My Hair Loss Experience and What I did to Reverse It

My cousin went through the same balding process as I did. In fact my hair loss pattern follows his almost exactly and with him being a few years older than me I could see the extent of what I could expect and that was a major factor that got me looking for a solution. He opted to go the shaving route and in fact, as with some men (Bruce Willis most notably), he actually pulls off that look really well. I could even go as far to say that he looks better bald headed than what he did with hair, the lucky guy.

What I found really interesting was his choice of shaver. He saw it in a men's magazine and it's called a HeadBlade Razor. It's been designed to be held snugly and allows you to shave you head in the most comfortable way possible (apart from the fact that it looks really cool and using it could probably make you feel like one of the pro athletes who endorse it).

He swears by it and almost convinced me to go that route, but I just can't picture myself with a bald head (and neither could my girlfriend) so I opted not to go that route. This may work for a lot of men though and I can't think of a simpler or cheaper way to deal with hair loss.

There has been a lot of hype surrounding this product, especially since it has been FDA approved. It is also rather expensive so it goes without saying that it wasn't a purchase that I took lightly. I read the customer reviews and decided, before any pills, lotions or (heaven forbid) surgery that this would be my first investment to saving my hair.

I must say that I was very impressed with the packaging. A leather case housing the unit as well as an instructional DVD. Initially you start off with 3 sessions a week (the first few sessions left me a bit light headed) and then move on to twice a week. The recommended time for use per session is 30 minutes.

What you do is hold the unit still for 5 seconds over an area and then slowly move it to the next area, the distance between areas being about a centimeter. The key here is to move the unit very slowly and make sure that you are actually holding it in one spot for the full five seconds and that you don't move it too far when moving to the next area. Patience is an absolute necessity for this device, you simply cannot rush the process. And it works, a few months after using it a colleague approached me and told me that my hair looks fuller and I told him that I was using this product. Needless to say he was very impressed.

A word of warning though, this product works best in the early stages of balding. I recommended it to a friend who had already lost a significant amount of hair and it didn't work for him. My understanding is that it has to do with the lifespan of the hair follicles and once a bald follicle has been dormant for a certain period of time the effects of the Laser Comb will not be enough to stimulate growth. Which leads me to my next product, Rogaine.

After my initial success with the LaserComb I started doing research on internet forums on how to speed up my hair growth. I am by nature an impatient person and anything that would get me results faster would be a bonus. At this point I would like to say that I was quite surprised at the number of my friends that were using hair loss products. I would bring up the subject and I would find out that they too were using products for thickening hair. The popular one's (for those who were not necessarily balding but taking precautions, just in case) were American Crew Grooming Crème and MiN's DHT Salon Defense Cleansing System.

One very interesting product is Toppik Hair Building Fibers. This is a type of powder that you sprinkle onto your scalp and immediately gives the appearance of thicker and fuller hair. It's quite amazing as I have tested this product at a hair salon and the results were astounding. It's a product I can highly recommend.

One friend in particular was losing hair on his crown and his doctor recommended Rogaine (the active ingredient being Minoxidil). This was one of my earlier options but when it came down to personal preference I would rather use the LaserComb twice a week than have to apply this lotion every morning and night. That was until I started seeing the results that he was having, that bald patch started filling in quickly and after a few months it was hardly noticeable. That got my attention and I decided to supplement my current regime with Rogaine.

The major hurdle is the application of the lotion. The first few times it's messy as you struggle to get the right amount out and spread it evenly but you have a choice of applicators and you'll just have to find the one that is easiest to use for you. Eventually this will become another part of your daily regime, just like brushing your teeth. It takes not even a minute to apply once you get the hang of it. And like my friend, it lead to fuller hair after a few months use.

Now with my regime of Rogaine every day and the LaserComb twice a week I was seeing results and everyone was noticing my thicker hair. It was with great excitement that I learned that Rogaine launched a new product: Rogaine Foam. This contained the same active ingredient but the consistency of the foam made it easier and more efficient to apply. I thought this was fantastic and immediately placed a purchase. I ordered this from an overseas supplier and expected delivery within a month. What I was not aware of was that due to custom laws, this particular type of product was not allowed to be shipped to my country and was confiscated on arrival. This was my fault, I should have read the international shipping conditions.

