5000 Mcg's Biotin - My Experience Chronicled

[worm]

Hi Everyone,

Creating a thread here because I see so little long term experiences with Biotin. From what I hear it takes 6-9 months if not longer for the effects to be apparent. I plan on keeping a chronicle of my experience, I'll periodically update you guys on how it's going.

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The back story - I heard it was good for skin and nails back in 2012, at the time I was finishing a 3 month terbinafine prescription for a toenail infection and was starting on flucanozol for another month. During that time on terbinafine, my hair seemed thicker and better than ever.

I started 5000 mcgs of biotin at the same time i was on flucanozol, which happened to correspond with a massive shed. I stopped the biotin after a few weeks, which happened to be a week or two before i finished my flucanozol. Anyhow, my hair was worse off, and while it stabilized after biotin/flucanozol, it never recovered to the amazing state it was in when I was on terbinafine. I think terbinafine had some definite regrowth properties, but I strongly suggest nobody take it, I felt pretty bad on it, and it can ruin your liver. Terbinafine is taken only for a short period and you must be monitored by an MD who tests your liver levels.

Long story short, I never did figure out what caused the shed. It could have been just coming off terbinafine, starting flucanozol or taking biotin.

+

For my current regimen, I use zix (past 11 years) - 5000 ius vit D, 50mgs zinc picolinate every other day, copper 2mgs. BTW Im 39 years old and have been losing since I was 19. I still have quite a bit of hair considering my age, but am just hanging on to a Norwood 2, with diffuse thinning, which has had a bit more effect on the crown and my hairline keeps slowly retreating.

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Nov 22 - I decided to give it another shot, as I still hear it can help and still have my old bottle. So few people stick it out for a year or more, so I decided last week (Nov 22, 2016) to start up again on 5000 mcgs of NOW brand biotin. I started taking 5000 mcgs every other day. These are the results so far.

Day 1 and 2 - Bit of a dull headache, feeling a bit spaced out and bummed

Week 1 - Having vivid dreams, but sleep deeply, waking usually once a night to pee
- Hair seems to be fairly stable, no significant change in shedding - seeing about 35-40 hairs in the drain (which is standard). Im hyper scared shedding will start

Nov 28 - Notice mood and energy improving, nails seem stronger - not sure how that is as they dont grow fast enough to have that effect. Feel more awake and less tired during the day, maybe a bit more focused with better memory (not sure if it's biotin).
- At night, scalp feels healthy, almost as though my hair is standing more upright, better blood flow, stronger - ultimately it's a little hard to describe.

Nov 29 - Same healthy scalp feeling, noticed I only shed 19 hairs in the shower, almost half as much as other days (usually 34-38 hairs). Maybe it's because I showered a couple hours earlier today. Encouraging, but could be isolated. Look forward to tomorrow's shower to see.

Nov 30 - Only took my biotin at lunch. Showered a couple hours later today (22 vs 26hrs yesterday), and found 31 hairs today. I suspect it's the time delay and bc I didnt really brush my hair as much. Also, it's been 2 days since I last took my last supplement. Still, I shed less than usual, even if only by 5-7 hairs. I was reading that hair goes into it's resting phase for about 10 days before it falls out, so I also suspect the impact of the biotin will only be coming through by next week. Im tempted to take it daily.... Will have another tomorrow, then skip the following day.

Dec 1 - Today I was more or less 24 hours, and shed 19/20 hairs in the shower. I consider this very good. When I was a teenager I would loose may 2-3 hairs, went to 100+ when I started Androgenetic Alopecia, and it leveled off. So 20 hairs is about 17-18 hairs less per day. I suspect it was less shedding than yesterday because I took my biotin yesterday. I took another today, instead of everyother day, it's 2 days in a row.
- Other noteworthy news, I looked in the mirror and had a nice whiteheaded pimple. Sure enough I popped it, hoping that's isolated. Otherwise my sleep is somewhat more disrupted, but I do feel that when I am asleep it's deeper, I also feel more focused and energized when awake on the flip side. Maybe it's the darker days, stress from work, but I suspect it's biotin.

