hair restoring advice

[arkeye]

hi everyone.

basically my story is im from west london and started to lose my hair at about 22 and at 29 its now very obvious with a very distinguished 'M' shaped hairline and now the center part is thinning.

firstly is there anything out there i can take to slow my receding down that is easy to get hold of?

i am looking to in the future have a hair transplant, which i thought was a pretty successful procedure but reading posts on here it looks as though not everyone is :-(

i have seen hair grafts taken from the back of the head which seems to leave nasty scars but what are the other options for donor areas? ive heard about hair from other parts of the body but i have dark blond hair on my head and black chest hair so this wouldnt work surely?

i have never heard having hair tattooed on and i personally think it looks great however this isnt something i can consider as i dont have a 'pretty' shaped head that suits short hair.

i am very new to all this and am pretty unfamiliar with all the terms but your help and advise would be greatly appreciated.

[mattj]

The drug called Finasteride (sold as Propecia, Proscar) can be effective in slowing down hair loss. You can get it on a private prescription or there are various online sources which might be easier and cheaper. I recommend searching the forum and reading up about it before going any further with it.

With the reputable doctors, hair transplant success rates are very, very good. Be prepared to travel though.

There are examples out there of very bad scars which are wide and very obvious. I'm not sure if you're talking about those specifically or if you've also seen a scar performed by a skilled surgeon and consider that to be nasty. They can be very narrow when done right. All hair transplants do cause scarring, though. Even the FUE procedure where individual follicles are extracted does cause some scarring.

I personally think that body hair is best used as a last resort by patients with extremely limited scalp donor hair.

Although you'll find many helpful members here willing to answer specific questions, when you're just dipping your toe into this subject it's best to get stuck in and read as much as possible.

[rdawg]

Minoxidil to start if you haven't already. Then Finasteride which is considered more useful and at the very least will slow your loss. However if you're worried with it just ease onto it if it's really scaring you.

Nizoral too if you use both minoxidil and Fin, it helps with the redness/dandruff. This is what is called "the big 3".

Hair transplant should be a last resort IMO, that scar is 100% permanent from what I understand and much better products will be coming out by 2020.

[dex89]

what I understand and much better products will be coming out by 2020.

Till 2020??? wish it was sooner lol.

[arkeye]

thanks for all the advice. think the plan at the moment is to take something that will slow the baldness down then save the funds for an fue transplant as this seems to be the best for of hair restoration. a trip to Brussels i think is on the cards!!

[dex89]

thanks for all the advice. think the plan at the moment is to take something that will slow the baldness down then save the funds for an fue transplant as this seems to be the best for of hair restoration. a trip to Brussels i think is on the cards!!

Here's a couple of post you might want to look at and decided if any one these might help you.

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

http://www.hairlosshelp.com/forums/messageview.cfm?catid=10&threadid=96765&STARTPAGE=1&FTVAR_FORUMVIEWTMP=Linear

http://www.bernsteinmedical.com/medical-treatment/patient-photos/

[arkeye]

thanks Dex the bodybuildingforum was a good read, not got through all 58 pages yet!

the things he recommends are hard to get hold of though, like s3 cream, Azelaic acid and Minoxidil liquid. i am going to order the other bits tho and give them a try.

[Tracy C]

the things he recommends are hard to get hold of though, like s3 cream, Azelaic acid and Minoxidil liquid. i am going to order the other bits tho and give them a try.

Following the advice of strangers from an on-line forum is a very bad idea.

Males should not use or even touch Sprio in and form. The risk of using Azelaic acid and many of the other "recommended" things from these forums often outweighs the possible benefits. If you intend to self medicate, you should not gamble with these. Instead stick with the two proven FDA approved treatments.

It is best for you to consult with a doctor who specializes in treating hair loss rather than strangers in online forums.

Liquid Minoxidil is readily available at your local pharmacy, as is Finasteride. However, you do need a prescription for Finasteride - and you need to have a talk with a competent doctor about Finasteride.

[rdawg]

Till 2020??? wish it was sooner lol.

haha by 2020.

Allergan(bitmaprost) will be out by 2014, Aderans has a good shot at 2015-2016

Histogen by 2016.

We will know with much more certainty if there is a 'cure' or partial 'cure' out there within 2 years IMO.