Hey all,
I've been visiting this site for the past few years, and I have learned quite a bit about hairloss as well as how to fight against it. I have finally gotten up the courage to tell my story, which mirrors many of those I've read on this board.
I inherited my hairloss from my mother's side (my dad has a full head of hair). My grandfather was completely bald at age 25 along with all of his brothers. This fact never provided me with much comfort.
When I was a teenager, I had a very full head of hair. I remember my barber using a thinning tool to thin my hair enough to cut it. I always thought I would keep my hair (despite my family history) because of how thick it was. I noticed a slightly receding hairline at age 19. This caused me a huge amount of anxiety, and I experienced the same emotions that I'm sure many of you experienced when you first noticed. Anyway, I kept pretty close track of my hairline from that point forward. At the time, there was no medical treatment that I was aware of for hairloss (this was 1990). For the next few years, I did not detect any noticable change in my hairline, and my hair seemed to be as thick as it always was. For a brief perod of time, I convinced myself that I wasn't going bald and that the loss of hairline (.5" at most) was due to just getting older.
At age 23, I discovered differently. My hair began feeling thinner, and didn't have the body it used to have. There was no scalp showing, but I began to realize that this was probably the next stage of my hairloss, and I became very depressed again. As the years went by, the thinning continued. It was very slow, but steady. At age 25, I started taking Rogaine 2% (5% hadn't been released). Surprisingly, after about 3 months, I seemed to be responding (no additional hairloss with slight regrowth). Thinking (stupidly) the regrowth had nothing to do with the Rogaine, I stopped taking it. Well, as you can imagine, the thinning continued. At age 29, people started making comments. I ordered Toppik (spelling?) and started using it with much success. It works great on thinning hair because it seems to fill in the gaps. At age 31, I stopped taking Toppik (too messy, and was becoming noticable). Now, at age 35, I am noticably thin (diffuse). My hairline is still intact, but it is completely obvious that I am losing my hair.
About 2 months ago, I started taking 1mg finasteride once a day (no sides yet) and 1ml 5% minoxidil twice a day. It may be too little too late, but even if I can maintain, I still have enough hair (coverage) to not shave it. Regrowth would be a definate plus.
On the plus side, I am married with kids, so I don't have to worry about what women think about me. My hairloss doesn't really even bother me that much unless I see a recent photo of me (the camera subtracts at least 1-2 Norwood).
Well, that's it for now. Sorry for the long-winded post.
I've been visiting this site for the past few years, and I have learned quite a bit about hairloss as well as how to fight against it. I have finally gotten up the courage to tell my story, which mirrors many of those I've read on this board.
I inherited my hairloss from my mother's side (my dad has a full head of hair). My grandfather was completely bald at age 25 along with all of his brothers. This fact never provided me with much comfort.
When I was a teenager, I had a very full head of hair. I remember my barber using a thinning tool to thin my hair enough to cut it. I always thought I would keep my hair (despite my family history) because of how thick it was. I noticed a slightly receding hairline at age 19. This caused me a huge amount of anxiety, and I experienced the same emotions that I'm sure many of you experienced when you first noticed. Anyway, I kept pretty close track of my hairline from that point forward. At the time, there was no medical treatment that I was aware of for hairloss (this was 1990). For the next few years, I did not detect any noticable change in my hairline, and my hair seemed to be as thick as it always was. For a brief perod of time, I convinced myself that I wasn't going bald and that the loss of hairline (.5" at most) was due to just getting older.
At age 23, I discovered differently. My hair began feeling thinner, and didn't have the body it used to have. There was no scalp showing, but I began to realize that this was probably the next stage of my hairloss, and I became very depressed again. As the years went by, the thinning continued. It was very slow, but steady. At age 25, I started taking Rogaine 2% (5% hadn't been released). Surprisingly, after about 3 months, I seemed to be responding (no additional hairloss with slight regrowth). Thinking (stupidly) the regrowth had nothing to do with the Rogaine, I stopped taking it. Well, as you can imagine, the thinning continued. At age 29, people started making comments. I ordered Toppik (spelling?) and started using it with much success. It works great on thinning hair because it seems to fill in the gaps. At age 31, I stopped taking Toppik (too messy, and was becoming noticable). Now, at age 35, I am noticably thin (diffuse). My hairline is still intact, but it is completely obvious that I am losing my hair.
About 2 months ago, I started taking 1mg finasteride once a day (no sides yet) and 1ml 5% minoxidil twice a day. It may be too little too late, but even if I can maintain, I still have enough hair (coverage) to not shave it. Regrowth would be a definate plus.
On the plus side, I am married with kids, so I don't have to worry about what women think about me. My hairloss doesn't really even bother me that much unless I see a recent photo of me (the camera subtracts at least 1-2 Norwood).
Well, that's it for now. Sorry for the long-winded post.
