2 months on oral minoxidil. Have questions regarding dosages, sides, etc…

[James227]

I’ve been taking oral minoxidil for about 2 months. Started cutting 2.5mg tablets into quarters for a few weeks, then half, then went for the full amount. My questions are:

What dosage do I need to be aiming to get to? 2.5? 5? More? I only ask because I have gotten side effects (tight chest, dizziness, headaches, etc) when taking 2.5 and have dropped back down to 1.25 hoping that the side effects go away and maybe I might jump back up after Christmas or something?

And also, I’ve been battling hair loss for a long time. I’ve been taking finasteride for about 6 years and using topical minoxidil for even longer and still am. So my question is, can I continue using topical minoxidil alongside oral minoxidil or do I need to stop using the topical? Like, I’d it one or the other kind of thing?

Any input on this would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance, James.

 

[James227]

Bump

 

[Norwoody]

If it's causing that much of a problem, why not just do topical twice a day? You can even add needling or tretinoin to improve its effectiveness.

 

[James227]

If it's causing that much of a problem, why not just do topical twice a day? You can even add needling or tretinoin to improve its effectiveness.

I do use topical twice a day, I have for years. I said above. And I do that dermaneedling thing too. Not that it does f*** all for me! My questions are regarding ORAL minoxidil mainly. Thank you for your reply though…

 

[Norwoody]

I do use topical twice a day, I have for years. I said above. And I do that dermaneedling thing too. Not that it does f*** all for me! My questions are regarding ORAL minoxidil mainly. Thank you for your reply though…

James, you said "I’ve been taking finasteride for about 6 years and using topical minoxidil for even longer and still am". You did not specify the frequency or dosage. If you are doing it twice a day and needling, and 2.5 oral is not working, then your options are: add tretinoin, try 15% concentration, or give 1.25mg oral a shot.

 

[Tbrhuss]

I’ve been taking oral minoxidil for about 2 months. Started cutting 2.5mg tablets into quarters for a few weeks, then half, then went for the full amount. My questions are:

What dosage do I need to be aiming to get to? 2.5? 5? More? I only ask because I have gotten side effects (tight chest, dizziness, headaches, etc) when taking 2.5 and have dropped back down to 1.25 hoping that the side effects go away and maybe I might jump back up after Christmas or something?

And also, I’ve been battling hair loss for a long time. I’ve been taking finasteride for about 6 years and using topical minoxidil for even longer and still am. So my question is, can I continue using topical minoxidil alongside oral minoxidil or do I need to stop using the topical? Like, I’d it one or the other kind of thing?

Any input on this would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance, James.

Hey, maybe I can help. I am a medical doctor and have some experience with this.
Oral minoxidil is great - it works better than topical, is easier to use. I use it myself. the maximum dose you can use for hair loss is 5mg. You should wean yourself off topical minoxidil now- do it slowly over 4 weeks by reducing the amount and then frequency, or else you will shed. You must not use topical and oral minoxidil.
Minoxidil at doses less than 2.5mg is safe for most people.
This stuff NEEDS monitoring. You need an ECG, blood pressure monitoring. I also get cardiac echos to check for heart size every other year.
The best /safe regimen most patients can be on in my opinion -
Finasteride 1mg 4 -5 days of week
Dutasteride 0.5mg 2-3 days per week (not on same day as finasteride)
Oral minoxidil 1.25 mg /2.5 mg once daily
Nizoral shampoo 2 times per week
A zinc supplement/ good multivitamin daily.

 

[James227]

Hey, maybe I can help. I am a medical doctor and have some experience with this.
Oral minoxidil is great - it works better than topical, is easier to use. I use it myself. the maximum dose you can use for hair loss is 5mg. You should wean yourself off topical minoxidil now- do it slowly over 4 weeks by reducing the amount and then frequency, or else you will shed. You must not use topical and oral minoxidil.
Minoxidil at doses less than 2.5mg is safe for most people.
This stuff NEEDS monitoring. You need an ECG, blood pressure monitoring. I also get cardiac echos to check for heart size every other year.
The best /safe regimen most patients can be on in my opinion -
Finasteride 1mg 4 -5 days of week
Dutasteride 0.5mg 2-3 days per week (not on same day as finasteride)
Oral minoxidil 1.25 mg /2.5 mg once daily
Nizoral shampoo 2 times per week
A zinc supplement/ good multivitamin daily.

Hey, thank you very much for your input. Sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner, feeling pretty deflated with it all at the moment to be honest, you know how it is. Anyway, what’s the reason that you can’t use liquid and oral minoxidil together then? I’m just a bit scared about stopping something that I’ve been using for probably 6 or 7 years is all. And yeh, dutasteride, I know. I do want to add it into my regime and exactly how you said really, just a bit scared about that one is all. Pretty big deal to me really. Maybe sometime down the line though, maybe next year.

Thanks again, James.