how do you guys measure progress while taking finasteride?

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mr hair

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I'm about to start next month, and I want to, as accurately as possible, document my progress to be sure it's doing something (if I even get results) and to avoid constant overthinking and checking my hair in the mirror.

Just taking pics under similar or identical conditions doesn't seem good enough for me, because even minimal changes in angle and lighting can give deceiving results.

I get that this is probably an overkill, but I'd appreciate any suggestions from experienced users.

If it matters, my hair is now in a decent state (solid density, around Norwood 1.5-2), which makes it even harder to assess its state.
 
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Moz5x

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Taking good quality pics under identical conditions and trichograms (hair counts/assessment from pictures of the scalp under magnification) are the standard methods that most clinical researchers use. When you look in the mirror everyday it can be difficult to see subtle changes which is why good quality pictures really do matter.

You could also buy a digital dermatoscope that can be plugged into a laptop and monitor areas of your scalp as well and compare those pics/screenshots over time. You should see miniaturization decrease. I’ve seen people use them to monitor their oral minoxidil progress.

Finasteride is more about preserving the hair you still have so success is also measured by not losing hair over time. If one is not aggressively balding or is at the very very early stages of loss, progress on Finasteride might be difficult to assess since there is no control group to compare to. There is no crystal ball that we can look into to see our future balder selves if we didn’t take the drug.

However, most guys will notice the quality of their hair improves (hair follicles get slightly thicker, more robust color and shine, and hair looks less limp/lifeless). Some will notice less average daily shedding over time. You can monitor shedding in the shower with a hair catcher for the drain. Keep in mind it can take a full year to see the effect of Finasteride and improvement can continue up to the 2 year mark so patience is key.
 
br1

br1

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Just take it, 1mg / day and go live your life.

That's what I did, and I do not regret. finasteride, as bad as it is, gave me a "normal life" as far as hair is concerned. My dad was a NW6 by age 20. I am 45 today, and still a NW2. When I started worrying about if finasteride would start losing effect (never did), etc.. I lived the worse years in my recent life.

More recently, I decided to just do like before - taking 1mg and living life like if finasteride didn't exist. I think it's not worth it otherwise.
 
losingbattle88

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br1 said:
Just take it, 1mg / day and go live your life.

That's what I did, and I do not regret. finasteride, as bad as it is, gave me a "normal life" as far as hair is concerned. My dad was a NW6 by age 20. I am 45 today, and still a NW2. When I started worrying about if finasteride would start losing effect (never did), etc.. I lived the worse years in my recent life.

More recently, I decided to just do like before - taking 1mg and living life like if finasteride didn't exist. I think it's not worth it otherwise.
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Lucky you. Hairloss treatments dont help me. Continue to lose like I never took it.
 
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mr hair

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Moz5x said:
Taking good quality pics under identical conditions and trichograms (hair counts/assessment from pictures of the scalp under magnification) are the standard methods that most clinical researchers use. When you look in the mirror everyday it can be difficult to see subtle changes which is why good quality pictures really do matter.

You could also buy a digital dermatoscope that can be plugged into a laptop and monitor areas of your scalp as well and compare those pics/screenshots over time. You should see miniaturization decrease. I’ve seen people use them to monitor their oral minoxidil progress.

Finasteride is more about preserving the hair you still have so success is also measured by not losing hair over time. If one is not aggressively balding or is at the very very early stages of loss, progress on Finasteride might be difficult to assess since there is no control group to compare to. There is no crystal ball that we can look into to see our future balder selves if we didn’t take the drug.

However, most guys will notice the quality of their hair improves (hair follicles get slightly thicker, more robust color and shine, and hair looks less limp/lifeless). Some will notice less average daily shedding over time. You can monitor shedding in the shower with a hair catcher for the drain. Keep in mind it can take a full year to see the effect of Finasteride and improvement can continue up to the 2 year mark so patience is key.
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great reply, thanks
 
20YearsOnFin

20YearsOnFin

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Don't know then, you are kind of running out of options.

Unless there is an off chance you would react differently now to finasteride (oral or topical), if you migrated to it, while your DHT was already nuked from dutastride....

But probably not an experiment you would be looking to try given your past experiences.
 
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DoctorHouse

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losingbattle88 said:
Yeah dutasteride dont work never did for me. Nor did pharma grade dutasteride. My sperm is almost gone even so Im thinking of dropping it. And Accept a chrome dome.
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Your hair must look decent. You said it looks better than @wellheweare456 in the other thread. His hair still looks good.
 
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