17, thinning etcetc...

[Darkorber]

Hi everyone! I only joined recently because i've become worried about my hair thinning out. I've been reading lots of the stuff on here and it's made me feel confident enough to share. I'm so glad i can vent this sans judgement.

My dad (58) has been bald (complete horseshoe) for as long as any pictures of him tell, we haven't spoken about it but it must've been early twenties. My brother (20) doesn't seem to be experiencing anything yet. My balding only started one month ago at the start of the new school year but it has progressed rapidly. I'm not sure whether stress was the trigger because it was an extremely hectic start to the term. All i know is that in my school photo my hair is sticking up because it's so thick (and greasy ) but now it's limp and lifeless. I first took notice when i was running shampoo through my hair and i counted the hairs that came out (20-30 in one stroke). It's generally not yet noticeable because i wash daily to keep the volume up and to stop the grease, and i've only told my mum so far. She insisted that she couldn't see anything and when i went to my hairdresser she said nothing was wrong. This was two weeks ago. It's much worse now. Although i am a bit annoyed at them i think i'm preffering the lies to harsh reality. My hairline hasn't noticeably receded but it's starting, general thinning overall mostly.

A problem i'm having is the itching. I think it has exacerbated the problem immensely because i can't stop scratching or running my hands through my hair. As soon as i stop it just gets worse. It only stops when my mind's occupied, i'm exercising or for sometimes no reason at all. Every time one or two hairs fall out and it's seriously starting to add up.

I've always known i was going to go bald, but ofc not this soon. I hoped i'd be out of school, because sporting a shaved head in your teens is not in any case an ideal situation. I've looked into treatments and all that jazz, but nothing i can foreseeably see helping me. I'm too young to get propecia and by the time i can (1 month, counting the days ), the damage will have been done. There's also the hideous expense of the drug which i can't ask my parents to pay. Assuming it continues at this rate, i could be completely bald by the end of the year, with noticeability severely increasing over the next month or so.

Plenty of people i know and teachers in school are bald, including my tutor who's just turned 29, but i feel reluctant going to see anyone. The other people in my year-group who've started balding (because now it's all i look for in people), seem to be receding hairline types, and are also more popular and outgoing than me which in part makes up for it. I envy this. A big problem i've come across it the feeling that the hair on crown of my head is gone, and since it's very difficult to manage looking at it without the help of several mirrors, i get very self conscious about walking in front of people and sitting at the front in class. I also avoid wet weather when possible, which is hard in England.

Sometimes i wonder why i don't talk to my dad about it. He's been through the same thing right? I feel like i can't start moaning and whining about it until we've discussed it. It would feel like i'm insulting him. He jokes about it all the time and never seems to be worried about it. Then again, he is retired and only really leaves the house to take the dog for a walk. I don't think my mum could possibly understand either, even though i'm closer to her. She says i shouldn't worry and that it isn't a big deal but it kinda is! I dread telling my friends, cos they've all got nice long locks and parents with the same. It's not as if they'd reject me or anything but i know it would be hard.

I'm not sure what i'll look like with a shaved head, although it'll definitely look better that the horseshoe my dad's had all his life. One thing im scared about is seeing people i see infrequently. One moment i have hair, the next i don't. Kinda weird huh? I'm also scared about not getting used to it or not being able to embrace it, after reading so many stories on this forum. I just have to face the reality that my life with hair was short yet sweet, and i'll just have to prepare myself for this next stage

Thanks again to you all ,if you could be bothered to make it this far, for making this a little less unbearable!

[dgman21]

Man your feelings are normal,were all going thru the same thing and wishing for a fckin cure..I vent to my parents all the time about it and they say its not that bad but i know it is. I have to style it a certain way and I dread the rain!! I use to love rain and swimming. I'm afraid of the shaved head 2..

[Spex]

Mate, your feeling a very common anxiety that all hairloss suffers feel. its horrible. You are not alone.

