New to this. Fin: yes. Minoxidil: hmmmm

[PastaBoy]

Hello everyone!

 

New user here. I'm male, 27 years of age and live in the UK.

 

A brief background: I always had thick, lush, black hair growing up. I spiked it up for years, but two things happened. I distinctly remember being at a nightclub with some friends when I was 20 years old. One of my friends was getting ribbed for his very obvious receeding hairline; but he then turned to me and said "Look, his is going too". This came as a bit of a shock to me, because I had never, ever fathomed the idea of losing my hair. Another of the friends present simply said "Nah, looks like a full head of hair to me.", but my other friend maintained "Look carefully, under the lights, just at the front, you can see some scalp."

 

Well, he was right. In the years that followed I became ever-conscious of some of my scalp being exposed at the front when I would be under bright lights. But to all extents and purposes, I still had what looked like a full head of hair. However, it has come to crunch point in the last couple of years. The first thing I noticed was that the sides of my hair, which were always at a "45 degree angle" began to square off into a "90 degree angle". This isn't too bad actually; I quite like the aesthetic! But the more worrying thing was that I simply didn't have the density of hair to get a good, lush, spiked look. On top of that, the scalp became more evident and I find myself being much more cautious in brushing my hair forward.

 

This brings me to today...

 

Ostensibly my hairline is still good. I have looked at the Norwood scale and wouldn't identify myself as any of the early stages. The problem really seems to be over the top of the head, that kind of "middle to front area". My sides and back remain thick, my hairline is not receeding, but the scalp is becoming more evident in small "streaks" from a birdseye POV. I believe this might be "diffusing hair"?

 

So I have researched the available treatments, and find myself caught between a rock and a hard place. I like the look of Fin, not least because it stands a darn good chance of retaining the hair that I have (which would be more than enough for most people), and the possible chance of some regrowth too. So taking Proscar/Propecia is going to be a no-brainer

 

The real dilemma comes with Minoxidil. Rogaine is a lifelong commitment; I have to appreciate that if I stop using it, I lose the hairs that it has helped to regrow. If I was somebody who was losing the hair hard and fast, then I would start Rogaine because I realised I had nothing to lose. But with my hair "streaky at worst", I question whether it is correct to make that commitment now? I also wondered about the effects of shampoos to help. For example, would Nizoral help compensate for the absence of Rogaine? And would thickening shampoos, such as Aveda Pure Abundance or Jason's thin-to-thick, actually help to reduce the visibility of the "small streaks of scalp"?

 

Sorry if this post is a bit jumbled and rambling. Newbie with loads of questions

 

Thank you for any answers/insights/advice/observations/opinions you can give me!

[maxzor]

PastaBoy,

 

Starting with propecia for combatting hairloss seems a good choice. However don't forget that propecia is a lifelong commitment too. When you stop using propecia you will eventually loose the hairs that propecia helped maintain.

 

If your main goal is to stop hairloss than using propecia alone or in combination with nizoral can be very effective. Using rogaine along with propecia can even help regrow more hair and/or help prevent further hairloss even better.

But in your case since you have a decent head of hair I would suggest you to just consult your doctor about propecia.

It's better to prevent further hair loss than having surgery to restore hair loss.

 

 

max

[aesopjon]

I have to agree with maxzor here.

It sounds to me like your hair follicles may have begun miniaturizing near the front, and it is probably a result of DHT absorption in the follicles (a testosterone by-product). Propeciaworks by blocking the absorption of that chemical, and it's always been reported most effective when used in the earliest stages of hair loss. Also, for mechanisms not perfectly understood, it seems to be more effective when combined with minoxidil.

Word of caution though, since you were so surprised by this and you don't seem to be following the normal pattern of hair loss: if you have no family history of hair loss, you may want to consult a physician to ensure that you are not sick. Better safe than sorry

[PastaBoy]

Hi guys.

 

Many, many thanks for the very informative replies.

 

To respond to a few of your comments:

 

1. Yes, I am aware that Fin is a lifelong commitment as much as Minox is. I guess it is just about perceived commitment. Popping a pill every morning after waking up doesn't sound so bad to me; I've been doing it with multi-vitamins for a while, so it really wouldn't be an issue. But the idea of systematically foaming my hair twice a day, every day, with the constant fear of shedding and/or losing the hair if I stop using it? I think it is a much greater commitment. Maybe I'm wrong and you guys have some experiences to share

 

2. I have searched this forum about Nizoral, and I must confess that I'm not wholly convinced about its use just yet. Again, maybe some of you could share your experiences? I have already ordered a thickening shampoo that comes highly recommended, as well as the Nanogen fibre crystals. Incidentally, those Nanogen and Toppik products look absolutely amazing, particularly for a guy with my situation. Hopefully they can help cover up the thin streaks of scalp which are exposed under sunlight or bright lights!

