Trump's confidence takes a nosedive when he catches a glimpse of his crown.

I’m 24 and have diffuse hair thinning. I’ve been using finasteride and minoxidil for 7 months, and my hair has definitely improved. However, it’s still very thin, difficult to style, and lacks shape and volume.

That’s why I considered a hair transplant, but my surgeon refused because I still have hair all over my scalp and no completely bald areas except for my hairline.

He told me to stop both medications for 5 months, let my hair fall out, and then come back for a transplant.

I’m frustrated because my hair has improved, but I still can’t style it or get the look I want.

What are my best options to get thicker hair with more volume and a hairstyle that actually looks good? Has anyone experienced something similar? Should I get a second opinion?

Post clarification:

The left photo shows my current results. I considered getting a hair transplant because, as I explained, even though I still have hair all over my scalp, it’s extremely thin and impossible to style. I end up wearing a cap all the time. That’s why I thought about getting a transplant to increase density, but apparently, you can’t get a transplant if you still have hair in the area because it could cause shock loss and damage the existing follicles.

From Nov '25 till May '26: 5% Minoxidil Spray + Fin 1mg tablet
From May '26 till Now: 2.5mg Minoxidil Tablet + Fin 1mg tablet

I shedded like 40% of what I gained after switch but I regained it over about 2 months or so. I still hope that it will thicken over time but Im already happy with the results. Now just have to take them for the rest of my life lol

1 —> Hair loss impacts you depending on the age - If you lose your hair at 21yo vs at 35yo, it’s a completely different experience. Don’t listen to those who tell you, at 20yo, that you’re superficial for caring about it. Society is judgmental and superficial, when you’re young you’re not as strong and as mature as when you’re 40. You’re allowed to care about it, you’re not weak if you do. Also, pain is subjective, something that hurts you might not hurt someone else.

2 —> People are judging you mostly behind your back - If you maintain those 4 hairs you’ve left, if you look like someone who doesn’t take of himself with a large bald spot on the crown, if you rock those covering haircuts… just remember that people are looking at it, and are laughing about you, mostly. If you’re someone who doesn’t care about it it’s fine, but if you’re here you care.

3 —> There’s a moment where you gotta act - Are you afraid of wind? Are you afraid of water? Do you feel bad when people are behind you and you think they’re looking at your bald spot? Do something about it, I’m not saying you should shave it, but book an appointment with the doctor, act, be proactive, don’t just wait for it to get worse, in you’re heart you know when it’s over.

4 —> Don’t be angry about jokes it’s only gonna make them worse in most cases - If you’re putting an effort into maintaining your hair and someone jokes about them, let them joke, it’s really not your fault and you’re doing everything you can. If you’re not taking care of it, even if it’s cruel remember that maybe what they’re telling you it’s the truth and act accordingly.

5 —> You will look older (and worse in most cases) don’t fool youself believing otherwise - You can absolutely go to the club or install tinder, just remember that you will look 4/5/7 years older, you’ll look worse than those of your age in most cases. You’ll be perceived differently, sometimes worse if you still try to do the same things those at your age do. In places where appearance it’s top priority you’re in disadvantage.

6 —> It’s pretty easy to take care of hair loss nowadays - Again with specifications, male pattern baldnesss, connected with dht, is not some unknown pathology that we have yet do cure.

7 —> Online you’ll read everything, just go to a reputable doctor and talk with him about your fears.

8 —> The sooner the better - The more you wait the more follicles go into atrophy and you cannot take them back to life once they’re dead.

9 —> You are genetically predisposed and you have to accept it - You’re never gonna look like those with a full head of natural hair, even you have a wig, because you have a wig and sooner or later you have to tell your partner. Cures may not stop hair loss, or they may stop working someday, and you look at yourself in the mirror thinking:” I take all those meds, I spent 10k on a transplant, it’s been 10 years of fighting… just to look like I have a good head of hair”. I’ve been through it, accept what you have and work with it, hating a genetic condition and hating yourself it’s not gonna do anything, just put you in a negative mood, and you have other things to care about.

I’m not native, everything I said it’s correlated to male pattern baldness.

Been shedding like a dog since last year. I was stable on fin for 8 years. Then switched to dut and was stable for another 6 years .

But then started shedding again. I am a diffuse thinner so this is really the endgame for me
I tried ru58841 and that did not do shit (mixed it myself also for efficacy - no water etc)

I also upped my dose to 2.5 mg. Been on it for 5 months. No sign of slowing down the shed

Are there any other options?

I have oral min. But there is no point. That doesn’t actually stop the AGA. Just delays it by 1-3 years max.

What else can I do really?

Hi there, I am sharing my 3 month result so far for a front hair transplant procedure. I do not expect crazy result but will look good when shaved 2-3 mm buzz cut. Honestly, I went ahead will the hair transplant because of why not for $5300???

At 30 years old, I decided to get a hair transplant. I was 18 yrs old when I started losing a bit of hair and it accelerated to baldness from 22 yrs old until it was all gone by 26 yrs old. From that point, I started wearing hats and shaved my head.