Dec 2 - Libido still up a bit, but has tapered off a touch. 20 hairs in the drain, took shower a fews hours later today, but brushed and styled it quite a bit for a meeting. Could be i shed those 15-20 hairs in the process. Needless to say I would have expected more regardless. No need for me to give daily updates, so will let you know as the days and weeks go on.

Dec 19 (4 weeks) - Been averaging probably just around 25/30 hairs shed in the drain daily, hair was looking really good yesterday, best in a while. No improvement seen along the hairline, not sure if this is having any effect yet, but too early to tell. I think it will be at least 3-6 months, before i can start to really say one way or another. Still having vivid dreams.

Jan 11 (7 weeks) - Tough to really say what's going on. I reently cut my hair, it was fairly long, and not it's quite a bit shorter, so it may be harder to evaluate the shedding. That said, I definitely have not increased my shedding. I suspect I have reduced it, and maybe my hair is growing a little thicker. ultimately it's too early to tell, but Im encouraged that it has no adverse effect on my hair. I have noticed, since I started only using cold(ish) water on my scalp a week ago, my scalp has turned the normal color as opposed to looking a little inflammed (red) and greasy. And the shedding has decreased by about 10-12 hairs. So I would say Im losing about 15 hairs less per day, about a 43% drop in shedding, that's significant. Keeping the course, still tempted to add minoxidil, but holding off another month or 2 to give this more time to evaluate results.

Jan 25 - I stopped biotin for about 5-6 days, Ive been having some congestion issues, and believe it's biotin. Unfortunately the congestion causes me apnea when Im sleeping, and have been waking up gasping due to post nasal drip, as you can imagine it's not ideal. I have since noticed im shedding about 10-15 more hairs in the shower. Im going back on it tomorro, in the meantime Im doing sinus rinses to help avoid further congestion. I dont think a week break will affect the long term results.

To be cont'd ...

FEB 21 - Well guys, just thought I would chime in here as Ive gone silent for a month. I have abandoned my experiment. For whatever reason, I seem to react adversely to Biotin. It irritates my sinuses and my lungs I believe. I have inhalers for asthma, and my sinuses, and was hoping they would keep any symptoms at bay. They did not. I get super phleghmy, congested lungs and sinuses, which inevitably have turned into 2 colds in the past 8 weeks.I struggle to breathe when playing sports. Every time I stop the symptoms go away.

So, im sorry to report the experiment fell short for me unfortunately. I wish I could have done 9 months to get a real assessment, but it didnt pan out.

For whatever it's worth, I think it was helping reduce the shedding by 5-10 hairs a day, I think it may help extend the hair growth cycle and quality of hair. I dont think it's super significant, but does help to some degree.

 

[worm]

Another thing I read, was that it may not regrow hair, but it will extend the life growth phase length of your hair, strengthen your follicle and make the hair you do have thicker.

I translate this to mean, less shedding, so more stays on your scalp, and the hair you do have increases its diameter. Im just speculating, but this likely slows male pattern baldness and may add about 5% of density over 6 months, which if true, is significant.

 

[Massive]

Started taking 5000mcg by Doctor's Best just a few days ago. Previous to that I was on 1000mcg for about 2 months.
In the past few months I have been shedding out of the ordinary thick hairs. I'm looking at the hairs thinking, I never had thick hairs like that, like the actual hair shaft looks good. I don't think I'm shedding less though.
I can't give biotin all the credit though, for all I know this could have been all of minoxidil's work. But a few years ago I was using only minoxidil and while I saw regrowth, I never saw thick hairs like I see now. And neither the time when I was only on finasteride.

If you're gonna take biotin then you might as well wanna add msm powder for a synergetic effect. I take 5g msm powder, some take even 10g, then take some vit c with it cuz it helps with absorption.
Biotin and msm are really cheap so I couldn't care if they do anything. At least with biotin I finally have nice nails. And if biotin/msm have any positive effect on the skin then even better.

By the way I also have Natrol's 10,000mcg biotin but I'll save that for later. Biotin costs around $2/month, so my biggest worry is regarding those acne horror stories. I think if someone gets acne from biotin it would be best to quit as it's not worth it.

 

[SmoothSailing]

I take biotin but I think you guys are reading into it too much. The vast likelihood is that it does nothing for your hair if you weren't previously deficient, which almost no one is. I did get a small bit of acne though which shows it's at least having some effect.

