Desperate 17 Year Old With Thin Hair In Front

[dudealpha]

Hello! I thought that I might want to share my story on this site. I've been having a hair problem for about two years now, which is that I can see my scalp if I lift my hair up (I first noticed this when I was 15). This has made me very insecure about my hair and when I got a haircut, I usually asked for a buzz because it would just alleviate the insecurity.
I went to a dermatologist, who said that I seem to have the same thickness on my entire scalp (which is a bit worrying, but she seemed to talk about the scalp minus the front), and she prescribed me a vitamin supplement, as well as anti-sebum shampoo (my hair gets greasy quite fast and it looks even thinner). It's been a month and a half already and I'm not seeing any improvements. Something really strange about this problem is that the first time I noticed this, was back when I was 15. I was using hair gel for about two months and I made the mistake of washing my hair the next day instead of the same day (the gel bottle said 48 hour fix so I thought it might be ok). And then, one morning, I saw my scalp and I panicked. I've been told that gel can't do that much damage, but who knows? I also have a widow's peak and quite a big forehead, which makes it even worse, as well as a bit of more pronounced thinning on one of my temples.
I'm 17 now and the dermatologist said that the next consultation she will prescribe me Minoxidil.
My father (he is 65 btw) has decent hair on his crown, but his temples are quite receded and he has a bald patch separating his front from the rest of the hair. He also only started to lose his hair when he was about 40-50 yrs old so I dunno.
Do you have any advice? Thanks in advance!
Here are some pics (I've also added some crown pics, they don't look too promising either):

EDIT: I forgot to mention, but when I'm showering I barely see any hair strands fall out so this is kinda strange). To double check, I run my hand through my hair and nothing comes out. I dunno anymore

QUICK EDIT: Hey! Just a quick edit. I just took a shower and I took a photo of the drain, as well as my wet hair.

 

[karatekid]

sh*t man, severly balding at 17... Thats rough..
I Dont have any advice except of the big 3, but not sure you at the right age...

 

[dudealpha]

sh*t man, severly balding at 17... Thats rough..
I Dont have any advice except of the big 3, but not sure you at the right age...

I'm kinda scared of finasteride, I've heard horror stories, and yeah, I'm kinda young, don't wanna mess up my hormones...
But I'll try minoxidil and the other thingy (nizoral if I recall correctly)
However I don't even know the cause: is it male pattern baldness or is it that stupid gel or maybe a poor diet (unlikely, I eat a lot of vegetables so), or maybe i just have fine AND thin hair at the same time...

Oh, also... Is the crown just a double cowlick or do I have to worry about that too? jeezzz....

 

[Ikarus]

I'm kinda scared of finasteride, I've heard horror stories, and yeah, I'm kinda young, don't wanna mess up my hormones...
But I'll try minoxidil and the other thingy (nizoral if I recall correctly)
However I don't even know the cause: is it male pattern baldness or is it that stupid gel or maybe a poor diet (unlikely, I eat a lot of vegetables so), or maybe i just have fine AND thin hair at the same time...

Oh, also... Is the crown just a double cowlick or do I have to worry about that too? jeezzz....

Don’t be fooled with it being other reasons other than male pattern baldness. If you’re a male, the likelihood is that it’s male pattern baldness. You don’t see this happening to women at your age, it only seems to happen to males including myself who had around 30% of hair left at eighteen.

 

[centurie]

It does look like early onset of male pattern baldness to me. At what age did you hit puberty (e.g started noticing hairs under your arms)?

Minoxidil should maintain your hair for the next couple of years and give you a nice initial improvement.

Only problem is that the male pattern baldness will eventually catch up with you if you don’t use an anti androgen, but this may be many years down the line.

For now you're too young to even consider things like propecia so I guess minoxidil is your safest and only option. You can decide when your older if you want to commit to an anti androgen.

Research in to the sides of the treatments you decide on/if you decide to start any.

 

[dudealpha]

It does look like early onset of male pattern baldness to me. At what age did you hit puberty (e.g started noticing hairs under your arms)?

Minoxidil should maintain your hair for the next couple of years and give you a nice initial improvement.

