I heard about staying on Propecia from you guys....but...

[KevinMichael]

First of all, I am a 22 year old guy that has been rapidly losing hair since highschool. First of all guys, this is a brutal and painful human devastation. NO ONE should have to go through looking 26 when you're only 21, or evenlosing your hair in general. It's not fair that we spent so much money on something so unnecessary except for how ohers view us and how we feel about ourselves. I have been told by many people I've encountered in my life that I look old for my age and even my friends joke around about my bald spots. I've been doomed to a life of hats and false promises hand spooned to us like cereal from advertisers who only want our money. I have spent a couple nights crying myself to sleep because my ex girlfriend had actually BROKE up with me because she thought I resembled her father. Harsh.

 

Anyways... sorry about that

 

I am currently taking Propecia. I have been now for over a year. I have tried mixing Saw Palmetto berry extract with Propeica with little and/or no added effect. Another promise that I heard that products with Saw inhibit part 1 of DHT while Finasteride blocks type 2, the more coherent form. Well, I have been going in and out of more shedding phases and have noticed hair in my brush and in my bathtub drain. I'm only taking the recommended dose of 1 mg per day and have spent hundreds...

 

I know you guys have said to stay on the Propecia for results, but after a year is it worth keeping on it?

 

I have also tried Minoxidil 5% in the back part of my scalp but was wondering that if I do receive the desired result from Propecia one day, if I stop taking the Minoxidil will I lose that hair if the Propecia is doing what it is supposed to and blocking the DHT in my scalp?

 

Any comments to my post would be greatly appreciated. Thank you, so much

 

:-(

[Robert_]

First of all, Propecia is preventative mediation; any regrowth is bonus. Do you really believe that your hair loss is as prevalant now at one year than it was when you first started?

 

Be careful starting and stopping minoxidil. Take it from me, you don't want to do that. Minoxidil is strong medicine and should be either taken consistently and daily or left alone. Taking it sporadically will not reap any benefits and can only be detrimental.

 

I would definitely re-think discontinuing Propecia. It is difficult to tell, but your hairloss would probably be more advanced had you not taken it this past year.

 

-Robert

[Someone]

Look, kevin i know exactly how u feel! cuz ive bin throught that hell and im still in it! im only 19 and i started loosin my hair as early as 13-14 i think it hade to do with my pubirty anyways i went to doctors and when i was 16 and they said it was fine that i dident hade too worry then when i got 17 i really wanned too do something about so i got on rogaine 5% minoxidil and used it for about 2 years and a half till i now recently started takin propecia and stopped the rogaine because the only resualts i believe it gave me was maintain and slowin down the hair loos process maby givin some hair but mostly slowin down which it did! so now ive bin on propecia for 1 mounth, and i took rogaine for 2-3 weeks with it but stopped because all rogaine does is to open the hair focicles so the blood can stream and if the blood contains DHT then the point of takin it is not that big, i don know but i wanned to see results with propecia itself, as i think if im not seing everything in illusion im actuelly gaining back the hair slowly day by day after, i dont think its just about takin a pill everyday ull have to prepher ur mind physicly like think posetiv thoughts that this will help you and so on and not be so hard on yourself and especily not put yourself in stress situations. so i take this pill at night time before i sleep cuz they say that the DHT levels are at highest point when u sleep so that could be a plus...anyways i know all about being ashamed over loosin hair and wearing caps and loosin the lust to live life at all! u just want to escape reallity and come back to it when ur ready, it really damages you psychologicly and mentally u loose the social part of you that special shine that identifies you as a person and u feel like ur livin in a trapped world its crazy trust me i know all about it! and i bet you do too! feel free to ask me any questions! im here to help! and remeber think posetiv! even thought it can be hard sometimes i know....

[tymman]

Kevin-

 

diddo what Robert said. and READ THIS ENTIRE SITE!!!!!!!!!! Also, read this- http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/showthread.php?t=152832

You and wildnfree are saying the same thing. Smile - there is PLENTY of hope!