Personally I think MSM does more but even with that there's absolutely no evidence that it grows or improves hair. It 100% helped my skin though. Had rosacea fairly bad, MSM cured it for me, amazingly as it's not even recommended by any doctors for rosacea. I started it before starting any other treatments for my hair and whilst I didn't notice any improvement on my head hair my beard and body hair thickened and became more wirey, can't be sure it's not just coincidence though.

Also look up the examine page for vitamin d. It is recommended to take vitamin k whilst taking that much vitamin d (or at least ensure you get it in your diet). As vitamin d increase calcium uptake but vitamin k transports it. Too much vitamin d can lead to calcification.

 

[worm]

Started taking 5000mcg by Doctor's Best just a few days ago. Previous to that I was on 1000mcg for about 2 months.
In the past few months I have been shedding out of the ordinary thick hairs. I'm looking at the hairs thinking, I never had thick hairs like that, like the actual hair shaft looks good. I don't think I'm shedding less though.
I can't give biotin all the credit though, for all I know this could have been all of minoxidil's work. But a few years ago I was using only minoxidil and while I saw regrowth, I never saw thick hairs like I see now. And neither the time when I was only on finasteride.

If you're gonna take biotin then you might as well wanna add msm powder for a synergetic effect. I take 5g msm powder, some take even 10g, then take some vit c with it cuz it helps with absorption.
Biotin and msm are really cheap so I couldn't care if they do anything. At least with biotin I finally have nice nails. And if biotin/msm have any positive effect on the skin then even better.

By the way I also have Natrol's 10,000mcg biotin but I'll save that for later. Biotin costs around $2/month, so my biggest worry is regarding those acne horror stories. I think if someone gets acne from biotin it would be best to quit as it's not worth it.

@Massive Thanks for the info, have you noticed if you're shedding more? Also, how long is your hair? Lastly, how long have you been on minoxidil, what kind are you using, did you go through a shed, and how has your experience been?

I too am shedding some really thick hairs, but my hair is long, and this is all hair that's grown pre-biotin. I hope this doesnt mean the biotin is miniaturizing the good quality hairs.

Thanks!

 

[worm]

I take biotin but I think you guys are reading into it too much. The vast likelihood is that it does nothing for your hair if you weren't previously deficient, which almost no one is. I did get a small bit of acne though which shows it's at least having some effect.

Personally I think MSM does more but even with that there's absolutely no evidence that it grows or improves hair. It 100% helped my skin though. Had rosacea fairly bad, MSM cured it for me, amazingly as it's not even recommended by any doctors for rosacea. I started it before starting any other treatments for my hair and whilst I didn't notice any improvement on my head hair my beard and body hair thickened and became more wirey, can't be sure it's not just coincidence though.

Also look up the examine page for vitamin d. It is recommended to take vitamin k whilst taking that much vitamin d (or at least ensure you get it in your diet). As vitamin d increase calcium uptake but vitamin k transports it. Too much vitamin d can lead to calcification.

I have some vit k, Im already on zinc, D, biotin and copper. My gf already thinks im nuts with vits, and she doesnt even know im on biotin yet... Ill have to sneak that in while she's got her back turned

 

[hairblues]

I take 5000 Biotin--it just makes my hair grow super fast/long...My nail are rock hard grow fast.

No acne, no headaches or anything like that at all.

My Dr wants me to go up to 10,000.

I'm on fence about this he is very pro-biotin not for hair loss but speed of growth.

 

[worm]

I take 5000 Biotin--it just makes my hair grow super fast/long...My nail are rock hard grow fast.

No acne, no headaches or anything like that at all.

My Dr wants me to go up to 10,000.

I'm on fence about this he is very pro-biotin not for hair loss but speed of growth.

Interesting you say that. I heard the reason your hair grows longer is not because it grows fast, but because it has a longer growth life - meaning - that your hair follicle is in better shape and produces hair for longer and is thicker before it falls out and starts the growth cycle again. So while it may give the impression your growing the hair faster, the fact is your hair sticks around for more time makes it longer quicker (trust that makes sense..) I have reason to believe that while it wont stop hair loss, it's very plausibly a helpful addition in slowing it down. only 11 months and 20 days until I can officially confirm my suspicions

I like the fact that you md is pro-biotin.