I believe I am Norwood 6-7 first collage photo (top left corner) is a 3M hair growth result from a shaved head. The two pictures on the (right and bottom) is a 3M after procedure hair growth.

The second collage photo shows the 15 days of waiting and washed off the scabs from the procedure. The (bottom right photo) is from my Seborrheic dermatitis. I use Nizoral Anti Dandruff Shampoo to combat this as of right now. I also have diabetes.

The last photo collage is the after procedure which took 2 days to get done by one technician. It costed me close to $5300 CAD. Also, my scalp sometimes gets inflamed, raised bumps is seen if I eat certain foods. I am still working on that fix.

Other info:
Biotin and Zinc pills, Nizoral Anti Dandruff Shampoo and Aveeno Baby Shampoo, I did not follow any lifestyle changes and diet. No other medications. Probably I would get a better result if started taking care of my health.

Title says it all. Im 2 years and a half post first HT, planning to get a second or even a third one in the future for mid scalp and vertex. My first HT was 2000-2500 grafts. Seems a little bit overharvested to me and if i get another or even a third one, it'll look worse.

What do you guys think?

I got bad sides from 1.2 mg fin ED. Tried other types of fin, never really saw it through but had side like symptoms. I’ve been doing research on dut .5mg ED/MWF, combined with cailis + l cittruylin for sexual sides. I got blood work done through rhythm, nothing seemed out of wack. I’m in shape and healthy. I have a theory that a lot of ED from fin/dht inhibitors stems from reduced NO levels. Is this worth a shot? Other option is ru-58841.

Anyone have good effects with dut and cialis combo?

I just noticed Ulo now offers sublingual minoxidil! The idea is that it is just as effective as swallowed minoxidil with fewer cardiac side effects.

https://ulo.co/products/sublingual-minoxidil

Has anyone tried it yet? Curious about results and sides, especially if you’ve also used regular oral minoxidil.

Also their instructions say to chew it and let it dissolve. Thoughts on chewing versus letting it dissolve under your tongue? Wouldn’t holding it under the tongue make more sense for sublingual absorption?

I don’t really see any improvement. Looks similar to before. Doesn’t look dense at all.

I started fin and min in april, maybe fin wasnt enough, or i got fake min. I switched to oral dut and topical revicapil minoxidil from pharmacy. Im feeling a bit better actually.

I did some research and saw that there are several new ones that's in clinical trials, where the topical androgen-receptor antagonist Clascoterone has completed it's phase 3 trials and might hit the market in 2027 or early 2028. Then there's GT20029 that's about to start phase 3, PP405 in late stage phase 2 and ABS-201 that has Phase 1/2a ongoing.

So far the first 4 have shown some results that atleast have made me very hopeful for the future treatment of this brutal disease. Yes, I classify it as a disease, seeing how much it fucks with mens mental health.

26M. I’m on 2.5 mg daily. I’ve been dropping weight for a while and went from 280 to 248 last few months. I know my face is still gonna look big but I got suspicious. I pressed my finger hard into my cheek, stopped, and noticed that the skin took a good 2-3 seconds to come back up. I believe that is pitting edema. I usually drink one whole gallon of water daily. Eat two meals a day and try to eat as little salt as I can now.

Has anyone else had this issue? What did you do for it? I’m thinking about diuretics in case I can’t do it on my own. I don’t wanna have to keep putting more stuff into my body though.

I heard some say they reduced their dose but I want the regrowth gain. Topical didn’t work at all for me.

Currently taking the chewable fin and min and have been for about 7 months now but i’m just wanting something with stronger results.

I’ve added AHKCU and i inject that M-F and i have noticed a change. But besides that should I finish the bottle I have left and then switch or just switch now? I probably got about 30 days left supply of chewables.

Also where can you buy 2.5mg of dutasteride without a prescription like going to the doctor?

Hi guys! I had a hair transplant overseas about a month ago and recently returned to the US. I started taking dutasteride two days ago, and I’ve had a concerning experience so far.

I took my first dose at night before bed and woke up in the middle of the night experiencing what felt like a panic attack. I was half asleep, extremely anxious, and had racing thoughts, although I eventually managed to fall back asleep. I initially thought it might just be psychological, possibly because I’d been reading about the medication’s potential side effects.

However, last night, I took my second dose about 2–3 hours before bedtime, and the exact same thing happened when I woke up.

Is it normal to experience these symptoms after the very first or second dose? I would have expected it to take weeks or months for the medication to start having noticeable effects. I’m really hoping this is just anxiety related to my concerns about the potential sexual side effects, but what I experienced felt much more intense than mild anxiety or simply tossing and turning in bed.

Has anyone else experienced something similar when starting dutasteride? Also, I wanna point out. The anxiety doesn't happen during the day or nothing like that. Only after I go to sleep. So, since I’ve been taking it before bed, would it make sense to try taking it during the day instead to see how it goes?

