young guy starting to lose hair around temples - need advice

G

Guest

Guest
Hi,

I am 22. I first noticed that I am losing hair around my temples a couple months ago. I wasn't sure at first, but now I'm pretty sure. What should I do to prevent this, or at least make it look not as bad?

I only know about rogaine, and it says not to apply it above the temples. Wouldn't it work? I figure that hair is hair, so it should work on any part of your head.

Also I have seen discussion of Finasteride. This stuff looks VERY expensive. I guess I'd pay for it if it works - does this work for the area above the temples? Is it better than rogaine?

Anything else I should look into? Thanks a bunch for any advice.
 
ShedMaster

ShedMaster

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Re: young guy starting to lose hair around temples - need ad

guest2 said:
Hi,

I am 22. I first noticed that I am losing hair around my temples a couple months ago. I wasn't sure at first, but now I'm pretty sure. What should I do to prevent this, or at least make it look not as bad?

I only know about rogaine, and it says not to apply it above the temples. Wouldn't it work? I figure that hair is hair, so it should work on any part of your head.

Also I have seen discussion of Finasteride. This stuff looks VERY expensive. I guess I'd pay for it if it works - does this work for the area above the temples? Is it better than rogaine?

Anything else I should look into? Thanks a bunch for any advice.
Click to expand...


You need to do some research 1st... Read the FAQ section and look at the different treatments and what each one does. Many have asked this question, as you can imagine, and their are many different angles. Finasteride is not expensive because you buy it in different forms at a very good price. Use the search function and read through some of the responses. There is a world of information on the board.
 
G

Guest

Guest
The FAQ covers this briefly, saying: "All treatments that work on the crown also work to some degree in the front--just not as well."

So my question is, do some treatments work in the front *better* than others?

If not, I may just go with rogaine because it seems the easiest. Also, how long after using rogaine do you have to wait to take a shower? It says 2-4 hours. Is 2 hours ok, or is this a bad idea?
 
Axon

Axon

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Okay, watch closely fellas. This ol' dog is gonna show you how it's done.

Minoxidil does indeed work on the temple region of the scalp. It's effect there is not as common-place, nor is it as dramatic as it is on the vertex. That is why UpJohn makes no official claim that Minoxidil regrows hair on the temples.

Minoxidil requires some 4 hours before you can shower. I would suggest you shower prior to application.

Another quick point - in the male pattern baldness game, hair is not hair. Why does the top thin while the side stays the same? No one knows for sure, though we do know DHT plays a role. If we did know for certain, we could probably fix our mutual problem.

Other than Minoxidil, the only other FDA approved drug v. male pattern baldness is Propecia - Finasteride. Finasteride is an internal (Finasteride is the easiest treatment - it's a once a day tablet) enzyme inhibitor and it is quite potent. It is also quite effective - some 87% of men in the clinical study saw a halting of their hair loss of some level of regrowth.

Furthermore, each man on the clinical trial was forced to wash with a particular shampoo - Nutrogena T-Gel. This is an anti-dandruff shampoo with varying properties, most of which assist the fight against male pattern baldness. Another popular shampoo is Nizoral - one study showed that Nizoral has some minor regrowth properties of it's own. However, Nizoral cannot (you're kidding yourself if you try) be used as a primary treatment vs. male pattern baldness.

That's the basics - the complex stuff I'm going to leave to you. I suggest you look into some Minoxidil, Finasteride and Nizoral shampoo.
 
B

Bob Booley

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see- don't be so quick to listen to their advice-

receding temples DO NOT necessarily equate to male pattern baldness!!!!

look at anyone who's in their mid-20s late 20s... you'll see that most guys have receded hairlines in the temples- and that's as fair as it goes.


an 18-year old hairline is rarely the same as a 28- year old hairline- the 28 year old hairline tends to be slightly higher and wider (temples have gone back a bit)

and then the hair will stay as it is for a long time. Sure, it might bald later on, then again it might not. it's NOT a sure sign of male pattern baldness.

now, if your temples are really going back and you have a definite horseshoe shape that seems to be getting worse as the months go by, then there's a good chance it IS male pattern baldness. you just have to watch it over the course of several months.
 
G

Guest

Guest
Bob Booley said:
see- don't be so quick to listen to their advice-

receding temples DO NOT necessarily equate to male pattern baldness!!!!

look at anyone who's in their mid-20s late 20s... you'll see that most guys have receded hairlines in the temples- and that's as fair as it goes.


an 18-year old hairline is rarely the same as a 28- year old hairline- the 28 year old hairline tends to be slightly higher and wider (temples have gone back a bit)

and then the hair will stay as it is for a long time. Sure, it might bald later on, then again it might not. it's NOT a sure sign of male pattern baldness.

now, if your temples are really going back and you have a definite horseshoe shape that seems to be getting worse as the months go by, then there's a good chance it IS male pattern baldness. you just have to watch it over the course of several months.
Click to expand...

So does that mean I shouldn't freak out and start taking rogaine or others right away?
 
Mr T.

Mr T.

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guest2 said:
So does that mean I shouldn't freak out and start taking rogaine or others right away?
Click to expand...

Bob is right. You may or may not be balding.