 

[hairblues]

Interesting you say that. I heard the reason your hair grows longer is not because it grows fast, but because it has a longer growth life - meaning - that your hair follicle is in better shape and produces hair for longer and is thicker before it falls out and starts the growth cycle again. So while it may give the impression your growing the hair faster, the fact is your hair sticks around for more time makes it longer quicker (trust that makes sense..) I have reason to believe that while it wont stop hair loss, it's very plausibly a helpful addition in slowing it down. only 11 months and 20 days until I can officially confirm my suspicions

I like the fact that you md is pro-biotin.

He is a hair transplant surgeon I consulted with for a hair transplant back in April.
He told me I did not need a transplant that he wanted to see if i can get some regrowth first.
He's been treating me medically for months--I have to say i am starting to have some positive results this week.
Biotin, iron and vitamin D were the supplements ( i am deficient in iron and D) as well as Keto shampoo and topical spironolactone and more recently minoxidil.

 

[dunno]

Ordered some 10,000mcg biotin capsules from ebay a couple months back. Then i got a letter saying it was seized by the customs
Found out later the max daily dosage allowed used in supplements were 225mcg here in Norway.

 

[hairblues]

Do you guys think i should up my biotin dose to 10,000?

Do you know any negative sides to this other than potential breakouts?

 

[worm]

I don't think there are any sides as it's water soluble. 10000 seems like a lot,but I hear many do it.

I'm sticking to 5000 mcgs myself.

 

[Massive]

@hairblues
If I had a guarantee I wouldn't get any acne from the biotin then I'd personally bump to 10,000mcg. From my previous reading on '5000 vs 10000 biotin' I ended up reading posts on all these women's hair forums, it seems like some of these women claim to have seen better results with 10,000 as compared to 5,000. Here's are the things I picked up:
- If you're gonna take 10,000mcg you might as well split to 2x5,000mcg doses with spacing apart, otherwise you'll probably just pee out all the excess amount.
- Anyone taking 10,000mcg has usually built up his dosage by previously taking dosages such as 2,500mcg and 5,000mcg for a few months.
- It seems that just about the only reason that is stopping some of the women from using 10,000mcg is because of they tried and got breakouts. It also appears as while some of these women were fine on dosages such as 1,000mcg/2,500mcg, they got breakouts when trying higher dosages such as 5,000mcg/10,000mcg and therefore dialed it back to lower dosages.
- This one might be a bit of broscience or "sisscience" in this case, but some of these women claim that to avoid breakouts, once you increase your biotin you also need to increase the of your vitamin b intake, meaning taking a b-complex along with your biotin.

Bottom line is, if I were you I'd just start taking 2x5,000mcg a day. Potentially you could just split a 10,000mcg pill for morning/evening to save cost ? Lol.

You know, worst case scenario, even it does nothing for your hair, at least your hair will grow faster and you'll have nails of steel. Perhaps even some positive effects on the skin, and for a few like 2-3 dollars a month I guess it's fine.

 

[Massive]

@worm - Sorry for the late reply. I'll update you on my minoxidil experience later on.

 

[worm]

@Massive hoping you have a chance tonight to update me on your minoxidil experience?

 

[Massive]

@Massive hoping you have a chance tonight to update me on your minoxidil experience?

Yeah sure man... Lately I been feeling so fucked up, like I can't even write one sentence here, and feeling so spaced out like I'm about to pass out any moment and I can't function at all.
I just wrote about it here, post at the bottom of the page:
https://www.hairlosstalk.com/intera...l-corticosteroids.101353/page-20#post-1396323

