Early Temple Recession

[Danboi64]

After lurking the forums for a couple months now, I've finally decided to become somewhat more active. So I'll start by saying howdy to the rest of the bunch!

 

I'm a 22 year old university student who has dealt with temple recession for some time now. I've had a widow's peak since as far back as I can remember. Nearly every man on my mother's side of the family have had similar hairlines, but no excessive balding as far as I know. As far as my dad's side is concerned, I only know that my father has receded slightly in to a mature hairline, but this didn't start until he was well in his late 30s and still has a healthy head of hair. I've also been the one to sport longer hairstyles, but with the growing recession that's been somewhat difficult to pull off. I decided to shave my head about a month ago and it hasn't made things a whole lot better. If anything it's even more obvious now.

 

It's been somewhat difficult for me to judge the rate of my hair loss, as my temples have been fairly high for several years, since the summer of 2009 at least. But it does seem as though the left side of my head has slightly more recession, and I'm beginning to wonder if the entire scalp is thinning, though I may just be getting paranoid. Again no one in my family has anything past a NW 3, but I suppose that doesn't mean I won't be dealing with it...

 

So at this point I'm quite eager to start doing something about this. I've been doing extensive research on HT and as a student who's still looking to go to graduate school, it doesn't seem financially promising for the time being. I have noticed a lot of good things about Dr. Radha Rani in particular, which may be a perfect option considering it's cheaper (I could invest more easily), and I've always wanted to visit India (I have studied Hindi and am focusing on Buddhist Studies, which makes Vizag historically VERY relevant to my field).

 

But again, this doesn't seem to be an affordable option for the time being, so my next step would be to have a consultation with a dermatologist. As soon as I can find one in this middle-of-nowhere town I will, but I would also like to get an opinion from the community:

 

What sort of medications would you recommend for someone with my type of hair loss? I feel as though if my hair were thicker, the hairline itself wouldn't be as much of an issue to maintain and hide. Then again, preventing or reversing further recession may be more of a priority and if I could restore my hairline in any way I would. I've heard minoxidil works for some people. Any suggestions? I'm open to sharing whatever I know. Also my album shows a few photos that may give an idea of what we're looking at.

[TakingThePlunge]

Danboi64,

 

The best (and most cost effective) option for you at this point is to start Rogaine (minoxidil) and Propecia (finasteride). Doing so may help you to maintain the hair you have and even restore some lost density.

 

Your are a bit on the young side for hair transplant surgery. Also, your widows peak looks quite thin and, despite your family history, you may be in for some more hair loss.

 

Best of luck!

[Spanker]

Finasteride and minox is what I would recommend also. Your hair looks good shaven, adding the medication will probably give you plenty of time to graduate and save up if you ever want an HT.

[Danboi64]

So I spoke to a Dermatologist in the neighborhood and all he really said is that he admits my temples are a bit high and the front area is somewhat thinner than the rest of my hair. He mentioned rogaine, but said that it would be fine if I started on Propecia alone. Apparently he's seen enough people who have regrown hair, both in density an temple areas, that he would like to see if I have the same results. So I have a prescription and he wants to see me 6 months from now to see if there's any progress.

 

Admittedly, all the side effects I've heard about Propecia are a bit unnerving, but I imagine my chances of experiencing anything of the sort would go down if I cut my dose in half. Now we play the waiting game.