In my opinion shave your head and see how you feel mate - you never know it could be just whats right for you. Roll with it at least as if you dont try u will never know.

U can just say initially it was for charity, or a dare, or you got pissed right up and seemed like a good idea...

Look also into meds to help fight against DHT such as propecia, proscar as this wil enable you to hold onto the shave down shadow

Sometimes i wonder why i don't talk to my dad about it. He's been through the same thing right? I feel like i can't start moaning and whining about it until we've discussed it. It would feel like i'm insulting him. He jokes about it all the time and never seems to be worried about it. Then again, he is retired and only really leaves the house to take the dog for a walk. I don't think my mum could possibly understand either, even though i'm closer to her. She says i shouldn't worry and that it isn't a big deal but it kinda is! I dread telling my friends, cos they've all got nice long locks and parents with the same. It's not as if they'd reject me or anything but i know it would be hard.

indeed, it would be hard but i can assure you your dad will understand more than you realise especially as he will have been through the process and dealt with it and his support might be what you need. I concur completely how your feeling but maybe a quiet pint with your dad and a chat about how your feeling might help you gain an insight into how he dealt with it and how he felt too.

Regards
spex

[Darkorber]

Sorry i was away from the internet for a while. Thanks guys for the advice/support. In the 2 weeks that have passed the hair loss has continued. I finally got my mum to admit today that my hair is thinning and i'm going to see a dermatologist in a few days. The problem is of course that there is little a doctor can do, especially as i'm too young to get the drugs which could possiblyeverse or stabilise the loss. I'm nearly 18 but the damage is already being done.

Can someone tell me the time-frame of propecia/minoxidil/finasteide or watever. I know i'm not to expect visible hair-loss reduction or regrowth for at least 6-9 months, but i'd say i've lost around 20-30% of it already (this is 2 months). On this basis, if i continue shedding as i am now, by the time the drugs start to have any effects it won't be worth it because there'll be very little left to save. This is the predicament i'm facing. My mum won't let me do anything until i see the doctor but i'm willing to take things into my own hands, not to sound too dramatic. I still haven't spoken to my dad, but i have a feeling he will soon (my mum and i were talking about it and he came in :/). I really don't want to have a conversation as awkward as the birds and the bees

I'm a bit worried because i still have around 6-7 months left of high school where it is simply unnacceptable to be as bald as i nearly am. My hair loss is now noticeable whenever i brush my hair forwards and at my parting. The location of my worst spots is difficult to describe but i'll put pictures up soon, suffice to say my crowns (or both sides of the back of my head) have visible loss and i can feel the void in the top of my crown although i can't see it. People at my school aren't the types to point it out to me but i know that it will become big news when people start noticing (not that i'm egotistical or being paranoid or anything), the same situation as having a massive boil on your nose (as my best friend once did, stupid puberty!) and noone is allowed to mention it ever. Although i know he was obsessing like crazy he never showed it and it went away eventually. Baldness doesn't go away, doesn't get better and is even more taboo in coversation than puberty. (On a related note has anyone ever seen a tv show/film where balding was mentioned or discussed (in a non joking way of course)? Just wondering...)

On the note of the shaved head. 1 i have a slight build and a thin skull so i'm not sure how it would look 2 the only excuses i could think of for skinhead at 17 were cancer, cranial operation. I'm not the sort of person to do it for charity or as a dare because i'm generally quiet and reserved. I think toppik will be my concealer of choice for the time being, having heard good things from this forum. I can conceivably get rid of the rest of my hair only and only after high school. I also don't look good with short hair so i'm reluctant about the buzzcut :\

The main annoyance is that i have all the other problems of adolescence thrown into the mix as well! School work, college, girls, pressure of conformity, sociality: baldness only adds to the stress which almost certainly is exacerbating the issue. Sorry again for this vent and thanks for any opinions or views you have

P.S. According to my mum, when she first met my dad and she mentioned he was bald he replied 'i prefer the term follically challenged!'. She thought this line was funny and so they went on a date. 29 years later they're still married and here i am :P Cute story huh?

