Rogaine + Propecia Progress after 4 months So far

[roguser]

To start, I'm 28, been receding frontally at a very slow rate (all things considered). I am neither affiliated with this site nor with any other hairloss product related site. Just take my word for what it's worth.

Since I don't read too much about people sharing their progress with this product, I'd thought I'd share mine.

When I was 22 still studying in college, I noticed that the rate of my hair began falling out faster especially after all nighters drinking with my friends. After a few months, I definitely began noticing what's medically termed as "recession of the frontal hairline". Although the shedding seemed to be at an incredible rate, the recession wasn't progressing that quickly. I think at this stage it was more psychological than physical. However, it was then that I was introduced to Rogaine and Propecia from the local doctor.

Call it confidence or lethargic, but my attitude towards using these products were inconsistent at best. At first, sensing some urgency towards the hair loss, I actively used rogaine and propecia for the first six to twelve months, missing a few treatments here and there. I didn't sense a need to keep a record of anything at the time, but for a while the treatments seemed like it worked. Then I stopped and used the products on and off for months. A bottle of propecia would last me 3 months.

Needless to say for the next 4-5 years of on and off usage, my recession worsened.

Lesson# 1: Don't quit using rogaine and prop.

This leads to now.

Recently, after a consultation with my doctor, he advised me to begin keeping accurate track of my progress and recording the number of follicles falling out. He mentioned that an average person loses 100 hairs a day (For those that are reading this, you owe me 45 dollars for this information from cost of the doctor visit) =)

My thoughts are the hair i'm losing is at a consistent rate, HOWEVEr, I was not growing back hair on my temples and front forehead at a rate fast enough to replenish the normal loss. In fact no hair grew back. That essentially was the problem.

To keep record, for a month, when I woke up in the morning, I would go to the sink and fluff my hair until all the loose hair fell out. I would see an average of 30-40 hair follicles. On a good day, maybe 20-25. On a bad day maybe 60-70. ouch. The other hairs are probably lost during the day and there's really no way to find those. For the consistency of the experiment, I recorded only the morning losses right after waking up.

Then I started the propecia treatment only. For the first 2 months on propecia, I noticed nothing. No growth, and the loss remained the same.

Then on the 3rd month I started Rogaine in conjunction.

Let me address some issues with Rogaine:

1) it does flake, and sometimes it does hurt mildly (dryness I guess)
This concerned me the most. What if it's doing permanent damage or irreparable follicle damage? I guess I put the fear aside... Leap of faith here.

2) To use it properly, make sure it DRIES!!! Even water or a towel or putting on a T shirt will brush it off. If you allow it to dry you should see lots of skin shedding. If not, then you washed it off.

3) I don't think the loss increases when you first use the product. That's all psychological. See below.

For the first month of rogaine, the bathroom shedding was still fairly consistent and remained at the 30-40 average.

Last month was the 2nd month (2 bottles) of using rogaine and 4 months of using propecia. I am noticing some regrowth in the temple region. The hair grows very slowly, like 1millimeter per month at most and it has no aesthetic value and is much like a pore hair. At the 2nd month and now the close to the 3rd month, the little hairs are a little bit darker and can be seen at close range, but still has not much aesthetic value from far away.

However, I am clearly clearly seeing visible growth. It does not grow fast like my normal hair, but I remain confident. After all, it took 6-7 years for the damage to occur. I am still shedding an average of 20-40 hairs every morning. But I don't see 60-70 hair days any more. I'm not entirely convinced of my experiment methods though.

So why did I tell my college story? If you want to use rogaine or propecia, be consistent. Don't miss an application here or there.

What works better: Rogaine or Propecia. I have no clue. In fact, I only noticed small growth after I started Rogaine which makes me more inclined to say the latter. However, at this stage since I am seeing growth, I won't stop using either one.

I will continue to post the results in another 3 months. Then we'll know if the new tiny hairs will grow into normal hairs.

Oh also, I rotate shampoos every 2 weeks, and I do use conditioner. I think conditioner makes the hair easier to manage, and I say %&$! to those who say it makes hairloss worse.

I also use nizoral T/Gel shampoo to control my dandruff and rogaines flakiness. I only use this about 1 a week or once every 2 weeks.

Good luck everyone.

This is just my opinion but, all the untested products with all their claims are just so unpredictable. I would stick with rogaine and propecia first.

Other products I've used:
Nioxin - I had a friend who swore this worked for him. Yeah right. hurt my head after a while.
Lysene (vitamin) - Only used it for 1 month, didn't see anything but whatever

Ones I might be interested in seeing:
Xandrox - Required a perscription from the doctor. Okay, I am not going to pay 50 bucks for a consultation over email. That's what stopped me. If his products works so well, give the damn perscription.
Revivogen - Looked interesting

Be back in 3 months

[HairLossFight.com]

Hello roguser and welcome!

Wow! Great post. Thanks for giving us such a detailed history of your battle with hair loss. In many ways you and I have a similar profile.

Please keep us posted on your progress.

You are definitely using the right treatments. You mentioned some irritation with minoxidil however. Are you sure its the minox and not PPG (propylene glycol) that's causing the irritation? For a long time I thought that I was sensitive to minox, only to learn that it was the PPG that was causing the irritation for me. I use Xandrox15 and that is PPG free. It uses glycerin itself. I have completely eliminated the irritation. Also I am very pleased with the results from it.

It's expensive, but worth it if you can afford it. As to why Dr. Lee needs to do the consultation and charge you for it, I think it's to cover his rear end in terms of making sure that he is not breaking any laws and is giving you a proper diagnosis. I asked him about this when I saw him about 2 years ago. Its actually not good for his business because he would probably make way more cash if he didn't have to charge for an initial consultation. He would get all the skeptics, like yourself.

Anyway, I don't make a single penny for recommending Dr. Lee's products. I use them because I have found them to be of high quality and quite effective. I recommend them only for this reason.

Anyway, you're on the right track with your simple regimen. If you ever want to have an added kick, I think both Xandrox and Revivogen are great additional products. I use both of them.

Best Regards,
Sam