RE001

Thanks for the input but I don't want to play Russian roulette with my health. I am against using pills in any kind of circumstance unless it is a life-threatening situation. I'd rather have a healthy sexual life, no man boobs, etc. rather than hair to be honest with you. I actually styled my hair today. You say how? I shaved the sides of my head to a complete 0 with a razor but I left my top trimmed to a 0.5 with a trimmer barbers use to do sideburns and such. I actually dig the look a lot and will be rocking it. (Military style, like a fohawk without the back) It suits my head and my hair loss despite having crown loss. I have come to this site to see what my options are and I'm very happy that I did. A lot of knowledgeable members and threads. It has made my decision making way easier. I will most likely do a HT later down the line but will never take any pills no matter what anyone says.

I have MPB on both sides and it's hard to remember who has what. I'm mainly comparing my hair loss with my father's because it's almost IDENTICAL but who knows. My father still has hair on his forelock and sides. His hair loss is pretty much a receding hairline and crown loss, like me. MPB sucks d*ck. Why? Because you never really know from which combination you got it from. Will you lose more? Is it going to stop? and so on... I think my hair loss has dramatically slowed down or even stopped. I haven't experienced any hair fall out in the sink or in the shower. I have a short haircut now but when I let my hair grow out a few weeks ago, I noticed those results just mentioned.

I actually did that when I cut my hair today for **** and giggles. Of course I didn't like it but I have more important things to take care of right now. It's all a big waiting game.

I'll let nature do its thing. Sorry if you took my pill talk offensive but that's just how I feel about it. I do have family history of hair loss but NONE went to NW6/7. I know I'll lose some more and I'm fine with that fact. I choose to not let my hair rule my life at the moment. I have a head for the #1 look and I'm fine with it. 10 years ago we didn't have Facebook, we didn't have MySpace, it was Y2K, we didn't even have the iPhone! God knows what Hair Transplantation technology was like back then and look where it is now. 10 years from now, I might be getting a HT, one unlike nowadays. One can only hope. It has been a psychological war these past few years but guess what, I WON that war and thanks to the knowledge I received in the short period of time being on these forums, it made decision making easier.

Well, well, well, I have changed my mind. I won't be taking Finasteride or any kind of meds for my hair loss. I just couldn't get myself to accept the fact I would be taking medication; something I am totally against unless your life is on the line and you have to. I am not sick, therefore I don't need to be a slave to pills. I know the side-effects apply to a low percentage but in this situation I'd rather be safe than sorry. Who knows what side-effects I will have from these pills when I'm 50 or 60. I have seen too many people die from medication, unrelated to hair loss medication of course, but you get my point. I don't want to risk it for my well-being. I have cut my hair again to a #1 and I actually feel better than when I let it grow for a few weeks. It has been a voyage of yes or no, this and that but I came to a conclusion: I will continue cutting my hair short until my later years and see what happens. I will probably end up doing a HT (FUE) without meds later on in life to restore some hairs and still be able to shave it down. To me, that's a win-win situation. Having a big scar on the back of my head sounds bad enough for me to not consider the usual HT procedure. What made my decision to do so: I also have gynecomastia. Many of you are familiar with it but it's essentially male-breast enlargement. It wasn't caused by any meds, just had it since puberty. I know all of this sounds pretty bad, hair loss and gyno but actually I don't look too shabby and I'm pleased with the way that I currently look. I choose to take care of my gyno problem over hair loss for now and put my full focus towards bodybuilding. One side-effect of Propecia is gynecomastia and now you see where I'm coming from with my decisions. I feel like I'm making smart decisions for my well-being with what nature has stacked against me. Pills are a no-no to me. I have recently even made a thread about Finasteride and how to acquire it, made statements that I will get on it but after a week of debating with myself with these HUGE dilemmas I have decided to not be a slave to pills. I sincerely thank everyone who has helped me with every question.

What do I tell my doctor to be able to get Finasteride? What's the difference between brand name vs generic? The official name is Propecia right? and on the bottle it says Finasteride underneath? After doing a little research I'm getting all these other crazy names.

I purchased Rogaine (foam) and used it a couple of times and felt like I was harming my hair even further rather than helping it. It just didn't feel right. I quit using it and will never buy it again. Thanks for the words of encouragement. I will most likely get on Finasteride as soon as I can. I have done quite a lot of research on it lately and it seems promising. I really hope it can help in reducing the amount of grafts needed for a HT or even dismiss it altogether. We shall see. I just have to find a doctor to prescribe me some. That is the next step. I agree with your statement but I won't rush into anything that I will regret later. We'll see what the meds will do and the rest will be determined by that. Propecia is in the plans but don't know where to get it from in MO? The only suggested hair doctors are in IL near Chicago, kind of far away from me. I will look into Fin. soon and that will be my primary way of battling hair loss. Rogaine, I won't use again. Thank you. Keeping things bottled up only eats you up even further. Letting it all out is the only way to go.

