thinking about starting finasteride

[person_123]

hey all.

currently, i'm on 5% minoxidil, and laser treatment. according to the clinic, once i stop laser, i should be able to stop minoxidil without drastically losing hair gained from minoxidil... only problem is, i haven't really gained much thickness from minoxidil.

as the topic says, i want to start on finasteride, but want to know everything before i start, so here's my list of questions:

-if i stop minoxidil now, and start on finasteride at same time, will i experience severe hair loss before benefits are visible?
-how long before people see benefits from finasteride (if any), meaning, what is the average time i should take finasteride before expecting to see results?
-will the regrowth be good?... because i want a thick full head of hair again, (it's not noticeable at the moment, but noticeable when viewed from directly above, or when hair is wet.)
-if i stop taking finasteride, how long before hair starts thinning again? few years? few months? or few days?...
-will i get fatter? get man-boobs? lose libido? or are these just severe cases of side effects? if i do get these side effects, how long (if ever) before they go away?

thanks everybody.

 

[Goingat20]

hey all.

currently, i'm on 5% minoxidil, and laser treatment. according to the clinic, once i stop laser, i should be able to stop minoxidil without drastically losing hair gained from minoxidil... only problem is, i haven't really gained much thickness from minoxidil..

that is WRONG, they are lieing to you to keep your money

as the topic says, i want to start on finasteride, but want to know everything before i start, so here's my list of questions:

-if i stop minoxidil now, and start on finasteride at same time, will i experience severe hair loss before benefits are visible?.

you might lose any hairs which minoxidil might have helped you with...

-

how long before people see benefits from finasteride (if any), meaning, what is the average time i should take finasteride before expecting to see results?.

at least 3 months, varies with everyone

-

will the regrowth be good?... because i want a thick full head of hair again, (it's not noticeable at the moment, but
noticeable when viewed from directly above, or when hair is wet.).

Again everyone has different results, so it depends about how everyone responds


-i

f i stop taking finasteride, how long before hair starts thinning again? few years? few months? or few days?....

few months...if not less


-

will i get fatter? get man-boobs? lose libido? or are these just severe cases of side effects? if i do get these side effects, how long (if ever) before they go away?.

no one can tell you forsure, but side effects are not very common (who ever has had side effects please dont attack me) finasteride leaves your system in one or two days so it wont take long till they go away

 

[person_123]

goingon20, thanks alot for you help, seriously, it's greatly appreciated...

before i joined these forums, i felt alone and scared... now i'm really eager to start on finasteride (hopefully no side effects though).

are you currently on finasteride? (noticed you replied in the tell story forum too, thanks) if i take finasteride, and get best possible results, with my current hair condition, can i expect say: brad pitt style hair?... or will it still be thin to a point where i have to sort style it in a cautious way?.

and since i didn't respond to minoxidil much, can i expect to respond to finasteride? i mean, they're different totally right?...

one more thing: you said i can stop for a few days and it'll be out of my system, but hair loss will not occur again for a few months (at best). so if i'm expecting to get lucky within a week, it should be safe to stop for a week and then continue again after a week (just to be sure my libido is 100%)?

 

[Goingat20]

are you currently on finasteride? (noticed you replied in the tell story forum too, thanks) if i take finasteride, and get best possible results, with my current hair condition, can i expect say: brad pitt style hair?... or will it still be thin to a point where i have to sort style it in a cautious way?

i was on finasteride but unfortunately i wasnt a ood respnder and stopped it after 2 years. About the brad pitt style hair it really depends about how well you respond. But i think you should always aim to maintain and if you regrow well thats a bonus

and since i didn't respond to minoxidil much, can i expect to respond to finasteride? i mean, they're different totally right?..

I think you should give finasteride one year before you make the judgement that your not a responder. Yes finasteride and minoxidil work differently

one more thing: you said i can stop for a few days and it'll be out of my system, but hair loss will not occur again for a few months (at best). so if i'm expecting to get lucky within a week, it should be safe to stop for a week and then continue again after a week (just to be sure my libido is 100%)?

No no, you have to take finasteride daily. What i mean if you get side effects, you can just stop taking finasteride and things will return to normal

 

[person_123]

nono, i mean, if i miss a day, will it ruin the whole routine? or if i miss a week is it really really horrible? or is it ok? and if i go back on the daily routine, will it just be like... a pitstop in a way?

say for example i need to travel somewhere, with a few friends, for a weekend, and i don't want them to know, is it ok to skip it? or if i go overseas and can't take it with me...

or if i want to have sex with my girlfriend and want to make sure there's no performance issues... would it be ok to stop for a few days?

another question about finasteride:

if i start, will it only delay the hair loss? or will it stop hair loss completely? how long is the longest anybody has been on it? and is it unhealthy to stay on it for too long? (too long being 10 years or so?).

i ask this because currently, i'm approaching 20, and i just WILL NOT be capable of handling hair loss until i'm 30 or 40. or even 50. so if i start on finasteride, and have no side effects, will it be safe, and beneficial, for me to stay on it for the next 10 years or until a miracle/breakthrough cure is found for male pattern baldness?. if not, how long would finasteride be helpful for? (maximum time).

and everybody is saying stay on it for a year before i quit it. i've heard about "shedding". how severe is shedding? at the moment, nobody has noticed me thinning (or hasn't told me if they have). if i start shedding before i get regrowth, would it become very obvious? or is it only mild shedding? and is regrowth actual? or only apparent because of the shedding going on before hand? i read somewhere that people who respond best are people who have shed at the start?

last question for now: i started thinning MAYBE, when i was 16? i'm 19 now. at 16 it wasn't very severe or noticeable at all, only very few parts, but when i gelled my hair it seemed bad. now if i wet my hair or spike it up (even with matte gel/wax), it looks quite bad... will finasteride work for me? or is it a case of "lost too much hair already?"