Only problem is that the male pattern baldness will eventually catch up with you if you don’t use an anti androgen, but this may be many years down the line.

For now you're too young to even consider things like propecia so I guess minoxidil is your safest and only option. You can decide when your older if you want to commit to an anti androgen.

Research in to the sides of the treatments you decide on/if you decide to start any.

I hit puberty when I was 13-14 yrs old.
Hey, I also forgot to mention something. As a kid, when my hair would get wet, it would look very thin. However, even now, it still gets like this, but not much thinner. Thoughts?

 

[centurie]

I hit puberty when I was 13-14 yrs old.
Hey, I also forgot to mention something. As a kid, when my hair would get wet, it would look very thin. However, even now, it still gets like this, but not much thinner. Thoughts?

You could have finer hair then most so when its wet it emphasises hairloss but when its dry it doesnt look to bad.

I have a similar hair texture and my hair looks pretty bad when slicked back and wet.

How has your hairline/hair density changed over the years?

 

[dudealpha]

You could have finer hair then most so when its wet it emphasises hairloss but when its dry it doesnt look to bad.

I have a similar hair texture and my hair looks pretty bad when slicked back and wet.

How has your hairline/hair density changed over the years?

My hairline has been this receded/widow peak thing for as long as I can remember (I even have a 13 yrs old photo with my buzzed head and this hairline). Density is another topic. I only started to pay attention to my hair when I started using gel, and it was thick enough to look good and I could pull off some nice hairstyles, without showing scalp (I probably would have noticed). However, as I said, two months after daily usage of the gel product and stupid cleaning habits (aka not washing my hair the same day, but only the morning after), I noticed that my hair was really thin, not that different from the photos above. So, technically, my density kinda is the same since I was 15. Of course, as soon as I buzz it, I am greeted with a paintbrush, but I don't think that is relevant.

 

[OldnBald]

My hairline has been this receded/widow peak thing for as long as I can remember (I even have a 13 yrs old photo with my buzzed head and this hairline). Density is another topic. I only started to pay attention to my hair when I started using gel, and it was thick enough to look good and I could pull off some nice hairstyles, without showing scalp (I probably would have noticed). However, as I said, two months after daily usage of the gel product and stupid cleaning habits (aka not washing my hair the same day, but only the morning after), I noticed that my hair was really thin, not that different from the photos above. So, technically, my density kinda is the same since I was 15. Of course, as soon as I buzz it, I am greeted with a paintbrush, but I don't think that is relevant.

No need to talk about this for logistical purposes. You need to do something now or you're fucked. Get to a dermatologist. Start with minoxidil now. If you wait a year, you will be nearly slick bald.

 

[Timii]

Yeah, you are at the early stages of male pattern baldness. Good news is you caught it pretty early. Try minoxidil + dermarolling and then add finasteride when you are 18/19. You'll be fine, many people here (including me, I'm 20) are balding at a young age , so you are not alone

 

[dudealpha]

Yeah, you are at the early stages of male pattern baldness. Good news is you caught it pretty early. Try minoxidil + dermarolling and then add finasteride when you are 18/19. You'll be fine, many people here (including me, I'm 20) are balding at a young age , so you are not alone

I will try minoxidil, probably one month from now (this is when my second dermatologist consultation will take place).
Yeah, I'm really scared, especially because I have a colleague in class who is also 17, maybe 4 months older than me, and he's bald AF (think prince william with a bit of hair on top).
However, I am too skeptical of finasteride. Just saw that article about the lawsuit. Not going to try it.
Thank you for the replies!!! As much as this pains me to say it, I'm glad that at least I'm not alone. But this is one for the history books: bald since 15
If I can, I will post updates from time to time, with things I tried and haven't worked.

