Hello,
Completely new here. First: man, this board is really helpful. So nice to be able to hear what seems like mostly decent people venting about a common problem and offering each other help.
Anyway, guess I noticed somewhat thinning around last Christmas. Immediately went into a tailspin of obsession/depression. Went on Minoxidil (5%) for about three months, but after a while the redness and flaking and itching got to the point that I didn't care if any hair I regrew fell out. I stopped cold turkey in March, and didn't notice any huge difference.
Starting June 1, I started taking Proscar. The doctor, who reluctantly prescribed it to me after telling me he thought I should come back in "3-10 years," suggested I take 1/4 a tablet a day. Did so. Felt great, placebically, for about 2 weeks. Then, I started obsessing over the thought that I was experiencing gynecomastia. This overtook hair loss concerns. I've now been on Proscar for about two and a half months and have a complete inability to judge its effectiveness or side effects. Over the past month, I've started taking weekly pictures of my hair and chest in the same lighting and position; hopefully after a while I'll be able to determine empirically what's going on. It seems so much of this process has been self-deceit and imagined symptoms. Frustrating.
So, my questions (which have probably been answered a million times, but hey... maybe I'll get something fresh):
1) Anyone stoped finasteride after 2-3 months? Should I expect any huge difference or have I been taking it long enough for a "massive shed"? (damn, are any two words more frightening?) My one and only reason for stopping is the fear of gyno; any thoughts on reducing to .7 or so mg daily to reduce the side effect?
2) Any thoughts on the REAL prevalence of gyno? I honestly have no clue if I'm just imagining it, but my chest does seem a little out-of-proportion with the rest of my fairly skinny frame lately. I often imagine tinglings and itchings, but who knows?
3) Is male pattern baldness associated with general itchiness, tingling, or simply a brittle feeling on the scalp? My problem is almost exclusively the crown area, and it often just FEELS horrible up there. Could this be residual effects of the Minoxidil, which made my crown horribly painful pretty much all day?
Thanks so much for any thoughts/experiences. Like I said, this board has made this whole ordeal seem less... dire?
Hope you're all having great weekends.
-M
Completely new here. First: man, this board is really helpful. So nice to be able to hear what seems like mostly decent people venting about a common problem and offering each other help.
Anyway, guess I noticed somewhat thinning around last Christmas. Immediately went into a tailspin of obsession/depression. Went on Minoxidil (5%) for about three months, but after a while the redness and flaking and itching got to the point that I didn't care if any hair I regrew fell out. I stopped cold turkey in March, and didn't notice any huge difference.
Starting June 1, I started taking Proscar. The doctor, who reluctantly prescribed it to me after telling me he thought I should come back in "3-10 years," suggested I take 1/4 a tablet a day. Did so. Felt great, placebically, for about 2 weeks. Then, I started obsessing over the thought that I was experiencing gynecomastia. This overtook hair loss concerns. I've now been on Proscar for about two and a half months and have a complete inability to judge its effectiveness or side effects. Over the past month, I've started taking weekly pictures of my hair and chest in the same lighting and position; hopefully after a while I'll be able to determine empirically what's going on. It seems so much of this process has been self-deceit and imagined symptoms. Frustrating.
So, my questions (which have probably been answered a million times, but hey... maybe I'll get something fresh):
1) Anyone stoped finasteride after 2-3 months? Should I expect any huge difference or have I been taking it long enough for a "massive shed"? (damn, are any two words more frightening?) My one and only reason for stopping is the fear of gyno; any thoughts on reducing to .7 or so mg daily to reduce the side effect?
2) Any thoughts on the REAL prevalence of gyno? I honestly have no clue if I'm just imagining it, but my chest does seem a little out-of-proportion with the rest of my fairly skinny frame lately. I often imagine tinglings and itchings, but who knows?
3) Is male pattern baldness associated with general itchiness, tingling, or simply a brittle feeling on the scalp? My problem is almost exclusively the crown area, and it often just FEELS horrible up there. Could this be residual effects of the Minoxidil, which made my crown horribly painful pretty much all day?
Thanks so much for any thoughts/experiences. Like I said, this board has made this whole ordeal seem less... dire?
Hope you're all having great weekends.
-M