Greetings HairLossTalk.com,
So my username is a bit outdated these days as I no longer just use the "big 3." My new username should really be kitchensinknme =) but who cares. I decided it was time for a post in the success stories because Ive gotten several comments from people asking what I did with my hair, did you dye it..etcetc.
My case is a bit different than just standard AA / male pattern baldness as i am diagnosed with LPP (Lichen PlanoPilaris) a scarring alopecia of the scalp. I also do have normal male pattern baldness in addition to this though. When starting treatment I didn't have too high of hopes because of a) fighting hair loss is a tough battle b) i had let my hair get extremely diffuse and c) i had to deal with the LPP in addition.
With that being said here is my current regimen with how long I've been on each.
-minoxidil - 5% Kirkland - 2x daily application of 3ml - 8 months
-Nizoral - 2% Generic - EOD - 8 months
-finasteride - 4 months of 1mg of finpecia - took a break for 1.5 months - now on -1.25mg of fincar for the last 2 months
-RU - 50-75mg daily mixed in 3ml EC + .75ml PPG - 2 months
-Skin Needling - derma roller .5mm needles- 1.5 months EOD
-emu oil // coconut oil - not really sure how often to use or when to apply but I use it when I feel like it
-MSM - 3000mg (i think its this much) daily - off and on for about 3 months now
-Curcumin - (not sure of dosage yet) - 2 pills a day - 3 days!
-ZMA - (zinc supplement) - 1 pill a day - 3 days!
-Fish Oil - (not sure of exact dosage) - 2 capsules a day - about 3 months now
I added curcumin//zma//oils to try to help my LPP inflammation. I have recently read a study suggesting a diabetes drug called Actos could treat LPP by doing something with insulin. I posted an article about this in the general forums.
You can't really see in these pictures but my hair is improving everywhere except for the crown (it might be improving a little bit but its hard to tell). Which is basically what i expected because that is the area affected by my LPP. Kind of ironic since thats the area that usually responds well to treatment.
Another thing I'll throw out there (and I think a lot of people experience this?) is that my right side // temple is a LOT worse than my left side. I might be crazy but I say its because I sleep with that side of my head on the pillow. Now maybe its not the actual rubbing/compression against the pillow but maybe my nightly topicals are getting rubbed off into the pillow on that side. Because of this I started sleeping on my back, which I find very hard to do.
My hair continues to get better and I don't see end in site for improvement. I still see and feel tons of tiny hairs all over my head and can see lots of white/colorless hairs. I have no doubt these all will eventually become as thick as my normal hair.
Another thing I am excited about is the only treatment I've really been on for a "significant" amount of time is minoxidil + nizoral. I could almost throw finasteride in there but I took a break for a while because when I switched to fincar from finpecia (around 4 months in) I thought I started experiencing sides and quit. Im on the train that sides from finasteride are mostly caused by one's own mind. You worry about having a low libido from it and that worry in fact causes a low libido. Also a lot of people dealing with hairloss are going through a lot of stress // depression about it and Im pretty sure that also contributes to the low libido sides. i try not to think about it and have had no real problems.
Hopefully consistent finasteride/ RU/Needling/Extra Vitamins/Oils will help push my regrowth even further.
Lastly, the only thing i am considering adding to my regimen at this point is some form of copper peptide. Im looking at tricomin and folligen. These itnerest me because of their claim at reversing scarring // repairing follicles. I think this could be great for me because a lot of my hairloss is from inflammation.
Anyways, sorry I wrote so much.. I could write all day about my hairloss experiences. Here are the pictures you all came here to see.
The best difference imo is when I did not buzz my hair. My 4 month and most recent 8 month (not buzzed) photos really show you how well I am doing.
Grew my hair out a bit right before my 4 month update:
[attachment=2:3ihr0xcv]4months_notbuzzed.PNG[/attachment:3ihr0xcv]
Grew my hair out again before my 8 month update to compare:
[attachment=1:3ihr0xcv]topfront_8months.PNG[/attachment:3ihr0xcv]
Here is my full transformation:
[attachment=0:3ihr0xcv]hairtransformation.PNG[/attachment:3ihr0xcv]
So my username is a bit outdated these days as I no longer just use the "big 3." My new username should really be kitchensinknme =) but who cares. I decided it was time for a post in the success stories because Ive gotten several comments from people asking what I did with my hair, did you dye it..etcetc.
