I need insight

[curbed my enthusiasm]

Hi everyone, I've been following this site somewhat obsessively for around 2 months. Here's my situation. I'm 25 and started noticing my temples receding at 19. for six years my recession was gradual and relatively slow to where i was at about a nw2, mabey slightly greater w/ noticibly receding temples but i could cover it if i pushed my hair forward. aside from my temples my hair was normal and never had any active hairloss, very gradual at the temples.

Around mid sept. i noticed i was shedding for the first time. Especialy in the shower where i'd end up w/ 200+ hairs just on my hands when i shampoo. I shudder to think how much i lose in a day total This has continued and consistently gotten worse. I would say there is an overall diffuse thinning as the density and volume of my hair has significantly dissipated since sept. but it's definitely most severe on the front half of my scalp and hairline. I went to the dermatologist and strted on proscar and nizoral 1% on oct. 10. Since then shedding has escalated some but it was extreme before i started proscar. Since it was like this before i have no reason to believe this shedding is in anyway related to the treatment, which is very dejecting. Thinning is very visible and alarming with which the speed it's taking place. my family can even notice though obviously not to the degree that i can. My hair is consistently deteriorating to where I notice a difference in it about every 2 wks. I am absoloutely shocked how rapid and abrupt this is happening.

I haven't noticed many accounts on here of people losing alot of hair over a very short period. Or extreme shedding not treatment induced. Has anyone else exper. this? is this very rare?

So this brings me to some ques. and concerns I had
Proscar takes a while to start to work and could take over a year. Would it be possible to use a topical dht inhibitor now in hopethat it takes some effect immediately while i'm waiting for the proscar to kick in?(since ive only been on pro. for 1.5months)

Does proscar usualy keep the hair you had from the first day you started taking it, or the hair you had once it kicks in however many months later?

I'm debating if i should take minoxidil. I initially wanted to give myself something to fall back on later or atleast give a big buffer between treatments so i would know what did what, but i feel my situation is becoming desperate. but If i were to go on it i don't know that i could handle an even greater shed in addition to what im already enduring ,so thats a serious concern.

Well that's where i'm at right now. I would appreciate any feedback or suggestions from anyone. Thanks for taking the time to read this.

 

[BadHairDecade]

well your still very early into treatment so you really need to give it more time.
What promted me to start a treatment was that all of a sudden my hairloss started to increase incredibly in a matter of a month or two. It took a good 2 months of treatment for it to slow down. Before that there were ups and downs but nothing too severe. So my situation sounds similar to yours.

It could just be coincedence that your shedding more after starting your treatment. It could also be a sign that your treatment is working. It's really impossible to tell.

Adding a topical DHT inhibitor won't neccasarily (spell check) kick in any faster than finasteride. They all claim to need at least three months to start working.

Does proscar usualy keep the hair you had from the first day you started taking it, or the hair you had once it kicks in however many months later?

There's really no way to know. It works differently from person to person. That's why some people will see regrowth and some will only see maintainece when using it. Your hair goes through phases so the hair your losing today probably died (for lack of a better word) a couple months ago and is just falling out now.

Now on to minoxidil....The general thought here is to give it some more time before adding it to your regimen, and it makes perfect sense. This is good sound advice but if your hair loss is really bad you may want to add it. I felt I had to use the big three (finasteride/minoxidil/nizoral) in order to get any decent results since my hairloss was pretty bad.
I know the feeling of desperity, go look at my before pics (click on "My Regimen") BHD
I hope this helps you in some way. Good luck.

BHD

 

[KevinW]

I don't know if I went through extreme shedding, but I definitely didn't notice my hairloss (as a serious problem) prior to October, but now I am very worried. I believe I went through a natural shed in september and october (I think this is not uncommon). I remember the last 2 winters for me my hair felt thin and lifeless but then came back stronger in the spring so that is my hope for this year again, but this time I will be in treatment.

 

[curbed my enthusiasm]

guys, thanks for the replies. BHD, looks like you made good progress . Good luck to you too.

 

[jimmystanley]

how did u know it was 200 hairs?

 

[BadHairDecade]

JS,

some people count hairs when they notice an increase in shedding. It's a bad habbit to get into, I know...I used to do it. It can make you really depressed.

 

[curbed my enthusiasm]

yes, when i would shampoo i would roughly count what came out in my hands.so that's not a daily amount or even total in the shower, just what i was holding in front of me. it's pretty horrifying.

 

[HairlossTalk]

Hi everyone, I've been following this site somewhat obsessively

Welcome!

Since it was like this before i have no reason to believe this shedding is in anyway related to the treatment, which is very dejecting.

Whether it is or isn't ... isn't too incredibly important. Some people shed and some don't, from finasteride. The good news is you're on your way to completely stopping it if you've got the patience to wait a good year!

I haven't noticed many accounts on here of people losing alot of hair over a very short period. Or extreme shedding not treatment induced. Has anyone else exper. this? is this very rare?

Not at all. When it goes, it goes fast. I remember thinking "If it continues like this for another 6 months I wont have any hair left at all".. because it was going so fast. The good news is that it is not falling out and dying. It is simply restarting its cycle. The first step in restarting things is to shut down. The next step is to start regenerating. Those lost hairs will show back up in about 4 to 6 months. Hang in there. You're not losing a single hair permenantly.

