Considering medical treatment

[srtcy]

Hi everyone,

I know this is a very frequent subject but there are so many varied topics on this subject I thought I would try to get some answers in one place. I've found a doctor (Dr farjo) who after having done a lot of research I'm feeling confident that I will go for a consultation with him.

About a year ago i was considering taking some medical treatment and so I went to my gp with loads of printouts of some treatments I liked the sound of (Minonoxile/finasteride). At the time i felt that these were probably not going to create miracles although considering they were prescription medications I was curious to know what my gp said. But to be honest he seemed kind of dismissive about them and in a way kind of stated that I would be best to try and accept the hair loss as none of the medications would create big changes and to keep 'smiling'...

In a way he seemed right but NOW things seem very different. Having been researching into hair transplants and viewing these forums so many people seem to be taking medications such as these that it seems to be a routine and I'm reconsidering getting some prescribed, especially when my consultation with farjo is not until september.

Although I like the sound of minoxidile, I'm not really bothered about 'regrowing hair' and from what I've read, it doesn't STOP the hairloss. Finasteride seems to be the main thing to take even though it does have some side effects. Anyway, I think I will go to my gp this week and see if I can get it presscribed, but in the meantime I am curious to know what other people are taking and am I doing the right thing?

[Havok]

propecia is the most effective med available. whether u want to risk potential sides is completely up to you. i would gladly give up sex life if i was guaranteed to have full head of hair but that's just me lol. rather not feel like shit at every waking moment than to have half an hour of intense pleasure any day. i'm 8 months into taking finasteride and i have mixed feelings. hard to describe but feels like i have less hair overall but ones i have seem to be thicker and more healthy. wish i got on the meds even few months earlier but oh well.

we'll know if hair plucking works by end of this year. so there are answers on the horizon.

[srtcy]

Haha! yeah well luckily I'm single at the moment so I supppose I can cope with those side effects for now


Are you saying that since taking finasteride you feel you've lost more hair? Are you taking any other treatment with this?

[Winston]

Haha! yeah well luckily I'm single at the moment so I supppose I can cope with those side effects for now


Are you saying that since taking finasteride you feel you've lost more hair? Are you taking any other treatment with this?

The side effects of Propecia have been blown so out of proportion it’s ridiculous. Most men do not suffer with any adverse sexual sides effects and many benefit greatly from the drug. There is always a risk when you take any medication, but this drug has an excellent track record. If you believe you will have sexual side effects, you probably will. The mind is extremely powerful when it comes to our sexual functions and I believe that many of the men who complain of these sexual sides do it to themselves.

[srtcy]

The side effects of Propecia have been blown so out of proportion it’s ridiculous. Most men do not suffer with any adverse sexual sides effects and many benefit greatly from the drug. There is always a risk when you take any medication, but this drug has an excellent track record. If you believe you will have sexual side effects, you probably will. The mind is extremely powerful when it comes to our sexual functions and I believe that many of the men who complain of these sexual sides do it to themselves.

Yeah good point I do believe that worrying so much about hair loss and anxiety levels can play tricks on people. It's played tricks on me. The drug finasteride has been recommended on the farjo website and Dr Farjo does stress that patients should be taking medication in the meantime so I would rather take the risk, than take nothing at all.

[UK_]

There are people who have to go on hormone therapy after taking Propecia, even years after taking it test levels may remain low, but then again there are side effects with almost every drug, it's up to you if you wanna take the risk, we will know in the coming months whether we may see a new treatment on the horizon. Histogen are starting their trials in May and Acell/Aderans findings should be available by Christmas.

[UK_]

propecia is the most effective med available. whether u want to risk potential sides is completely up to you. i would gladly give up sex life if i was guaranteed to have full head of hair but that's just me lol. rather not feel like shit at every waking moment than to have half an hour of intense pleasure any day. i'm 8 months into taking finasteride and i have mixed feelings. hard to describe but feels like i have less hair overall but ones i have seem to be thicker and more healthy. wish i got on the meds even few months earlier but oh well.

we'll know if hair plucking works by end of this year. so there are answers on the horizon.

Hair over a sex drive? lol try saying that when the Doc tells you you'll need to take tadalafil for the rest of your life, I couldn't imagine taking propecia for longer than 3 - 4 years let alone for the rest of my life, it's an age-old treatment from the dark ages of hair loss, and I have a feeling it will be buried under the biotech revolution in gene/stem cell therapy. I hope to the heavens we can see an end to this horrid pill.

[srtcy]

There are people who have to go on hormone therapy after taking Propecia, even years after taking it test levels may remain low, but then again there are side effects with almost every drug, it's up to you if you wanna take the risk, we will know in the coming months whether we may see a new treatment on the horizon.

You're right at the end of the day it comes down to the individual. Either way there are only two treatments I would choose from propecia/minoxidil. Only because they are the only approved drugs around and doctor seem to only recommend these. Just funny because either way there's a dilemna no matter which drug people take.