 

3. Unfortunately there is baldness in my family I have two uncles on my mother's side, and both of them are very bald! And on my father's side of the family I have another two uncles, both of whom are balding fast (my grandfather also lost his hair). Curiously enough though, everyone in my immediate family (mother, father, brother) have impeccable, thick sets of hair. Perhaps I got the rough end of the genetics once again

[Guest]

I think you should still just speak to a Dermatologist to have your problem evaluated, just to be sure what the best treatment may be for you.

 

A friend of mine used Nioxin (a shampoo) which thickened her hair and she didn't need any treatment at all. Nioxin did not work for me at all.

 

As for the Rogaine thing - I have to honestly say that I really hated the fact that I had to use it EVERY single day, and twice at that. The first 3 months was a waste for me because I used Rogaine whenever I felt like it. I much rather would have wanted to take a pill daily. This is just my opinion though ... some people don't mind applying Rogaine twice a day.

 

BTW, in my case Rogaine didn't do much ... and that's after a total of 3 years with faithful use every day LOL.

 

Sandra

 

Originally posted by PastaBoy:

Hi guys.

 

Many, many thanks for the very informative replies.

 

To respond to a few of your comments:

 

1. Yes, I am aware that Fin is a lifelong commitment as much as Minox is. I guess it is just about perceived commitment. Popping a pill every morning after waking up doesn't sound so bad to me; I've been doing it with multi-vitamins for a while, so it really wouldn't be an issue. But the idea of systematically foaming my hair twice a day, every day, with the constant fear of shedding and/or losing the hair if I stop using it? I think it is a much greater commitment. Maybe I'm wrong and you guys have some experiences to share

 

2. I have searched this forum about Nizoral, and I must confess that I'm not wholly convinced about its use just yet. Again, maybe some of you could share your experiences? I have already ordered a thickening shampoo that comes highly recommended, as well as the Nanogen fibre crystals. Incidentally, those Nanogen and Toppik products look absolutely amazing, particularly for a guy with my situation. Hopefully they can help cover up the thin streaks of scalp which are exposed under sunlight or bright lights!

 

3. Unfortunately there is baldness in my family I have two uncles on my mother's side, and both of them are very bald! And on my father's side of the family I have another two uncles, both of whom are balding fast (my grandfather also lost his hair). Curiously enough though, everyone in my immediate family (mother, father, brother) have impeccable, thick sets of hair. Perhaps I got the rough end of the genetics once again

[Bp1]

SEE I NEVER NEVER NEVER understood this "oh its too hard to apply minox every day twice" crap!!! I mean come on thats like saying "I dont like the idea of showering everyday its a lifelong commitment" GIMME A BREAK....if you cant commit to 2 minuteas a day putting foam in your head than I TRULY question your commitment for wanting to keep your hair!!! Gimme a break

[Guest]

LOL, I can't speak for anyone else, but for me it was a huge task because I was wearing hair weave in my hair. So in order to apply the Rogaine, I had to remove the hair weave, put on the Rogaine, put the hair weave back in ..... and repeat that step again at night.

 

So, in my case it wasn't really "hard", but it was a bit complex having to go through all of that.

[Guest]

OK, the edit button is NOT working for me but I forgot to mention that it took me an HOUR to apply the Rogaine because of this entire hair weave crap I had to torture myself with.

 

Now you might ask why didn't I just leave it off so I'm gonna tell you because it was impossible. I'm a woman and women are supposed to be all glitz and glam ... had I went without the hair weave, I would have gotten stares as if I had boogers stuck to my forehead.

 

However, in the end when i realized i HAD to do it, I found a place to buy quality type wigs for very cheap. I did away with the weave and started wigging it up lol. At that point it was okay to apply the Rogaine 2x daily .. but it STILL would have been more convenient to do something else.

[anonymous man]

Pasta dude

 

Your story sounds almost IDENTICAL to mine

 

IDENTICAL - its almost eerie

 

And your views on treatment and selected course of action is IDENTICAL too.

 

The only thing that we differ in, is that my grand parents, etc all down the line had full heads of hair, while my old man is bald.

 

I abuse my dad regularly, saying 'why the heck did you have to go bald, damn you!' but always in a joking fashion (although I think I might get a bit aggressive sometimes hehe)

 

Anyway, good luck with the adventure. I am popping the pill, finishing up the first week of my treatment today.

 

However, I am scared to look in the mirror, I find myself rarely, if ever, doing close inspections. Still in denial.

 

But again, good luck. Keep us posted on resulst. Likewise, I will too.

 

 

Im off to buy some Nizoral haha - cheerio!

[chucky]

Pastaboy

Have you decided on a course of action yet or are you still looking into your options.