15 and losing my hair? with picture

[moleman]

this might sound ridiculous but I'm 15 and I think I'm balding. Although the most obvious signs such as abnormal hair fall and bald patches on the crown etc have not begun to show I have recently noticed a definite receding hairline: http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n...psee9b6655.jpg

This is also an increasing concern for me as my three older brothers have all got very thin hair with a receded hairline from around the age of 18. This trait was the same for all of my uncles on my mothers side however I share a different dad to my brothers but we share the same mum (could this mean I might not be coded to follow their pattern?). The strangest thing is, is that my mums dad has a complete full set of brown hair and he is 74!?
Therefore, should I really bother with products like propecia and roagaine? will they really help?
-Thanks, I am not the most confident of people and I would like to know what I can do before hairloss destroys the last scraps of my confidence!

[macster]

It looks to me like you have at least a maturing hairline or the beginning of MPB, which can get more extensive in the future.

In retrospect, I also started developing MPB at your age, like when you are going through puberty. That is when it starts for many.

I would say that first, you have time on your side so just keep your head on right about all this and don't go all crazy. If you can get together some money, I would recommend going to a reputable IAHRS approved hair transplant surgeon. Not to get a hair transplant, but to get an honest diagnosis and opinion about all this and to put together a long term master plan in treating your hairloss into the future. I woudn't recommend regular doctors or even dermatologists because they really don't know much about hair loss.

I am no replacement for a doctor, but it might make sense to start using rogaine 5% minoxidil, at least once a day, but preferably 2x a day, for the next 3 years until you are 18. I say 1x a day because it is just easier for compliance. You are better off CONSISTENTLY using rogaine 1x a day, solidly, for the next 3 years until you can start taking propecia, than using it inconsistently 2x a day.

When you are 18, you can start taking propecia to slow down, stop, or hopefully even reverse the hair loss process (depending on how it works for you). And if it is ok with you, keep using rogaine.

Then later on down the line, like after 25 or in your 30s, you might consider a hair transplant if needed. Hopefully by then we will have better treatments or maybe even a cure.

This I think is a solid long term plan for addressing your hair loss at your age.

[Mike K]

First of all I am very sorry you are going through this at such a young age.

Some people have had success with Minoxidil alone. You might check out Zeroheat on hair loss talk forum for example. Because of your age, I would recommend giving minox a solid year and also adding nizoral 2% 3 times per week. Continue taking pics during that year, and then if you are sure you are definitely receding still, I would say take the pics to your doctor and show them to him. Explain to him that you know that 16 would be young to get on Fin but you've given the alternatives a solid try. I would think that the doctor would prescribe it to you then, and if he doesn't just go to a different doctor surely a different one will. You can also buy fin online, or try RU58841. Another option would be to go to college somewhat far from home after high school and transition to a hair piece before college. You might be able to master the learning curve during the summer before college, and no one who was there would know you were ever losing your hair.

Best of luck to you.

[lamppost]

Maturing hairline is BS you are starting MPB get on fina and min before its too late, i started losing hair at 16... shit is terrible

[moleman]

I just want say thanks for all the advice and I will most likely begin 5% minoxidil soon but I have been doing some research online and apparently minoxidil is just for thinning hair on crowns as opposed to a receding hairline?

[lamppost]

all the research is always done about the crown but can work at the temples, heres how i think of the two

fina stops further hair loss and makes the best of whats left

min improves the weak spots better than fin but doesn't prevent hairloss

[Mike K]

I just want say thanks for all the advice and I will most likely begin 5% minoxidil soon but I have been doing some research online and apparently minoxidil is just for thinning hair on crowns as opposed to a receding hairline?

The reason it says that is because of how they did the fda trials. What they did was tattoo a tiny black dot at the center of many guys' bald spot on the crown, and then count the hairs in a 1 inch radius around the dot. They did this before minox was started, and then at different intervals throughout treatment. They saw it grew hair there, so they can market it to regrow hair in the same way it did in the trials. They never tried it at the hairline, so they cannot claim it regrows hair there. Go to the hair loss talk forum and search for Zeroheat. He had incredible regrowth at the hairline with minoxidil alone. Obviously these results are not typical, but it does happen and it is possible you could be a good responder.

[Receedo]

Well it does look like MPB to me and before you start worrying IT DOES NOT MEAN YOU WILL DEFINITELY GO BALD. MPB can affect people to various degrees from mild (or a mature hairline) to full on baldness which a small % of men get, most guys usually only end up a NW2-4 I'd say. You can't really predict hairloss like one of your friend's with a perfect hairline could end up bald in under 5 years and you may still have your hair in old age, you can never know for sure. What I will say is that your hair looks thick, I can't see a progressive thinning pattern and yours hairline doesn't look too bad. I can't see it vanishing anytime soon, and time is what you have, you noticed it at an early stage and have a great chance of preventing further loss if it's going to happen. But lots of guys have that hairline and are not going bald look at Morrisey, Jack Nicholson, Bill Paxton... there's still hope. Just keep and eye on things and if you lose more by the time you're 18 then hop on Propecia etc. Stay strong my hairline is like yours and hasn't changed since I was about 15, I'm almost 18 now.

[Receedo]

Oh and maybe a picture you with your forehead wrinkled to see where you're hairline was to begin with, you may of had a high juvenile hairline which results in a mature hairline appearing like balding when it's not.