So far, so good!

[jeffshair]

Hey Guys,

I've been a lurker on these and other forums for awhile, but finally decided to post to show my progress so far, to hopefully encourage others who are in the same boat.

I've been taking the branded 5% minoxidil foam since January 6th of this year 2x a day, once in the morning after showering (damp hair, I heard that it gets absorbed something like 20x better this way, not sure how accurate that statement is but I read it somewhere in my quest to find all the available information I can find), and once after eating dinner around 7ish (plenty of time to absorb before going to sleep). I've missed only 6 or so applications in March when I went on a vacation for several days to Florida (was bringing a carry-on and didn't want to have to take it out to get passed security, out of embarrassment)

I know I'm probably going to get ripped apart for having a before and after picture with different lighting and somewhat different hair lengths. I really should have taken a better start picture because I feel like my results so far have been really good, but I have to admit I was a little skeptical when I first started treatment that's why I wasn't as serious about taking a picture since I didn't think it was going to work that well.

I did notice after several weeks a decent sized shed which really freaked me out but I pressed through (and kept my hair buzzed to disguise it) and so far I'm liking the results. I literally just started today taking Nizoral 1% and am going to use this once every 3 days, leaving it in for about 5 mins. Will report back on progress with this in the future (it felt refreshing, hopefully that's a good sign).

I'm not sure where I fall on the Norwood scale - anyone have any opinions?



It wasn't until November of last year when I turned 25 that I realized I was losing my hair, and it came as a shock since I hadn't really noticed I was thinning in the crown, what a sad day that was, but I felt like I should at least try something, thinking that I have nothing to lose at this point, glad I did, and hopefully I continue to see improvement as I add some products to my routine, however I will most likely avoid finasteride, but I will continue to try topicals as I read good things about many of them.

 

[I.D WALKER]

Don't worry so much about your Norwood level. Your regimen is certainly paying off and it has unquestionably produced a dramatic improvement for your hair coverage/density. Rejoice and focus on that milestone for now. What are your thoughts on incorporating finasteride into your treatment plan in the not too distant future? All the best.

 

[jeffshair]

Starting off slowly, so I'm just adding 1% Nizoral to my routine every 3 days for 5 mins in addition to the 5% minoxidil 2x/day. I'll see what kind of progress I make with that for the next 6 months and decide if I want to add anything else at that point. I'm still nervous about finasteride, and also the fact that I'd have to go to the dr. to get a prescription for it (haven't been to the doctor since I was 18, I have a fear of doctors lol, so if anything I'd have to get a full physical in addition to talking about hair loss and getting an rx, that's a stressful event that can likely lead to more hair loss depending on the outcome! haha). I'll see how things play out for the time being. Thanks for the encouragement! I noticed a decent improvement myself that's why I felt compelled to post some pics.

The only thing I'm worried about is I've read that the efficacy of minoxidil over the long term hasn't been proven, so in a few years it might not be nearly as effective for me as it is right now..don't know if that's because your body builds up a tolerance for it, or what, still have to read up more on it.

 

[aj218]

Bro it seems like the bald area on your crown has shrunk in, which is awesome. And it's only been 4 months on minoxidil.

Hopefully with nizoral (and maybe finasteride if you're willing at some point) you can grow even more hair back on your crown.

If anything, you shouldn't get any thinner.

 

[skyghost]

those are great results, keep going! unk:

 

[zzzzz]

you should start finasteride 1mg or 1.25mg daily

 

[jeffshair]

Thanks!

The first picture is a little bit deceiving because it wasn't a completely bald patch, the lighting hides the small vellous hairs that were there, but I've noticed that those light colored small vellous hairs shed after the first month on minoxidil and then began to get darker and darker - which will hopefully continue until it's all filled in

I'm holding off on finasteride for the time being, I may try adding Saw Palmetto / Biotin pills in a few months to my routine, we'll see how it goes with Nizoral now.

