my six month results on avodart w/pics

[bopper]

History - I'm 30 now, been on finasteride since sometime in '97, maybe even '98. Started Rogaine sometime between 16 and 18 years old. So it's been a while...My dad (who I look exactly like) has always had very, very thin hair and was probably worse then I am now when he was 30. But he didn't take any hairloss drugs, but did smoke a ton of cigaretts and have a pretty crappy diet.
For all those years in late 90's, early 2000's my hairloss was really slow and I was happy enough with the results. I started the drugs early and the loss rate was so slow I didn't really notice it. However, sometime in late '05 things went badly and the fallout rate really increased quick and has been going fast ever since. I went from norwood 2-2.5 to whatever I am now (maybe a 4 or 5) very quickly, and I have a diffuse loss pattern. It was as if the drugs stopped working, but in reality it was just my male pattern baldness getting worse. Nothing major had changed in my life, no extra stress etc. As far as side effects, I don't feel like I've ever had any but who knows since I've taking taking this crap for so long. Everything just seems normal to me.

Late spring '06 I started adding a bunch of naturals. Flax, extra Omegas, borage oil, fish oil, biotin, etc..

Oct '06 started with the genuine Avodart as a last resort to salvage the little hair I have left. Also started Xandrox 15, xandrox 5, spironolactone and tricomin. I just got a bottle of 12% minoxidil too. When I started taking avodart in 10/06, I took finasteride along with avodart for the first month, then dropped finasteride. After freaking during the big shed, I started taking finasteride and again in 01/07 and that seemed to have slowed down the shed. Currently, I take about 5-7 avodarts per week, and 1.25 of finasteride 5-7 times per week.

The pics will show you the results. Overall, I feel like things have stablized in the last month, month and a half. Of course there is no new growth (I didn't expect that) and based on my old finasteride results, my only realistic hope was to slow things down, and halt it if possible. My plan is to keep going and evaluate again in another six months.

Oct '06

Dec '06

April '07

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[Timi]

bopper

is Your Hair better with dutasteride????


Timi

 

[pinkfloyd7]

i see minimal regrowth. which is great cause you maintained instead of going bald. If i got on advodart and had those results i would be doing f*****g backflips

 

[Stu85]

So you've been on finasteride for 10 years? It would be great if we had pics from 10 years ago to see how things have gone.

 

[bopper]

So you've been on finasteride for 10 years? It would be great if we had pics from 10 years ago to see how things have gone.

Ten years ago I wouldn't find too many good pics of me, because I was freaked and wore a hat all the time. Might be hard to imagine, but my hair was about the same length as yours is now. I had a receding hair line, and there was no obvious bald spot in the back like there is now. Propecia never regrew any hair, but I'm pretty sure it slowed my rate of loss. But you are better off then me. My hair was never as thick as yours. I was doomed with very thin hair for my whole life. So, if you are trying to figure out what you will look like in 10 years if you take all these drugs, I wouldn't compare your hair to mine. Our hair types are just too different. Also, I read your story and if I were you I'd start using minoxidil. I'm sure you've heard that your best chance is too keep what you already have rather then trying to regrow.

I attached a pic of me in sept '05. This is soon after it started falling out fast.

Timi, yea I feel my hair is a little better with dutasteride. As you can see I'm trying to salvage what I have left. But my hair is certainly stronger then it was before. But I'm also using spironolactone and tricomin now which may help some. Don't forget I've still been taking finasteride most of the time I was on dutasteride.

 

[WorldofWarcraft]

Depressing.

 

[Balth06]

hey Bopper, I'm glad that you seem to be maintaining now. I'm sure you would be much worse off without the meds and such, but I have to agree with WOW that its a bit of a bummer story. You started when you were 20 or 21? and you still lost quit a lot of hair. Doesn't bode well for the rest of us starting early throwing everything we can at this problem like you did. Many of us want to believe that we can just keep our hair forever as long as we get on these drugs early enough but stories like yours make that seem unlikely.

 

[bopper]

hey Bopper, I'm glad that you seem to be maintaining now. I'm sure you would be much worse off without the meds and such, but I have to agree with WOW that its a bit of a bummer story. You started when you were 20 or 21? and you still lost quit a lot of hair. Doesn't bode well for the rest of us starting early throwing everything we can at this problem like you did. Many of us want to believe that we can just keep our hair forever as long as we get on these drugs early enough but stories like yours make that seem unlikely.

I think most of you who are in their early 20's can do a lot better then I did. When you speak of throwing everything at it, you really should do it. Not just the "big three" but everything. Sprio, Tricomin, xandrox, laser comb, vitamins...all this crap and more. Not to mention don't drink too much, don't smoke and eat healthy. Do this and you'll thank me 10 years from now. If I had switched to avodart, or even upped my finasteride dose three years ago along with all the other supplemental stuff I'd probably still have the same amount of hair as I did three years ago, which would be awesome. I pretty much went on autopilot back in my early 20's with finasteride and minoxidil, and didn't think much about switching things up until it was too late. If you are on finasteride now, keep an eye on it (which I know we all do) and once you see some signs of your male pattern baldness kicking in move up to dutasteride or an increased dose. Or, maybe 10 years from now there will be a better drug or cloning or whatever.