Well regarding minoxidil. I first started using generic liquid minoxidil about 3 years ago, at the time I was using only minoxidil, nothing else. I didn't participate in any forums or read about side effects, I just used minoxidil without thinking too much into it, all I knew is that it can help regrow hair.
At the time I had an extrmely short buzzcut, I wasn't even aware there could be an initial shed, I just applied it twice a day. Since I have a very short buzzcut, and I was already devastated that I was balding, I didn't notice any shed, neither did I know ther could be one. But a few months later I started seeing regrowth, and 6 months later my hair got much much much better I started growing it out to like 2 inches and actually having a 'haircut' instead of just a buzzcut. This regrowth was seen by all my family and all of them were amazed with the regrowth. I user minoxidil quite religiously twice a day. I also used a lot of it, to make sure to cover my entire top scalp, to cover thinning areas and to potentially protect areas which have barely thinned out. I think I also used a little on the sides of the head, above the ears, for some reason that area is a bit thin, bu the mid part of the sides is very thick like like NW7 guys with the thick hair on the sides haha.
After half a year I thought that minoxidil was a hair loss cure hahahahahahha... Oh man.... Then somewhere around the 8th month I developed a severe allergic reaction with insane itching that all I wanted to do was run a comb over my scalp for a few minutes, also the scalp didn't just feel itching, it felt fried and irritated like hell. That time I did notice a lot of hairs were falling off. Eventually it got a point that I just wanted to literally peel my entire scalp off. I then ran a few trials by quitting minoxidil for a few days or a week and then the itching always immediately subsided after 2 days and as soon as I started using minoxidil again I got unbearable itching.
Back then my hair was lookinh pretty good, if I told anyone I'm balding they would just be like " but you have a full head od hair ". Instead of looking for alternatives such as pg free minoxidil I just quit altogether. I felt free and liberated once I quit minoxidil, besides I had enough hair back so I didn't care.

All that was 3 years ago, and I didn't touch minoxidil again until 6-7 months ago. So around 6-7 months I decided to try minoxidil again, I got Kirkland's liquid solution, I tried my best to hold out using, but after 1 month all the minoxidil horror came back just like before, extreme itching, fried feeling, and irritatiom of the scalp. Also I was shedding A LOT. Endless copius shedding, I don't think it was just minoxidil shedding, but rather minoxidil shedding + minoxidil f*****g up my scalp shedding.
I then decided not to give up on minoxidil but actually switch to the foam by kirkland. I had to wait almost a month for my foam to arrive (the fun of not living in the usa), since over here 1 foam bottle costs nearly the same price of a 6 months kirkland foam supply. During the month that I had a break from liquid minoxidil and waiting for the foam to arrive, my scalp condition got better and there was much less shedding. Once the foam arrived I started using it twice a day. I did notice shedding and during the 2nd month i think i looked the worst, but now on my 4th month u can definitely see results and my family members have told me my hair looks much better than a few months ago. My hair is now about 1.5" on top and a bit short on sides, I do a variation of thr side part comb, it's been a long time since I actually used a comb on my hair to style it, and a few girls told me it looks cute like that. It's funny that only now that I have half my hair left I know how to style it for a decent look, and when I was a thick NW1 I had shitty hair. The foam is harder to apply if you have long hair, you are probably better off using the liquid, with the liquid you can dab the dropper onto selected areas and later on massage into your scalp. With the foam I pretty much spray the sh*t all over and then massage it with my hands as if I'm using a shampoo, I end up using a lot of minoxidil that way, so it ain't cheap.

All in all, I'm a faily good minoxidil responder, although for some reason I developed a severe reaction to the liquid minoxidil containing PG and my only options now are PG free minoxidil, so I use Kirkland'a foam, as it's the cheapest for me to buy from ebay. If I lived in the states, I think you can get a 12 month supply of Rogaine foam for $130 if you use a discount coupon.

I also got today my DualGen-15 No PG, not sure if I'm ready to start using it, because once you start with 15% you gotta stick to it.

 

[worm]

Yeah sure man... Lately I been feeling so fucked up, like I can't even write one sentence here, and feeling so spaced out like I'm about to pass out any moment and I can't function at all.
I just wrote about it here, post at the bottom of the page:
https://www.hairlosstalk.com/intera...l-corticosteroids.101353/page-20#post-1396323

