5 years of hairloss and I start to get really scared about going bald.

[Tim's hair speaking]

Hello everyone,

I'm 24 years old and I first noticed my hairloss about 5 years ago (even though it probably started 6 years ago).
I have a girlfriend now and even though she says that she doesn't mind I can't stop worrying about it.
And let's be honest...if this relationship doesn't work out I will be bald in a few years from now on and my self-esteem is probably completely gone.
I think about my hair more and more since it started falling out.
Everywhere I am I'm focusing on other men hairs...at the bowling alley,at concerts,when I watch a movie etc.

It started with a receding hairline and now it's starting to thin out on top.The last weeks its continuing in such a fast rate that I am more and more convinced that I need to take action NOW!

I started with Rogaine probably around 2 years ago but discontinued after 3 month.
Then I started a year ago again but also stopped shortly after because I was thinking it might give me a brain tumor or something.
I know it's ridiculous but that's how I am sometimes.

Now I'm back on track.
Started with 5%Minoxidil from Kirkland around a month ago and use a derma roller with 0,5mm once a week.
Two days ago I also got myself some capsules with biotin and silica as well.
But I know that this won't be enough.
What I need to stop and to improve is probably Finasteride.
Without it I'll lose this battle probably within the next few years.

But I have to be honest...I'M SCARED BEYOND HELL.

I had testicular pain a few years ago which even ended for me in hospital over night a few times(on morphine).
They actually never figured out what it was. But through experiences I know now that when I (I hope it's okay to say it like this and is not against the forum rules)make out with a girl for some time and get hard for longer but don't c*m I end up with really bad pain called epididymal hypertension.
I also tend to be more depressed about life in general and so this makes me also concerned in regards of side effects.

Anyway.
I know that going bald would be worse.
I also still hope for Histogen to come out within the next few years so that I could discontinue taking Finasteride.
So yeah that's me.

I also want to thank everyone in this forum for all this useful information and also for stories and before and after pictures.

I'll upload a few pictures within the next hour.
P.S:I'm not a native English speaker so you might find some grammatical errors here and there.

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These are from around February 2011. I shaved my head when I noticed that my hairline was receding.

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Around one year ago.

 

[Tim's hair speaking]

And from two days ago.

Grew it out again.

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I totally forgot to add my question.
Do you think I should give it a shot with Finasteride?
I'm planning on getting an appointment and maybe to get some blood-work?What will they actually check when they do?
I know that Finasteride might work for me who knows,right?
But after reading so much about it I feel like I might also pop a pill and my genitals might fall off.
I smoked for around 10 years before I quit and even though smoking might cause impotence, this was my least concern. I know that a lot of you made good experiences with it but is it at that stage of hairloss still effective/worth it?
And what about Histogen? What would this do in my case? I know it's not out yet, but what do they expect it to do for people like me?

 

[BiqqieSmalls]

You should totally give either Finasteride or Dutasteride a shot. Only using Minoxidil will not help your cause. You need to use both as they have a synergistic effect. I would say you're a NW2 to a NW2.5. Don't be worried of finasteride/dutasteride side effects; they're mental (others will disagree).

 

[Tim's hair speaking]

Thanks for your quick response.
I know that Minoxidil alone won't do the trick for me. I will definitely get an appointment with my doctor this month.
My hair is getting super thin on top and I think I'm probably already closer to a Norwood 3.
So yeah...Big 3 is the plan.
Do you think I should go straight with 1mg or maybe go with 0.5 for a month or two first, to be on the safe side?

 

[GoldenMane]

Start with 1.25 mg (proscar 5 mg quartered, if you get sides then cut your dose to 0.5 or 0.25.

 

[Vlatch]

Don't be worried of finasteride/dutasteride side effects; they're mental (others will disagree).

In every study on finasteride or dutasteride, the percentage of sexual sides was significantly higher in the finasteride/dutasteride group than in the placebo group. Side effects aren't just in the head.

There is no evidence on permanent sides after discontinuation of the drug though.

 

[logikmtr]

this forum should take action and ban such advices. Finasteride can **** up someones life. people have committed suicide because of the permanent side effects, yet this forum is endorsing this poison.
OP do not take finasteride, try nizoral or just accept hair loss.

It would be beneficial if we all got in the habit of providing links to studies that provide evidence to support our claims. Especially when making claims as bold as this. If you are genuinely concerned with the well being of the community, I encourage you to provide your sources so that we can read it ourselves and make an informed decision.

 

[xetudor]

People die from eating peanuts! finasteride does have a small risk of causing sexual side effects (from the articles I've read, 4% more than placebo in the first year but this percent drops). Only 1,4% of the people experimenting side effects dropped the trials.

