MPB at 18? Tell me bluntly, am I going to be bald by the time I reach mid-20s?

[sdsurfin]

This is not "real science" it's the opinion of someone who happens to not have had any side effects yet. The real science is that 5ar and dht both play important roles in the body, and are crucial to brain and sexual function. Try it if you want, if harming your body is worth a head of hair that's your call. It certainly will help you keep your hair for a while. Whether you get side effects or not you are damaging your body's ability to maintain your sexual and brain function in ways that might not feel obvious. I know guys who were in propecia ten years "without sides" and then when they quit they were like holy shot I feel like a new man. Let your doctor decide whether you are too young to take this drug, chances are if you go to any doctor who is not profiting from hair transplants, they will tell you that it's not very safe. I think the chances of permanent sides are slim, but also not unrealistic. I only took propecia for a month and sometimes I still have testicle pains that I never had before using it. And I'm 32 and have been off it for a year. Just trying to give u a balanced opinion, because I in no way claim that it's gonna ruin your life or that it's like playing Russian roulette. It's just not healthy.

[mikes23]

Swooping do you use fin with RU or do you only use Ru?

[burtandernie]

You need an AA though of some kind for any hope right now until better stuff shows up in a few years. Fin is easily still the most proven way to do that, although I agree its never been smart to alter hormones like that long term for a cosmetic problem.

[sdsurfin]

Also Nigguh are you serious with that username? Unless you're a black dude (even then its pretty questionable) you might want to think on other things besides hair for a bit.....
and if you are a black dude then you prob have no worries, everyone knows black dudes look dope bald. tupac......

[Swooping]

Swooping do you use fin with RU or do you only use Ru?

Hey mikes23, only RU at the moment. Will have adipose derived stem cells coming in soon too (AAPE).

[BiqqieSmalls]

And minoxidil is a "temporary" drug. It works for about 2-3 years, then you will lose quicker than if you didn't use it.

Not sure how accurate this accusation is. I've seen success stories that have spanned 10 years. It's not that Minoxidil will make you lose quicker than if you didn't use it. It may just be your MPB kicking into overdrive. To say that Minoxidil loses efficacy after 2-3 years is absolute blasphemy.

[wolfman]

Yes, you will probably progress rapidly through your twenties unless you go on a 5AR inhibitor.

Take this dead seriously, but don't let it frighten you: If you start loosing your hair in your teens you have a sensitive genetic predisposition to DHT that will, left untreated make you bald by the age of 30.

I started with a receding hairline at the ripe age of 16 and went on minoxidil. I neglected my hair by not going on a 5AR inhibitor until I was almost 22. By then my hair had rapidly transformed from a NW2 to a NW3 and I wound up with no hairline except for a widows peak. Looking at my picture on a college ID and seeing that widows peak sent me running to the dermatologist and I was on Propecia the next week.

I recently switched to Avodart and added lots of topical anti-androgens and adjuncts with the hopes of regrowth, but the important thing to note is that I'm now 23 and haven't gotten ANY worse. Especially on my crown, there's not a single sign of miniaturization. So I'm basically no longer balding.

Don't wait around, get on a 5AR inhibitor immediately. That's the minimum you should do.

I recommend that you also add a topical androgen receptor blocker too.

Since MPB is a complex process, and all we have are semi-effective treatments with different mechanisms of attack, you are best off using a multi-therapy approach rather than mono therapy. For example, a 5AR inhibitor + topical androgen receptor blocker + anti-inflammatory + growth stimulant + ...

Start off with the "Big 3" as a base: propecia, nizoral 2%, and minoxidil and then add/modify your treatment as you learn more about MPB treatments and your specific condition.

[mikes23]

@ swooping did you ever use fin, and if you did how was the switch over to RU? Is Ru giving you good results, whether it be thickening or maintaining.

[brocktherock]

Swooping do you use fin with RU or do you only use Ru?

I use RU with finasteride and I've had zero side effects. Im seeing lots of new terminal hair in my hairline so I know their working. I think the risk of real sexual sides is very low if at all.

[brocktherock]

If you can slow down thinning and prevent fibrosis then you may be able to really benefit from replicel if its great as they say. We have great treatments coming no matter what so try to be proactive with what we have now. I with I started finasteride when I was 19, its a big regret for me now at 26. Im getting a HT with Rahal in October which I expect to solve my problem for another 5 years or so but if I started fin early then I could have possibly saved myself 16 grand.