Starting A Routine After Reading Around - Opinions?

[BoBo-Brah]

Just another 22yr old dude trying to get his hairline back...

So I actually was one of the (un)lucky few who got a free consultation at a Hair Club location for guys, and it all seemed super awesome and legit. I mean, who doens't like free snacks when they wait? Anywho, I was examined and had my hair follicles checked out by this extreme macro camera that the Dr. was using. He checked my healthy donor area, vs the area that was thinning/balding, and did notice that I cut it down around the edges since it doesn't grow the way I want it to. He advised I stopped that and let it grow out during the treatment he was telling me about.

Now, initially I went in to ask questions purely about Hair Transplant Surgery. Came up with questions/concerns that I wanted to discuss, which I did in the end. But before that he talked to me about their EXT Extreme Hair Therapy system and how that would be a better option for me, given my young age (22 yr old male) and that it would also be financially better. The cost though was like $600 down and then about $250 a month after that. So like $3600 for a year. Which AT FIRST, seemed much better than a Hair Transplant.

Prior to this, I contacted this place called Natural Hair Transplants who I found on YouTube and we did a consultation over WhatsApp, and I got quoted $8000 for a Transplant. Finding something cheaper, is what prompted me to check out Hair Club.

But anyway, the Doctor at Hair Club was super chill and very informative. He gave me lots of information about the hair, how it grows, how the scalp needs to be healthy, and how some supplements like Minoxidil and Finasteride/Propecia can help block the DHT stuff which is what causes hair loss and all that. Super informative, and advised me to try their system for a year like this other patient (who was there also) had done. Showed me before and after of the guy and i did like the results (didnt have the same hair as me, but he had some growth back). In the end, I got my own folder with a copy of the examination results, contact info, and all that jazz. Said I'd do some research and get back to him.

So now, here I am doing more research, only to see that the system he was trying to sell is pretty much overpriced and I can buy all the same sh*t for wayyy cheaper lol. Thank you guys for all the posts and replies I read on previous threads from this site. So with that research, I found some products that I'm going to try for at least 6 months, to see what happens. I still think I'll eventually need to get a hair transplant for the hair line I want. But I at least wanted to get some opinions from you guys. And with the stuff I'm taking that'll add more longevity and help in the end when/if i decide to get a hair transplant.

From what I've read, it seems that besides surgery, Minoxidil, A good clean scalp/healthy diet, along with Finasteride/Propecia or Saw Palmetto is about it.

Finasteride/Propecia I don't want to take, given any risk of side effects. Which I know is super rare, but the alternative is Saw Palmetto. And I can just walk into a store and pickup some vs getting a prescription. I read it has the same effect. Maybe not as strong as Finasteride/Propecia, but it still helps. I figure if I don't notice much, I'll try Finasteride/Propecia instead later on. So here's what I found:

Saw Palmetto - https://www.walmart.com/ip/43933361
Minoxidil 5% - https://www.walmart.com/ip/16627518
Bitoin 10,000mcg + Keritan 100mg - https://www.walmart.com/ip/24681645
DHT Blocking Shampoo & DHT Blocking Conditioner - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KKMVHDH/
Alternative DHT Blocking Shampoo - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01ENCBOA0/

I did find supplements as well that I could probably take.
But I figured my multivitamin and good diet is enough.

I'm 22 years old, and really the balding is on the edges of my head, with some thinning at the top portion. The thinning is only really noticeable (by me, i think), after I cut my hair lower, but when i had it longer, I could still see a difference compared to the rest of my head. Especially when I would run a comb through and could see the level of hair dip towards the top front area. I got pictures attached for you guys.

After the meeting at Hair Club, a few days later I did cut my hair lower and let the sides/front portion grow out. It does look bad in my opinion lol. But its been about 2-3 weeks, and I'm hoping it grows in fuller when I try these new products out.

The way my hair grows, I usually brush the sides forward a bit, and my top portion grows out more, so I sorta style that into a mini flip (which use to be much bigger in highschool - think Wesley Snipes from Blade). So if my hair goes back to that, I would be absolutely set and in love with it again lolol. I'd say I probably noticed my hairline receding either 3-4 years ago.