Those with minoxidil complain about noticing further hair loss after taking it (which from what I've researched seems to be a known fact during initial stages), and then propecia its about other side affects. I'm pretty much decided anyway and I would rather go with a drug like propecia than not take anything at all and regret further down the line.

[Havok]

Hair over a sex drive? lol try saying that when the Doc tells you you'll need to take tadalafil for the rest of your life, I couldn't imagine taking propecia for longer than 3 - 4 years let alone for the rest of my life, it's an age-old treatment from the dark ages of hair loss, and I have a feeling it will be buried under the biotech revolution in gene/stem cell therapy. I hope to the heavens we can see an end to this horrid pill.

i can only hope and pray that a real viable treatment will come to fruition. but i will hold on to propecia for my dear life until then. well maybe i would sing a different tune if i actually had sides but since i don't i'll continue taking it.

[Havok]

Haha! yeah well luckily I'm single at the moment so I supppose I can cope with those side effects for now


Are you saying that since taking finasteride you feel you've lost more hair? Are you taking any other treatment with this?

i'm only taking finasteride and nizoral every once in a while. i'm seeing some growth in the hairline area and those that are there are long and thick (they were very thin and short before). but i've seem to have lost more hair overall (top and front). whether they will all come back stronger remains to be seen. as of now i feel i have less hair than i did 8 months ago. my gut tells me i'll have some regrowth over the next few months but that's just my gut feeling

[UK_]

i can only hope and pray that a real viable treatment will come to fruition. but i will hold on to propecia for my dear life until then. well maybe i would sing a different tune if i actually had sides but since i don't i'll continue taking it.

I might give Propecia a shot aswel, I might regret it later on if I dont, Ive been hoping to hold out for a better treatment, I do believe something is coming, biotech is moving so fast today its impossible to keep up with the developments, I just imagine being 23 years old, balding and sat in the middle of the 1950's, 60's or 70's where Propecia wasn't even available.

[srtcy]

It's funny though because I don't know about anyone else, but the more I look into propecia, the more devastating it seems to be with some people. Ok there are those out there that are probably paid to give negatives, but just taking a step back and looking at the BIG picture on this, there seem to be too many negatives to justfiy why people would lie.

I didn't realize how bad the side effects were until the more I looked into it. some people claim to have really had a problem with their sex life which to be honest, but be an even worse problem than hairloss. I'm not sure whether i should not take any treatment at all and if need be get a hair transplant in time.

I'm going to hopefully speak to a patient advisor this week. I'm interested to know from him whether he has had many patients claiming these side effects. Will keep people posted.

[Havok]

It's funny though because I don't know about anyone else, but the more I look into propecia, the more devastating it seems to be with some people. Ok there are those out there that are probably paid to give negatives, but just taking a step back and looking at the BIG picture on this, there seem to be too many negatives to justfiy why people would lie.

I didn't realize how bad the side effects were until the more I looked into it. some people claim to have really had a problem with their sex life which to be honest, but be an even worse problem than hairloss. I'm not sure whether i should not take any treatment at all and if need be get a hair transplant in time.

I'm going to hopefully speak to a patient advisor this week. I'm interested to know from him whether he has had many patients claiming these side effects. Will keep people posted.

but it doesn't matter whether or not your hear about others having sides and what not. all you need to know is that there is a small percentage of men taking propecia who experience sides. nobody knows whether you will experience those sides or not. ok so within those small percentage of men experiencing sides there's even a smaller percentage of men who experience permanent sides. nobody knows whether you will experience permanent sides or not. whether you want to take that risk is completely up to you.

it's asinine to base your decision on a single patient advisor's experience or some anti-propecia advocate.

there's risk involved sure. you either take it or you don't. so simple. so, so simple.

[srtcy]

but it doesn't matter whether or not your hear about others having sides and what not. all you need to know is that there is a small percentage of men taking propecia who experience sides. nobody knows whether you will experience those sides or not. ok so within those small percentage of men experiencing sides there's even a smaller percentage of men who experience permanent sides. nobody knows whether you will experience permanent sides or not. whether you want to take that risk is completely up to you.

it's asinine to base your decision on a single patient advisor's experience or some anti-propecia advocate.

there's risk involved sure. you either take it or you don't. so simple. so, so simple.

I do agree with you Havok. I'm new to all this so I think its just from initial research its very easy for people to panic a bit to begin with. I'm just being cautious which i would rather be than completely overlooking all of the negatives people say. Just trying to get a good understanding of the drug.

I'm not just going with the patient advisor's decision, in fact there is so much bull on the net I've read, that I feel it's pretty wise to speak to someone like him as he works very closely with Dr Farjo and deals with many patients every day. So getting answers from him as well will probably filter out any bull The good thing is, he emailed me and mentioned that I'm probably not in the right position to have a hair transplant in the future as my hair loss may get worse, but suggested these treatments right away.

So yes your right, and I'm still considering getting on finasteride....Happy Days