Opinions sought (Pics included)

[vbcbc]

I'm 23 living in the UK - I'd say a norwood 2.5 nearing a 3.

 

pictures

 

I started noticing thinner hair in areas when I was 21. Before then my hair was normal. Please view the pictures above. These pictures don't really give 'the best' indication but in a nutshell, I was starting to see an early bald patch at the back/top of my head in Summer 2002 as well as a receeding hairline.

 

I started propecia on April 24th 2003 and have been on it for 3 months and 16 days now - taking the required 1mg a day. I've also been using minox on the hairline for 3 months and shampooing with Nizoral. I think it could be too early to judge whether the propecia is working and I have been advised to give it a year to see if it's doing the job or not. is that correct?

 

My question is if after 1 year I do not see the improvement I require from propecia, then I want to go further. I will have no choice but to for my own sake. Basically I'd want to get surgery on it if that's the only way to fix the problem. What is your take on this? I've heard many people say that 24/25 is too young to get a HT but if a person has tried the best proven treatments that are out there and has used them for a year and they havent worked like he had hoped or had given him the improvement he was looking for, then surgery is the only answer.

 

As far as I'm concerned, if the treatments don't work, then without surgery I would be doomed & living an unhappy life. I do have a plan - within 2 years I want to have the hair I had when I was 20/21 (only 2/3 years ago you know!) whether it's been aided by surgery or not. Obviously I hope I won't have to go down this road, hoping that the propecia does the job but if it doesn't then I would have no choice. Unless you or other experts tell me that it could harm me healthwise.

 

If it does come to getting a HT to fill-in what I cannot get back, then I will obviously have to travel to the US because I've heard various things about the UK that don't really sound to inviting. I also want to be as dicreet as possible, so telling my family about it isnt even an option for me. That would be a big 'no'.

 

What's your opinion on this whole situation?

 

Thanks....

 

bcvbc

[vbcbc]

I'm 23 living in the UK - I'd say a norwood 2.5 nearing a 3.

 

pictures

 

I started noticing thinner hair in areas when I was 21. Before then my hair was normal. Please view the pictures above. These pictures don't really give 'the best' indication but in a nutshell, I was starting to see an early bald patch at the back/top of my head in Summer 2002 as well as a receeding hairline.

 

I started propecia on April 24th 2003 and have been on it for 3 months and 16 days now - taking the required 1mg a day. I've also been using minox on the hairline for 3 months and shampooing with Nizoral. I think it could be too early to judge whether the propecia is working and I have been advised to give it a year to see if it's doing the job or not. is that correct?

 

My question is if after 1 year I do not see the improvement I require from propecia, then I want to go further. I will have no choice but to for my own sake. Basically I'd want to get surgery on it if that's the only way to fix the problem. What is your take on this? I've heard many people say that 24/25 is too young to get a HT but if a person has tried the best proven treatments that are out there and has used them for a year and they havent worked like he had hoped or had given him the improvement he was looking for, then surgery is the only answer.

 

As far as I'm concerned, if the treatments don't work, then without surgery I would be doomed & living an unhappy life. I do have a plan - within 2 years I want to have the hair I had when I was 20/21 (only 2/3 years ago you know!) whether it's been aided by surgery or not. Obviously I hope I won't have to go down this road, hoping that the propecia does the job but if it doesn't then I would have no choice. Unless you or other experts tell me that it could harm me healthwise.

 

If it does come to getting a HT to fill-in what I cannot get back, then I will obviously have to travel to the US because I've heard various things about the UK that don't really sound to inviting. I also want to be as dicreet as possible, so telling my family about it isnt even an option for me. That would be a big 'no'.

 

What's your opinion on this whole situation?

 

Thanks....

 

bcvbc

[Son of a Plug]

I think you have caught the thinning and recession at a good time. Your hair density and recession has matured but in no way do you have anything that would be considered "balding".

 

I think you should stay on Propecia and 5% Minoxidil to halt anyfurther loss. The hairline may go a little further but that is easy to recreate with a HT. It's the crown and mid-scalp area you really want to protect because that is where a lot of FUs get used-up quickly.

 

You'll notice that if you maintain your current NW status until 30 yrs of age, a lot of your friends who have plenty of hair now may catch up to you with their own hair loss and possibly pass you on the NW scale (if they are NOT on any meds).