 

[ABDULRAHMAN ALAJLAN]

If i were you , since you’re in the early stages , i would use a products that inhibits the DHT without using minoxodil and finasteride ,


While researching for a treatment to my hair disorder , i came acorss somthing called ( toaist saop ) , i did not use it but the feedbacks state that it treat the root cause of male pattern baldness ,

Overall , Consult a dermatologist, because minoxodil will reach a stage where it can’t catch up with the DHT buildup

I hope i helped you in any way , i’m 26 and i know how psychologically damaging the hair issues

 

[dudealpha]

If i were you , since you’re in the early stages , i would use a products that inhibits the DHT without using minoxodil and finasteride ,


While researching for a treatment to my hair disorder , i came acorss somthing called ( toaist saop ) , i did not use it but the feedbacks state that it treat the root cause of male pattern baldness ,

Overall , Consult a dermatologist, because minoxodil will reach a stage where it can’t catch up with the DHT buildup

I hope i helped you in any way , i’m 26 and i know how psychologically damaging the hair issues

Hmm, I will look into that taoist soap, but I'm a bit skeptical for obvious reasons (I don't even know how it works), and trust me, I've tried a LOT of shampoos and none of them worked to fix the problem, only give volume temporarily and then, when my hair would get greasy, it would all start to fall apart.
Also, any thoughts on the shower drain photos I posted above? I have never shed more than that amount (I would always count the hairs that fell out during shower since I first started to notice my hair problem, and I think there are no more than 10-15 hair strands there), so I really don't understand why I have thin hair. Where TF does the hair go??? From what I've read, this is a normal amount of hair to be shed. Damn me, this is really weird. At least if I could have gotten a definitive statement with 50 hairs laying in front of me.
Also, keep in mind, that my hair has been the exact same for two years now (same hairline, same thickness), and the only area that has been affected somewhat during this time frame is my left temple (and even that isn't that much different than the right one).
Another thing is that when I was little (about 9-10 yrs old), my mom would actually massage my scalp each night. Once, I asked her why does she do that, and she replied with "you have bad hair at your temples, and the hair strands are barely noticeable to the touch". Dang, now that I realize, maybe I always had bad hair.... I swear I'm not making this up, I really wouldn't have any interest in doing so.
Today I also spoke to one of my friends and asked him what does he think. He said that it's normal, he can see his scalp too if he lifts his hair up and he's in good lighting. At the same time, one of my other friends said that I'm bald af, but she has thick, curly hair (kinda like an Afro), so she doesn't even know the term fine hair...
Or maybe I'm just in the denial phase

 

[justbeconfident]

Yeah, its normal practice for your psychic to try to find justifications why logically you could be losing hair and that it was something you could control. Reality is much simpler - it's just a genetic defect, no other way to combat it, finasteride (and its derivatives) and minoxidil.

At this age is hard to tell if you are balding or was just born with thin hair with high widows peak, because it is like that for some men. However the fact that you are shedding hair is very telling that more likely you are balding. Also check your family history of hair loss. Grandfathers on both sides etc.

Finasteride is total gamble, works for some, doesnt work for others.

 

[dudealpha]

Yeah, its normal practice for your psychic to try to find justifications why logically you could be losing hair and that it was something you could control. Reality is much simpler - it's just a genetic defect, no other way to combat it, finasteride (and its derivatives) and minoxidil.

At this age is hard to tell if you are balding or was just born with thin hair with high widows peak, because it is like that for some men. However the fact that you are shedding hair is very telling that more likely you are balding. Also check your family history of hair loss. Grandfathers on both sides etc.

Finasteride is total gamble, works for some, doesnt work for others.

Man, everyone sheds hair in the shower, look it up. The amount of hair shed is what matters.
Dad started losing hair in his mid 40's. He still has hair, but has really receded temples, but still retains his crown.
Same for the maternal grandfather, he started losing his hair when he was older, about 40 yrs old (I have a wedding picture of him and his gorgeous full head of hair when he was in his early 20's).
My paternal grandfather is 90 and has a full head of hair (albeit with slightly receded temples, but still, that's really good, probably one of the best at his age) so I dunno.
Really there isn't much family history of baldness, especially this early...