Proscar takes a while to start to work and could take over a year.

Technically, its "up to a year". If you don't see your hair loss stop by 12 months, it isn't going to work for you. But it will stop don't worry.

Would it be possible to use a topical dht inhibitor now in hopethat it takes some effect immediately while i'm waiting for the proscar to kick in?(since ive only been on pro. for 1.5months)

No. You don't want to add or take away from your regimen like that. Its already taking effect immediately. The drug works and its now a matter of willpower to just wait. You are on the most potent DHT inhibitor on the planet right now, so trust in that and let it do its thing.

Does proscar usualy keep the hair you had from the first day you started taking it, or the hair you had once it kicks in however many months later?

A little of both. A bunch of hairs shut down and restart (shedding), and those hairs grow in thicker and healthier in cycles over the next 2 years while you're on it. You may see some rejuvination of already lost hairs as well, although most people thicken up existing hair-bearing areas. There's really no way to tell unless you could track a specific follicle.

I'm debating if i should take minoxidil. I initially wanted to give myself something to fall back on later or atleast give a big buffer between treatments so i would know what did what, but i feel my situation is becoming desperate.

Hold off on the minoxidil. Your situation is desperate. That's why we call it the "Shedding Shits". At least thats what I call it It will look like hell before it suddenly stops and thickens back up. But just ride it out. Take some pictures. And try not to look in the mirror for awhile. This is all normal. Save the minoxidil for later.

BHD added both but he is a perfect candidate for both. IF you check out his pictures, he had lost a significant amount of hair before even starting, so he is a Finasteride/minoxidil combo guy. For him I would definitely advise using both up front. He needed to regain some serious ground, and he has done well. If you're a new diffuse thinner with a typical mature hairline, give Finasteride a good year.

Good Luck

HairLossTalk.com

 

[curbed my enthusiasm]

HairLossTalk.com, thanks for replying to my post. There's a couple things you wrote that i'm not sure if i'm clear about and mabey you could help clarify.

HairLossTalk.com wrote
"When it goes, it goes fast. I remember thinking "If it continues like this for another 6 months I wont have any hair left at all".. because it was going so fast. The good news is that it is not falling out and dying. It is simply restarting its cycle. The first step in restarting things is to shut down. The next step is to start regenerating. Those lost hairs will show back up in about 4 to 6 months. Hang in there. You're not losing a single hair permenantly."


I have seen this written on here before but I always understood it to be in reference to shedding once well into treatment, with the sole reason for shedding being attributed to treatment. SO i never identified my situation with this. I'm not sure if it was evident from my post but my extreme shedding started at least a month before i began finasteride. and has continued, while possibly increasing only slightly. In addition to this the change in appearance of hairline and density is startling. With that considered is your above quote about it possibly coming back in 4-6 months still applicable for me? I was under the impression that only sheds brought on by finasteride. would come back thicker (whic I don't believe I've undergone yet) .But the pre finasteride (natural) sheds didn't have a good chance to return as thick.


HairLossTalk.com wrote
"Hold off on the minoxidil. Your situation is desperate. That's why we call it the "Shedding Shits" At least thats what I call it It will look like hell before it suddenly stops and thickens back up. But just ride it out. Take some pictures. And try not to look in the mirror for awhile. This is all normal . Save the minoxidil for later."


Again I always heard this info dispensed in reference to people shedding only after being on finasteride for awhile. So it still applies even though my shed was pre finasteride?


What would you think about possibly using minoxidil now on only my hairline. What was a Norwood 2.5 now is deteriorating to where there is a remnant outline of whisps of hairs floating forward when I pull my hairback with my hand. I could reserve the option of using it on the rest of my head for lateron. I know it's hard to comment on w/o seeing me, sorry i don't have any pics.


I had one more question unrelated to the original thread. I realize i haven't been on finasteride long enough for it to work. But considering the level of my pre finasteride shed (almost 300 hairs in shower), the noticable change in appearance in 2 months and that i've been noticing hairs growing on my shoulders/back where i didn't have any previously. Is it fair to say I have more dht than most male pattern baldness sufferers? If that's the case would you think it might be worth the potential side effects to try avodart/dutasteride since it inhibits more dht. Or would it not be any more beneficial than finasteride?


Sorry about the redundany of this post, realize it basically is repeating everything from my first one. I just want to be as sure as possible you understand my situation the way i see it. Reguardless i plan to take your advice. Thanks for any insight and providing this site I appreciate it. Just wish i found it about six months earlier.

 

[jimmystanley]

man.....i couldn't imagince seeing 200 hairs...i get paniky when i see like 10. sorry to hear about that dude

 

[curbed my enthusiasm]

thanks, it really is torturous to go through this crap.

 

[curbed my enthusiasm]

to the top for HairLossTalk.com to see.

 

[vishal]

true...I panic with even 2 coming out togather in one go. I can't imagine how I would feel if I were to see 200 hair of mine at a time. Probably I would sulk on the bathroom floor and never get up...

really feel for you dude....I just wish someone would eradicate this nuisance of hair loss from the face of the earth. This really is a torture.

 

[curbed my enthusiasm]

indeed it is.

 

[curbed my enthusiasm]

up one more time so HairLossTalk.com can respond.