Finasteride users: when you say you're experiencing the infamous finasteride shed, what do you mean EXACTLY by SHED?

[I wont lose this]

Hello, everyone. It's been three months since I've started finasteride and my daily shedding pretty much varies. Sometimes I wash my hair every other day and sometimes every two days. When I do the latter, I usually comb my hair thrice or twice a day on these days in between, and adding this to the strands I notice losing I would say 20 per day? In any case, I lose the most when I wash it. Regardless of losing 20 the previous day, what I lose in the shower during washing + combing after reaches the 40 strands. Not sure if this is normal or not.

I usually see people complaining about the dread shed and I wonder if it's something like mine or... 100+ hairs per day.

So far I haven't noticed any difference, I am diffusing only on my right side, like all the right side, even the donor. One doctor said I was with Telogen Effluvium but the other two said it was male pattern baldness. No one in my family is bald as far as I can tell. Grandfather(both) and father all have hair. I am f*****g unlucky.


Appreciate your answers, have a good day!

 

[FromHairy2LarryDavid]

I'm experiencing my first finasteride shed as well, after 2 years on 0.5mg EOD. Recently upped it to 1.25mg ED and instant shedding began. To describe what it's like I'd say your hairs are simply prone to fall.

Throughout the 2 years of 0.5mg EOD dosing, I could yank on my hairs and they'd stay, but since increasing it to 1.25mg ED and inducing a shed, I can now do so much as run my hand over my hair - not even through it - and I'd see a hair or two come along.

I wash my hair with similar frequency to yours - every other day, occasionally every third if my hair is still presentable by then. Prior to shower I'll comb it out carefully over the sink and see a pile of roughly 50-100 hairs or so. In that regard I guess you're lucky, 20 or 40 hairs is nothing.

I am diffusing only on my right side, like all the right side, even the donor. One doctor said I was with Telogen Effluvium but the other two said it was male pattern baldness. No one in my family is bald as far as I can tell. Grandfather(both) and father all have hair. I am f*****g unlucky.

That's a strange pattern to shed though. I'd pursue that some more with proper doctors and not the first dermatologist you come across. Telogen Effluvium is basically the term for hormonal shedding which is typically induced by 5AR Inhibitors or Anti-Androgens or anything affecting hormones, even diet or vitamin deficiencies. They're no wrong that some of your shed could be from finasteride but again, get that pattern checked out, it's odd.

Also I know it sucks but genetics are a bit of a gamble sometimes. Your father side can be good indication for your qualities but sometimes oddities occur like yours at the moment.

EDIT: you're also lucky you're getting that shedding out the way early on in your journey. Just power through it, your hormones should get accustomed to the constant reduction in DHT and eventually the shedding should stabilize, just give it time.

 

[I wont lose this]

I'm experiencing my first finasteride shed as well, after 2 years on 0.5mg EOD. Recently upped it to 1.25mg ED and instant shedding began. To describe what it's like I'd say your hairs are simply prone to fall.

Throughout the 2 years of 0.5mg EOD dosing, I could yank on my hairs and they'd stay, but since increasing it to 1.25mg ED and inducing a shed, I can now do so much as run my hand over my hair - not even through it - and I'd see a hair or two come along.

I wash my hair with similar frequency to yours - every other day, occasionally every third if my hair is still presentable by then. Prior to shower I'll comb it out carefully over the sink and see a pile of roughly 50-100 hairs or so. In that regard I guess you're lucky, 20 or 40 hairs is nothing.

That's a strange pattern to shed though. I'd pursue that some more with proper doctors and not the first dermatologist you come across. Telogen Effluvium is basically the term for hormonal shedding which is typically induced by 5AR Inhibitors or Anti-Androgens or anything affecting hormones, even diet or vitamin deficiencies. They're no wrong that some of your shed could be from finasteride but again, get that pattern checked out, it's odd.

Also I know it sucks but genetics are a bit of a gamble sometimes. Your father side can be good indication for your qualities but sometimes oddities occur like yours at the moment.

