Anon7's Story - ( 23 / diffuse )

[Anon7]

Hey guys,
After lurking for a while, i figured I'd post my stuff and get some advice from you guys. I'm 23, and first started noticing my hair loss after a bout with Telogen Effluvium when i was 21, but after looking at some pictures, it most likely started about a year before that. I've always had thin hair for a long as I can remember, which almost helps, because people who I have known forever have always known my hair to be thin, and visible scalp as no big deal.

Anyway, this is when I was 20, didn't notice my hair loss at the time, but this is probably the worst it has been.
[attachment=1:3j85d8bh]old1.jpg[/attachment:3j85d8bh]
As you can see, it was pretty thin all over the top. Anddd the back.
[attachment=0:3j85d8bh]old2.jpg[/attachment:3j85d8bh]

I started Nizoral 1%, since i never really saw my hair loss as being severe enough to use anything else, and even after going to my doctor, he didn't want to put me on any meds because he said I didn't show any signs of male pattern baldness. Surprisingly, I think the nizoral worked kinda well for a while, as my loss hasn't really gotten any worse, and may have even thickened up a bit. I was fine for a while because generally my hair looked good and I seemed to be maintaining pretty well. Anyway, fast forward 3 years and here I am. I think my hair still looks better than it did when I was 20, but last haircut I got there was a little more scalp showing than I'm comfortable with, the front is thinning out a lot, and my temples have started to go back a bit. I'm considering getting on finasteride, but it's a bit difficult now that I no longer have health insurance (public option, get!), and am a full time student (read= poor), so I was gonna buy some online and try it for like a month and see how I react. Here are the pics I took today of how my hair is. Keep in mind I just washed it, so it looks nicer than it actually is.

Mid-top, parted

Top, styled

Crown

Front

Side

So as you can probably see, it really hasn't significantly changed over the past few years. Anyway, I'd like to at least keep what I have for a while. What do you guys think?

 

[Jack82]

It's not bad at all, i've seen people with less hair than you getting decent regrowth. Start using propecia, minoxidil 5% and nizoral shampoo.

 

[BodyDysmorphic]

your hair condition is almost identical to mine prior to the big three

the big three is doing pretty well for me

some would say to start finasteride and wait a while

i started the big three all at once and im glad i did

my crown has thickened
and my overall hair on top has thicken

i would go big three if your hair loss bothers you
enough to do something about it

 

[astros148]

your hair condition is almost identical to mine prior to the big three

the big three is doing pretty well for me

some would say to start finasteride and wait a while

i started the big three all at once and im glad i did

my crown has thickened
and my overall hair on top has thicken

i would go big three if your hair loss bothers you
enough to do something about it

why not just start on finasteride , Min is a hassle . And finasteride regrows hair for 48% of people

 

[Anon7]

Yeah I'm really trying to avoid minoxidil, at least for the time being. Since I've maintained extremely well over the past 3 years using nothing but nizoral, I feel like finasteride would do the trick on it's own. Having said this, I have a few concerns. First off, the shed. I read that generally there's a shed around the 2 month mark. I think I kind of want to put off starting for a little bit, because the last thing I want is to have a massive shed right during the stress of finals at school, so I'd most likely wait till after winter break to start. Also, I go through 2 natural sheds each year, or at least have for the past several years, one in late fall/early winter, one in early to mid summer. These really aren't that big of a deal, but towards the end of them, my hair is slightly thinner, and the thickness of my hair usually varies throughout the year. Sooooo pretty much what I'm afraid of is having a massive shed from the finasteride and all of a sudden my not noticeable hairloss becomes increasingly noticeable for a few months. My second concern is (of course, like everyone else) the sides, but I figure I'd try starting with a month supply and if the sides are bad, just stop. What do you guys think?

 

[Anon7]

Also, keep in mind I'm not necessarily looking for a ton of regrowth, I'm pretty happy with the way my hair looks now. The loss really isn't noticeable unless my hair is wet, and girls compliment my hair all the time. Hell, I've had girls come up to me and tell me that they wish their hair was as nice nice as mine (when it's longer). I just want to try and keep what I've got till I'm like 30, then I'll let nature run it's course. My dad has some hairloss, but in his mid-50's he's around a NW3.5 and his hair looks pretty good, so I don't think I'll ever be completely bald. So I kind of want to avoid minoxidil, at least for now.

 

[Caesar]

Your hair looks pretty good right now its just a little thin; if you feel that you really need it you should look into finasteride, and maybe get some 2% Nizoral 3-4 times a week

 

[Anon7]

I think that's a good idea. I've been using nizoral 1% for the past 2 years and it really hasn't gotten any worse, I think I'll step it up to 2% for now, then maybe look into getting finasteride after winter break, so I don't have a shed during finals.

 

[Caesar]

Smart plan, just make sure you check up on it, just dont obsess over it like i did ><