Minoxidil and addiction

[simbal]

I had a hair transplant 4 months ago and now I am watching new hair grow. It's a slow process, but it's noticeable and I know I have to wait. My doctor advised me to use minoxidil. I have a friend who has been using minoxidil for a long time and he told me that minoxidil is addictive and if you start using it, you will have to use it for the rest of your life. He said that minoxidil gives good results during use, but if you stop using it after 3 months, your hair will fall out even more than before. He also said that if he had known about addiction, he would not have used minoxidil. Is this true or is it his imagination?

I don't want to unnecessarily speed up the process and can wait as long as necessary.

[SuperC]

I've never heard that Minoxidil contains any addictive substances, and a quick Google search returns no strong evidence to the contrary. If you discontinue use later, however, you may lose any "gains" you had as a direct result of the medication.

There's no harm in waiting until your growth has matured before deciding if Minoxidil is right for you. Personally, I wanted to see what my results would look like on their own before deciding to start Minoxidil. Otherwise, I felt like I'd be too afraid to discontinue use later. Now that I'm almost 10 months post-op and satisfied with my results, I have no reason to start Minoxidil and, thus, nothing to fear.

[duchaine]

4 hours ago, simbal said:

I had a hair transplant 4 months ago and now I am watching new hair grow. It's a slow process, but it's noticeable and I know I have to wait. My doctor advised me to use minoxidil. I have a friend who has been using minoxidil for a long time and he told me that minoxidil is addictive and if you start using it, you will have to use it for the rest of your life. He said that minoxidil gives good results during use, but if you stop using it after 3 months, your hair will fall out even more than before. He also said that if he had known about addiction, he would not have used minoxidil. Is this true or is it his imagination?

 

I don't want to unnecessarily speed up the process and can wait as long as necessary.

 

True.

if you workout, you gain muscle. When you stop, your catabolism increases and you lose muscle.

If you take steroids, you gain muscle. When you stop, your catabolism increases and you lose muscle.

if you use pain killers, your pain are reduced. When you stop, your pg increase and you suffer again.

if you use minoxidil, you get hair. When you stop, telogen increases and Anagen is reduced.

[Gatsby]

7 hours ago, simbal said:

but if you stop using it after 3 months, your hair will fall out even more than before. He also said that if he had known about addiction, he would not have used minoxidil. Is this true or is it his imagination?

For many people results may not even be seen at only three months. As others have said it's not actually addictive. If it was more people would be complient with using it. But you raise a good point @simbal. Treating hair loss is not a perfect solution. Medication needs to be continued in order to see and maintain the benefits. Their are also side effects that prevent some people from being able to continue with medication. However medication should always be your first approach to hair loss. All the best.

[simbal]

To summarize everything that has been written here:

1. There is no point in taking minoxidil after HT, otherwise it will be difficult to evaluate the results of HT. If someone wants to use minoxidil, it is better to wait until the results of HT are clear and take minoxidil several years after HT.

2. There is no evidence of addiction after using minoxidil. But to keep the results of minoxidil use you have to continue to use it, and that’s why it’s like an addiction.

This is correct?