StrangeKarma
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First post here, of course I have been lurking for a while..
Started going bald when I was 17, but it has been very slow, and only my hairline around my temples moved in, it was really really slow, so slow that I ignored it for almost 3 years, but was still concious about it enough that I wore hats often even though my hair actually looked pretty good and thick (dark brown wavy hair). But now @ 24, it has gotten so thin recently and I'm going from a NW2 that I was for a long time to a 2.5 and definately on track for a 3V.
Soooo I went to a local hair transplant Doctor to discuss what I could do and where I was at. He gave me some perscriptions and told me to try them for a year, I also looked over this website a bunch and although I am pretty against taking drugs of any kind, and was very weary of the finasteride side effects, I made the decision to say "fk it" and went on my quest to save my precious hair.
Wish me luck! I know how depressing it is for all of us to deal with such a useless and utterly depressing medical condition at such an early age while many other guys walk around with perfect full heads of hair, and I have been through the woe-is-me sh*t many times, but now that I am doing something about it, I can hold my head up high and pray for the best. Even if the treatments make me nervous with the shedding and if they don't work and I end up a NW4 by the time I'm 27, at least I will know I tried.
Good luck to everyone here, maybe one day soon medical science will provide us with an end to our suffering, but until then, goooo drugs!
*Update*
Ok, I have progression pictures starting with my baseline top shot, and follow ups until January 10th, 2008. I can not believe how much I have improved.... For those of you unsure about finasteride or minoxidil Foam, please give them a try before it's too late!!! If only I had started treatment about a year or two earlier.... See for yourself (I appologize for the shitty pics, my camera is really really crappy).
Baseline picture from the top, my hair is longer here than in any other picture, was losing hair everywhere, it was falling out by the hundreds per day, I could rub my hair and get 5-10 hairs no problem, I was an emotional wreck. August 10th, 2007
Two Months on finasteride - Starting minoxidil Foam, Oct 10, 2007. I shaved my head with a G3, you can clearly see how thin I am at this point, still really in a bad state of mind, but hoping for the best.
1.5 Months on Min Foam, 4.5 Months on finasteride, hair starting to grow in, and wouldn't you know it? It looks THICKER!? I thought it was the lighting, but I took several pictures and they all turned out just like this. HUGE SHED during this time a week before, scared the f*****g sh*t out of me. November 25th, 2007.
3 Months on Min Foam, 5.5 months in finasteride, big shed in early december, my hair was feeling great and had volume again, I can't believe it. December 20th, 2007.
4 Months on Min Foam, 6.5 months on finasteride... What can I say? It looks and feels fantastic at this point, I went from a Norwood 2.5 to a 2 again, in 6 months..... THERE IS HOPE AFTERALL. January 20, 2008. Note - At the start of my treatment, my hair would fall out like crazy, little weak hairs everywhere, and even some thick ones. Now I can run my hands through my hair vigorously and I get MAYBE 1 or 2 hairs, it's like it completely reversed... I am in complete awe about how well it has helped my hair, I feel insanely confident, I was a recluse before this and now I find myself getting up and enjoying styling my hair again, it's such a liberating feeling... PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE give your treatments a try and start EARLY, for all those of you starting to go bald, even at 17 like I was, START NOW!!!!
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Early Post....
So far- finasteride has INCREASED my libido, no lies. I felt like I was going to go crazy the first three weeks I was on it. No ball ache, no nothing other then an increased libidio and a bit "watery" you know.... :whistle:
I also ordered 3 months (3 bottles) of Rogain Foam off Amazon.com which arrived october 10th. I have been on the foam using it only once per day @ night before I go to bed, and now almost four weeks in, I am getting a pretty big shed. It is a bit scary, I gotta admit, my hair is looking pretty damn thin up there, but it seems almost all the hairs I am shedding are weaker/lighter vellus hairs, with a few thick ones here and there. Is anyone else doing a once a day application with foam? It seems like it has initiated the dreaded shed just doing that, so I'm hoping in 3-5 months I will start to see volume returning and maybe get a bit of my hairline back and go for an amazing NW2 for a while and maybe if I hold until I'm 30, get a light transplant to fill in the gaps of my temple.
I'm not using nizoral, since I'm on the foam and despite the fact that I have suffered from psoryisis when I was younger, I am not getting any irritation what so ever from it, so I will take that as a good sign. I have Nutrogenea tar shampoo for my scalp, but rarely seem to have to use it.
