I have an interesting, perhaps unfortunate situation. I was sold a few hair transplant sessions by Bosley when I was 21,22 in the early 90’s, and now I’m in my mid 30’s, a NW 3.5 or 4. I took proscar for about 6 months in 97 or so with limited results (I had much more hair then, although noticeably thinning). I’ve removed many of the transplants over the years as my hairline receded more, and only in the past year and a half has my surgery been somewhat noticeable in front due to redness and mild scarring. I take a rosacea cream to minimize the redness.
My question is: what should I do? I’ve read that many are seeing reasonable results from finasteride and other treatments. Should I try Propecia even though Proscar didn’t yield any noticeable results? Is there any benefit to saving the hair that you have knowing that HM may be around the corner, and existing medication requires indefinite usage? I spent about 8 not thinking about my hair on a daily basis, but my scarring in the front and back has pulled me back into the hairloss conversation. Perhaps if I stayed more up to date on the latest treatments and their results over the years, I would have been more focused on prevention and have kept more of my hair. Unfortunately, the Bosley experience was so traumatic, I completely shut out this industry. Thinking about your hair and potential cures on a daily basis is not healthy and will only limit you in life.
Man I hate to say this to you, but anyone getting a hair transplant needs to be on some kind of anti-androgen whether it be internal (propecia or avodart) or topical (spironolactone creams, revivogen, fluridil, etc.)
If you are going bald, you will be bald someday in most cases. If you were losing hair in your early twenties, surely you realized that probably meant you were going to go bald-----------as in horseshoe bald someday in the future, even if it was in your fifties.
If you get back on finasteride, there is usually a shed at one to two months, then hair starts to gradually thicken. You reach the apex of growth at about year two, then there is a slow loss of hair for the rest of your life, but not nearly as fast as you would have lost it. If you use minxoidil along with the finasteride, the results will be better, but it too will cause and initial shed.
Many people add nizoral shampoo 2-3 times a week with the above two therapies, as it is apparently somewhat anti-androgenic and can alleviate some inflammatory pathways in the immune response in baldness. The three all together are known as “the big three” on hairloss sites. Nizoral is a dandruff shampoo in a blue bottle that you can find at any drug store. Its known to be kind of hard or drying on the scalp and is not to be used more than about every other day at the very most as its active ingredient stays in the dermis for over 72 hours.
How did you “remove” the plugs? electrolysis, laser?
I hope HM comes for us all. YOu are in a tough situation because the donor scars make buzzing your hair a no-no. If you have alot of inflammation…some topical anti-inflammatory cream or copper peptide might help that some. A repair transplant might help as docs are much better now than what they used to be.
To be honest, I use tweezers. In most cases, they do the trick the first or second time.
My father had a receding hairline early. However, he’s over 60 and still has his hair on the top and back. I thought that was my pattern. Apparently it’s not.
Is the amount of existing donor hair still an issue with HM? Further, couldn’t hair be transplanted on and around the strip scars to shield the damage from behind?
Finally, I’ve read that Finasteride actually accelerates hairloss in the front. Do you know if this is true?
» Man I hate to say this to you, but anyone getting a hair transplant needs
» to be on some kind of anti-androgen whether it be internal (propecia or
» avodart) or topical (spironolactone creams, revivogen, fluridil, etc.)
»
» If you are going bald, you will be bald someday in most cases. If you were
» losing hair in your early twenties, surely you realized that probably meant
» you were going to go bald-----------as in horseshoe bald someday in the
» future, even if it was in your fifties.
»
»
» If you get back on finasteride, there is usually a shed at one to two
» months, then hair starts to gradually thicken. You reach the apex of
» growth at about year two, then there is a slow loss of hair for the rest
» of your life, but not nearly as fast as you would have lost it. If you use
» minxoidil along with the finasteride, the results will be better, but it
» too will cause and initial shed.
»
» Many people add nizoral shampoo 2-3 times a week with the above two
» therapies, as it is apparently somewhat anti-androgenic and can alleviate
» some inflammatory pathways in the immune response in baldness. The three
» all together are known as “the big three” on hairloss sites. Nizoral is a
» dandruff shampoo in a blue bottle that you can find at any drug store. Its
» known to be kind of hard or drying on the scalp and is not to be used more
» than about every other day at the very most as its active ingredient stays
» in the dermis for over 72 hours.
»
»
» How did you “remove” the plugs? electrolysis, laser?