 

[ABDULRAHMAN ALAJLAN]

Hmm, I will look into that taoist soap, but I'm a bit skeptical for obvious reasons (I don't even know how it works), and trust me, I've tried a LOT of shampoos and none of them worked to fix the problem, only give volume temporarily and then, when my hair would get greasy, it would all start to fall apart.
Also, any thoughts on the shower drain photos I posted above? I have never shed more than that amount (I would always count the hairs that fell out during shower since I first started to notice my hair problem, and I think there are no more than 10-15 hair strands there), so I really don't understand why I have thin hair. Where TF does the hair go??? From what I've read, this is a normal amount of hair to be shed. Damn me, this is really weird. At least if I could have gotten a definitive statement with 50 hairs laying in front of me.
Also, keep in mind, that my hair has been the exact same for two years now (same hairline, same thickness), and the only area that has been affected somewhat during this time frame is my left temple (and even that isn't that much different than the right one).
Another thing is that when I was little (about 9-10 yrs old), my mom would actually massage my scalp each night. Once, I asked her why does she do that, and she replied with "you have bad hair at your temples, and the hair strands are barely noticeable to the touch". Dang, now that I realize, maybe I always had bad hair.... I swear I'm not making this up, I really wouldn't have any interest in doing so.
Today I also spoke to one of my friends and asked him what does he think. He said that it's normal, he can see his scalp too if he lifts his hair up and he's in good lighting. At the same time, one of my other friends said that I'm bald af, but she has thick, curly hair (kinda like an Afro), so she doesn't even know the term fine hair...
Or maybe I'm just in the denial phase

I really would like to help but I’m not a specialist in any way to advise , check out the taoist soap , there’re some of recommendations also in this site ,

The other thing that worth trying , which is laser hats , but they’re expensive and difficult to carry around for traveling as an example , but personally i don’t think i’ll take it as a habit if my disorder was pattern male loss

Other than both two options , the only FDA approved medicines for Herditary male loss is minoxodil and finasteride

 

[justbeconfident]

Man, everyone sheds hair in the shower, look it up. The amount of hair shed is what matters.
Dad started losing hair in his mid 40's. He still has hair, but has really receded temples, but still retains his crown.
Same for the maternal grandfather, he started losing his hair when he was older, about 40 yrs old (I have a wedding picture of him and his gorgeous full head of hair when he was in his early 20's).
My paternal grandfather is 90 and has a full head of hair (albeit with slightly receded temples, but still, that's really good, probably one of the best at his age) so I dunno.
Really there isn't much family history of baldness, especially this early...

Yeah, i never had bald relatives and never really knew about this disease. Yet im here in mid 20s rapidly diffusing with nw3, life is a joke.

 

[Manochoice]

My hairline has been this receded/widow peak thing for as long as I can remember (I even have a 13 yrs old photo with my buzzed head and this hairline). Density is another topic. I only started to pay attention to my hair when I started using gel, and it was thick enough to look good and I could pull off some nice hairstyles, without showing scalp (I probably would have noticed). However, as I said, two months after daily usage of the gel product and stupid cleaning habits (aka not washing my hair the same day, but only the morning after), I noticed that my hair was really thin, not that different from the photos above. So, technically, my density kinda is the same since I was 15. Of course, as soon as I buzz it, I am greeted with a paintbrush, but I don't think that is relevant.

If you think your hair loss is from diet or styling products then start having a healthy, balanced diet and stop using products. Buss you hair short, nourish your scalp and and what happens.
But it's more probable to be male pattern baldness. Now it could be slowly creeping and you can pull decent year for 15-20 years. Or it may go in 5.

 

[dudealpha]

If you think your hair loss is from diet or styling products then start having a healthy, balanced diet and stop using products. Buss you hair short, nourish your scalp and and what happens.
But it's more probable to be male pattern baldness. Now it could be slowly creeping and you can pull decent year for 15-20 years. Or it may go in 5.

Why should I buzz it? Is this for easier application of mino or some other substance, or is it for another reason?
Also, forgot to mention (I guess I always forget to mention something smh), but stress has kinda affected me, at school especially (I'm in my senior year and I'm working hard for dem grades), as well as uni applications, and also sleeping 4-5 hours a night except for weekends (my schedule is stupid and so am I ). But yeah, gonna try mino anyway, with a doctor's recommendation (so I know the areas of the scalp I have to use it on). But if I stop using minoxidil, does the pre-treatment hair also go away or will I just return to the hair I had before? And do I have to do it twice a day, or does doing it once a day suffice?
BTW, thanks for the answers, I didn't think I would get so many!