receding hairline

Hooves

I'm a 22 year old male. I've always had a pretty high hairline but recently it seems like its been getting higher. I've never met anyone I was biologically related to(I was adopted) so I really have no idea if I have inherited the baldness gene.

I searched for other hair loss threads but most of the ops read something like: "am balding not willing to try hair loss treatment what are some good haircuts?"

here's my situation:I'm not ok with it and i"m willing to try anything to make it stop. my face is pretty youthful so it looks really strange on me and I look terrible with super short hair so a buzz cut isn't an option.

so does rogaine work? hair transplant surgery? from what I can gather the surgeries do more harm then good but I've seen really mixed reviews on rogaine so I don't know what to think. have you or do you know someone who has used it? can changing your diet/excersizing help? or is hair loss a genetic issue having nothing to do with health/stress level?

Garick

Uh, well that is a tough one... I had the same problem when I was about 24, I didn't take rogain, but I did start taking proscar, its basicly cheap finasteride pill that you have to cut into smaller pieces, (i usually cut it in 4ths, but you could do 5ths)

I didn't grow back any hair...

BUT

I did stop losing it.

I wish I had started earlier, but I am happy that I caught it while it was still reasonable.

Hooves

I would be more than satisfied with just maintaining the amount of hair I have now.

are you going to have to continue taking it indefinitely? exactly how much does it cost?

Hooves

also how long have you been taking it?

pacbowl

You can also try scalp massaging. It stimulates blood flow, which in turn helps feed the hair follicles. Often it helps to prevent and fight avoidable hair loss, and reestablish the natural development of healthy hair. There are a few different ways to do it but I usually use one of those little round brushes with the soft bristles that you cup in your hand and has a ring type thing on it that your finger goes through to hold on to. Similar to a pet grooming brush. I run it through my hair in a slicked back motion every other morning after showering with a fair amount of pressure to make sure its stimulating the scalp.

I can't tell you what would have happened if I hadn't started massaging my scalp at 14 when my father told me about it, but both of my grandfathers were bald, my father is 68 and still has a full head of hair so the gene should have been passed to me, but at 35 it's all still there. It is thinning a bit so I might just be postponing the inevitable, but anything to stall it, eh?

corcorigan

The British NHS Direct website actually has a pretty good summary:

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Hair-loss/Pages/Treatment.aspx

Garick

I've been taking it for about 2 1/2 years now, and yes, it's one of those indefinite things... Of course I hope a more permanent solution will be found eventually, but until then!

Oh... it depends on where you buy it, but I find it costs me about 100 dollars a year.

Thanatos

A healthy diet, low in saturated fats and exercise can actually help with this as well.

But your two best bets as far as things that aren't snake oil are the things mentioned in the NHS link above.

blah

Catch 22. You lose hair because you're stressed and you're stressed because you're losing hair.

Durandal Infinity

rogaine w/ propecia(the first drug finestride in the list) works. Hair follicle restoration (not plugs) also has worked wonders for some people I know it is just expensive and you have to wear a dew rag for a week or so.

RUNN1NGMAN

Rogaine works, but only for a maximum of around 6-7 years, when it stops working and all the hair it sustained pretty much falls out at once. Also, if you ever stop using it, you revert to whatever stage of hairloss you would be at if you had never taken it, and the change is almost immediate.

Improvolone

My uncle got hair plugs, they healed really well and it looks great. I can't imagine you want that done if you're going to continue to lose hair though...

acidlacedpenguin

I'm facing similar problems at age 24. . . I imagine keeping a mohawk for a year probably didn't help. I'm in the process of letting my hair grow long (like 6 inches or so) at which point I'll go to a hairdresser, explain my problem, and then see if they can give me a flattering hair style and/or some haircare advice.

I've seen some real freakshows from plugs that go really bad so I'm a little hesitant to try that solution. A friend who's had the same problem since he was like 14 has maintained that there's a surgery that works well and that eventually he'll have that done, but he's not exactly the most reliable source.

DoctorArch

I feel your guys' pain, I really do. I was cursed with a balding maternal grandfather (who I don't look like) and a paternal grandfather posessing a very high forehead (who I do look like). As a result, I've been looking at my hair pretty intently since I was 19 (I'm 29 now) watching for possible receding. A couple of years ago I just said "fuck it" shaved my head close and realized that I didn't look too bad, so if the worst case scenario happens and my hair takes the fast track backwards, I'm just going to go bald, because I think I can carry it well. That realization actually took away all my worry about loosing my hair, and while I know it doesn't work for everyone, if it does I would run with it.

