my worst day yet.

[Whammy]

I have gone in the past 2 months when I started proscar having hair I was able to gel, and style really just as I wanted. Now i'm having to keep my hair dry because when it's wet or geled it shows way too much scalp, and today realising my worst nightmare. The formation of a bald spot. This now totally fucks things up, the slight recession I was able to deal with, but a bald spot I am not able to deal with. I didn't want to start minoxidil, but now I might have to. My only hope is that I've just experienced a shed from the finasteride, and i'll fill it back in. Personally, I don't think i'm that lucky. How many on here had their hair get considerable worse when they first started finasteride and it came back? Was a small formation of a bald spot part of the problem?

 

[21gone]

I am in my at the beginning of my 3rd month and have expierenced the same thing starting with recession to having my scalp show. But most do not see improvement until at least the end of the 3rd month. That is when the finasteride should start doing its thing so that you can see it. Hopefully it will improve for you.

 

[mrlestat]

The fact that your hair has thinned (shed) considerably since starting finasteride means that it is working I had exactly the same experience with both finasteride and minoxidil for the first 2-3 months. I went from a hairline I could style with gel and looked quite thick (temples a little thin) to a hairline that when wet showed scalp everywhere :freaked: ..

After the initial shed though my follicles turned the corner and my hair started to get thicker and thicker to the point that it is now much thicker than when I started..(3-4 months after the shed..)

The process is slow so don't loose heart your shedding is actually a good sign, sadly too many people quit at your stage not realising that shedding is an unfortunate but necessary part of the regrowth cycle...

click here for more info ----> shedding

Good luck.....

 

[Whammy]

Thanks for the reply, that shedding article actually gives some hope. My only concern with it is that image they have of the hair follicle. Now I've seen topics made reffering to the white bulb on the end of the hair but I really wasn't paying much attention to them. On that image, it makes it seem as tho the hair bulb should stay in the scalp to regrow the hair. On my hairs, every single one has a white bulb. Some are smaller than others, but if you look closely you can see it. What does this mean? I know this has something to do with the tellogen phase, will the scalp regrow a hair there even without the bulb? I do the pull test, and can pull out 3-5 hairs with a good pinch n tug.

 

[NorwoodClimber]

I'm experiencing the same sh*t! I'm close to month 3 and my hair has gotten considerably worse. My scalp is showing everywhere and I have a more present spot in the back. It SUCKS. I just started minoxidil and I'm not expecting things to be getting better any time soon.

I'm glad this topic got posted because for ahwile I thought I was the only one.

It would be nice to hear from some more people who have shedded and recovered.

 

[ACT10Npack]

Try not to think about it too much. Most people shed when starting on Propecia and more on minoxidil(rogaine). 3 months the minium to see any result and up to 1 year. Most people see result at 6 to 9 months of using it. Shedding is normal and it's telling you that the product is working. You may want to take photos of your hair to see if it's your going new in the next year. Good luck.

 

[guy83]

Im almost on it for 2 months and i havent experienced any major shedding.. i had some shedding 2 weeks ago when i quit minoxidil.. does it mean that because I havent shed alot like you guys right now that means that Propecia isnt gonna work for me?

 

[Whammy]

I just wanted to update what I said about the bulb. Apparently shedding hairs with the bulb isn't a problem as the Telogen Effluvium article says:

"The white bulb at the end of the hair, along with the loosely attached collection of friable debris gives the shed hair its characteristic appearance."

So apparently it's normal for you to shed the bulb with the hair. I guess all I can do is wait and hope this proscar starts helping my hair.

 

[guy83]

I just wanted to update what I said about the bulb. Apparently shedding hairs with the bulb isn't a problem as the Telogen Effluvium article says:

"The white bulb at the end of the hair, along with the loosely attached collection of friable debris gives the shed hair its characteristic appearance."

So apparently it's normal for you to shed the bulb with the hair. I guess all I can do is wait and hope this proscar starts helping my hair.

Good Luck!! Btw who am i kidding? I guess i still shed and my scalp does show.. hopefully propecia is "doing its job".

 

[The shedder]

At 3 months on finasteride my hair also looked thin and dead. Now on the 7th month my hair is thick as hell and gel is an option but not near the temples yet ..

 

[junior_senior]

This is for finasteride users that have been on it for a while:

Around the 3 month period of using finasteride, about how much of your hair had shedded? Realistically, is it only apparent to you, or does finasteride cause like 50 percent of your hair to shed??


Anyone??

 

[Petchsky]

Hard to say... its like different strokes for different folks. I think losing 50% is alot and i don't know of anyone losing that much.. in my own experience i lost about 20/25 percent in shedding over 4 months and that was a pretty bad case of shedding.

 

[NorwoodClimber]

I think losing 50% of your hair in a shed is highly unrealistic. If I lost half of my hair using any medicitaion I would quit it immediately and so should everyone else.

I am currently around month 3 of taking 1.25 mg of finasteride. I am experiencing a shed and yes it fuckin sucks. I can't really gauge my loss in a percentage but it has made areas where I was losing hair already become more apparent. Maybe around 10 to 15%.