»
»
» I hope HM comes for us all. YOu are in a tough situation because the donor
» scars make buzzing your hair a no-no. If you have alot of
» inflammation…some topical anti-inflammatory cream or copper
» peptide might help that some. A repair transplant might help as docs are
» much better now than what they used to be.
»
»
»
» Bosley sure has screwed up alot of mens lives.
I took proscar every day for about 6 months with no noticeable results other than the shedding. Not nearly as much was known about finasteride at that point, so I assumed that it wasn’t working.
Try explaining this to your wife. I met her two years after it happened in the 90’s but didn’t say anything about it until recently.
» What a horrible story… Scarring? Jeez.
»
» Benji is correct about getting back on something.
»
» 1. Did you take proscar diligently?
I would definitely get back on meds, unless you experience intolerable sexual side effects or more from propecia. But give it some time – sometimes these sides disappear after a few months. And plus propecia reduces the risk of prostate cancer by 25 percent as an added bonus. In terms of rogaine, make sure you get the foam. I like the way it feels personally. And Nizoral works well with salicylic acid shampoo (denorex, I believe it’s called). The combination may increase the absorption of ketoconazole into your skin (the active ingredient in Nizoral). Another thing to consider is this drug Fluridil – it’s expensive, though – but it acts as a topical anti-androgen. I’ve been using it for several months now.
You could also consider getting another hair transplant from a reputable clinic (e.g., Hasson and Wong, Rassman, Bernstein, True, et al) if you think your hair loss has stabilized after medications. But geez I’d stay away from a strip surgery, but that’s just me. And even more importantly I wouldn’t get any surgery until the Phase II results from Intercytex on hair multiplication are released in the fall. (If HM is 3-5 years away I’d personally wait on more hair transplants).
Finally, you could consider getting a hairpiece. That would effectively hide yoru scars and your wife might like the new look… You’d be surprised how realistic and light-weight they can be. Just take a look at Ben Affleck or Brendan Fraser. These pieces are also extremely cheap if you order them online. Do NOT go to Hair Club for Men, Farrell Hair, or any other salon. They will sell you crap hairpieces and charge you a fortune. I’d recommend toplace or hairdirect for hairpiece places.
What have your results been from this protocol? Are you far along with your hair loss? Also, if HM becomes a reality, would you need to continue your protocol? Is the amount of donor hair an issue with HM?
» hi foresthill,
»
» I would definitely get back on meds, unless you experience intolerable
» sexual side effects or more from propecia. But give it some time –
» sometimes these sides disappear after a few months. And plus propecia
» reduces the risk of prostate cancer by 25 percent as an added bonus. In
» terms of rogaine, make sure you get the foam. I like the way it feels
» personally. And Nizoral works well with salicylic acid shampoo (denorex, I
» believe it’s called). The combination may increase the absorption of
» ketoconazole into your skin (the active ingredient in Nizoral). Another
» thing to consider is this drug Fluridil – it’s expensive, though – but
» it acts as a topical anti-androgen. I’ve been using it for several months
» now.
»
» You could also consider getting another hair transplant from a reputable
» clinic (e.g., Hasson and Wong, Rassman, Bernstein, True, et al) if you
» think your hair loss has stabilized after medications. But geez I’d stay
» away from a strip surgery, but that’s just me. And even more importantly I
» wouldn’t get any surgery until the Phase II results from Intercytex on hair
» multiplication are released in the fall. (If HM is 3-5 years away I’d
» personally wait on more hair transplants).
»
» Finally, you could consider getting a hairpiece. That would effectively
» hide yoru scars and your wife might like the new look… You’d be
» surprised how realistic and light-weight they can be. Just take a look at
» Ben Affleck or Brendan Fraser. These pieces are also extremely cheap if
» you order them online. Do NOT go to Hair Club for Men, Farrell Hair, or
» any other salon. They will sell you crap hairpieces and charge you a
» fortune. I’d recommend toplace or hairdirect for hairpiece places.
»
» I hope this helps. Good luck with your hair loss.
Results: For me, propecia has only slightly slowed down the hair loss if anything, and it’s still progressing at a fairly fast rate. The shampoos helps, but frankly I don’t think the rogaine is helping at all. Keep in mind results vary from person to person, so I would still highly recommend taking the meds to see if they work for you.
Hair loss: I’m about a Norwod 5, with concealers I can actually make it look pretty decent given what I’m working with. But it’s only going to last for a few more months, I really think.
