Shedding, words of encouragement badly needed.

[FearlessPenguin]

Hey,

I started losing my hair around a year ago and currently have temple recession however it is not at a drastic level just yet. I started taking Finasteride at the beginning of August so around One month and a week and have been Minoxidil (hair line only) for nearly 3 weeks.

In the past few days I have noticed an increase in hairs in my hands when styling etc. and my hair is feeling and looking slightly 'lighter' in weight etc. The hairs that are coming out tend to be fine and thin and some are shorted than the majority of my hair. IT is really starting to get me down as I am so worried I may not recover and could be bald sooner than I had hoped. I have heard about shedding in the first few months of using Finasteride and my goal was always to improve the appearance of the hair I had when I started and surely this can't happen without getting rid of the dead wood first before new hairs can grow so that would mean things would have to get worse before they got better. If a guy had miniturized hair all over his head and he started Finasteride there would be a phase at some point when he has little to no hair when the old hair has been shed for new hair. Obviously this is an extreme example but I hope you get my point.

I read a lot about the possible shed and was even warned by my Doctor that it could happen however the first few weeks seemed fine but now the fine hairs are starting to fall and it is getting me down. I know in a few months time if the hair is thicker etc. I will look back on this phase as a positive but right now it seems anything but! Do you guys have any encouragement for a young guy going through this? I know it seems stupid but really all I need is someone to tell me things will be OK. I know every one is different and no one can guarantee it but any words would be greatly appreciated to help me through this phase. I am just tempted to give up the war even at this early stage.

Thanks

 

[StartingTreatment]

Yo man,

Alright dude...so I'm 29 and I just started using finasteride in June. I have mildly thinning hair on my crown (about the size of my palm, maybe a little bit smaller). I don't have any bald/smooth areas up there, there is hair there...it's just thinner right on top...you can really see it in the light. I'm also thinning just a little bit at my temples, and the anterior portion of my head (kind of up and back behind the front of my hairline from my temples), but not bad at all! It's something I notice, but no one else would.

So I decided to take the plunge and jump onto finasteride, because it's the most legit stuff there is to fight back. I'm one of those guys that has pretty nice hair, so I'd like to keep it if I can. haha. I heard the earlier you start, the better chances you've got.

Anyways bro...I got into about the first month of treatment (4 wks), and my hair just started shedding like mad! (and I worried about it a lot too, because my hair wasn't THAT bad to start with). It lasted like a WEEK too. I'd wake up and I'd have it on my pillow (like 20-30 hairs, normally I'd have like 4-5). It was in the shower more, on my laptop keyboard more, etc. So I stuck it out, and it stopped. And then a few weeks later, at about the second month of treatment (8 weeks)...it started again. And it lasted longer that time...more than a week, but not more than two...and then it slowed way down again. (but I couldn't stand it that second time, so I buzzed my head with a size 3 clipper guard...pretty short...so it wouldn't bother me as much. So if you're cool with the buzzed look, which I am...it helps...because in the time it's taken to grow back, it's looking better right now than when I was shedding so bad)

I'm coming up on my third month of treatment (5 more days) and I haven't had shedding for the past few weeks...but it seems like it's starting to just a little bit again.

But the hair at my temples is looking more healthy, and the crown of my head is looking just a little bit better too (than it was right when I started!) So I'm seeing some improvement. Also, some of the hairs I'm losing into the sink that were probably already healthy before are looking REALLY thick! I have dark hair, so I can really tell when one falls into the white sink...thicker than I've seen some of my hairs look in a long time. So I think I'm seeing some results.

My advice: A) Don't count hairs, it'll drive you f*ck'in crazy. B) If you're cool with the buzz, do it. It'll take your mind off it, and possibly grow back looking better to you. C) I would stick it out. What I told myself is that I was just going to stick it out no matter WHAT for a full year...because what do you have to lose? Besides your hair if you don't do anything.

Anyways...long post...but I wanted to help you out because I know how bad those sh*tty sheds SUCK! I hope I'm done with them too.


Oh P.S...I'm on minoxidil too...started it like 3.5 years ago, wish I had started the finasteride first I think.