Well regarding minoxidil. I first started using generic liquid minoxidil about 3 years ago, at the time I was using only minoxidil, nothing else. I didn't participate in any forums or read about side effects, I just used minoxidil without thinking too much into it, all I knew is that it can help regrow hair.
At the time I had an extrmely short buzzcut, I wasn't even aware there could be an initial shed, I just applied it twice a day. Since I have a very short buzzcut, and I was already devastated that I was balding, I didn't notice any shed, neither did I know ther could be one. But a few months later I started seeing regrowth, and 6 months later my hair got much much much better I started growing it out to like 2 inches and actually having a 'haircut' instead of just a buzzcut. This regrowth was seen by all my family and all of them were amazed with the regrowth. I user minoxidil quite religiously twice a day. I also used a lot of it, to make sure to cover my entire top scalp, to cover thinning areas and to potentially protect areas which have barely thinned out. I think I also used a little on the sides of the head, above the ears, for some reason that area is a bit thin, bu the mid part of the sides is very thick like like NW7 guys with the thick hair on the sides haha.
After half a year I thought that minoxidil was a hair loss cure hahahahahahha... Oh man.... Then somewhere around the 8th month I developed a severe allergic reaction with insane itching that all I wanted to do was run a comb over my scalp for a few minutes, also the scalp didn't just feel itching, it felt fried and irritated like hell. That time I did notice a lot of hairs were falling off. Eventually it got a point that I just wanted to literally peel my entire scalp off. I then ran a few trials by quitting minoxidil for a few days or a week and then the itching always immediately subsided after 2 days and as soon as I started using minoxidil again I got unbearable itching.
Back then my hair was lookinh pretty good, if I told anyone I'm balding they would just be like " but you have a full head od hair ". Instead of looking for alternatives such as pg free minoxidil I just quit altogether. I felt free and liberated once I quit minoxidil, besides I had enough hair back so I didn't care.

All that was 3 years ago, and I didn't touch minoxidil again until 6-7 months ago. So around 6-7 months I decided to try minoxidil again, I got Kirkland's liquid solution, I tried my best to hold out using, but after 1 month all the minoxidil horror came back just like before, extreme itching, fried feeling, and irritatiom of the scalp. Also I was shedding A LOT. Endless copius shedding, I don't think it was just minoxidil shedding, but rather minoxidil shedding + minoxidil f*****g up my scalp shedding.
I then decided not to give up on minoxidil but actually switch to the foam by kirkland. I had to wait almost a month for my foam to arrive (the fun of not living in the usa), since over here 1 foam bottle costs nearly the same price of a 6 months kirkland foam supply. During the month that I had a break from liquid minoxidil and waiting for the foam to arrive, my scalp condition got better and there was much less shedding. Once the foam arrived I started using it twice a day. I did notice shedding and during the 2nd month i think i looked the worst, but now on my 4th month u can definitely see results and my family members have told me my hair looks much better than a few months ago. My hair is now about 1.5" on top and a bit short on sides, I do a variation of thr side part comb, it's been a long time since I actually used a comb on my hair to style it, and a few girls told me it looks cute like that. It's funny that only now that I have half my hair left I know how to style it for a decent look, and when I was a thick NW1 I had shitty hair. The foam is harder to apply if you have long hair, you are probably better off using the liquid, with the liquid you can dab the dropper onto selected areas and later on massage into your scalp. With the foam I pretty much spray the sh*t all over and then massage it with my hands as if I'm using a shampoo, I end up using a lot of minoxidil that way, so it ain't cheap.

All in all, I'm a faily good minoxidil responder, although for some reason I developed a severe reaction to the liquid minoxidil containing PG and my only options now are PG free minoxidil, so I use Kirkland'a foam, as it's the cheapest for me to buy from ebay. If I lived in the states, I think you can get a 12 month supply of Rogaine foam for $130 if you use a discount coupon.

I also got today my DualGen-15 No PG, not sure if I'm ready to start using it, because once you start with 15% you gotta stick to it.

Cheers, thanks for the reply. Ive been a minoxidil user in the past, I was also on finasteride, and I also mixed it with another ingredient after I quit finasteride, which had tremendous results on my scalp (people were commenting on how thick it was), but came at the expense of feeling brain dead, having vision problems and heart palpitations.

I know that itchy feeling you are talking about, I wonder if that's minoxidil. I had itchiness beforehand, makes me wonder if it wasnt that. Anyhow, I ended up using Zix, which worked f'ing wonders at keeping my hairloss at bay. Ive heard some say a regimen using both can have phenomenal results. The great thing about zix is it eliminates the itch.

