minoxidil Liquid Has Changed The Texture Of My Hair Drastically. Will I React The Same To The Foam?

[thornhill59]

Hey guys. I've posted here a few times re. minoxidil damaging my hairline. Been on it for 10-11 months and have yet to recover from the shed. This isnt my regular male pattern baldness progressing as I was stable on finasteride for over a year before starting min and the only area that has worsened is the area I apply min.

On top of the shed is the fact my hair texture has changed in the areas I apply minoxidil. Terminal hair is growing in coarse, straw like and kinda wavy in such a way that its impossible to style and is greatly different to the rest of my hair, which is dead straight. Supposedly this side effect isnt all that uncommon and may be attributable to the propylene glycol in min liquid. Anyone have any experience with this?

 

[thornhill59]

If you want a pic w/o visiting my old thread this is my progression over the first 5 months. Obv lighting is harsher in some photos and angles change but i think the difference is pretty obvious. A little hard for me to capture the texture, you'll just have to trust that I know my own hair. https://imgur.com/a/kz1q1

Also this is 1 month ago. Hair is broadly the same now except ive had to cut the hair at the front as it grows out so weirdly. https://imgur.com/a/Gqnkc

 

[thornhill59]

Ok so I've done a little research and it seems that what I have is called whisker hair, resulting from a condition called APKH (acquired progressive kinking of the hair). The symptoms directly match what I have been struggling with although I haven't found anyone who has had it induced by minoxidil. Very odd.

 

[ossrey]

I obviously can't speak for other people, but I experienced the same thing when I was on Rogaine. Wouldn't say that's the worst thing in the world, though. Funny enough, some of the points when I've been complimented on my hair seemed to be when it had more of an oily lustre/shine, the same kinda oiliness you get with the hair fall. Brittle and strawlike may be better than nothing. One thing that could make a huge difference for you though is to try a dry shampoo. I don't know if that's bad/good for hair loss (I'm guessing neither), but a barber applied it to my hair once and it seemed to instantly solve the cowlick/brittle/flock of seagulls stuff going on. That may be worth a shot.

 

[ossrey]

Edit: dry conditioner, I believe, not shampoo

 

[thornhill59]

Hey mate yeah the coarseness isn't so much the issue for me, its just the way it grows out. It's got strange kinks in it and grows in a way totally different to my regular hair so I have to keep It short. It also seems to grow significantly slower. Will try the dry conditioner though, thanks for the advice.

Added a couple of pics to show the diff in texture but very hard to do justice.

 

[BASH962]

I was also on Minoxidil since Feb 2016 till Oct 2017 , I stopped using it since Oct 22 2017 ,it made hairline vanished ,it made hair thinner at front and where I had applied it.... I was continuously shedding on Minoxidil since the beginning... Are u shedding on Minoxidil ??

 

[thornhill59]

Yeah I shed badly mate. Thought it was a good sign at first but didn't end up being so. Wish I'd never started but that's just me, have seen it work wonders for others.

 

[thornhill59]

I obviously can't speak for other people, but I experienced the same thing when I was on Rogaine. Wouldn't say that's the worst thing in the world, though. Funny enough, some of the points when I've been complimented on my hair seemed to be when it had more of an oily lustre/shine, the same kinda oiliness you get with the hair fall. Brittle and strawlike may be better than nothing. One thing that could make a huge difference for you though is to try a dry shampoo. I don't know if that's bad/good for hair loss (I'm guessing neither), but a barber applied it to my hair once and it seemed to instantly solve the cowlick/brittle/flock of seagulls stuff going on. That may be worth a shot.

Just wondering if you were using minoxidil liquid or foam?

 

[ossrey]

hey - sorry for the slow reply. i actually started with liquid and then moved to foam, but I seem to remember the same brittleness/coarseness happening with both.

as for your pictures, yeah, it's definitely a bit kinked. i can't say i experienced it like that. my take, from a non-scientific perspective: if it's working, awesome, kinks and all. i wouldn't be overly concerned. if i were personally dealing with the kinks, i'd probably attack that specific situation from the perspective of a non-balding guy trying to keep his hair healthy -- that is, using the right shampoos, taking in the right vitamins/supplements, etc. a dermatologist/hair restoration specialist would probably have a way better opinion though (though the general experience on this forum is that dermatologists aren't always super knowledgable about androgentic alopecia). anyways, sorry i can't be more helpful, but glad it's working for you (kinks and all!), and hope you get the right advice

 

[Jerry123]

Just wondering if you were using minoxidil liquid or foam?

I use the liquid and I have a similar issue, wondering if you ever found a resolution to the kinkyness. Started to notice around the 4 month mark, I only apply nightly. I was thinking It may be related to what i put on after, i just use lotion after the minoxidil has been on for 6ish hours so I don't have scalp itch. Thinking I'm going to go back to EMU oil as that's what I had been using prior to the lotion.

 

[Tabe]

I’ve been using minoxidil on and off for about 9 months. I stopped using it approximately June 2021 because it was making my hair grow weirdly, like it did to you. I have very straight blonde hair; I only applied minoxidil on my hairline and it has caused loads of black, curly, kinked and un manageable hair grow all over the top of my head…even though it wasn’t applied on 95% of where it has grown

I stopped using it in the hope it would stop this kind of growth. I’m unsure what stage I am at with it currently, just hoping the black curly hair either falls out or grows how it did prior to minoxidil. Wish I never used it to be honest.

How is your hair these days?

 

[Tabe]

Just wondering if you were using minoxidil liquid or foam?

I’ve been using minoxidil on and off for about 9 months. I stopped using it approximately June 2021 because it was making my hair grow weirdly, like it did to you. I have very straight blonde hair; I only applied minoxidil on my hairline and it has caused loads of black, curly, kinked and un manageable hair grow all over the top of my head…even though it wasn’t applied on 95% of where it has grown

I stopped using it in the hope it would stop this kind of growth. I’m unsure what stage I am at with it currently, just hoping the black curly hair either falls out or grows how it did prior to minoxidil. Wish I never used it to be honest.

How is your hair these days?