on finasteride or minoxidil. I can't imagine how many millions that Merck makes from guys who got scared into getting on finasteride even though they don't need it and are wasting their money. And you guys aren't helping.


PS: Here is a modern day example:
EM.jpg


That's Ewan McGregor from when he was 20/21 years old. Clearly an NW2, right? Well, he's almost forty now and basically has the same head of hair he did then. And I bet it's not because he's been on "finasteride" :whistle:
 

Tom1985

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I completely agree with you mate.

You get 18/19 year old dudes coming on here in a panic because their hair has receded slightly and they're immediately told 'GET ON finasteride NOW OR YOU WILL SOON GO COMPLETELY BAD.

It's ridiculous. A receded hairline does not always equal becoming a slap head.

Telling people to immediately start taking a potentially extremely harmful drug like propecia just because of some slight recession is stupid and irresponisble.
 

mpbsux20

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If you are talking to me,I am on finasteride because I have the hairline of Orson Welles when he was 50 years old and have been diagnosed with Male pattern baldness by my derm and not a matured hairline.I had a mature hairline even when I was a kid and hated getting my hair cut real short.

I agree some of those celebs haven't lost that much hair but do you realize how crazy thos guys can be about their appearance[Botox,nose job,jawline correction,etc;]? You dont see guys like Orson Welles anymore and BTW for your information Ewan McGregor isn't on my list.
The only guy that I regret adding is Philip Seymour Hoffman.Anyway that list was meant to be for fun and if you find it offensive please ignore it.

Oh did you specifically register to b**ch about my thread or are you an existing member's voice in the head ?
 

DoctorHouse

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I think this post definitely sums up some good points about the forum posters. I thought the celebrity MIN/finasteride thread was pointless but alot of the posts on here are for entertainment purposes ONLY. I think its normal when you see changes about yourself you might have some concern and overreact. However, I agree some react way more than others and soliciting medical advise to posters really should be left up to the poster's doctor.
I have to confess about 6 or 7 years ago I started reading posts on several hairloss forums because I was always paranoid about going bald since my dad started balding as a teenager and become the NW6/7 early in life. I really never thought much about my hair obsessively until I started reading so many posts here. At the time Revivogen and minoxidil were very popular back then so I started with Revivogen first and it did thicken up my hair alot. Then I got more paranoid so I started minoxidil and my hair was doing great and then added the laser comb too. My hair was responding well to the treatments and little did I know but I was probably a NW1 when I was doing all this stuff in paranoia. At the age of 39, I thought my hair seemed to be changing and getting thinner but I probably was going thru stress or a shed but had not idea because I did not read too much about shedding. I started reading all these posts telling people to take Propecia but I was scared to do that since it had potential side effects. Still pretty much a NW1, I went to my dermatologist and told her my hair is thinning what can I do. She said to try minoxidil and I told her I have been using it. Then she said I can give you Propecia and you can try that if you think your hair is thinning. She really didn't look at my hair too much and just took my word it was thinning. I took the medication and 8 months later my hair looked like crap and got even worse. I became an "irishpride" paranoid poster and accused Propecia for making everything worse. I frantically would post like irishpride does now so I understand how he feels because I was there too. Ironically Irishprides hairloss was questionable when he first started just like mine was. I obviously have hairloss now after 5 years on finasteride but is it really male pattern baldness or age related thinning. I have no idea but I have been to a few hair transplant docs and none of them say to stop finasteride/MIN so obviously I must have some thinning going on now. Some people feel age related thinning and male pattern baldness are not the same thing. I am started to believe they are the same thing. I see men well in their 50's, 60's 70's and even 80's with absolute thick grey/salt and pepper hair and absolutely not thinning. You cannot even see scalp on the crown or anywhere on their head. Why don't they have age related thinning at least. Those people definitely don't have male pattern baldness. However, what I have is definitely some form of balding so I still take my arsenal but Take2Breaths is right. My hair has not changed all that much since I was in my 20's. Actually my hairline still goes straight across with slightly receded corners. But because of my diffuse thinning all over I have overreacted way too much and have become OCD/BDD about my hair. It has consumed my life in a negative way just like it has for alot of posters on here especially Irishpride. However, when I see some of these posters on here with way thicker head of hair than I ever had post with panic, I know my good friend saf is just shaking his head :shakehead: with disgust. :) as I am myself.
My advice is always consult with an expert doctor on hairloss before you start on any medical treatments. Sometimes paranoia can get you thrown into some deep hot water if you are not careful. For me, it just has negatively affected my life and my situation is really not bad. The fact that I know that there are so many men older than me who have way thicker hair and a better hairline only makes me feel even worse. However, when I see the NW3 or worse in their 20's makes me count my blessings. You can't always get what you wish for. You have to accept fate without overreacting.
 