It's up to you to decide whether or not you want to start treatment. If you do start treatment and you are in fact going bald, then you'll be lucky you caught it early. However, if you do start treatment and you're not balding, then you are wasting time and money on these treatments - not to mention the potential for side effects like itchy scalp, gyno, sexual dysfunction, etc.

It's not an easy decision. One thing that may be of help is to look at other males in your family. Does hairloss run in your family? Did your father, grandfathers, uncles, etc. experience similar recession at your age? If so, did it stop, or did they continue to bald?

If hairloss isn't particularly prevalent in your family, then your best bet is just to keep an eye on things for now.

Cheers.

Jeremy
 
Mr T.

Mr T.

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It's your call then. It's impossible to predict what's going to happen with temple recession. My friend's brother is 28 and has had the same Norwood 2 hairline since his early 20's, with no thinning whatsoever. But my friend is 23 and he's thinning all over like crazy. He'll be a Norwood 7 by the time he's 28. It's a toss-up. That's genetics for you.

Jeremy
 
Boris Badenov

Boris Badenov

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Guest2's post was timely indeed, for me at least. I'm in much the same position. 27, decidedly a Norwood 2, but for temples that are starting to look perhaps a bit more like 3.

Fundamentally, I'd like to know how you first became "sure" of your hairloss. I've always had a rather high forehead. On the #2 pic that guest2 uses as his avatar, my hairless indentations of scalp are somewhat deeper, but thinner, if that makes sense. Also, there's more hair in the middle...maybe I just have a fat head?

At any rate, I'm down to flipping coins and breaking wishbones to decide whether this is something I should jump on now or whether it might just stop on it's own. Should I be marking lines on my scalp with a magic marker? I'm seriously at a loss. Is there some reasonable not-too-hilarious way to take stock of the impending hairdoom (or lack thereof?)

Thanks in advance, I can say at least that it's been a pleasure to read that other people have the same concerns.

Regards,
Boris
 
Axon

Axon

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Boris,

As I've said, only you know for sure. You know the truth wheter or not you want to admit it. Has your hairline gotten worse year by year? Does it continue to get thinner? Is the hair on your scalp less dense than the hair on the side - the typical "horseshoe" pattern?

You already know. You don't need us to tell you.
 
bombscience

bombscience

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why is everyone afraid to start FIGHTING hairloss? if you're unsure you may want to start slowly with 1 treatment

I have an aggressive situation, and the 6 months I was in denail would have ben CRUCIAL for me to be taking finasteride. Alas I waited 6 months and lost a lot of hair. Just to think of how much better it could have been if I was on month 11 of propecia instead of month 6 right now...
 
G

Guest

Guest
bombscience said:
why is everyone afraid to start FIGHTING hairloss? if you're unsure you may want to start slowly with 1 treatment

I have an aggressive situation, and the 6 months I was in denail would have ben CRUCIAL for me to be taking finasteride. Alas I waited 6 months and lost a lot of hair. Just to think of how much better it could have been if I was on month 11 of propecia instead of month 6 right now...
Click to expand...

So is propecia a better treatment to start with? I already started with rogaine - should I switch?

Also, is the effectiveness of both of these treatments time-limited? It seems that the rogaine box says it doesn't work effectively for more than a year or so - and posts on this forum seem to indicate you can't use propecia for too long or you'll turn into a woman (!?!) So would any treatment I do now just delay the inevitable for a year? What's the verdict on this?
 
chin311

chin311

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guest2 said:
bombscience said:
why is everyone afraid to start FIGHTING hairloss? if you're unsure you may want to start slowly with 1 treatment

I have an aggressive situation, and the 6 months I was in denail would have ben CRUCIAL for me to be taking finasteride. Alas I waited 6 months and lost a lot of hair. Just to think of how much better it could have been if I was on month 11 of propecia instead of month 6 right now...
Click to expand...

So is propecia a better treatment to start with? I already started with rogaine - should I switch?

Also, is the effectiveness of both of these treatments time-limited? It seems that the rogaine box says it doesn't work effectively for more than a year or so - and posts on this forum seem to indicate you can't use propecia for too long or you'll turn into a woman (!?!) So would any treatment I do now just delay the inevitable for a year? What's the verdict on this?
Click to expand...

use propecia for too long and you'll become a woman? never have heard this one until today. Yes, i've heard of a few rare cases where men can get "GYNO" symptoms, breat enlargement etc. but it will not affect most in that manner.

There are folks that have been on it since it was releases, 6+ years, and if they are still men, by god i hope, im 18 and starting it tommorrow, wanna get my temple recession under control NOW. i'll take it as long as i can if theres no effects on me, or until a better solution comes around.
 
B

Bob Booley

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dude- neither is necessarily better for anything. it's hit and miss- it might work for you, it might not.

like we already said, wait a bit longer, like a few months, and see how it goes. if it stays as it is for the next few months then you're not currently balding.



after that, you choose which you want- it's a total, complete toss-up.
 
bombscience

bombscience

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Bob Booley said:
dude- neither is necessarily better for anything. it's hit and miss- it might work for you, it might not.

like we already said, wait a bit longer, like a few months, and see how it goes. if it stays as it is for the next few months then you're not currently balding.



after that, you choose which you want- it's a total, complete toss-up.
Click to expand...

bob your advice is sucking...

i would take action now.
 
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