Hi,
Im new to the forum but by no means am I new to hairloss, to give a bit of back ground i started losing hair when i was 19. I hoped on minoxidil for about 8 to 9 months and wasnt consistent, it didnt seem to help my temples at the time so i eventually got off of it. A year after at age 20 it got worst, so i hopped on minoxidil and have stayed consistent ever since (about 3+ yrs of liquid kirkland/premier value generic minoxidil).
Minoxidil never really seemed to slow my hairloss down, i know i shouldve gotten on finasteride earlier but i was too scared of side effects because a cousin of mine was dealing with the same problem and got bad sides ...
Since i didnt get on finasteride at that time i got into LLLT devices. I bought an IGROW laser about 2 years ago now and used it for about 4 and a half months and then returned it. this was also a mistake looking back. The results just didnt meet my expectations back then but they were decent results as far as LLT devices go. the results just seemed to dwindle after the 4 months and the return policy was for 6 months so i decided to send it back. Another 8 months passed and my hair kept getting worst.
i then saw the laserband 82 from hairmax and decided to give it a try, this device works a little different than the IGROW as some of you may know. supposedly has "medical grade lasers" and till this day is supposed to be the best commercial LLLT device money can buy. However, that was the not the case with me, the results of the igrow seemed to be better after 5 months of use. IDK if it was because i used an LLLT device before the laserband and stopped that led to me not getting any visible signs of growth the second time or what exactly happened.
My hair loss just kept getting worst, the IGROW system had 25 min sessions and the laserband 82 was only 5 min sessions so i decided to do 2 sessions of the laserband totaling 10 mins of LLLT Therapy. i did this for another 4 months and still nothing my hair kept getting worst. at this point i was about 21 getting close to 22 years old and severely depressed... ( CAN I DO 3 SESSIONS OF LASERBAND 82 ? FOR ANYONE THAT HAS ONE? WHATS YOUR EXPERIENCE WITH IT, THAT WOULD BE 15 MINS OF LLLT)
My hair wasnt getting better even tho i was doing everything i trusted besides 2 things, finasteride and a hair transplant. EXACTLY 6 months ago i had enough, my hair was the worst it had ever been even though i was on 1) liquid minoxidil twice a day, 2) on a LLLT device every other day for 10 mins, and 3) using purador shampoo / regenpure / nizoral. ( had been on minoxidil for 3 yrs at this point, purador shampoo for 1 yr and LLLT for about 1 yr)
I got a FUT transplant at the age of 22 on DEC 13 2016, this was 6 months ago. my surgeon doesnt work by the number of grafts but rather the number of hairs transplanted, he was able to get around 6500 to 7500 hairs in my procedure, not sure how many grafts that translates to. My procedure covered my front hairline to about half my head ( stopped around where my ears are nothing behind that), Nothing was done to the crown cause that wasnt that bad before the transplant. HOWEVER, 2 months later i had severe SHOCK LOSS, i was going crazy ....
AT this point i bit the bullet and got on finasteride every other day on 1mg. I got on it on February 17th and have not missed a dose. At this point i was 2 months post op and month 3 and 4 showed ridiculous growth. im not sure if it was the transplant or the finasteride but in 2 weeks i stopped shedding and started growing a lot of hair back. still looked worst then before the procedure tho IMO. ( Highly suggest anyone getting a transplant in early 20s to get on finasteride BEFORE TRANSPLANT or suffer the consequences)
fast forward to today, 5 and a half months after the transplant, the results are starting to slow down and im starting to shed again. I forgot to mention that when i started finasteride i also got off liquid kirkland minoxidil and went to foam kirkland because i had a lot of irritation due to using the liquid over the years but stayed with it because i knew it was supposed to be more effective, even if slighty. its now been about 3 and a half months of foam minoxidil, AND 3 months of finasteride every other day at 1 mg with no sides ...
REASON im posting this is to find out what else i can be doing. what brands of minoxidil are most effective ? I KNOW THE BIG 3 ive been doing that, but what else should i do since im starting to shedd a lot again ?
Heres my regimen for those who dont wanna read:
Kirkland minoxidil during the day / liquid during the night, LLLT with laserband 82 ( 2 sessions at 10 mins) and 1 mg of finasteride both done every other day but on the same day, and finally Pura dor pro line shampoo and conditioner every day (thinking about trying DS LABS REVITA next but not sure)
also wondering if i could be shedding from finasteride now ? i started it about 3 and a half months ago so i doubt it but i wanna hear your opinions. could it be switching to foam minoxidil? also can i expect the crown to get any better? i know finasteride takes a full yr to work but idk .... what are your thoughts ? could my shedding now just be seasonal shedding ? how often does that happen in a year?
Heres a few pics, 1 day before the transplant and exactly at 5 months now ... i thinnk i look the best i have in the past 4 years in terms of hairloss HOWEVER after my my hair getts greasy from the 2nd or 3rd minoxidil application it looks very crappy still and also when wet it looks pretty bad ...