I would definitely use a little boost these days, so that's why im tempted to use minoxidil. I live in Canada, so getting sh*t from the states is a pain in the ***, except I have a friend I often visit and he lets me use his address. Im tempted to try, but at the same time I dont want F things up worse because my hair is still ok-ish, but i have lost some ground this past 1.5 years which I also would like to recover.... I also want to see how this biotin works. Ive noticed Ive shed a couple hairs this evening, I presume it's nothing to worry about but I'll keep my eyes open.

I see a lot of peolpe use biotin and minoxidil in combo. Let me know what you think about my situation? Thanks!

 

[Massive]

Cheers, thanks for the reply. Ive been a minoxidil user in the past, I was also on finasteride, and I also mixed it with another ingredient after I quit finasteride, which had tremendous results on my scalp (people were commenting on how thick it was), but came at the expense of feeling brain dead, having vision problems and heart palpitations.

I know that itchy feeling you are talking about, I wonder if that's minoxidil. I had itchiness beforehand, makes me wonder if it wasnt that. Anyhow, I ended up using Zix, which worked f'ing wonders at keeping my hairloss at bay. Ive heard some say a regimen using both can have phenomenal results. The great thing about zix is it eliminates the itch.

I would definitely use a little boost these days, so that's why im tempted to use minoxidil. I live in Canada, so getting sh*t from the states is a pain in the ***, except I have a friend I often visit and he lets me use his address. Im tempted to try, but at the same time I dont want F things up worse because my hair is still ok-ish, but i have lost some ground this past 1.5 years which I also would like to recover.... I also want to see how this biotin works. Ive noticed Ive shed a couple hairs this evening, I presume it's nothing to worry about but I'll keep my eyes open.

I see a lot of peolpe use biotin and minoxidil in combo. Let me know what you think about my situation? Thanks!

If you'd like some regrowth and thickening then minoxidil is a valid option. Although you say you're maintaining quite well, this might sound crazy, but have you thought about using a low dose oral minoxidil such as 2.5mg, or maybe 5mg tops. Obviously you'll have to monitor your blood pressure and heart rate and if you don't suffer any side effects you'll benefit from minoxidil without all the itching and the hassle of topical use.

If a low dose oral minoxidil is completely out of the question, then the next question is how much would you need to cover with minoxidil and your hair length. You said you have long hair, and if you plan on applying to the entire top scalp it might be a bit of hassle with long hair, with short hair or a buzzcut it's obvioualy easy as pie to apply. The itching is mostly caused by the PG, the minoxidil itself is fine in most cases, and if you're fine with using PG then lucky you.

I think biotin is good to use regardless if what you're already using. But I wouldn't put off or delay any other additional treatments just to see the effects of biotin.

 

[worm]

Thanks, I think I will try it out. It'll be a few weeks before I head down south to get it.

I'll let you know how the minoxidil and zix combo goes as well.

I just read a reply from bluemoon1212 in the success section, who said his shedding was way down. That's encouraging!

 

[hairblues]

If you'd like some regrowth and thickening then minoxidil is a valid option. Although you say you're maintaining quite well, this might sound crazy, but have you thought about using a low dose oral minoxidil such as 2.5mg, or maybe 5mg tops. Obviously you'll have to monitor your blood pressure and heart rate and if you don't suffer any side effects you'll benefit from minoxidil without all the itching and the hassle of topical use.

If a low dose oral minoxidil is completely out of the question, then the next question is how much would you need to cover with minoxidil and your hair length. You said you have long hair, and if you plan on applying to the entire top scalp it might be a bit of hassle with long hair, with short hair or a buzzcut it's obvioualy easy as pie to apply. The itching is mostly caused by the PG, the minoxidil itself is fine in most cases, and if you're fine with using PG then lucky you.

I think biotin is good to use regardless if what you're already using. But I wouldn't put off or delay any other additional treatments just to see the effects of biotin.

Did minoxidil stop or slow your shedding?

I am doing minoxidil and topical spironolactone--my shedding has majorly decreased AND i have some regrowth starting..
Im going to continue both but not sure if the topical spironolactone is what is helping the shedding or the minoxidil.