BodyDysmorphic

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of course a maturation of the hairline is natural

but can that be postponed or prevented by treatments, who knows

obviously individuals should consult a doctor prior to taking anything
i doubt most doctors will know if treatments will work on anybody


it's kinda like trial and error

if any form of "hair loss" bothers the afflicted individual enough
im sure they would try anything to prevent it
 

TheGrayMan2001

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This is both a good and bad post.

Orson Welles was a perfect example of a NW2 who never receded anymore. The problem here is a lot of guys are RECEDING with miniaturization. See any of that on Orson's hairline? Nope.
 

TakeTwoBreaths

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Lemme just say another thing. Unless you are losing it badly on the crown or vertex, or are just diffuse thinning in general, men (except the norwood watchers) and women CANNOT TELL YOU ARE BALDING unless you have reached NW3. And even then, it depends on how you style it or cut it. I know this because before I noticed any recession on myself I didn't even THINK some of the guys who I now know are losing hair, were "balding". I never classified anyone below an NW3 (and most NW3s) as "balding" unless their hair was severally thinning out or they were getting a bald spot. Nobody thinks of NW1-NW3.5 as balding, really. It never even struck my mind that those guys were losing hair at all! Only the obsessed pick up on those things. NW2s don't get treated any differently than NW1s, and that's true for most NW3s as well.


And yes, this was partially in response to the celeb thread. Talking about how all these guys who have receded (but still have thickish hair) past NW2 must be on finasteride - EVEN THOUGH YOU HAVE NO IDEA - is just perpetuating the false dichotomy of NW2 or less and balding.

House I don't know you so I can't comment on your problems.

And if anyone is bothered by a slightly matured hairline, hell, anything less than NW3, you're vain and crazy.
 

TakeTwoBreaths

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TheGrayMan2001 said:
This is both a good and bad post.

Orson Welles was a perfect example of a NW2 who never receded anymore. The problem here is a lot of guys are RECEDING with miniaturization. See any of that on Orson's hairline? Nope.



If by miniaturization, you mean hairs that aren't as thick as others in the front, then yes, Welles did have some. You can clearly see that the hairs at the "corner" of his hairline in the very front aren't as thick as the ones behind them.


THAT IS NORMAL TOO. Normal hairlines don't look like hair transplant hairlines in which the hair in front is absolutely the thickest. There's a transition barrier.

Doesn't change my point; plenty of guys with recession and no noticeably severe "miniaturization" are told the same things.
 

TheGrayMan2001

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TakeTwoBreaths said:
TheGrayMan2001 said:
This is both a good and bad post.

Orson Welles was a perfect example of a NW2 who never receded anymore. The problem here is a lot of guys are RECEDING with miniaturization. See any of that on Orson's hairline? Nope.



If by miniaturization, you mean hairs that aren't as thick as others in the front, then yes, Welles did have some. You can clearly see that the hairs at the "corner" of his hairline in the very front aren't as thick as the ones behind them.


