First Thread, 21 years and booked a HT.. without Propecia

[dmac18]

So here's my story. I started noticing a receding hairline when I was about 18, maybe even a little earlier. I took accutane around that age as well, I don't know if that caused my hair loss or not. Can anyone attest to that? But my hairline has gotten slightly worse up until now. It bothers me quite a bit, crushes the self esteem, etc etc. I've decided to use Rogaine on my receding hairline, but I do not want to use Propecia in any shape or form. I have already booked a Hair Transplant with Dr. Jerry Cooley for 1000 grafts. But now I am starting to get cold feet, since I won't be taking the Propecia the potential to lose my native hair is high. Getting cold feet is a bit of an understatement, I'm actually freaking out quite a bit.

I originally thought I could just get a hair transplant now to buy me some time until other technologies come out in the near future. That way when my mpb progresses the new technologies would be available to replace any native hair loss behind my transplant.

Can anyone please tell me what to do? Thank you in advance. Please feel free to share your experiences as well, it would be greatly appreciated. I've included pictures, just click the links below, and please let me know if I can offer any more information.

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[Still-Researching]

I would wait a few more years and then I would also seriously consider taking Proscar/Propecia, try it and get off it if you get side effects - I have taken it now for 2 years without anything else than a bit of watery semen from times to times.

Your hairline is great for a HT, but you need to ensure you stop your hair loss, unless your whole family history is NW2 maximum, which is unlikely with your loss at your age.

I think your brain is telling you what to do - a HT without medication in your age, gives a very high likelihood for a problematic outcome, as you will continue to loose hair without proscar/propecia - Rogaine does not stop hairloss. So you may get a nice hairline but your native hair will continue to shed.

Good luck.

[northeastguy]

Dmac, we can't tell you what to do but like still researching said, your guts probably telling you something. Trust it. Personally I think 21 is waaaaay to young for a HT. I have to say I'm disappointed Dr Cooley is even taking you on at such a young age. Maybe I don't know all the specifics but I'm surprised.

Get on the big 3 and give it a try for a year..... See what happens.

[sp8rky]

I would really consider canceling your surgery with Dr Cooley. I'm amazed that he took you on at such a young age! When I phoned him in 2008 regarding repair work he said that he would never of done surgery on me at 22, and would of asked me to shave my head to see how it looked, then advised meds etc...now they are scratching around for work from young naive guys who are desperate and confused? Work must be slow atm....

At least try what others have suggested, get on propecia, rogaine and nizoral and don't rush into anything, listen to what your gut is telling you as it is seldom wrong.

Good luck

[dmac18]

Still-Researching, northeastguy, and sp8rky; thank you so much for your replies. They really do mean a lot. I'm going to send an email today to let Dr. Cooley know that I am seriously considering canceling my procedure. I do feel slightly taken advantage of, and disappointed. If I do cancel my procedure I will lose $500 dollars as well.

I've done a lot of research on Propecia, and read a lot of experiences from users on the forums. I don't think that drug will ever be something that I am comfortable taking. To me it's just not worth the risk. This is completely just my opinion.

northeastguy: I know the big 3 are Propecia, Minoxidil, and Nizoral. Would it still be worth it to do only Minoxidil and Nizoral? Is this regiment something that will work for 5+ years? What Nizoral shampoo is the best? Sorry for all the questions

[sp8rky]

I would ask for the $500 to be refunded, they should not of booked you for a procedure in the first place.

Try not to be disappointed, you have dodged a bullet imho. $500 is small change compared to what it costs to get a bad HT repaired. I think you should breathe a sigh of relief, there is plenty of time to go down this route later if you want to.

[northeastguy]

Definitely worth a shot. I don't take propecia myself because of the side effects. Try saw palmetto about 350mg once daily or split in two doses. Some say it blocks DHT, some say it doesn't but it's cheap and has no side effects. At least use the 5% rogaine foam and nizoral shampoo twice weekly. There are two strengths one is over the counter the other you'll need a script from your Doc....at least here in the states. This guys routine is rather interesting as is photos clearly show he reversed his balding process without propecia...