EDIT: you're also lucky you're getting that shedding out the way early on in your journey. Just power through it, your hormones should get accustomed to the constant reduction in DHT and eventually the shedding should stabilize, just give it time.

I find it odd too. My hairline is intact and I noticed recently I'm having an ultra thickregrowth in some areas, of a different texture. Before my hairloss started, my hair was wavy and brown, now these strands are black. Like, it doesn't seem to belong on there. Apart from these strands, I have thin strands growing as well. Some thin, some medium, and some of them even grow normally. I rarely lose them, and if I do they are like 9cm long. The first dermatologist who said it was Telogen Effluvium didn't see any apparent miniaturization, so I have no clue what it is. I just jumped on finasteride afraid it would get worse, but now that I think of it my hair hasn't changed so much since 2018, when I noticed this right side having less density than the left

 

[I wont lose this]

Worth mentioning that I first started these coarse black strands growing before I jumped on finasteride.

 

[FromHairy2LarryDavid]

Yeah I often see balding folk reporting color/texture shifts. Tbh even if your hair hasn't changed as much, it's good to be pre-cautious, especially if you can handle finasteride. If anything you'll be preventing any real balding. Though still, do some research on that strange pattern you're seeing, see some professionals about it, just in case. The shed should calm down over time.

 

[I wont lose this]

Yeah I often see balding folk reporting color/texture shifts. Tbh even if your hair hasn't changed as much, it's good to be pre-cautious, especially if you can handle finasteride. If anything you'll be preventing any real balding. Though still, do some research on that strange pattern you're seeing, see some professionals about it, just in case. The shed should calm down over time.

I don't know who I might be seeing next. Endocrinologist or Thricologist again? I'm totally lost. My hair used to be like Ozzy Osbourne's when he was younger, now it's dead. Lost its curls and the fact the left side has more volume than the right just bothers me. I considered applying minoxidil but honestly the stories here scare me. I don't want to lose any more hair

 

[I wont lose this]

my man fucked up with drugs got a better hair than me hahaha anyway, my hair looked like this in early 2018

 

[Armando Jose]

Hello, everyone. It's been three months since I've started finasteride and my daily shedding pretty much varies. Sometimes I wash my hair every other day and sometimes every two days. When I do the latter, I usually comb my hair thrice or twice a day on these days in between, and adding this to the strands I notice losing I would say 20 per day? In any case, I lose the most when I wash it. Regardless of losing 20 the previous day, what I lose in the shower during washing + combing after reaches the 40 strands. Not sure if this is normal or not.

I usually see people complaining about the dread shed and I wonder if it's something like mine or... 100+ hairs per day.

So far I haven't noticed any difference, I am diffusing only on my right side, like all the right side, even the donor. One doctor said I was with Telogen Effluvium but the other two said it was male pattern baldness. No one in my family is bald as far as I can tell. Grandfather(both) and father all have hair. I am f*****g unlucky.


Appreciate your answers, have a good day!

It is normal, have you diagnosed for alopecia?

 

[I wont lose this]

It is normal, have you diagnosed for alopecia?

Hi Armando, thank you for your reply!

One of the derms I went to said it was telogen effluvium, and didn't notice any miniaturization. She said the small hairs that were growing were part of the cycle after T.E, and the other two said it was Androgenetic Alopecia but they didn't use any thricoscope as did the first. They inspected my scalp with harsh lightning and naked eye. I can't afford a biopsy right now, and in my town there is no one who can do it.

 

[FromHairy2LarryDavid]

https://www.hairlosstalk.com/interact/attachments/1615312557784-png.158853/

my man fucked up with drugs got a better hair than me hahaha anyway, my hair looked like this in early 2018

Ozzy is a legend for that hair and many other things haha
Sad to hear about the second part, sorry. I'd opt for both an endocrinologist and a trichologist, have them run any tests they need to get to the bottom of that volume imbalance.

I considered applying minoxidil but honestly the stories here scare me. I don't want to lose any more hair

Yeah min is a huge commitment and it comes at a price. Think through it hard before you touch that.