NotYou

in the same boat.

To the op: accept it. There is no true fix for this shit, and in the end people just don't care that much if you're balding or not. The stress and self loathing you'll go through trying desperately to use various products and getting little or no results won't be worth it.

Improvolone

NotYou wrote: »

There is no true fix for this shit

Plugs

edit: hair transplant, no plugs, my bad

NotYou

Improvolone wrote: »

NotYou wrote: »

There is no true fix for this shit

Plugs

I wouldn't consider that. Had an uncle get those. Told me it was the most painful experience of his life. And it ended up looking so fake and odd that he just got rid of them. Waste of money.

Improvolone

My uncle had them done about three years ago with wildly different results. Sure, as they were healing it looked like someone stepped on his head with golf shoes, but the results are there years later.

edit: Talking about hair transplants, my bad

Hooves

corcorigan wrote: »

The British NHS Direct website actually has a pretty good summary:

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Hair-loss/Pages/Treatment.aspx

that finasteride sounds pretty promising. I'll definitely be looking into that. thanks for the link.

Hooves

I doubt I'd ever resort to plugs but hair transplant surgery sounds like a better option that I could see myself resorting to much further down the line if nothing else works.

certainly not going to just accept it. I am vain as hell so I'm going to fight it tooth and nail even if it means finding some italian dude with lustrous locks, scalping them and superglueing the thing to my skull.

Fleck0

NotYou wrote: »

in the same boat.

To the op: accept it. There is no true fix for this shit, and in the end people just don't care that much if you're balding or not. The stress and self loathing you'll go through trying desperately to use various products and getting little or no results won't be worth it.

This is the best advice IMO. I was also in the 'early receding hairline' club and in time you'll realize it's not a big deal and noone really cares.

But, it's your head and I totally understand the desire to reverse the effects of maturation. Hair Transplants are imo the most effective and natural looking (also the most expensive). The one guy I know that's had it done (very successfully) recommended http://www.hairtransplantnetwork.com/ as a resource

edit: I'm also very vain, and it's good that you are too. Makes it that much easier to say "I still look damn good"

Nappuccino

I was in a similar boat (though less receding and more just general balding) but I improved my diet (like Thatanos suggested) and my hair has slowly been thickening back up.

I know that's not much to add but hopefully that gives you some re-assurance that it is possible.

Thanatos

The healthy diet approach is also win-win, in that even if it doesn't work, it's not like you'll have wasted time/money on something that proved totally useless.

Improvolone

Hooves wrote: »

I doubt I'd ever resort to plugs but hair transplant surgery sounds like a better option that I could see myself resorting to much further down the line if nothing else works.

certainly not going to just accept it. I am vain as hell so I'm going to fight it tooth and nail even if it means finding some italian dude with lustrous locks, scalping them and superglueing the thing to my skull.

Wait, plugs aren't a coloquialism for hair transplant?

Nappuccino

Thanatos wrote: »

The healthy diet approach is also win-win, in that even if it doesn't work, it's not like you'll have wasted time/money on something that proved totally useless.

Agreed. I was originally doing it just to be healthier in general and then I noticed that my hair was starting to thicken up again. Definitely a win-win situation.

Hooves

Improvolone wrote: »

Hooves wrote: »

I doubt I'd ever resort to plugs but hair transplant surgery sounds like a better option that I could see myself resorting to much further down the line if nothing else works.

certainly not going to just accept it. I am vain as hell so I'm going to fight it tooth and nail even if it means finding some italian dude with lustrous locks, scalping them and superglueing the thing to my skull.

Wait, plugs aren't a coloquialism for hair transplant?

plugs are fake hair that doesn't grow. a hair transplant is actual hair thats been transplanted from one part of your head to another.

Improvolone

Oh, well lets edit a post then.

Slaine

Use Satin or Silk Pillow Cases – Going on with ways to prevent a receding hairline, ensure you use either satin or silk pillow cases as they cause less friction when compared those made from flannel or cotton. These fabrics are preferred since they allow hair to slide easily with minimum friction thus reduce hair loss.