Im new to the forum but by no means am I new to hairloss, to give a bit of back ground i started losing hair when i was 19. I hoped on minoxidil for about 8 to 9 months and wasnt consistent, it didnt seem to help my temples at the time so i eventually got off of it. A year after at age 20 it got worst, so i hopped on minoxidil and have stayed consistent ever since (about 3+ yrs of liquid kirkland/premier value generic minoxidil).
Minoxidil never really seemed to slow my hairloss down, i know i shouldve gotten on finasteride earlier but i was too scared of side effects because a cousin of mine was dealing with the same problem and got bad sides ...
Since i didnt get on finasteride at that time i got into LLLT devices. I bought an IGROW laser about 2 years ago now and used it for about 4 and a half months and then returned it. this was also a mistake looking back. The results just didnt meet my expectations back then but they were decent results as far as LLT devices go. the results just seemed to dwindle after the 4 months and the return policy was for 6 months so i decided to send it back. Another 8 months passed and my hair kept getting worst.
i then saw the laserband 82 from hairmax and decided to give it a try, this device works a little different than the IGROW as some of you may know. supposedly has "medical grade lasers" and till this day is supposed to be the best commercial LLLT device money can buy. However, that was the not the case with me, the results of the igrow seemed to be better after 5 months of use. IDK if it was because i used an LLLT device before the laserband and stopped that led to me not getting any visible signs of growth the second time or what exactly happened.
My hair loss just kept getting worst, the IGROW system had 25 min sessions and the laserband 82 was only 5 min sessions so i decided to do 2 sessions of the laserband totaling 10 mins of LLLT Therapy. i did this for another 4 months and still nothing my hair kept getting worst. at this point i was about 21 getting close to 22 years old and severely depressed... ( CAN I DO 3 SESSIONS OF LASERBAND 82 ? FOR ANYONE THAT HAS ONE? WHATS YOUR EXPERIENCE WITH IT, THAT WOULD BE 15 MINS OF LLLT)
My hair wasnt getting better even tho i was doing everything i trusted besides 2 things, finasteride and a hair transplant. EXACTLY 6 months ago i had enough, my hair was the worst it had ever been even though i was on 1) liquid minoxidil twice a day, 2) on a LLLT device every other day for 10 mins, and 3) using purador shampoo / regenpure / nizoral. ( had been on minoxidil for 3 yrs at this point, purador shampoo for 1 yr and LLLT for about 1 yr)
I got a FUT transplant at the age of 22 on DEC 13 2016, this was 6 months ago. my surgeon doesnt work by the number of grafts but rather the number of hairs transplanted, he was able to get around 6500 to 7500 hairs in my procedure, not sure how many grafts that translates to. My procedure covered my front hairline to about half my head ( stopped around where my ears are nothing behind that), Nothing was done to the crown cause that wasnt that bad before the transplant. HOWEVER, 2 months later i had severe SHOCK LOSS, i was going crazy ....
AT this point i bit the bullet and got on finasteride every other day on 1mg. I got on it on February 17th and have not missed a dose. At this point i was 2 months post op and month 3 and 4 showed ridiculous growth. im not sure if it was the transplant or the finasteride but in 2 weeks i stopped shedding and started growing a lot of hair back. still looked worst then before the procedure tho IMO. ( Highly suggest anyone getting a transplant in early 20s to get on finasteride BEFORE TRANSPLANT or suffer the consequences)
fast forward to today, 5 and a half months after the transplant, the results are starting to slow down and im starting to shed again. I forgot to mention that when i started finasteride i also got off liquid kirkland minoxidil and went to foam kirkland because i had a lot of irritation due to using the liquid over the years but stayed with it because i knew it was supposed to be more effective, even if slighty. its now been about 3 and a half months of foam minoxidil, AND 3 months of finasteride every other day at 1 mg with no sides ...
REASON im posting this is to find out what else i can be doing. what brands of minoxidil are most effective ? I KNOW THE BIG 3 ive been doing that, but what else should i do since im starting to shedd a lot again ?
Heres my regimen for those who dont wanna read:
Kirkland minoxidil during the day / liquid during the night, LLLT with laserband 82 ( 2 sessions at 10 mins) and 1 mg of finasteride both done every other day but on the same day, and finally Pura dor pro line shampoo and conditioner every day (thinking about trying DS LABS REVITA next but not sure)
also wondering if i could be shedding from finasteride now ? i started it about 3 and a half months ago so i doubt it but i wanna hear your opinions. could it be switching to foam minoxidil? also can i expect the crown to get any better? i know finasteride takes a full yr to work but idk .... what are your thoughts ? could my shedding now just be seasonal shedding ? how often does that happen in a year?
Heres a few pics, 1 day before the transplant and exactly at 5 months now ... i thinnk i look the best i have in the past 4 years in terms of hairloss HOWEVER after my my hair getts greasy from the 2nd or 3rd minoxidil application it looks very crappy still and also when wet it looks pretty bad ...