My case is a bit different than just standard AA / male pattern baldness as i am diagnosed with LPP (Lichen PlanoPilaris) a scarring alopecia of the scalp. I also do have normal male pattern baldness in addition to this though. When starting treatment I didn't have too high of hopes because of a) fighting hair loss is a tough battle b) i had let my hair get extremely diffuse and c) i had to deal with the LPP in addition.
With that being said here is my current regimen with how long I've been on each.
-minoxidil - 5% Kirkland - 2x daily application of 3ml - 8 months
-Nizoral - 2% Generic - EOD - 8 months
-finasteride - 4 months of 1mg of finpecia - took a break for 1.5 months - now on -1.25mg of fincar for the last 2 months
-RU - 50-75mg daily mixed in 3ml EC + .75ml PPG - 2 months
-Skin Needling - derma roller .5mm needles- 1.5 months EOD
-emu oil // coconut oil - not really sure how often to use or when to apply but I use it when I feel like it
-MSM - 3000mg (i think its this much) daily - off and on for about 3 months now
-Curcumin - (not sure of dosage yet) - 2 pills a day - 3 days!
-ZMA - (zinc supplement) - 1 pill a day - 3 days!
-Fish Oil - (not sure of exact dosage) - 2 capsules a day - about 3 months now
I added curcumin//zma//oils to try to help my LPP inflammation. I have recently read a study suggesting a diabetes drug called Actos could treat LPP by doing something with insulin. I posted an article about this in the general forums.
You can't really see in these pictures but my hair is improving everywhere except for the crown (it might be improving a little bit but its hard to tell). Which is basically what i expected because that is the area affected by my LPP. Kind of ironic since thats the area that usually responds well to treatment.
Another thing I'll throw out there (and I think a lot of people experience this?) is that my right side // temple is a LOT worse than my left side. I might be crazy but I say its because I sleep with that side of my head on the pillow. Now maybe its not the actual rubbing/compression against the pillow but maybe my nightly topicals are getting rubbed off into the pillow on that side. Because of this I started sleeping on my back, which I find very hard to do.
My hair continues to get better and I don't see end in site for improvement. I still see and feel tons of tiny hairs all over my head and can see lots of white/colorless hairs. I have no doubt these all will eventually become as thick as my normal hair.
Another thing I am excited about is the only treatment I've really been on for a "significant" amount of time is minoxidil + nizoral. I could almost throw finasteride in there but I took a break for a while because when I switched to fincar from finpecia (around 4 months in) I thought I started experiencing sides and quit. Im on the train that sides from finasteride are mostly caused by one's own mind. You worry about having a low libido from it and that worry in fact causes a low libido. Also a lot of people dealing with hairloss are going through a lot of stress // depression about it and Im pretty sure that also contributes to the low libido sides. i try not to think about it and have had no real problems.
Hopefully consistent finasteride/ RU/Needling/Extra Vitamins/Oils will help push my regrowth even further.
Lastly, the only thing i am considering adding to my regimen at this point is some form of copper peptide. Im looking at tricomin and folligen. These itnerest me because of their claim at reversing scarring // repairing follicles. I think this could be great for me because a lot of my hairloss is from inflammation.
Anyways, sorry I wrote so much.. I could write all day about my hairloss experiences. Here are the pictures you all came here to see.
The best difference imo is when I did not buzz my hair. My 4 month and most recent 8 month (not buzzed) photos really show you how well I am doing.
Grew my hair out a bit right before my 4 month update:
[attachment=2:3ihr0xcv]4months_notbuzzed.PNG[/attachment:3ihr0xcv]
Grew my hair out again before my 8 month update to compare:
[attachment=1:3ihr0xcv]topfront_8months.PNG[/attachment:3ihr0xcv]
Here is my full transformation:
[attachment=0:3ihr0xcv]hairtransformation.PNG[/attachment:3ihr0xcv]