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=142250361&page=1&

Ya..... Get that $500 back... But if he refuses don't worry about it. Consider it tuition towards your HT education

[win200]

I just wanted to chime in and agree with others here. You should not get a procedure at this age. Period. I have a hairline similar to yours, and I just got a transplant--at nearly 30. While age isn't a perfect predictive factor in hair loss, it's significant. If you have that degree of loss at 21, I hate to break it to you, but you're pretty likely to have significant additional loss. I only consented to a transplant along my hairline when multiple surgeons examined me, including with a magnifying video scope to identify areas of miniaturization, and concluded that I wasn't going to bald past a NW3. That's a pretty useful piece of information, because my 1450 grafts at the hairline would have been insanely foolhardy if I was destined for a NW6-7. But as I'm headed for NW3 territory, that's reasonable and prudent. Dr. Cooley is a terrific surgeon, and maybe there are things that I don't know, but it seems like agreeing to transplant you at 21 is a significant gamble for you (not for him--he'd get your money regardless).

You certainly don't need to be on Propecia to get a HT (I wasn't). If you aren't, you'll continue to lose hair, and you'll probably require additional procedures as your loss recedes backwards. For that reason, I'm probably going to start the drug. I'd suggest getting on Propecia (or, if you're not comfortable, a different regimen), and waiting until you're at least 25. I know it's agonizing to lose hair when you're in your 20s, but you DO NOT want to go under the knife prematurely and wind up with a disaster on your hands. Do what you can now, like eating right, staying healthy, and just generally taking care of yourself. It's not a cure to hair loss, but being hard on your body takes its toll everywhere.

[dmac18]

This guys routine is rather interesting as is photos clearly show he reversed his balding process without propecia...

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...250361&page=1&

That is a fantastic thread. I read the original post and plan on reading the entire thread through as soon as I have more free time. Can you or anybody else attest to the Spiro S5 Cream? It's not part of the Big 3, and it seems to have some negative side effects. Does it work, and are the side effects consistent with the topical version?

Ya..... Get that $500 back... But if he refuses don't worry about it. Consider it tuition towards your HT education

Thanks for that, I needed a chuckle.

[dmac18]

I just wanted to chime in and agree with others here. You should not get a procedure at this age. Period. I have a hairline similar to yours, and I just got a transplant--at nearly 30. While age isn't a perfect predictive factor in hair loss, it's significant. If you have that degree of loss at 21, I hate to break it to you, but you're pretty likely to have significant additional loss. I only consented to a transplant along my hairline when multiple surgeons examined me, including with a magnifying video scope to identify areas of miniaturization, and concluded that I wasn't going to bald past a NW3. That's a pretty useful piece of information, because my 1450 grafts at the hairline would have been insanely foolhardy if I was destined for a NW6-7. But as I'm headed for NW3 territory, that's reasonable and prudent. Dr. Cooley is a terrific surgeon, and maybe there are things that I don't know, but it seems like agreeing to transplant you at 21 is a significant gamble for you (not for him--he'd get your money regardless).

You certainly don't need to be on Propecia to get a HT (I wasn't). If you aren't, you'll continue to lose hair, and you'll probably require additional procedures as your loss recedes backwards. For that reason, I'm probably going to start the drug. I'd suggest getting on Propecia (or, if you're not comfortable, a different regimen), and waiting until you're at least 25. I know it's agonizing to lose hair when you're in your 20s, but you DO NOT want to go under the knife prematurely and wind up with a disaster on your hands. Do what you can now, like eating right, staying healthy, and just generally taking care of yourself. It's not a cure to hair loss, but being hard on your body takes its toll everywhere.

I really appreciate you sharing your story and advice. There really isn't anything else that you don't know, I've been just as open and honest with Dr. Cooley as I have been with you guys in this thread. It is pretty tough losing my hair this early, my 20's are suppose to be the prime years of my life, and my hair is killing me!

I find it quite interesting that the surgeon was able to predict your hair loss using a microscope. Is this something that is commonly done and has been a reliable source? Would you mind expanding on what exactly he did, so that I many be able to have this done as well?