Pictures For You All

Me Back in Highschool (Early 9th Grade - Senior Year)
https://i.imgur.com/5EKyzE6.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/xm5Biwd.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/9qvzyPC.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/Be7Lkrs.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/zcGwOIU.jpg

How My Hair Looks NOW When I Have The Sides and Front Trimmed A Bit
https://i.imgur.com/MTNP0vy.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/RAekpjq.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/VnznIGX.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/HaDIIfx.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/DWU2ki7.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/tloLgsc.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/Qx9Y8VQ.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/u1QmaLD.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/1D7cQqZ.jpg

When I Brush My Hair Back To See The Actual Hair Line NOW
https://i.imgur.com/ShTfEat.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/0wYMVZA.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ccCNuBJ.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/gY9xzKk.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/3IwO3jq.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ehjM6yr.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/SWkKpao.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/i52syZX.jpg

How I WISH My Hair Was
https://i.imgur.com/qr3tVeJ.jpg

Had some fun in photoshop when i drew the hair line on my head before I had the consultation on WhatsApp. Decided to fill it in with my flip and see how it use to look back in highschool =P

So yea. Opinions?

 

[IncognitoMan]

I tried Saw Palmetto, Pumpkin seed oil, beta sito-sterols, Vitex berry, etc. All had essentially zero impact. Ended up just going onto Finasteride, and have maintained since then. I haven’t used minoxidil yet because I want to give Finasteride 12 months to see what happens, then I may introduce minoxidil. If I were you, I’d jump on Finasteride. The side effects are exaggerated, and you’re unlikely to get them. If you do, you can always stop. I just think it’s your best bet at recovering what you lost, or halting further loss. If you’re using minoxidil too, that may help with regrowth. Anyway, just my opinion. Best of luck.

 

[Gary Ferguson]

Finasteride all the way saw palmetto will have no impact on your hair loss, good luck with minoxidil though, the most impressive minoxidil results I’ve seen have been on African hair

 

[BoBo-Brah]

I tried Saw Palmetto, Pumpkin seed oil, beta sito-sterols, Vitex berry, etc. All had essentially zero impact. Ended up just going onto Finasteride, and have maintained since then. I haven’t used minoxidil yet because I want to give Finasteride 12 months to see what happens, then I may introduce minoxidil. If I were you, I’d jump on Finasteride. The side effects are exaggerated, and you’re unlikely to get them. If you do, you can always stop. I just think it’s your best bet at recovering what you lost, or halting further loss. If you’re using minoxidil too, that may help with regrowth. Anyway, just my opinion. Best of luck.

Finasteride all the way saw palmetto will have no impact on your hair loss, good luck with minoxidil though, the most impressive minoxidil results I’ve seen have been on African hair

Hmm. Well I already bought the Saw Palmetto, so I'm gonna go ahead and give it a try. Who knows, might work decently for me. But I'll keep the Finasteride on the table as the main backup plan for DHT blocking. The concern i have with minoxidil is that it says its for the more top and crown portion of the head. I know those areas are genetically different, but i still think hair is hair and it should do some good for my sides and front area.

 

[BoBo-Brah]

New shampoo and conditioner just came in, along with some saw palmetto i bought. Picked up the Minoxidil as well too. Figured i might turn this into a results thread. some hair has already grown back (given that i stopped trimming it), so imma post what it looks like now when i get back home and i guess ill keep this thread updated overtime as well.

 

[itsjustsimon]

You are 22. That means sooner or later you'll have to make one of two choices: to accept you're bald or to take finasteride because your balding gene is way too aggressive to wait and f*** around with treatments that do not work. Everybody who starts balding as you do before 25 has really no other choice.

All that time you are trying those alternatives, you are losing hair and by far the most important thing with finasteride is to start as early as possible. It maintenance treatment, if the hair goes it's never coming back.

If finasteride is no-go for you, maybe try CB or some other alternative. But you have to address this problem if you want to maintain your hair. Even if you're planning to do hair transplant, you need to be on antiandrogen.

 

[BoBo-Brah]

Shower head filter just came in today and I got it installed just now. Should help filter out a lot of chlorine and all that other sh*t that's bad for the skin and body. One I bought - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MUBU0YC/

This is the starting point:
After letting my hair grow a bit for a few weeks.

https://i.imgur.com/6fgZwch.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/6GuBkhb.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/uBbSEWn.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/xWxVnfA.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/EndcRq4.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/2SOxWWC.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/u1y8Fdi.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/NRuqnwK.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/gWDErJC.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/c9uxdfk.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/lpUD9QJ.jpg

My Routine will be as follows:

Morning

• 500mg Saw Palmetto
• Apply 5% Minoxidil To Problem Areas
• Apply regular hair care product I'm already using (Africas Best Maximum Strength Super Grow)

Evening

• 500mg Saw Palmetto

Night

• Shower Using Biotin/DHT Blocking Shampoo and Conditioner
• Apply 5% Minoxidil To Problem Areas
• Apply regular hair care product I'm already using (Doo Gro Mega Thick Growth Oil & Sunflower Mega Care Manuka Oil)

Probably will need a hair transplant to be honest. But I can at least do something for now while saving up.
Gonna give this 6 months. By the 3rd month, if no real progress has been made to grow/halt further loss, I'll switch it up to November 11, 2019 (or if things dont look to promising before hand).