 

It isn't as much about regrowing hair as it is KEEPING the hair you have until you need the HT.

[PD]

vbcbc,

 

You seem like you are doing all you can. I can understand 'cause I was grappling for information when I was your age, myself!

 

Most Hair Transplant doctors do not perform surgery on a younger patient like you for different reasons. Some reasons that I know are :

~ you cannot have too many of them (2-3 is optimal) so its not something you do every 5yrs or so to fill in the gaps.

~ yield (growth of transplanted hair) drops at each session if one were to go to the same area.

~ most youngsters like you want lower hairline which is going to look really awful when you reach 60s or so because transplanted hair is not going to fall!

~ some doctors think its not "ethical"

~ maybe its not profitable for the doctors to work on someone who wants 500 grafts or less these days..

[that doesnt mean you should go for 1500+ grafts even if you dont need!]

 

The good news is you may still find some good doctors who will agree to do.. if you explain them, beg them or whatever..

 

I am a little skeptical about propecia working for too long on ALL PEOPLE... i have been hearing people complaining that it doesnt work anymore over 4 yrs.. but that might be for a select few.

 

If you are looking forward to having full head AFTER 2-3 years, I would wait for another year and go for a HT by which time you might look like you need about 1000 grafts, so they will fully grow by an year.

 

So the basic strategy would be to evaluate your donor area with a doctor, spread your HTs , plan ahead .. look into your 40s, 50s too..

 

Good Luck!

[Guest]

I dont' know if you have read this forum often, but there are two procedures now, FU, which is the strip surgery(linear scar), and FUE, which does not leave the linear scar. The difference is the way the hair is extracted(individually with FUE), not implanted, so basically FUE would ideally leave just as good results without the scar. Also using FUE hair can be taken from the sides of your head and lower down on the back f your head. End result are quite a few more donor hairs and no scar. Point being, FUE is not as practiced and advanced or I guess mastered I should say as FU. If you give it a couple years FUE will in my view be the HT of choice. No scar, more donor hairs, and a big unsaid among posters is the fact that with no linear scar you can cut the hair on the back and sides a lot shorter and give the top the appearance of a much fuller head of hair. Research, I'm 24 and in a similiar situation as you, I'm on Propecia and Rogaine too, and I'm gonna wait it out and let Technology catch up. With the Propecia by the way, don't expect a ton of regrowth, I would say you won't see much, better to expect healthier hairs(the ones you still have) and considerably slower thinning.

 

 

Matt 6:25-34

[Guest]

You've got alot of hair and it looks good.

 

Kids can be nasty, but adults see hair through differnt eyes. When your peers are around 30, you'll notice it doesnt matter as much. Not saying you wont want a HT then, but believe me, it gets ALOT easier to deal with as you age.

[arfy]

I would stick with the Propecia and your other treatments for now. If they are effective for you, then you've won the lottery. It's too early to decide that the treatments don't work, these are long term treatments.

 

I don't see the point in planning on what you will do in a year from now, as you can't predict what your situation will be. Just keep your fingers crossed and be patient. If you're lucky, you'll never need a hair transplant.

[Manko]

The pics make it kind of hard to tell because in some of them it looks like your hair may naturally be thin. Your recession is not terrible, and is actually sort of similar to my own. I had been receeding since 18, but it was sure taking it's time receeding. After 18 years I decided to have the hairline thickened and brought down slightly. I'm not sure if at 23 that's necessarily a good idea. I would let the meds do their work and if they work then good for you, but if you continue to recede, then you should be getting a better idea of your ultimate NW scale situation and at that time you may adjust your HT goals. If you could hold out till 30 that's probably best. Plus, I agree, as you get older other people care less and less. I'm now 36 and I would say that 95% of my friends still have almost all their hair. When I was in my early 20's they would break my chops, but now it's complete indifference, and my hair was just receeding in a mature fashion (my hair matured, I didn't). It is funny how in my 30's I would break my own chops about losing hair, and the same group of friends that tore me up in my 20's were telling me I was nuts.

 

Good luck, and keep everything in perspective.

 

Manko

[vbcbc]

All 6 of you - Thanks for the good advice.

 

That will be all.

 

For now at least.

 

bcvbc