[dmac18]

I do want to sincerely thank all of you; Still-Researching, northeastguy, sp8rky, and win200. If it weren't for you I would have gone through with this transplant, which would have led to me making a terrible decision that I would forever regret. I can't tell you how much I appreciate that.

I'm going to continue using liquid Rogaine 5% once a day, and as soon as I get my hands on a bottle of Nizoral I'll start using that twice a week. Should I augment or add anything to this regiment? Also, is there any shampoo you recommend for the days I don't use Nizoral?

Thanks again, guys.

[sp8rky]

I really am so pleased for you, and I must confess a bit jealous. I didn't have anyone to warn me off of my unnecessary hair transplant at age 22, there was no internet to speak of and no FUE, and a greedy Dr hellbent on getting me in the chair. The first time I went there, I did actually back down and drove home! Then a few days later he phoned me and asked me if I still wanted it done and somehow talked me into it. I regretted it literally hours after it was done, he didn't do a good job and I had more surgery to cover up his mess, but that just made it worse. I'm only just repaired now after a lot of years.

I was lucky that I didn't lose anymore hair, either propecia works really well for me or I wasn't going to lose my hair anyway!

Do look into Saw Palmetto, people say there are no studies to show it works but as it is a natural product that can't be patented, who would pay for such a study? I personally know someone who has grown hair on his hairline from Saw Palmetto.

There will be more medicines coming onto the market in the future to treat hairloss, so keep your chin up!

[win200]

I really am so pleased for you, and I must confess a bit jealous. I didn't have anyone to warn me off of my unnecessary hair transplant at age 22, there was no internet to speak of and no FUE, and a greedy Dr hellbent on getting me in the chair. The first time I went there, I did actually back down and drove home! Then a few days later he phoned me and asked me if I still wanted it done and somehow talked me into it. I regretted it literally hours after it was done, he didn't do a good job and I had more surgery to cover up his mess, but that just made it worse. I'm only just repaired now after a lot of years.

I was lucky that I didn't lose anymore hair, either propecia works really well for me or I wasn't going to lose my hair anyway!

Do look into Saw Palmetto, people say there are no studies to show it works but as it is a natural product that can't be patented, who would pay for such a study? I personally know someone who has grown hair on his hairline from Saw Palmetto.

There will be more medicines coming onto the market in the future to treat hairloss, so keep your chin up!

This is all sage advice, though I would add some caution about Saw Palmetto. The benefit is that, because it can't be patented, there's no monopoly and it's nice and cheap. On the other hand, also because it can't be patented, we don't know much about it and it hasn't been studied. Spencer Kobren has cautioned about its use on his show--"You're playing with nature's pharmacy." It may very well work similarly to Propecia, and it may not. One of the maddening things about hair loss treatments is that it's frequently very difficult or impossible to determine a product's efficacy or detriment without controlled studies. If someone claims that a product made them shed more, perhaps they were simply going through a natural shedding phase. Or maybe they were shedding the same amount and just happened to notice more hair. (Monitoring shedding is inherently pretty imprecise, because we lose hair all throughout the day, so it's not as if we have a nice accurate count of how many hair we're losing throughout the day. Also, people with shorter hair may not notice shedding as much, because when the hairs fall out they fly off the head, whereas with longer hair it tends to get caught with the other hairs and come out during shampooing, making it seem like the person is losing an inordinate amount of hair.)

Anyway, my point with Saw Palmetto is not to simply leap onto it without thinking carefully. Some people think it's innocuous, but there are plenty of folks who believe that it may be a similar side effect profile to Propecia. Just because your natural vitamin shop stocks it doesn't mean it's completely benign and wonderful.

[sp8rky]

Well I did say look into it, rather than take it. Good to caution though.

[Follicle Death Row]

Just found this thread. Happy to see you're going to hold off for now. That's a wise decision which you certainly won't regret. Maybe in your late 20s or early 30s the time will be right for HT. Maybe better treatments will be around then or maybe you won't care about hairloss.

You've made the right decision for now. Well done. Best of luck.