After letting my hair grow though, I can see some growing back along the natural hair line I had back in highschool. It's thin of course, but seeing that makes me more confident that its not too late for me to get things back the way they were before.

Start Date: May 11, 2019
End Date : November 11, 2019

1 update a week w/ pics.

You are 22. That means sooner or later you'll have to make one of two choices: to accept you're bald or to take finasteride because your balding gene is way too aggressive to wait and f*** around with treatments that do not work. Everybody who starts balding as you do before 25 has really no other choice.

All that time you are trying those alternatives, you are losing hair and by far the most important thing with finasteride is to start as early as possible. It maintenance treatment, if the hair goes it's never coming back.

If finasteride is no-go for you, maybe try CB or some other alternative. But you have to address this problem if you want to maintain your hair. Even if you're planning to do hair transplant, you need to be on antiandrogen.

What's CB?

I found a few sites online to buy it at, like these:
https://www.forhims.com/hair-loss/finasteride
https://www.getroman.com/drugs/finasteride/#toggle-id-1
https://www.blinkhealth.com/finasteride

Apparently you can get a prescription online by talking to one of their doctors.
Would you recommend doing it online with an evaluation by one of the doctors from the sites?

 

[BoBo-Brah]

Just got a prescription for Finasteride today. 90 pills every 3 months. For $10.
Gonna pick it up on Monday, literally took me about 30 minutes to apply, and about 10min for the online Doctor to approve.

 

[BoBo-Brah]

Picked up my prescription. 90 pills for $35. Welp, gonna start it today. Doubt I'll have any side effects. But for now with saving up, I'll stick to this routine of mines before I get a hair transplant.

 

[transam]

Picked up my prescription. 90 pills for $35. Welp, gonna start it today. Doubt I'll have any side effects. But for now with saving up, I'll stick to this routine of mines before I get a hair transplant.

good luck

 

[BoBo-Brah]

good luck

Thanks man. Appreciate it.

 

[BoBo-Brah]

New Progress Pics - 05/25/2019

https://i.imgur.com/oiErbva.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ZDFClLl.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/uplzbxP.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/lUjoD6B.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/PLaTnqD.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/neiUETm.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/NM4nM1k.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/bIMgAvR.jpg

 

[BoBo-Brah]

New Progress Pics - 6/10/2019

https://i.imgur.com/3802tXC.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/dZpNpqL.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/bpU7IuM.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/llLD45u.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/rIZMsCp.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/QJlYgC0.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/gCmbDFN.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/21lYB26.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/IoEg0hQ.jpg

Meant to post these actually on the 10th, but meh. Anyway. Hair is growing overall on my head. Not seeing a big difference around my sides and front portion. Granted I haven't been 100% strict with the routine (gotta really work on that honestly).

This was me fresh out the shower after the DHT blocking shampoo wash.

My updated & current routine below. Swapped out the saw palmetto i was taking with a better and more efficient brand that has a standardized extract percentage with the fatty acids.

No side effects from Finasteride, been almost a month now.

Morning
Supplements
Centrum Silver Multi Vitamin
600mg Cranberry Concentrate
1200mg Ceylon Cinnamon
350mg Krill Oil
1300mg Turmeric Circumin
Equate Vision Formula 50+

Routine
5% Minoxidil Applied To Trouble Areas.
Africas Best Super Grow
Africas Best Essential Oils


Afternoon
Supplements
1mg Finasteride
480mg Saw Palmetto (85%+ Fatty Acid Standardized)
2000mg Pumpkin Seed Oil
10,000mcg Biotin + 100mg Keratin
50mcg Vitamin D3

Routine
None...


Night
Supplements
None...

Routine
Re:Line DHT Blocking Biotin/Saw Palmetto Shampoo & Conditioner
5% Minoxidil Applied To Trouble Areas.
Doo Groo Mega Thick Growth Oil
Manuka Oil
Isoplus Castor Oil / Coconut Oil
^ (Thinking of buying separate specific oils and mixing them myself...)


Will try and update weekly.

 

[BoBo-Brah]

Havent posted in a while. But heres an update for you guys.