You're not alone in this war with ourselves. I am 22 years old and I have MPB as well. I also used to be called the "ladies man" back in high school and have experienced A LOT of changes during these past few years. It's a tough thing to accept but once you do, you will be on the right path to fix it. Do not rush into anything, you will regret it. There are a lot of people out there experiencing the kind of emotions you are at the moment and it is good to let them out and talk about them. Just look at Prince Williams, he must be feeling the same way. It eats your confidence up but don't let it get to you. Think positive.

Very true indeed. Even with the age difference, we are all in the same boat. I hopefully will be able to fight off any further hair loss with current meds. I hope to keep what I have now and add the rest with donor hair. Some people have absolutely no idea how good they have it with a head full of hair but I guess you never know or care about it until you experience it yourself.

Sorry for the late reply, I was on vacation for 3 weeks and during that time I decided to grow out my hair. What sucks about hair loss is you never know HOW MUCH you will actually lose as years go by. 6 years ago I had hair, 6 years later this is how I look. I can't predict if this is my final pattern or will I lose more. I am 90% sure I will get on the meds because I DO want hair and don't want to have to shave my head in my future years. During my college years, I studied hard and was under pressure all the time. I believe that caused me to lose my hair at a faster rate. I remember seeing huge amounts of hair on my towel and sink after showers. I let my hair grow out now to see if I will experience this furthermore and to see if the process has stopped or slowed down. I feel pretty good after letting my hair grow out, the crown loss is bothering me the most though. It doesn't look that bad aside from the crown loss. Thanks for the words of encouragement. I always think positively hence why I feel perfectly comfortable posting pics of my problem on a public forum. Who else could be more helpful to me than people who are experiencing the same problem as me? You know. I feel like this problem will be solved and one day I will have the hair I had and have always wanted. I was on Rogaine for just a few weeks. I don't like it and won't try it ever again. I think I will go towards Finasteride. The side-effects are the only thing I am afraid off. I don't take any medications whatsoever and even when I get sick I don't take meds. I let the sickness wear off. I'm afraid it's going to affect another part of me that was always in good health until I started taking Finasteride. Below are some pics of my hair now; wet out of the shower. 3 weeks of growth.

Thank you for the support, I enjoy reading your posts and hearing about your experiences. You're exactly right. I did it because I wanted to psychologically adjust myself at this point in time in my life. I said to myself that the past is the past and I have to accept how I look nowadays with a balding head. It's been tough to accept it but little by little it's getting better. It really takes a toll on your psyche especially after years of being called hot, cute, this and that from girls to not even getting looks from them anymore. To tell you the truth, I was depressed about it for a while but I have overcome it after coming to peace with the way I look these days. We can all relate to these kinds of thoughts about ourselves and I'm glad we have a forum to talk about them. I believe I'm taking the right steps to a successful HT. Thanks again.

Fair deal. It looks as if you really have no choice, either control it or risk of losing more unpredictably. If I end up choosing to do HT (which I most likely will) I think post-surgery will be an awakening situation. If I spent all of this money to transplant hair, why not control the rest? It's a tough decision. Can someone have enough donor hair to be transplanted on the entire top? I know it's kind of a ridiculous question but has this been done before? Thank you all for the help.

I appreciate your input! I'm going to wait it out a bit and see what happens. My father still has hair on top (forelock). He's thin around the crown (like me) and on the sides (like me). He's in his mid 40's. I'm probably going to wait 2-3 more years until I will seriously consider doing a HT. I just want to keep what I have now but I'm skeptical of the meds.

It was one of the toughest things I had to do my entire life because everyone remembers me with hair. No joke, I went from wearing hats 24/7 (yes, even work) to cutting my hair short and going out in public like that. I skipped the Rogaine, concealers, etc. stuff; went straight from hats to short hair, all out, there you go! I haven't wore a hat EVER SINCE. I let EVERYONE (family, friends, went to weddings and even had my graduation party with a shaved head) see me like that. The hat became too much for me to handle and everyone always commented as to why I was wearing it 24/7. I was surprised that no one really cared much when they saw me with no hat/short hair and that boosted my confidence up a little. I feel better now but I'm still not 100% if you know what I mean. Imagine being 22 and having to deal with this crap. I will have HT done sooner or later.

What if I decide to not take any kind of medication etc. before a HT? Not Rogaine, not Propecia, not Toppik, etc. In other words: 1. What if I let my hairline do its thing naturally and then decided to get a HT when I'm 26 or later (I'm 22)? What would be the pros and cons of that? 2. Does hair loss ever stop or slow down? Since I started losing at a young age, does it slow down for us guys during our late 20s and early 30s?