Started going bald when I was 17, but it has been very slow, and only my hairline around my temples moved in, it was really really slow, so slow that I ignored it for almost 3 years, but was still concious about it enough that I wore hats often even though my hair actually looked pretty good and thick (dark brown wavy hair). But now @ 24, it has gotten so thin recently and I'm going from a NW2 that I was for a long time to a 2.5 and definately on track for a 3V.
Soooo I went to a local hair transplant Doctor to discuss what I could do and where I was at. He gave me some perscriptions and told me to try them for a year, I also looked over this website a bunch and although I am pretty against taking drugs of any kind, and was very weary of the finasteride side effects, I made the decision to say "fk it" and went on my quest to save my precious hair.
Wish me luck! I know how depressing it is for all of us to deal with such a useless and utterly depressing medical condition at such an early age while many other guys walk around with perfect full heads of hair, and I have been through the woe-is-me sh*t many times, but now that I am doing something about it, I can hold my head up high and pray for the best. Even if the treatments make me nervous with the shedding and if they don't work and I end up a NW4 by the time I'm 27, at least I will know I tried.
Good luck to everyone here, maybe one day soon medical science will provide us with an end to our suffering, but until then, goooo drugs!
*Update*
Ok, I have progression pictures starting with my baseline top shot, and follow ups until January 10th, 2008. I can not believe how much I have improved.... For those of you unsure about finasteride or minoxidil Foam, please give them a try before it's too late!!! If only I had started treatment about a year or two earlier.... See for yourself (I appologize for the shitty pics, my camera is really really crappy).
Baseline picture from the top, my hair is longer here than in any other picture, was losing hair everywhere, it was falling out by the hundreds per day, I could rub my hair and get 5-10 hairs no problem, I was an emotional wreck. August 10th, 2007
Two Months on finasteride - Starting minoxidil Foam, Oct 10, 2007. I shaved my head with a G3, you can clearly see how thin I am at this point, still really in a bad state of mind, but hoping for the best.
1.5 Months on Min Foam, 4.5 Months on finasteride, hair starting to grow in, and wouldn't you know it? It looks THICKER!? I thought it was the lighting, but I took several pictures and they all turned out just like this. HUGE SHED during this time a week before, scared the f*****g sh*t out of me. November 25th, 2007.
3 Months on Min Foam, 5.5 months in finasteride, big shed in early december, my hair was feeling great and had volume again, I can't believe it. December 20th, 2007.
4 Months on Min Foam, 6.5 months on finasteride... What can I say? It looks and feels fantastic at this point, I went from a Norwood 2.5 to a 2 again, in 6 months..... THERE IS HOPE AFTERALL. January 20, 2008. Note - At the start of my treatment, my hair would fall out like crazy, little weak hairs everywhere, and even some thick ones. Now I can run my hands through my hair vigorously and I get MAYBE 1 or 2 hairs, it's like it completely reversed... I am in complete awe about how well it has helped my hair, I feel insanely confident, I was a recluse before this and now I find myself getting up and enjoying styling my hair again, it's such a liberating feeling... PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE give your treatments a try and start EARLY, for all those of you starting to go bald, even at 17 like I was, START NOW!!!!
-------------
Early Post....
So far- finasteride has INCREASED my libido, no lies. I felt like I was going to go crazy the first three weeks I was on it. No ball ache, no nothing other then an increased libidio and a bit "watery" you know.... :whistle:
I also ordered 3 months (3 bottles) of Rogain Foam off Amazon.com which arrived october 10th. I have been on the foam using it only once per day @ night before I go to bed, and now almost four weeks in, I am getting a pretty big shed. It is a bit scary, I gotta admit, my hair is looking pretty damn thin up there, but it seems almost all the hairs I am shedding are weaker/lighter vellus hairs, with a few thick ones here and there. Is anyone else doing a once a day application with foam? It seems like it has initiated the dreaded shed just doing that, so I'm hoping in 3-5 months I will start to see volume returning and maybe get a bit of my hairline back and go for an amazing NW2 for a while and maybe if I hold until I'm 30, get a light transplant to fill in the gaps of my temple.
I'm not using nizoral, since I'm on the foam and despite the fact that I have suffered from psoryisis when I was younger, I am not getting any irritation what so ever from it, so I will take that as a good sign. I have Nutrogenea tar shampoo for my scalp, but rarely seem to have to use it.