[Darkorber]

Oh and a couple more things. I only really get depressed about my hairloss while i'm having a bath, watching the hairs (sometimes 100-150 (and yes i have counted!)) stick to the tub and washing them down the drain. Most of the time, especially at school i only notice it when it starts itching, that's when i have to find a mirror! It's itching right now and it's taking all my effort to not scratch. I hope the Dr can recomend something for my scalp.

Also, i just wanted to mention to everyone (despite the fact that this is not the place to voice concerns like this) that even if a miracle cure was discovered tomorrow with a 100% success rate, it does not change the fact that BALDNESS IS NOT FATAL! Ergo, treatment will never be subsidised (as many cancer treatments are and indeed need to be (in many countries) for example), to make it affordable for the everyday citizen. In the U.K. where i live, the drugs or procedures necessary will never in a million years be available on the NHS, allowing private companies to charge through the roof (as they do now in many cases). The NHS does not provide any baldness drugs, but i was wondering whether or not private healthcare (BUPA?) do. I know this is specific to the U.K. and i apologise. Personally i believe gene therapy and stem cells hold the true key. Just throwing that out there...

[Fixed by 35]

I wouldn't normally recommend this and I would say you do this at your own risk. Go to Inhouse Pharmacy online and buy generic finasteride yourself. And get some rogaine too. If the doctor won't give you the drugs, it doesn't mean you can't legally buy them yourself.

[Darkorber]

I wouldn't normally recommend this and I would say you do this at your own risk. Go to Inhouse Pharmacy online and buy generic finasteride yourself. And get some rogaine too. If the doctor won't give you the drugs, it doesn't mean you can't legally buy them yourself.

Thanks for the advice i was seriously considering it. The real problem is that it's expensive. I'm 17, don't have a job and it's really a lot of money for a 1 year supply (not worth getting anything else i presume?). I'm sure my parents would pay for me (it could be my 18th birthday present ), but i'd feel really bad with the knowledge that they're shelving out nearly £400 (U.K money i dunno about US$) a year for at least the foreseeable future. Even if i did take the drugs i'm not sure they would stave it off for that long, but the main aim is to try and get through highschool and if (BIG if) lucky, college.

Also there's a problem that my hairloss is very aggressive. My dad's was the very same, i have not seen a picture of him with hair except in his senior year at highschool, nearly 40 years ago. He was adopted so i don't know about other family members on that side of the family but there has been no history on my mums side. All i can say is **** my bro who got her side's genes .

[Spex]

You can speak to Dr Ashcroft in the UK he helps many get affordable meds such as Proscar , DUT he can also speak to you about the drugs considering your age . he is a knowledgeable sounding board: his info here: http://www.baldtruthtalk.com/showthr...959&highlight=

[Fixed by 35]

To be fair, it shouldn't cost you £400. I managed to get sixth months' worth of Dr. Reddy's generic dutasteride for about £150. That said, be careful where you buy from, because there's a roaring trade in fraudulent, and dangerous, pharmaceuticals over the internet.

[Darkorber]

I just got back from my appointment with the dermatologist. She seems to think it's Seborrhoeic dermatitis, a yeast infection of the scalp, given me Terbinafline tablets for the infection and nizoral 2% shampoo and a conditioner for the itching. I also got iron supplements because i'm apparently iron deficient.

I'm not really sure what to make of any of this. On the one hand, i'm not an expert. On the other, this infection does not usually cause the amount of hair-loss i am dealing with. Perhaps both this and early mpb are hitting at the same time? I have no clue. The worst thing is not knowing what the cause is. It will take a whole month to get the results on whether or not it is dermatitis, and a whole month is a long time to be losing hair and not doing anything productive about it. I feel more hopeless than i did before the consultation! The only other advice i got was to eat healthily. You can blame every ailment on diet nowadays huh?

May i reiterate : LAAAME!!