Discontinuing usage of propecia; feeling frustrated

[Christopher]

Lately I've been feeling very down about my hair situation. Tonight was probably the lowest I've felt in awhile. I've decided to stop taking propecia -- I've taken it for 7 months with seemingly decent results but I've come to the conclusion that the risks involved are not worth it. If I ever became sexually dysfunctional I don't think I'd be able to live with myself. Anyways, with that choice comes the realization that I will start shedding like crazy again.

Thinking about it makes me very frustrated. I've started self-pitying myself. Asking the question -- why me? Why a 22 year old male? What will my girlfriend think? Will she still want to be with a boyfriend who is only 22 yet balding? What will my friends think? I can just foresee the annoying ridicule and stigma that will come with this process. And I truly have one of the most self-deprecating personalities you'll find, but I'm not even sure I can handle the idea of being the 'bald guy'.

I've always been a very confident person but this has really taken its toll on me psychologically. It's always in the back of my mind. At night I sometimes can't sleep thinking about it. I'm often in a very somber state and I'm too embarrassed to explain what is happening. My parents simply don't understand. Some people look good bald but I know this isn't the case for me, I have a huge f*****g head. I feel so weak admitting this, but tonight I actually cried a bit -- and I haven't cried since I was 12 when my cat died.

And I'm saying all of this 1 day before Christmas too. Which only makes it feel worse. I should be happy, not sad, right?

Anyways, I'm trying to look into the future and find some positives with all of this. Has anyone tried concealers like toppik, do they work? There isn't a history of baldness in my family, perhaps the shedding will subside soon? And a hair transplant is still a viable option down the road...

I just know I'm not risking propecia anymore, it just isn't worth it.

 

[LooseItAll]

I've just had a hair transplant and I think I am going to take finasteride. It sucks but what else can we do? NO finasteride, NO HAIR

 

[Joe-1991]

NO DICK - NO LIFE.

 

[Aedan]

hey joe how are you doing mate?

 

[follicle84]

How bad is your hairloss exactly? You did the right thing in dropping finasteride. You tried it and unfortunatelly the side effects out done the benefits. Its trading one list of problems for another and you were smart enough to realise that. Sex is more important than hair its part of the joys of being a man.

At 22 its devastating to be losing your hair to say the least. It should be one of the best years of your life. I was like you at 22, i couldnt accept any hairloss whatsover and tried finasteride which didnt work out for me. Im now 26 and i feel more relaxed about hairloss than i did then. Things can get easier and you still have options available to you as far as hairloss is concerned.

You have the option of using minoxidil, nizoral, spironolactone if your looking for treatment for your hairloss. I've had decent results with minoxidil and its the next best thing after finasteride you can try. Alternativelly you can look into head tatooing to conceal thinning, hair transplants, hair peice and topik.

Head tatooing looks good if there is hair in the area as it blends well. Have to keep your head shaved though. Hair tranplants look good if you only suffer from moderate baldness (norwood 3 to 5) and find a good surgeon. Hair peices are bit tricky, over the years they have improved drastically and some people think they are still detectable. However with the right blend, colour and style they can work so that most people wont notice. Topik or hair concealer seems to work wonders from what i've seen. Its great for people who are thinning but doesn't do much for the hairline. It also requires that you use hair spray to keep the fibres in place.

Lastly we can always hope for an end product in the next few years from the likes of acell and histogen which look like promising news to hairloss sufferers with there research into growing hairs using stem cells. Until then we can use these available treatments until something better comes along. I am of course being optimistic here.