Big mistake for stopping Minoxidil

[aiyosh]

I have stopped using Minoxidil for almost 6 months, but at first I didnt realise the increase in hairloss was due to the stoppage of Minoxidil.....now my hairloss has gone back to where I started off with and I came across with some articles saying that if you have stopped once you wont be able to get back the initial positive result even you restart it..and now I m jus so worried that I wont be able to get back what I had from Minoxidil. and my scalp is now so visible that I hav to use toppik every morning. Has anyone who have stopped and restarted Minoxidil came back with good results?

I urge anyone who is thinkin of quitting minoxidil to give it a serious thot.

[KeepTheHair]

You can get the same results if you use it again, most likely.


But that will not be the case if your hair was further damaged from DHT and the natural balding process.

[25 going on 65]

If you successfully used minox with no sides effects, and you want to regain some of the hair you just lost, by all means go back on it. If you responded well to it before, it will still help you when you restart.

Are you on finasteride as well? Whether or not you use minoxidil, you should always be on a DHT blocker like Propecia or Proscar. That's how you prevent damage to the follicles. Minox sort of just forces your hair to grow in thicker, in spite of the damage that's continuing to happen. At least this is my understanding.

[aiyosh]

Yes I m on Propecia as well...but my hairline is so much worse that i cant even use toppik to cover and not to mention my scalp, may b i m experiencing initial shedding again. I m under quite a huge amount of stress rite now..i cant forgive myself for stopping minoxidil for no reason..and now as a consequence this is what i m getting.

[Dr. Glenn Charles]

I have had patients who stopped using the Minoxidil because they thoght it was not working, but realized after a significant shedding that maybe it really was working for them. Some who got right back on it were able to get back to where they were before stopping the Minoxidil and some never really ever regained the density they had. It is certainly worth a try, especially if you did not have any negative side effects.

[aiyosh]

Thanks Dr Glenn Charles,

I hope I m one of those who can regaine the hair, but I have stopped for 6 months now..may be it has already been too late. The patients you had that jumped rite back and successfully regained the hair were probably the one who only stopped for a really short period of time rite?

Do you think my propecia could still be protecting the hair follicles and might allow the minoxidil to stimulate hair follicles again. I hav restarted the minoxidil now, and the initial shedding is pretty bad, do u think this is a good sign?

[aiyosh]

Also Dr. Glenn Charles,

For the patients who didnt regain the same density, did they at least regain half of what they had?

[Dr. Glenn Charles]

Some did regain partial density. The fact that you were taking Propecia may help your long term situation. Unfortunetly, time is the only thing that will eventually lead to your answer to these difficult questions. I will keep my fingers crossed for you.

[kanyon]

It should be noted that in my experience Minox only works for a limited time span although this may be long enough for some of you. It will not work forever.

I used it for 6 years - and it noticeably stopped working 5 months ago. Am still using it twice a day but am quite sure it is of no benefit anymore.

They were the best 6 years of my life though.

Am now taking Propecia and seriously considering an HT which upsets me.

[Dr. Glenn Charles]

Many hair restoration physicians feel that the combination treatment Propecia/Finasteride works better than either treatment by itself. Hopefully that will be the case for both of you guys.

[Mks357]

I was almost 17 and half year old when i noticed my mphairloss , went to the dermatologist,got finasteride and minox. Combo as a solution . My condition was not so bad , but had diffused thinning all over ,which decreased my hair density heavily.

When i started ,i noticed the results very fast , my hair started getting thicker,density improved and i followed the regimen sincerely for 6-7 months .....and then i lost my mind....i quit minox. and just relied on finasteride thinking a bullshit theory that my hair follicles may have gotten thicker ,so no need of minox. ,finasteride can maintain everything.

After leaving minoxidil , until few weeks nothing seriois happened but as the weeks passed my condition started getting worse and worse, but i kept telling myself that it was just my scalp adjust to my new hair cycle....but it wasn't true.

My hair kept thinning , when my scalp was now showing , not bald spots as i m a diffused thinner.(this period was about 3-4 months ).

Then i started again and now it is the starting of 3 month again with minoxidil, my right side and my nape region has thinned significantly,but mphl targets forehead and crown so this is happening can anyone explain.

Pic 1. Gain from minoxidil(starting 1-6 months)

Pic 2. Losing gains of minoxidil( when i quit minox. 3-4 months)

Pic 3. Again after restarting minoxidil (after 3 month approx.)

And some bedore after collages.

[Amir Yazdan, MD]

I would recommend getting back on minoxidil right away twice a day. You may want to also consider using Nizoral shampoo 2-3 times per week as well as groMD daily shampoo + follicle activator spray www.gro.md

[Ahab]

I have stopped using Minoxidil for almost 6 months, but at first I didnt realise the increase in hairloss was due to the stoppage of Minoxidil.....now my hairloss has gone back to where I started off with and I came across with some articles saying that if you have stopped once you wont be able to get back the initial positive result even you restart it..and now I m jus so worried that I wont be able to get back what I had from Minoxidil. and my scalp is now so visible that I hav to use toppik every morning. Has anyone who have stopped and restarted Minoxidil came back with good results?

I urge anyone who is thinkin of quitting minoxidil to give it a serious thot.

I made the mistake of stopping it after my first two years, and just about six months after stopping, I lost a lot of hair, so I started using it again. Some of what was lost, returned, but it was never again as good as it looked the first time I used minoxidil.

Nevertheless, over the decades since I have continued to lose hair despite using minoxidil and dht blockers.