Rogaine Foam + .25mg Finasteride Results after 6 Months

[howitzer]

I've been a long-time lurker on this forum and thought I'd finally post some photos of my regimen results.

 

I've been lucky to have thick hair into my 30's but about year ago I noticed that I was rapidly thinning on the crown of my head. I did a lot of research on this site (and others) and decided to try Finasteride and Rogaine Foam.

 

I initially tried taking 1mg of Finasteride daily but the side effects were immediate and intense. I didn't experience any sexual side effects but three things happened:

 

 

 

1. I experienced intense pangs of anxiety. I had a panic attack on a conference call this first week of taking the drug (something I'd never experienced before) and I would wake up nightly with my heart racing. A few nights I even thought somebody was trying to break into my apartment and I got out of bed to check the door.
   
2. I generally felt weak and numb. I found that I couldn't pick up weights at the gym that I had been training with for months prior to taking the drug. I would also get exhausted faster on the treadmill. Instead of running for 45 mins, I would lose motivation after 5 or 10.
   
3. Slow thinking. I have a very technical job and I found that I was struggling to communicate concepts clearly to clients. Often, I would stop mid-sentence and think "What am I trying to say?!" and simply could not get my thought process into gear. Again, this was a new experience.
   

 

So...I tried taking .5mg of Finasteride. Unfortunately, I experienced the same issues - only less severe.

 

Finally, I cut the dosage down to .25mg and found that I could tolerate this level. I still occasionally wake up in a panic at night but it is not nearly as intense and doesn't carry over into the day. The weakness and stupor are no longer issues and I am experiencing no sexual side effects.

 

The attached photos show the results from roughly 5 months of this treatment. I took the original photos in June of 2010 but didn't start using the Finasteride and Rogaine Foam until January 2011. Unfortunately, I neglected to take monthly updates but will try to do that in the future.

 

I'm happy with the results. I see some decent hair growth and, most significantly, I've found that the existing hair has thickened. In the June 2010 photos, the hair on my crown was very frail and wispy. Now it is much more coarse and feels thicker to the touch. There are still some thin patches but, all in all, there is a lot more coverage. Even my girlfriend has been impressed the results (she was skeptical at the onset).

 

Hopefully, this provides some help to others. I'll try to post more updates in the future.

[Sigildark]

Nice results!

 

As far as anxiety attacks go, oddly enough, i've been getting them since i started up Rogaine Foam a few weeks ago. I've decided to discontinue to see if it goes away or just a coincidence.

[howitzer]

Sorry to hear about your anxiety but the correlation is interesting. I hadn't considered Rogaine as a cause.

 

I take the Finasteride right before I go to bed but use Rogaine at night and in the morning. Since I don't experience any anxiety/panic during the day, I assumed it was the Finasteride.

 

I might try stopping Rogaine for a few nights to see if there is any difference. I'll try to remember to post the results.

[Guest mariewoltz25411697]

@ Howitzer,

I can completely relate my experiences with taking Finasteride 1mg, to yours. I felt all the three mental side affects, depression, being weak and cognitive dysfunction (Brain fog) as well. Recently I decreased my dosage to 0.25mg expecting to balance the trade off between hair loss and mental side affects. Even with this low dosage, after about 5 days, I am still getting moderate level of Brain fog. Today I was in a meeting and had a hard time conveying my ideas, and understanding what others are really implying. On the other hand, it is good to know that even low level of Finasteride, like 0.25mg works for hair loss.

 

The questions that need to be addressed are:

 

1) Are there any medications, nutrient supplements to counter brain fog and depression? I heard about using 25mg of Zinc, Omega 3 oil, and using Progesterone cream (to counter the low level of 5-alpha reductase). Any one has any experience/success using these?

 

2) Are all brand of Finasteride are same or only few brands cause brain fog. I read a post by someone who said he had brain fog only with few brands of Finasteride.

Edited May 25, 2011 by mariewoltz25411697

[cardel25]

@ Howitzer,

I can completely relate my experiences with taking Finasteride 1mg, to yours. I felt all the three mental side affects, depression, being weak and cognitive dysfunction (Brain fog) as well. Recently I decreased my dosage to 0.25mg expecting to balance the trade off between hair loss and mental side affects. Even with this low dosage, after about 5 days, I am still getting moderate level of Brain fog. Today I was in a meeting and had a hard time conveying my ideas, and understanding what others are really implying. On the other hand, it is good to know that even low level of Finasteride, like 0.25mg works for hair loss.

 

The questions that need to be addressed are:

 

1) Are there any medications, nutrient supplements to counter brain fog and depression? I heard about using 25mg of Zinc, Omega 3 oil, and using Progesterone cream (to counter the low level of 5-alpha reductase). Any one has any experience/success using these?

 

2) Are all brand of Finasteride are same or only few brands cause brain fog. I read a post by someone who said he had brain fog only with few brands of Finasteride.

 

 

Generics are alowed to have 20 % less or 10 % more of the active ingredient than the original brand. This could effect that dosage varies from one company from another.So that could explain some people experience sides from one but not another.

[Calgacus]

Nice result so far.

 

I plan on posting my 6 month update very soon. Watch this space.

[Fue123]

The anxiety is a common reported side effect from minox. If you get it I would reduce to one time per day and use a bit less of the foam making sure to work in well. This has helped me. I also used to get headaches from it as well...