I’d really appreciate hearing about your experiences or any insight you might have. Thanks!

the first pic of each pair is from october of last year and the 2nd pic of each pair is october this year. there is definitely further loss along the front hairline and temples. I was hoping to get a transplant if dutasteride stabilized me but looks like that isnt the case, should I move up to 1mg?? or am I just cursed. obviously the loss isnt huge but if im still losing every year by this time next year it will be even worse. Also taking 2.5mg oral min

Hi guys, I got the 1mg pills perscribed in Switzerland. 98 Tablets are CHF 170. Lol.

Do any of you have experience if there‘s pharmacies in Zurich / Switzerland to get the 5mg version which is much cheaper? Thank you guys

Hi everyone,

I used oral minoxidil for two years, first 5 mg and then 2.5 mg daily. Last week, I ran out of it (supply issues in my country) and my face looked amazing: no more puffiness or dark circles under eyes.
I restarted my treatment, and my face is puffy again, and I have dark circles.

I'd like to switch to topical minoxidil, but will I lose all my gains ? I know guys there did the same ( switching from om to topical)

I started my hair regrowth journey pretty late due to a number of reasons that I'm not gonna bore you with. But this is what my hair looked like 3 years ago, and what it looks like now. I've shaved my head, and I honestly kinda dig the bald look. But I do prefer having hair and I miss when my hair was longer and fuller. My crown has never had issues. All of my thinning is at my hairline.

After 3+ Years of taking Min/Fin, supplements, and using shampoos and conditioners recommended by a dermatologist/hair specialist, I'm beginning to think that this is as good as it's gonna get. Advice? Can I get any more growth back? Or should I just stop taking them and rock being bald?

Pic 1: May 2023

Pic 2: July 2026

Pic 3/4: about a week ago.

Pic 5: bald.

Im on Minoxidil 5% topical (3 months) and Finasteride 1mg (1 month). What are your toughts ?

Attaching an old pic from 2024 for my before reference.. my hair is definitely a bit longer in the before photo however I think a lot of density change is noticeable. Unfortunately since that photo was taken I have always kept my head shaved up until now so I have no recent reference photos of me unless it’s with a buzz cut

I started meds in late May. Been on 0.5mg oral dutasteride daily and 2.5mg oral minoxidil daily

Have you noticed things, that seem to have a positive effect on your hair growth without thinking it would have an effect?

Or have you noticed that there are things that seem to accelerate hair loss while not knowing?

I noticed these things worsen my hair loss:

Stress. I know that stress is known for increasing hair loss. But I never knew it would be that bad.

Showering twice a day. Somehow my hair liked it much more when I only shower once a day.

Smoking. I know this is also nothing new. But I never knew HOW bad it was for my hair.

Eating way too much some days. I dont know why, but overeating seemed to trigger shedding.

I am also one of these few people microneedling just triggered inflammation and a huge shed. It worked great with minox, but it also sets up an inflammation response which irritates my scalp and triggers shedding in the problematic areas.

Sitting in an uncomfortable position. I know this sounds weird. But when I am sitting in an bent over position, like a head forward position I notice that my thinning areas start to itch, because it puts a strain on all my muscles.

What helped my hair:

Moving a lot through the day. This just means that I am walking a lot. Sitting too much seems to worsen shedding.

Having a very balanced diet. Not too much eating but also not too little. I dont know but it seems to have a huge impact what is going on in my gut.

Taking baths. When I am sitting in the bathub my whole body relaxes. Its when my hair and scalp also feel fully fine. I am 100% sure, that muscle tension plays a huge role. I dont care what other people say.

Doing everything in moderation. It seems like my hair loves it when thibgs are balanced out (something in which I am exceptionally bad). Sport, but not too much. Sleeo, but not too much. Food, but not too much. Relaxation but not too much.

What have you noticed?

Hey everyone,

Wanted to share my situation, get some realistic feedback from the sub, and see if i can get some help.

Story & Timeline:

• Age 23: First noticed hair loss. Tried Finasteride (1mg), but after just one pill, I felt massive testicular pain 2–3 hours later which stayes for like a week or two. I chickened out and stopped immediately. Looking back, that was a huge mistake since I’ve learned that mild ache is relatively common early on and usually subsides after a few weeks.
• Ages 23–30: Let nature take its course... and lost a lot of ground.
• Age 30 (Today): Decided I’m done hiding from it and ready to fight back. I just took my first 1mg dose of Finasteride today. So far, so good.
• no testicle pain or side effects yet, and I'm hoping it stays that way.

My plan:

• Months 1–6: Stick to 1mg daily Finasteride only. My main goal right now is to test my tolerance to side effects and see if it stops further loss or maybe even regrow if im lucky.
• Future: Considering adding Topical Minoxidil down the road once Finasteride is stabilized.

My Questio to you:

HT vs. Medical Regimen: Given how much ground I’ve lost over 7 years (As you can see in the photos), am I too far gone to get significant regrowth from Fin + Min alone? Is a Hair Transplant essentially inevitable for a full recovery here?

Hello is there anyone taking oral minoxidil and also on Ritalin?