Hi, long time lurker, this is my first real post. I just turned 16 and I've recently noticed some signs of very minor thinning in my crown area. The only reason I picked up on it so early is because I've been so obsessed with the possibility that I've been checking my crown almost every day for signs of thinning, starting last year and becoming more and more frequent and obsessive until now. It all started last year, when someone at school pointed out that it looked like I had a 'bald spot' at the very center of the crown area. However, that turned out to be a result of my hair sticking up in the crown area and looking thin rather than real hair loss. I also never had any noticeable shed, but I did notice that a miniaturized hair or two was falling sometimes when I rubbed my crown, which freaked me out a lot. I kept telling myself that this was normal, as I read that everyone has a few miniaturized hairs, and I also shed a few of these hairs from other parts of my hair like the sides and top. (No hair loss there)
Nevertheless, my obsession kept eating at me (One reason for this is that my scalp would show sometimes if I messed up my hair/ combed it the wrong way) and I kept examining my hair in the mirror, and I even went to a dermatologist in December 2016, who, after looking at my hair for a few seconds, declared I had no hair loss whatsoever.
Unfortunately, that wasn't the end of it, as after a while, I got right back to checking my hair every day for signs of miniaturization, unsure of any hair loss. That is, until the end of last month, when I noticed a spot near (slightly above and to the right) my whorl where there were a few clearly miniaturized (vellus) hairs among the other hairs, and there was reduced density in the same area.
Thinking that these were surefire signs of hairloss, I panicked and was kind of depressed for a week or two. During those weeks, I kept checking and rechecking my crown and was terribly worried. I was noticing that I was shedding miniaturized hairs from this area very frequently, almost every time I scratch my crown area, which was definitely an early indicator. Finally, about a week or two ago, I suddenly accepted that I had hair loss and stopped trying to convince myself otherwise, and I stopped worrying so much since it's so minor. Keep in mind that the 'thinning' isn't noticeable at all unless my hair is parted directly on that area, and even then it isn't too noticeable. I know it sounds really pathetic and that my hair loss is really slow and tiny but the psychological aspect of it has messed with my life way too much.
Whew that was long and probably very poorly written (Sorry about that lol). Anyway, I think that if my hair loss continues at this rate and it doesn't become aggressive, then I'll have a noticeably thinner crown by 18. (My hairline is fine I think, hasn't really changed other than maturing to maybe a Norwood 1.2 in the past two years)
I definitely want to try and keep my hair for as long as possible, so I'm thinking of starting minoxidil 5% soon. I know it's a lifetime commitment and won't stop the actual balding process, but I feel like using it will put me at ease and lessen my worrying about hair loss. Also, since my loss is really minor now I think I can regrow/thicken up completely if I start soon, right? For the long term plan, I'll think about finasteride when I turn 18, if there isn't a better treatment out by then (don't want to mess with any hormones as of right now :\ ).
As for my family history, I don't really have too much hair loss in my family as far as I know. My dad's side males had some frontal recession (NW2-3) in their 40s and 50s, but not any bald relatives there. My mom's dad is in his 70's with no hair loss, however my mom has thin hair.
So, after reading all of that, what do you think? Should I start minoxidil or wait it out 2 years until I'm 18?
Here are some pictures. (the L shaped cowlick / whorl has been there forever, the thinning is more above where I part it)
Nevertheless, my obsession kept eating at me (One reason for this is that my scalp would show sometimes if I messed up my hair/ combed it the wrong way) and I kept examining my hair in the mirror, and I even went to a dermatologist in December 2016, who, after looking at my hair for a few seconds, declared I had no hair loss whatsoever.
Unfortunately, that wasn't the end of it, as after a while, I got right back to checking my hair every day for signs of miniaturization, unsure of any hair loss. That is, until the end of last month, when I noticed a spot near (slightly above and to the right) my whorl where there were a few clearly miniaturized (vellus) hairs among the other hairs, and there was reduced density in the same area.
Thinking that these were surefire signs of hairloss, I panicked and was kind of depressed for a week or two. During those weeks, I kept checking and rechecking my crown and was terribly worried. I was noticing that I was shedding miniaturized hairs from this area very frequently, almost every time I scratch my crown area, which was definitely an early indicator. Finally, about a week or two ago, I suddenly accepted that I had hair loss and stopped trying to convince myself otherwise, and I stopped worrying so much since it's so minor. Keep in mind that the 'thinning' isn't noticeable at all unless my hair is parted directly on that area, and even then it isn't too noticeable. I know it sounds really pathetic and that my hair loss is really slow and tiny but the psychological aspect of it has messed with my life way too much.
Whew that was long and probably very poorly written (Sorry about that lol). Anyway, I think that if my hair loss continues at this rate and it doesn't become aggressive, then I'll have a noticeably thinner crown by 18. (My hairline is fine I think, hasn't really changed other than maturing to maybe a Norwood 1.2 in the past two years)
I definitely want to try and keep my hair for as long as possible, so I'm thinking of starting minoxidil 5% soon. I know it's a lifetime commitment and won't stop the actual balding process, but I feel like using it will put me at ease and lessen my worrying about hair loss. Also, since my loss is really minor now I think I can regrow/thicken up completely if I start soon, right? For the long term plan, I'll think about finasteride when I turn 18, if there isn't a better treatment out by then (don't want to mess with any hormones as of right now :\ ).
As for my family history, I don't really have too much hair loss in my family as far as I know. My dad's side males had some frontal recession (NW2-3) in their 40s and 50s, but not any bald relatives there. My mom's dad is in his 70's with no hair loss, however my mom has thin hair.
So, after reading all of that, what do you think? Should I start minoxidil or wait it out 2 years until I'm 18?
Here are some pictures. (the L shaped cowlick / whorl has been there forever, the thinning is more above where I part it)