 

[Goingat20]

its ok to miss a day, or two or three. My point is take it and if side effects arise drop it...

 

[person_123]

will my family doctor know about all this? (all the questions i'm asking and more on these forums)? or is it best to ask the questions here?.

where can i find a family doctor? i'm a bit embarassed going to the one i usually go to, as i might see him around the neighbourhood, and i know it would be confidential, but still. where can i look for a doctor who would prescribe it? and ashley and martin seem to prescribe finasteride. is it worth going to see them? or is it just a waste of money?

 

[Goingat20]

you can order it online if you dont want to see a doctor. ashley and martin are also a waste of money, please stay away from all these hair loss bullshit studios

 

[apathy212]

I'm a new user to finasteride, so I figured I'd just share my thoughts real quick. I've only been on finasteride for a week now, but so far so good. Haven't really had any side effects, knock on wood. But its still waaaay too early, so we'll see how everything works out.

Hey person, whats up man. Ultimately, the only thing you can do is just get on it and see how you do. Like going has already said, everyone responds differently. You just have to pray that you are a good responder. If sides come up, drop it.

 

[person_123]

so is finasteride a long term solution? or will i continue to lose hair, just at a slower rate, after taking finasteride? (assuming i'm a good responder)

 

[bubka]

so is finasteride a long term solution? or will i continue to lose hair, just at a slower rate, after taking finasteride? (assuming i'm a good responder)

yes, finasteride blocks DHT which causes male pattern baldness hairloss, if you stop finasteride, you will start losing again... you have to take it for life, or at least until older age when your testosterone significantly decreases, along with DHT

and yes, you can skip a day or two and be just fine

 

[person_123]

ohhh ok, so if i'm a good responder = stick with it and i'll have hair for life until i stop it.

if i'm a bad responder = drop it and have a cry.

will i still "lose" hair while on it? (shed a few hairs a day, nothing noticeable), or will hair loss stop completely? (like what 10 year old kids would lose everyday, before they hit puberty)

 

[bubka]

a good responder grows hair back, thus stops losing hair

losing hair is generally over 100 hairs a day

some people just slow down hairloss on finasteride, or stop it, which is still better than nothing

stopping should be everyones goal, regrowth is an added bonus

if you stop or regrow, you can still lose up to 100 hairs a day and maintain or regrow hair (general magic number)

also, some people have success on finasteride and then after a few years, start losing again for a number of reasons...

 

[person_123]

i noticed in your regimen that you don't use minoxidil. i was thinking of something like your regimen, where i just use finasteride. (don't know what nizoral is still, i know it's a shampoo, but i haven't the slightest idea as to what it does for hair).

how are you going with that? regrowth?, maintaining?, not helping much?

 

[bubka]

significant regrowth and maintenance, over six years on finasteride and nizoral

minoxidil seems like a pain with 2x day applications, plus you cannot exactly be secretive about it

i originally started on minoxidil and it just irritated the hell out of my scalp, i have very sensitive skin

nizoral:
http://www.cvs.com/CVSApp/cvs/gateway/d ... did=186247

my story:
http://www.hairlosstalk.com/discussions ... 14&start=0

 

[person_123]

wow, that sounds great. only problem for me is finding a doctor to prescribe it to me.

and also walking into the pharmacy to pick it up every once in a while will embarass the hell out of me, especially if a pretty girl is serving me.

 

[Guest]

wow, that sounds great. only problem for me is finding a doctor to prescribe it to me.

and also walking into the pharmacy to pick it up every once in a while will embarass the hell out of me, especially if a pretty girl is serving me.

if you want a script, ask the Doctor to write it for proscar. it will be les embarrassing but honestly, what would be more embarrassing... walking in there to buy a drug to save your hair or walking around there totally bald wishing you had gotten on the drug?

 

[bubka]

tell me about it, now i have some pretty decent hair, had a roomate in pharmacy school and always hung out with his classmates, many of them work as techs, one who i always saw when i used to get my monthly propecia script, i am sure she thought the drug is working pretty decent none the less... just weird seeing her out at bars, the first time i was like hey, i saw you at XXX pharmacy

it a hell of a lot sexier though then getting valtrax

 

[Guest]

it a hell of a lot sexier though then getting valtrax

do you speak from experience? :shock:

 

[bubka]

:lol: oh no, like i said, i just have a few friends who are now pharmacists, believe me, they talk, just stories i hear about their days in the pharmacy

i always wanted to ask my one budy if he has seen a decent amount of young males offlabeling avodart, but my regime is on the DL to almost everyone