THAT IS NORMAL TOO. Normal hairlines don't look like hair transplant hairlines in which the hair in front is absolutely the thickest. There's a transition barrier.

Doesn't change my point; plenty of guys with recession and no noticeably severe "miniaturization" are told the same things.

Well no one in my family has any sort of dense hair with a mature hairline, they all receded up and then thinned on top in some manner so I hopped on finasteride.

Most men don't keep that "transition barrier" hair as they get older unless they are one of the few who keep their 'baby hair' into their older years.
 

TakeTwoBreaths

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Problem is, too many people equate the word "mature hairline" to NW2. That's just not true. There are plenty of guys who recede to NW2.5, or NW3 in their 20s and keep that hairline until old age. In fact, i'd say that's more likely outcome than receding to an NW4+. Just because an adult male has a little more than what some would quantify as a "mature hairline" doesn't mean they are going to lose all the hair on the top of their head! I can find examples of this too.
 

S&L

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Ewan McGreggor is nowhere near nw2 on that pic , it's a slight mature hairline .
Even if I agree with the fact that some here overreact I don't think anyone would have said to him " omg you're going to a catastrophy start meds asap "

If he had shaved he'd probably would have looked like that then :

mcgregor-ewan-photo-xl-ewan-mcgregor-6211539.jpg
 

Sebastien

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Truth is, you dont really know how you are going to bald. I had/have a NW2 recession and miniaturization in the NW2.5 area even though the rest of my hair is really thick still. I look at pictures from when I was younger and I see recession kickin in at 15 years old. I then looked at males in my family and they vary from NW2 to NW5, even though their balding process is really slow. Since you can do something about it (finasteride) I did, it gives me peace of mind.
 

Guarana

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Orson Wells was definitely on finasteride!!
Seriously thought you make a good point, but consider that most people taking hair loss treatments would wish that they got started earlier.
What is more important that basic recession when deciding on treatment is how rapidly the hair is thinning/ receding as well as family genetics.

Cheers
 

Primo

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I think it's highly irresponsible of posters, some of them quite experienced, to be encouraging 18/19year olds to "jump on finasteride/minoxidil" at the slightest hint of recession.

These kids will take anyones advice and have no idea about their male pattern baldness or the risks of the drugs they're takinf.

We don't know what the long-term effects of either drug are and both should only be adopted when it is evidently clear that an individual is suffering male pattern baldness and at a rapid rate.

I began receding very slightly when I was probably 16/17, but I couldn't tell for sure until I was 21 and was only then when I reached a NW3 at 23, did I know for certain that I had male pattern baldness and that it would continue to progress without treatment.

It's very foolish to diagnose a 18year old with male pattern baldness, unless of course they have a strong family history of hairloss, diagnosis takes times and as said above I seldom ever see any caucasian men with perfect NW1 Jamie Foxx hairlines, they don't exist!
 

Primo

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My diagnosis was difficult because there is only male pattern baldness on one side of my family. My older brother (30) had that mature hairline look and it hasn't progresses a millimetre all this time..

I used to look at him when I was 18/19 and think ahhhh, I'll be ok, probably just developing a mature hairline like my bro...

Conversely, there are probably plenty of teenage guys on here who have an older brother with male pattern baldness and are really worried, but they themselves turn out to have no male pattern baldness at all in the long run. Telling these guys to get on finasteride/minoxidil "just in case" when they're like 18 is obviously, very dumb advice. :shakehead:
 

mpbsux20

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Primo said:
Telling these guys to get on finasteride/minoxidil "just in case" when they're like 18 is obviously, very dumb advice. :shakehead:

I agree.
 

TheGrayMan2001

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The only ones who need finasteride when they're 18 are those who had a bald dad and it's pretty obvious they're headed in the same direction
 

Tom1985

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No one under 21 should be on that drug. Most competant doctors will tell you the same thing.

It's extremely harmful to young adults who could still be developing.
 
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