Where should I start?

[Diffuse33]

Hello, I'm sorry to hear about your hair loss & the distress that it has, & is still causing. Unfortunately, to the best of my knowledge, if you're suffering from male or female pattern hair loss then increasing the consumption of certain vitamins or adjusting various aspects of your lifestyle will only have a minimal effect. For us pattern baldness sufferers it seems Rogaine (Finasteride for men as well) is the only thing that can make a real difference. In my own case, Rogaine & Finasteride have been very effective (well, so far anyway). Having taken me from a severely diffuse balding head (all over) to a head which really doesn't look like it's balding, all within about 6 months. But yes, I need to pop a pill everyday & apply Rogaine twice a day for as long as I want to keep my new hair (oh & I derma roll every other day as well which also takes times). It can feel burdensome at times (the constant application and the cost), however I just try to always remind myself that if I want to keep my new hair (which I certainly do) then it's something I have to do & to not resent it. Most importantly, all in all, I'm just very very grateful that for now... my hair has returned. With regards to whether you should start or not, I really can't say, this is because I don't know how bad you feel about your hair at the moment. For me, if I didn't do anything I would have been bald in a few years or less, thus had nothing to lose. You will probably start to shed a lot of hairs when you start Rogaine (not everyone does, I did) and you need to be able to deal with this and stick it out, as shedding large amounts of hairs, albeit scary is a sign that you will experience good regrow in a few months. Secondly, regrowth is slow... it can seem like a life time for those first few months to pass by... and you generally have to get 'balder' before things get better. Thirdly, yes you need to be sure that you can commit to rubbing it onto your scalp twice a day... well for as long as you want your new hair (it's very sticky, smells and is just well generally not that nice, some people experience side effects as well). And I guess last but not least it the cost, it's not a huge expense, but if you're on a low income it's definitely something you will need to budget for. Anyway, that's my two cents, good luck with what every you decide. All the best.