Hair multiplication: this is the Holy Grail. No donor hair issues. No strip scars. It’s the cure for baldness.
My protocol: I’ve been taking these meds for about 2 years now. My current plan is to wait until the fall and get a small hairpiece from an online shop (or I may shave my head). I will drop all the meds except propecia. And then I will wait for hair multiplication to arrive in a few years. When hair multiplication arrives I will most likely get a hair transplant for the front hairline and then hair multiplication for the back.
So… in the end I have done EVERYTHING: drugs, plugs, wigs, and cloning. LOL. What a ridiculous disease.
» What have your results been from this protocol? Are you far along with
» your hair loss? Also, if HM becomes a reality, would you need to continue
» your protocol? Is the amount of donor hair an issue with HM?
»
» I took proscar every day for about 6 months with no noticeable results
» other than the shedding. Not nearly as much was known about finasteride
» at that point, so I assumed that it wasn’t working.
»
» Try explaining this to your wife. I met her two years after it happened
» in the 90’s but didn’t say anything about it until recently.
»
»
»
» » What a horrible story… Scarring? Jeez.
» »
» » Benji is correct about getting back on something.
» »
» » 1. Did you take proscar diligently?
Please tell me your wife still looks at you the same. She does not judge you right?
I will be deeply saddened if she does not see you as you and picks on you or says comments that hurts.
I have done it all; Pills,lotions,surgery & I am worse of for it.
My best advice for you is to stop everything,cut your hair short & let nature take it’s course.You will get accustomed to it over time.If your wife is nasty enough to hassle you about it why don’t you tell he how those comments make you feel & then hopefully she’ll stop.
There is NOTHING you can do to permanently stop the baldness.Pills & lotions only work for a few years & surgery…Well,you may as well just put a gun to your head & pull the trigger.
Hair multiplication is the only solution that will give you what you want & nobody knows just how far away that is.
Don’t waste another second on this issue,just live your life.
She’s fine (I think). She’s got her issues as well. Our relationship may have even gotten stronger. Women love vulnerability (although only complemented by money).
» » I took proscar every day for about 6 months with no noticeable results
» » other than the shedding. Not nearly as much was known about
» finasteride
» » at that point, so I assumed that it wasn’t working.
» »
» » Try explaining this to your wife. I met her two years after it
» happened
» » in the 90’s but didn’t say anything about it until recently.
» »
» »
» »
» » » What a horrible story… Scarring? Jeez.
» » »
» » » Benji is correct about getting back on something.
» » »
» » » 1. Did you take proscar diligently?
»
» Please tell me your wife still looks at you the same. She does not judge
» you right?
»
» I will be deeply saddened if she does not see you as you and picks on you
» or says comments that hurts.
Thanks BB. After reading about the results from some of the longer term studies recently , I have been bothered about not continuing on finasteride and some of the other meds. I didn’t want to be one of the few in my generation to be ‘left behind’ because of my reaction to the Bosley experience. However, that does not appear to be the case with any of the existing treatments.
Best of luck with your efforts to bring Acell into the mix. How can hair be any more difficult to grow than body parts?
» Hi Foresthill,
»
» Results: For me, propecia has only slightly slowed down the hair loss if
» anything, and it’s still progressing at a fairly fast rate. The shampoos
» helps, but frankly I don’t think the rogaine is helping at all. Keep in
» mind results vary from person to person, so I would still highly recommend
» taking the meds to see if they work for you.
»
» Hair loss: I’m about a Norwod 5, with concealers I can actually make it
» look pretty decent given what I’m working with. But it’s only going to
» last for a few more months, I really think.
»
» Hair multiplication: this is the Holy Grail. No donor hair issues. No
» strip scars. It’s the cure for baldness.
»
» My protocol: I’ve been taking these meds for about 2 years now. My current
» plan is to wait until the fall and get a small hairpiece from an online
» shop (or I may shave my head). I will drop all the meds except propecia.
» And then I will wait for hair multiplication to arrive in a few years.
» When hair multiplication arrives I will most likely get a hair transplant
» for the front hairline and then hair multiplication for the back.
»
» So… in the end I have done EVERYTHING: drugs, plugs, wigs, and cloning.
» LOL. What a ridiculous disease.
»
» » What have your results been from this protocol? Are you far along with
» » your hair loss? Also, if HM becomes a reality, would you need to
» continue
» » your protocol? Is the amount of donor hair an issue with HM?
» »
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