A couple more things...as my hair is pretty much horrible now I find myself worrying less and just accepting it more. And I've been on a good streak with girls too probably because of that. I think some people are surprised at some of the girls I date. People are probably thinking "what is she doing with him?"

The point I couldn't understand in my 20's, which you hear over and over again is that confidence always wins out. I couldn't have given a crap who told me that...my hair meant so much to me and losing it was such a horrible thing for me. I just thought bald losers were the ones saying that. I wasted so much time in my 20's not banging as many girls as I could because my hair ruined my confidence. Maybe now I'm that guy I used to hate, but that guy has a point. I still get a tense when a girl I like is standing behind me and can look down at my crown, but slowly those fears are going away. Maybe it's just the older you get, the less you care. I remember my mother saying to me at least 10 years ago "you'll lose your hair so slowly that by the time you are bald you won't care anymore" I'm starting to think she was right.

I am also starting to believe that our insulin levels have a lot to do with baldness and could contribute to what some only believe are genetic factors. Besides just helping your hair, staying away sugar and grain is only going to help your hair and your health.

 

[pinkfloyd7]

u make a good point but don't you have to stay on finasteride for at least one year before switching to dutasteride? I heard you would go through a really digusting shed if you switched early. And I heard it was bad to just start throwing in new products to your regime at different times. Don't you have to start all of them at the same time so they don't screw up your hair cycle and have you going through different shed ?

 

[klink]

Gyno?

 

[mbehr22]

u make a good point but don't you have to stay on finasteride for at least one year before switching to dutasteride? I heard you would go through a really digusting shed if you switched early. And I heard it was bad to just start throwing in new products to your regime at different times. Don't you have to start all of them at the same time so they don't screw up your hair cycle and have you going through different shed ?

whats this??!! ^^^

 

[klink]

I don't like cutting my hair that short, is that a #1 or 1.5 clipper? It does not look it's best. How fast does your hair grow? I've been taking MSM since Xmas and I need a hair cut every 2-3 weeks, I used to be every other month.

 

[mbehr22]

u make a good point but don't you have to stay on finasteride for at least one year before switching to dutasteride? I heard you would go through a really digusting shed if you switched early. And I heard it was bad to just start throwing in new products to your regime at different times. Don't you have to start all of them at the same time so they don't screw up your hair cycle and have you going through different shed ?

whats this??!! ^^^

 

[pinkfloyd7]

huh

 

[CCS]

i see minimal regrowth. which is great cause you maintained instead of going bald. If i got on advodart and had those results i would be doing f****ing backflips

you're making me feel better about my hair, which is not improving. just stayed the same for 4 years.

 

[CCS]

u make a good point but don't you have to stay on finasteride for at least one year before switching to dutasteride? I heard you would go through a really digusting shed if you switched early. And I heard it was bad to just start throwing in new products to your regime at different times. Don't you have to start all of them at the same time so they don't screw up your hair cycle and have you going through different shed ?

whats this??!! ^^^

none of this is true. What he probably read is that if you want to know how well finasteride works, you have to give it at least a year. you might not need dutasteride.

 

[pinkfloyd7]

wtf im just saying don't you get more shed if you add more hair products ?
and about the propecia. I meant that you should wait a year to see results. sorry for mixing some of you guys up

 

[poochy]

I been on finasteride. for about 15 months and have some regrowth in front but my horeshoe on the top seems to be getting more noticeable, I think its time to start dutasteride. What do you think, do you think it would kick start my regrowth in that area. Its funny I didn't think finasteride and min. would do anything for the front and get more results for the horeshoe area but the opposite happened.

 

[mbehr22]

u make a good point but don't you have to stay on finasteride for at least one year before switching to dutasteride? I heard you would go through a really digusting shed if you switched early. And I heard it was bad to just start throwing in new products to your regime at different times. Don't you have to start all of them at the same time so they don't screw up your hair cycle and have you going through different shed ?

whats this??!! ^^^

none of this is true. What he probably read is that if you want to know how well finasteride works, you have to give it at least a year. you might not need dutasteride.

Im greedy. I want regrowth, not to just maintain current levels. If I add dutasteride 2x a week to my finasteride regiment, would that increse the likelyhood of regrowth?

I have begun to see long hairs emerge in the temple area latley. Its weird. They are on the absolute extreme border - where my forehead meets my old hairline... not near my current hairline. Plus, I havent noticed any 'baby' or vellus hairs - these are thick and much longer than the hairs in my 'bangs' ... its weird, like they have received some kind of boost overnight.

I have been on finasteride for a little over 8 months. I would like to boost the finasteride with a little bit of dutasteride.

Goood idea or bad idea?

thoughts?

 

[mcozzy]

I wish I had seen results as good as the OP. I got on dutasteride 6 months ago and have seen nothing but heavy shedding. I thought it would be worth the risk, but now I'm wishing I never tried it.