If you're afraid then you should be extremely healthy (lift weights, eat right because not eating fiber and eating wrong foods increases your cancer risk significantly), don't have a desk job (back pain, heart problems) and don't ever take medications (not even something for headache as people have died of liver failure), don't even let your GF take contraceptive pill because it has a way greater risk of loss of libidon than finasteride. If hairloss is a problem for you, finasteride is acceptable.

 

[jimmypage]

I would use it twice or three times a week.

 

[Tim's hair speaking]

Thanks everyone for your input!
@jimmypage...Are you talking about Finasteride? I think I would forget a pill if I don't do it everyday. So maybe I could go with 0,5mg a day to start with?
@xetudor...I'll definitely change my diet again. Maybe we can at least all agree on the fact that we're at least starting to live healthier because of our hairloss.And for sure hairloss is a problem for me. I hope that once I start with Finasteride it'll be less on my mind.For example:I just went to a barbecue yesterday and the only thing I did all evening was checking my friends hairlines. I really can't handle this anymore.
@newbierocket...You might be right.But you also just started a thread about minoxidil which seems way over the top for me.Maybe I'm wrong but I can say for my part that I didn't make any negative experiences with it.
@GoldenMane...could I also build my way up? Let's say starting with 0,5mg or even 0,25mg and then every two weeks stepping one up? Like from 0,25mg to 0,5mg to 1mg?

 

[Tim's hair speaking]

I've spend a lot of time thinking and reading about finasteride and I already feel better knowing that i'll see my Dr. soon so that i can start treatment.
I'll post updates in this thread on a regular basis. Thanks again everyone.

 

[Supertramp]

I'm also considering starting Propecia soon. What dose are you planning on starting with? I'm leaning towards 0.25mg or 0.5mg, just as a precaution. Keep us updated. Good luck, man!

 

[Tim's hair speaking]

@Supertramp I don't know yet.I finally called my doctor today and got an appointment for tuesday. I don't know if I'm going to start with a lower dose or right away with 1mg.I also ordered Ket med which is the same as Nizoral shampoo.
I feel like I'm starting to shed a bit due to Minoxidil.I use the Rogaine foam in the morning and Kirkland liquid in the evening. Rogaine foam dries way quicker and I'm able to style my hair 15 minutes after applying, while the liquid is quite a mess and takes for ever to dry.
Good luck.

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@Supertramp I just went on btt and saw following advice. Someone recommended to introduce Propecia slowly to let the body adjust.I think I will follow his advice.
I don't know if I'm allowed to post the link on here but here is what he recommended
week 1: take 1/4 of a tablet daily
week 2: take 1/2 tablet daily
week 3: take 3/4 tablet daily
week 4: take a full tablet daily

 

[juliobarbaroto]

Everywhere I am I'm focusing on other men hairs...at the bowling alley,at concerts,when I watch a movie etc.

WOW. I feel bro hugged reading that.

I'm spending all my free time searching for images of famous men on Google to see how their hair looks like. I'm getting totally improductive at work because I can't stop standing at other people's heads.

Seriously, I'm getting nuts.

 

[Tim's hair speaking]

Short Update

I got an appointment with a dermatologist on tuesday and I can't even describe how much I'm looking forward to that.
My other doctor already told me that you can't do anything about it ''It's just genetics."So I really hope he is more aware of the fact that you CAN do something about it.
Anyway.So happy that I'm finally doing something.I even talked with my girlfriend about it and she's standing 100% behind me.
Since I just ran out of my 2 bottle of Rogaine I realized that I'm actually using it now for 2 month.
I'm experiencing massive sheds!
But here is the thing.At first i wanted to notice something but I know that it takes around 6 month to see realistic results so I just put it on every morning and every night before I go to bed. On sunday nights I use the derma roller and once a week I use Ked Med 20mg/g. I also use around 3 times a week Garnier Neril Reaktiv Shampoo. So far so good.
But here is what kind of confuses me.I start to see little islands of miniaturized hair in the corners of my receding hairline .Am I hallucinating?
I will upload a picture soon to show you what I mean.
I also checked pictures from 2 1/2 years ago.At that point I was receding but I realized how much hair I actually had.My hairline was receding but still completely covered with miniaturized hair.So do you think there is a chance that they are still active?

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It's a shocker to me that my hairloss progressed this far!

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Should have done something back then.

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I can't really manage that my pictures show up in single files.Anyway.The ones where my hair look clearly better are from 2 1/2 years ago.The ones where my hair is wet are from today.
It changed so quick.I'm just speechless.I just hope that Finasteride and Minoxidil will do wonders on my head.That's the only thing I can hope for now.Woah.Speechless.

 

[hair=life]

Get started on medication. Too much speculation also not helping you, mentally. It's either a yes or a no, and when you have accepted your hairloss, u shud better work towards fighting against it. Start taking meds, if u see any 'drastic' side effects which u just can't manage to withstand, stop the meds there....the sides would also subside. But do start off, and don't give up! Best of luck and you lucky to have a supporting partner!