I started using Minoxidil 3 months ago and am just looking for others experiences to relate to.

I tried it over a year ago and immediately saw major weight gain so I quit, but as my hair loss progressed I decided it was time to try again. This time I chose to use the 2% in order to “wean” myself on in hopes of avoiding the weight issue. All was good, I had a little of the dread shed that stopped by about 2 months, but then I switched to the 5% and my shedding picked back up.

Do you think it’s from the switch, maybe it wasn’t even done to begin with?

I have a ton of new growth and the shedding isn’t “major” but it’s definitely more than it was 2 weeks ago.

Curious how the shedding happened with everyone else? Or if anyone switched between the %’s or increased/decreased frequency, etc.?

My hair is falling out so much I wanted to try serums to help so I bought the kerastase genesis hair serum but the smell of it is so strong and my scalp is sensitive/itchy and I also have SebDerm will using the serum make it worse? Any other hair serum suggestions would be great too!

Realistically, how much regrowth should be expected? I don’t believe there is a chance of our hair ever becoming dense. So would it just be easier to shave it all off instead?

I don’t have the autonomy to shave my head yet, not until I am away from my parents. This leaves me with a lot of time to deliberate.

Should the effort of salvaging hair be made? Or would it be better and more productive to just wear fake hair instead?

Hi! I am in the second month of my prp sessions. I have aga. I bought from foligain the 2% minoxidil foam and the first day I used it I felt completely discouraged. The foam makes your hair look wet and very bad, it makes my hair look more oily and they are oily in nature. So, I was very determined that I will be using minoxidil for the rest of my life to fix the problem, but this is not even possible. I cannot go to work with that appearance, they will fire me but even if they don't, I will feel extremely ugly and I won't even be able to perform well as I will be thinking about this issue. But I applied minoxidil two days, day and night and saw I did not feel any side effects on my scalp, or dizziness. So, isn't it better from nothing, to just start using 5% topical minoxidil once a day before sleep and then shower in the morning? Or even at noon and then shower in the morning. How did you guys do it? I want to say that I don't have bald areas but the problem exists in the parting of the hair and when I apply it in ''accidentally'' reaches hair so for this reason this oily look happens and it's really ugly. My dermatologist told me to do anything I want. I just ask you to see what you have to tell me!

I just wanted to ask if any female has used it and if it works!

I am going through a second TE round. The first time I had it, it lasted exactly 6 months. I took minoxidil at the 4th month and by the 6th month it was done.

I stopped taking minoxidil and it caused me to have another TE shed. I didn’t know minoxidil wasn’t recommended for TE; I just followed my dermatologist’s advice. However, this time I’m entering month 7 with no signs of improvement. I still lose about 100 hairs on non shower days and 2-300 on shower day. I’m losing my mind. I don’t have much hair left and my hair part is starting to look terrible. I have very minimal new hair growth.

At what point do I concede and determine I have CTE? What about AGA? My confidence has been in the trash for the past year.

I'm looking at milano wigs, lusta and others and have no idea which brand to choose. I want a low density realistic looking topper that can be sent back if it doesn't fit.

Hello everyone i am 30F struggling with hair loss since 1.5 years now. I used to have long wavy hair but low porosity. I had a stressful 3 month period after which I’ve started loosing my hair like crazy. Now i am almost left with 30% of my hair. I was soo scared of minoxidil. Today December 1st I’ve started the journey. Watching everyone here is giving me hope. Mental struggle with hair loss is a thing which nobody understands. My friends always say no it’s the same but i know I’ve lost 70% of my hair to TE. All my blood work is fine. Changed 3 doctors during all this now finally starting minox. Need y’all’s support/advice. My doc has suggested using minox twice a day. Thank you for listening.

I don’t have a miracle story to share. I wish my Aga disappeared in 3 months after rubbing in some miracle oils and took biotin. I’ve seen so many doctors and tried so many medications. I can say that medicine is slowly improving and I’m so grateful more and more doctors are becoming more knowledgeable and willing to write off label prescriptions for hair loss.

Aga x21 years with multiple rounds of TE. Currently I’m on dut 0.5mg, oral min 1.875mg, topical min 5% 1.5ml once daily, spironolactone 75mg, microneedling 1mm once weekly (or skip), red light therapy 10min 2-3x/week, multivitamins with iron and liquid vitamin d.

I’ve had three bouts of TE within the last two years - two from Covid and one from foolishly stopping topical suddenly.

Recently started the spiro two months ago and I’m still working my way up. I tried it years ago but couldn’t tolerate the side effects at all but this time for some reason I feel just fine. Maybe the oral min is countering the diuretic side effect of spiro.

Still shedding tons but seeing more and more of them are miniaturized hairs. Hopeful this translates to more steady growth.

has anyone here had CTE and actually recovered from it? how long did it last?

I feel like I’m at the end of my rope with my hair. you’d think that knowing it’s CTE would help me, but it doesn’t really because I still have to deal with the shedding and don’t get to know when it’ll be over. I started shedding just about two years ago exactly after I started accutane and it just never stopped. it’s “better” than the initial nightmare shedding but not normal.

I had a biopsy in September that showed no inflammation and telogen effluvium. i’ve seen three different dermatologists. i’m afraid of committing to minoxidil because I don’t want my hair to get used to it or need it long term if this is supposed to end on its own. that’s really the only thing that’s been suggested to me. it’s still hard not to spiral when I see short/small hairs, it’s like having the biopsy really didn’t even help me mentally😭

I know shampoo can’t do much but I’m curious what shampoo you’re using and loving? I started using L’Oreal EverPure Thickening Shampoo recently. I’m not 100% set on it. I don’t love how it makes my scalp feel or the smell. I haven’t noticed any change in the thickness or growth. Looking to try something new

how did you raise your ferritin? i have struggled so much to raise it but with no results....