 

[zzzzz]

By holding off on finasteride you are only making your potential for regrowth worse, your hair loss is not waiting for you. minoxidil is only an illusion of thicker hair by increased blood flow, it does not solve the underlying problem of DHT which continues to progress, even though it appears that your hair is actually getting thicker. If side effects is why you are delaying than you are more scared than you need to be as sides are rare, usually mild, and only last like 4 weeks maximum

 

[jeffshair]

By holding off on finasteride you are only making your potential for regrowth worse, your hair loss is not waiting for you. minoxidil is only an illusion of thicker hair by increased blood flow, it does not solve the underlying problem of DHT which continues to progress, even though it appears that your hair is actually getting thicker. If side effects is why you are delaying than you are more scared than you need to be as sides are rare, usually mild, and only last like 4 weeks maximum

That's ok, I like magic lol. Seriously though, it's more than sides, it's expensive, need an rx, would want regular blood tests to make sure nothing weird is up that doesn't show as physical sides, etc. Worst case scenario for me is I'll just shave my head, already was accustomed to buzzing it every few weeks with a #2, not a stretch to go no-guard or blade. I was more worried a few months ago about losing my hair when I first became aware of it, now I'm not as worried I guess it "grew" on me, no pun intended.

 

[GoldenMane]

Very impressive results. I concur, finasteride is necessary if you want to keep what you have long term and have even more success. The only thing nizoral will do for you is sort out your dandruff if you have any.

 

[jeffshair]

Very impressive results. I concur, finasteride is necessary if you want to keep what you have long term and have even more success. The only thing nizoral will do for you is sort out your dandruff if you have any.

Hey, I read your post on here and see that your results were great with finasteride, did you use Nizoral on a regular basis (2 months or more) and can confirm that it did nothing for you? I'm wondering if it will work better on a shorter haircut like I have because it can better penetrate the scalp, and if I use the same amount as instructed it has less area to cover so it should potentially be higher concentration. Don't know, I'm still just 1 day in with using it so I won't know until a few months what if anything it accomplishes. Thanks for the encouragement!

 

[jetli99]

Nice. Did your hairline come in more, or is that just the angle/lighting?

 

[jeffshair]

Only recently started applying to temple area will see how well it works, it's also the angle that I took it, but I keep my hair short so it's hard to tell

 

[GoldenMane]

@ jeff Yes, I've been using nizoral since I was 14 years old due to a lifelong dandruff problem. I was using nizoral all the while my hair was thinning and hairline receeding. I can categorically state that nizoral did nothing for my hairloss, I used it all my adult life, before I even knew it had mild AA properties, and I still started losing my hair. Nizoral is first and foremost an anti dandruff shampoo, if it has DHT blocking properties then they are so mild that they are barely worth talking about

 

[jeffshair]

Here's an update, 1 month of Nizoral 1% 1x/3 days, and Biotin daily, in addition to minoxidil 2x/day



Hard to tell from the picture but there are hairs in the crown area that are less pigmented vellous hairs, and I'm hoping they turn terminal over the next few months. Also been applying minoxidil at the hairline and I'm noticing little baby vellous hair there as well so looking forward to seeing how that turns out

Also should mention that my hair is about 2 weeks post-cut in this picture (#2 buzz), the previous after picture was about 4/5weeks after a hair-cut

 

[jeffshair]

Here's a new pic, up close, this is after about 10 days after a #2 buzz cut, still continuing with the same regimen. Been on 5% minoxidil 2x/day for the last year, and Nizoral 1% MWF since May. It continues to look more full over time which I'm very happy with. You can see a lot of the vellous hairs are starting to get pigmented. Still unsure if I'll add finasteride at this point, since I do like to donate blood regularly. I'm thinking about using a non-SLS shampoo on my non-nizoral days to give my scalp a break from irritation, so probably will go with regenepure NT in the near future.



This picture got shrunk - see full size image here: http://imageshack.com/a/img910/333/uYn3EQ.png

 

[chemicalbrother]

holy regrowth ! Whatever it is that you do -> keep doing it , religiously ... whatever it is that you use , keep using it ... cause it's working (in your case)

 

[MercMan]

Nice man. In for finasteride for the win...

 

[jeffshair]

Here's a current comparison of before and after treatments. First pic on the left is December 5, 2013, before I started anything. Pic on the right is from December 29, 2014 after being on minoxidil 2x/day for a year and Nizoral 1% MWF since May. Same lighting, and about the same hair length. Hopefully things continue to progress. I take pictures very regularly so that I can see any changes over time so I know if I should add to my regimen or alter it in any way. My advice to anyone looking to start a treatment plan is to definitely take a lot of pictures along the way so you know what's working and what's not. You can't make good decisions if you don't have the data to prove it. This is also the reason why I'm slowly adding to my regimen over time instead of starting everything at once, no point in paying for a treatment if it's not effective for you and potentially causing you sides in the process.

http://imageshack.com/a/img903/8281/cWc3gQ.png

 

[prettydamnbald]

Excellent results! Congrats!