[k.p]

kevin i really feel u bro, but my eperience with propecia and rogaine 5% is positive, they have stopped my hairloss completely. at least no more furthur hairloss !!! stay with propecia and get on rogaine and use rogaine all over ur scalp, u will see RESULT !!! i`m willing to use rogaine for the rest of my life if i have to, just give it time and combine these two drugs. i`m sure u will see some result. about the GF,simple, screw her !!!!!

[k.p]

one more thing if u decided to use rogaine, DO NOT STOP USING IT !!!!

[Someone]

k.p i just wanna ask you, i mean ive bin usin rogaine for almost 2 and a half years and all it did was maintaining the hair that i hade and slow down the hole hair loosin process alote, but now since one mounth back i started usin propecia and i got very positive effects from it and stopped usin rogaine and i havent bin usin it for like 2 weeks now, my question is should i stop usin the rogaine if i see resualts with the propecia itself i mean should i wait? or use it now so it dousent mess up going on and off with rogaine u know, can the rogaine mess up what propecia is doin?,

 

cuz im seing good results from it the hair is comin back i can tell day by day just after one mounth...what should i do? and im also conserned about the long term effect propecia haves i mean for how long can it be effective? can u use it your hole life? or does the body refuses it after a while? then if it does is there a way to like take a brake from it and then come back to it?

[Robert_]

Someone,

 

One month is a very short time to have seen any results from Propecia. I'm not saying that what you are seeing is not the result of Propecia, but it usually takes at least 4 or 5 months before results can be seen.

 

Propecia will NOT maintain results that you have gained from Rogaine. Please allow me to repeat that.

 

Propecia will NOT maintain results that you have gained from Rogaine.

 

If you discontinue Rogaine you will be shooting yourself in the foot. You will lose the benefit you have recieved from 2 and-a-half years of use. No questions asked. If it is not absolutely imperative that you stop useage of Rogaine for some medical condition, please stay on it. Continue with the Propecia. You are setting yourself up for as much success as can be expected with your current regimen.

 

-Robert

[Someone]

Are you sure about this?

 

i mean my doctor said stop usin rogaine and just stay on propecia cuz it has such grate effect and is more effective then rogaine.

and i was like yeah sure but id really like too

continue with rogaine for at least 2 weeks while im takin propecia...

 

 

But now im confused! i really prefer not usin rogaine cuz its a mess and these 2 weeks without it has been such freedom! and as long as i can remember my hair has never bin this fine, now im not sayin that rogaine dident work but it maintained the hair that i hade and gave back some from time to time, cuz i could see fine hair comin up..

 

 

now i don know if it was comin up or shreedin down..hehe but when i started on propecia just a mounth ago, i really can see the hair thickin up on the vertax and the top of the head like that...now im not sure what to do now? should i continue like this keep takin propecia 1Mg/every day as i have done the past mounth and see what happens or should i take rogaine with it like ive done the past 2 year and a half? and see what happens...

 

and would one dosage each day be enough istead of takin it 2 times per day mornin & nights, i mean is it worth takin rogaine? keep in mind that i still want to do anything to keep and gain back my hair! but the question is does it really matters if i take rogaine or not? has the effect of propecia kicked back? now just after one mounth or what is it that is givin my hair back? now! and not before!

[tymman]

someone -

 

Hair that has benefited from Rogaine WILL fall out SOON!!! Plenty of people on this site will atest to that FACT!! I personally don't like the idea of using Minoxidil, but the benefits far out weigh the draw backs! I'm sure your doctor is more than qualified to make a diagnosis, but if you still have any doubts as to what you should believe - GET A SECOND OPINION.!!!!! Please understand that Rogaine/Minoxidil vs Propecia is two VERY different substances that have the same (basic) intention - to give you more hair. Propecia will help reduce the DHT production, Minoxidil/Rogaine will stimulate hair to grow. Using them both will give you "double coverage", replacing one with the other is asking for heart break!! You don't see it yet but you will. Use the FIND feature at the top of each page, read my postings on stopping treatments in favor for another. Others on this site have been through it also!! Check it out. But regardless - GOOD LUCK BRO!!

[Someone]

Now ive heard that rogaine makes things worse then it is? i mean what if rogaine messes with propecia how do u know if its good for you or not?