Ordered some different oils to mix and try at night instead of the ones I've been using. Read up on some stuff and checked the ingredients to notice a lot of the oils I was using had a bunch of fillers and other additives (especially the "manuka oil"), so i stopped using them and will be replacing them with these guys. Basically the sh*t that I actually want in my hair to help growth. Ingredients and products linked below:

Pumpkin Seed Oil
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B071VN34PB/

Castor Oil, Caffeine, Rosemary Oil and Biotin
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07GC56H36/

Organic Black Castor Oil, Organic Jojoba, Organic Argan, Organic Refined Rosehip, Organic Cayenne Extract, Organic Pomegranate Extract, Organic Alfalfa Extract, Organic Spearmint, Organic Ginkgo Biloba Extract, Organic Lemongrass, Organic Tea Tree, Organic Peppermint
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075QXGY44/

Been a while now since i cut my hair (little over 2 months now) and it definitely has grown a bit overall, but i don't notice a lot of growth in my trouble areas. Easily seen when im fresh out the shower, comb my hair, or brush it real quick. The thinning areas leave gaps in my nappy hair and I have to comb my hair specifically to go over some of the parts so it doesn't have these gaps and look too thin.

No side effects still from Finasteride either

The minoxidil i noticed does dry out my problem ares when left overnight. So I bought some plastic hair caps, to keep the product in and that helped with the drying out a lot. Also it doesn't run and spill anymore either on my face or sides. Best bonus is that my pillows don't wipe it off haha.

Progress Pics 06/26/19

Regular brushed/combed on the sides. (this was after work and didnt really comb it again so hair was kinda messed up )
https://i.imgur.com/0CHokaT.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/OxnCMbb.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/nP18dGs.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/wy975Go.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/G7cJbtT.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/S9LvUJx.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/YCpy0OV.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/BN4pMPs.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/FTQDUJe.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/vUwCCC7.jpg

Fully combed out. (not too bad for on/off 2 months routine)
https://i.imgur.com/i90K356.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ftI2Dds.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/C0g4jjy.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/EWzs2AJ.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/uxjyos8.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/xyjbLmS.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/E9UHRQ9.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/81RkhkE.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/TsK8XCZ.jpg

God I hate this hairline so much.... lol, gonna be a while to save up and then a while more for things to fully grow back in. Glad i started finasteride and found this forum.

I just need to keep up with my routine more so and I think my hair will start to grow in more....

Gonna be months before anything really noticeable, but so far i haven't said screw it and cut my hair lower. Just been combing and combing while doing my best to ignore this damn hairline of mines lol.

 

[BoBo-Brah]

So my replacement saw palmetto came in today. The one i was taking was by Naturemade (Super Saw Palmetto 480mg), but after I saw that I needed to order some I couldn't find them anymore, or the ones I did find were like 3x the price. So nah, Im good lol.

This replacement tho (Best Naturals Saw Palmetto Extract 320mg) came in and its a power instead of a liquid. Don't know if that makes a difference. But its a 320mg pill instead of the 480mg pill now. Still has 85% - 95% Fatty acids and Sterols, so I'm good on that, just wish i still had the higher dosage. Just throws me off. This one is 90 pills, which'll last me longer tho...

Best Naturals

Naturemade

SIDE BY SIDE

Pretty sure it should work the same. But if the Naturemade comes back in stock soon, imma order a couple bottles just cuz i like the higher dosage and think the liquid would be better.

 

[Homebrewhero]

Before starting finasteride I used a 320mg Saw Palmetto capsule from Swanson (85% fatty acids). Did nothing for my hair, but my libido went through the roof! Couldn't concentrate.
Also found I needed to get up less in the night to pee. I'm 47. Now use a lower strength/cheaper SP for the prostate along with 0.25mg finasteridde for the hairline.

 

[BoBo-Brah]

Been a while since i updated this. I'll get some pics posted soon, but ill be honest, I havent keep up with this routine lol. My hair is growing tho. Its at the point now that i need to use a pick for it to comb through.

Also been looking into making my own DIY Shampoo, Conditioner, and Serum as well. Will talk more about that later tho when i get time.

Just felt like posting an update (with an actual update to come later)

Before starting finasteride I used a 320mg Saw Palmetto capsule from Swanson (85% fatty acids). Did nothing for my hair, but my libido went through the roof! Couldn't concentrate.
Also found I needed to get up less in the night to pee. I'm 47. Now use a lower strength/cheaper SP for the prostate along with 0.25mg finasteridde for the hairline.

Haven't had any side effects myself. Been taking 1mg finasteride along with 320mg of saw palmetto for the last couple months. Still waking up with morning wood here and there and nothing out of the ordinary at all lol.