Hello, I am 42 and have noticed for the last ten years thinning hair. About a decade ago I was informed that my thyroid was not acting right, and this thinning hair coincided with that. The thyroid issue resolved when I discontinued all of my mental health medication 😆. (I'm in a better spot now ) . But the hair has kept thinking. The hair loss seems to have stabalized. So it's limp and very fine, and I've decided to look into giving rogaine a shot.

My primary question is is there a difference between the men and the women's rogaine when it comes down to user experience? I want to know if there are women who are using " men's rogaine " and having success/moreresults because from what I can see the men's rogaine actually has a higher percentage of minoxidil than the women's. I am also wondering what forms that you all have found to be the most effective IE foam, pill, serum? Has anyone received negative side effects from taking the opposite gender minoxidil? Thank you very much for reading this and I have looked at Google but I am one of those people who quickly gets overwhelmed when I am presented with all of those search results with differing opinions and so I feel like it is the most effective for me to hear from people who have actually experienced this. 😊

I’m in my 20s and my hormones stopped working after chemotherapy (that was 4 years ago), my hair grew back thinner than it was before. I started Hrt (estradiol patches and progesterone pill) 2 years ago, everything seemed normal after that (not like it used to be before chemo but still normal I guess) but my hair is still thin. I’ve recently found out that my estrogen levels might be low and that made me think whether my hormones could be the issue all along (still trying to figure it out). I also heard that progesterone can cause hair loss? My prolactin levels are also high which could be another issue.

I’m just trying to figure out whether these are things worth bringing up to my doctor in terms of hair loss. Has anyone else experienced something similar?

Hello everyone, I would like to ask you to activate the swarm intelligence and ask for a recommendation.

I had very severe gastritis for two months, which resulted in a vitamin B12 and iron deficiency. In addition, the absorption of various nutrients is disturbed. I also experienced rapid weight loss and hormonal fluctuations as a result. All of these factors resulted in terrible hair loss, which affects me greatly because I had a lot of new hair, which has now naturally fallen out and is still falling out.

I now supplement with various vitamins, including vitamin B12, iron etc., of course. My stomach is also much better with vitamin B12.

Now to my question: should I start with minoxidil or wait until at least the current hair loss has stopped? Many factors are coming together for me and doctors are no help. Getting an appointment with a dermatologist is a joke, and they don't prescribe oral minoxidil anyway (in my country).

I have Red Light Therapy at home and I could start with that again.

38F and have had hair loss for years and years. I saw a doctor four years ago who believes it’s AGA because I have PCOS, but she never did a biopsy to confirm. When I saw her, she recommended I start Rogaine asap.

Honestly I didn’t. I was really scared of the dread shed. I started thinking like what if the dread shed starts, never gets better and then I’m stuck looking worse than before?

But my hair is getting worse and I am worried that it’s getting to a point that a side part won’t hide it.

Am I too late to start? Did anyone else start late and get results? Or at least maintained?

Is there a chance I get a dread shed that makes my hair permanently worse?

I have been using 5% topical minoxidil once a day for 5 months now and I have not seen any improvement. I guess I am one of the unlucky ones that does that react to topical minoxidil. I feel like my androgenetic alopecia is continuing to progress and get worse so I am trying to figure out what to do next.

I bought a derma roller but haven’t used it yet. Do you think it’s worth trying the derma roller and continuing with the topical minoxidil to see if that helps regrow my hair? Or should I go to oral medication? If I move to oral meds, what do you recommend? Is spironolactone or oral minoxidil more effective? If I have average/on the lower side blood pressure, is there any concern with taking these? Of course I would consult a doctor before getting on any meds, but would like to know if any other treatments have helped individuals who did not have success with topical minoxidil.

Could use some happy success stories about now 😭 Any advice or timelines would also be greatly appreciated too.

After I shower should I use a brush or a comb?? I heard a comb and googled combs are better after a shower and brushes are better when hair is dry. My hair gets really tangled after washing it even after using conditioner and detangler so I am trying to use what will be easier on my hair to cause less fall out. I am used a brush my whole life and it never made a difference because I never had hair loss but now I need to shave whatever hair I can so I need to do what's best for it, help please any advice would be greatly appreciated.

i’m struggling with a lot of hair loss. i’m only 19, and my hairline used to stop around that mole on my forehead. it’s been two years of watching my hair steadily thin out and it’s making me really sad. does this look like new growth or is it simply breakage from wearing it in ponytails?

i am considering doing topical minoxidil on my hairline region, as it is the worst for my hair loss. i just don’t want to spend the money if it looks like it’s growing back.

i do think that if it was fully returning, i would be able to see less scalp underneath, however im not an expert. does this look like it will resolve itself?

has anyone heard of this brand? it has done wonders for me

does anybody have experience with this company? i want to try one of their toppers with the elastic around the head but the price is high. if y’all have had good experiences i’ll purchase one lol. i came across them on tiktok

Anyone tried this ? Have any opinions? Bar shampoo seemed so harsh to me that I convinced myself it was the thing making me lose hair - but I know rationally, I have thinning hair no matter what I use. I have been tempted to try it again. Just wondering if anyone has any good results ?