[KevinMichael]

Thank you guys for your comments. I read through everything you guys have written and am taking into consideration everything that I have learned.

 

Listen to this, today... I was driving back home from Indiana and my head started to itch really bad so I used my hand to scratch my scalp and when I brough my arm back my fingers were full of hair. This is my NUMBER ONE reason for depression guys. But I am not giving up hope, I read that article that was posted for me to read and it was very interesting. I'm sticking to my regiments and holding onto that hope that one day things will be better.

 

Does anyone know, even though Avodart still hasn't been approved by the FDA for hairloss, does it really work better than Propecia and is it a better drug to switch to? I heard it blocks both type 1 and type 2 DHT, but is it a safer drug to use?

[Robert_]

Kevin,

 

Dutasteride is certainly not safer than Propecia by any means. It is generally believed to be less safe because of its' elevated levels of inhibition.

 

User descriptions vary. Some have had astounding results. Others have reported much less. Still others report WORSE results than when they were on Propecia, if you can believe that (which I do since I have heard it from multiple reliable sources).

 

I have had fair - yes, that's right fair - success with it so far. I am not jumping up and down but it has not been a full year yet and I don't seem any worse off than when I was on Propecia. My situation has gotten a bit better but I am still hopeful of a more positive change.

 

One thing I HAVE witnessed and this is echoed by many that have started Dutasteride:

 

Once you begin the treatment, there is a HIGH chance that you will "shed" hair for the first few months. It will be scary. It will mess with you. This is normal. It is actually a "good" sign because it shows that the medication is working. Dutasteride is actually rushing hairs that were doomed to fall out due to their follicles entering the telogen (resting phase) out a bit early. This is followed by a period of pretty-much nothing. For the next couple of months I didn't notice any change.

 

It has just been the last two months or so that I am noticing positive changes and I still am not back to the level of thickness that I had before I went on it. I am going to stick it out.

 

If you want, I can update you on my progress at one year (November) and that may help you to make a determination. Whatever you do, don't quit all medication but do VERY diligent research when considering dutasteride.

 

-Robert

[hairworthy]

3 things to consider:

 

1. More and more guys in other forums are actually using both fina- & duta-steride at the same time, in an effort to gain the benefits of duta without losing those of fina. There are no studies available to justify this regimen.

 

2. If finasteride works for you, stick to it. Switching to dutasteride might give you better results, it might also give you worse results. Are you willing to take the risk?

 

3. The side effects of dutasteride are still unknown. There have been horror stories about that in other forums, users losing the ability to speak (!), getting major stomach upsets and so on... not to mention the long-term effects on the liver and prostate gland. Whilst there are figures for the number of people who get some form of impairment (impotence or other) through the use of finasteride, there are none for dutasteride, so you could well have a 50% chance of having really bad side effects. To summarize: beware!

[BballTC]

Kevin,

 

I thought Robert's comments were quite helpful, and I would certainly place a great deal of trust in what he told you. As it turns out, I am one of those users he mentioned that had a rather negative experience on Avodart. I am a 25 year old guy who wasn't experiencing incredibly dramatic hair loss, but was definately receeding at the temples/hairline and wanted to do something about it. I wish, to be honest, that I had avoided Avodart altogether. Robert referred to the scary shedding period you will go through. I went through it myself, and it was just too much for me to deal with. In the matter of a month, the treatment had a dramatic effect on my hairline, especially the front/center part. This was especially difficult to deal with, largely due to the fact that prior to Avodart I had experienced very little loss in that area. Granted, this may be the medicine merely speeding up the loss of hair that was destined to fall out (and maybe this clears the way for future growth). But for me, at 25 years old, I didn't want to be taking something that was speeding up my rate of shedding. There is no doubt that Avodart is strong medicine. Make sure you read plenty about it before making your decision. As Robert said, user reaction appears to vary widely. I am only one data point in our own "clinical trial" of dut. By myself I am certainly not statistically significant. Still, I felt compelled to share my experience with you. Every user report matters in compiling a complete picture of what this drug can do--both positive and negative.

 

Best of luck as you deal with this difficult time. Hopefully, you will find something that works for you. As many seem to say on this board--- educate yourself, and make informed decisions.

 

Take care.