This was not the end of my lesson though. During my wait I had stopped using Rogaine in anticipation of my order. This would prove to be detrimental to my hair loss prevention because as it turns out when the use of the product stops, the beneficial effect of the product is reversed and the hair that I gained from using Rogaine fell out. This was a huge blow to me and I was very angry with myself for being so irresponsible. Thank goodness I was still using the LaserComb otherwise I shudder to think of what the overall loss would have been.

There was another product on the market that I was also considering using but there were two reasons I was hesitant. The first is that it was more expensive per month than Rogaine (although the results seemed to be better) and the second was that there was a less than 1% chance that it would lower my libido.

The product I speak of is Propecia. Propecia is a DHT inhibitor that has seen fantastic test results. The libido issue did concern me but I was assured that after stopping the use of this product, all side effects would be gone within 48 hours, and that includes the libido issue. Some great news is that a generic version of Propecia has been released which is almost half the price. It is called Finpecia and can be purchased online here.

So, despondent as I was I decided to seek some professional help, not in the form of a psychiatrist but rather a specialist in hair loss. The experience was very informative and what I learned from this visit is that although the common factor in hair loss is usually genetics, every person responds differently to the various methods of treatment. Nothing happens short term though, it will take 6 months to a year to see significant results. The treatments they offered ranged from laser treatment (very similar to the HairMax LaserComb but you're seated in what looks like the helmet shaped hair dryers we're so used to seeing ladies sit under in hair salons) to complete hair transplants, where your own hair is used to fill in the bald areas. I was very curious about the hair transplants so let me share with you what the procedure involves.

A hair transplant involves you going a under general anesthetic as well as a sedative (yes, you're awake for this operation) and depending on the amount of hair to be transplanted the duration may range from four to eight hours. A donor area on the back of the scalp (where hair is not genetically programmed to fall out) is cut away and the hairs from this area is separated and made ready to be transplanted. The area where the section of scalp was removed is then stitched up in such a way that the scar that develops will not be visible as the existing hair will grow over and cover it.

Now that in itself makes me a little nervous as I'm not fond of pain or discomfort at all. It doesn't end there though, the next step involves little cuts being made on the areas where the transplanted hair is to be placed. This can be up to a few hundred little cuts and once they are made, the donor hair follicles are carefully placed into them.

Once the procedure is complete you will leave the surgery (you can't drive for the rest of the day so travelling arrangements will have to be made) and for three nights you will have to sleep sitting up to avoid any pressure on the transplants. Swelling will occur as well but fortunately medication will be provided to reduce this.

From the next morning after the surgery you will have to apply antiseptic cream to the entire grafted area to prevent infection. After the third day you should start washing your hair with a mild shampoo twice daily and the scabs should start falling off after two weeks and be completely gone after a month. Vitamin C should be taken to help with the scarring.

From the above you can gather that this is not a procedure to be taken lightly as the healing process is not something that can be easily kept a secret. The scabs and scars may take up to three months to disappear.

One thing to keep in mind is that all the transplanted hair usually falls out before the regrowth process takes place and that process may take up to a year to be fully realized. This is also an expensive investment as I was quoted $4500 for an 8 hour session. The results however speak for themselves as the before and after pictures were stunning to say the least.

A hair transplant should be considered when all other hair loss options have not produced acceptable results. It is a big decision but it's also a guaranteed way to get back what you have lost. This doesn't mean that preventative measures should be stopped. It is recommended that products such as Rogaine or Finpecia should still be taken to block the DHT that causes hair loss. I see this as a small price to pay for the huge investment that was made on a hair transplant, and the peace of mind of having a full head of hair.

In the picture accompanying this text you can see my current progress at the time of writing this article.

To summarize, I have used the following:

- The HairMax LaserComb
- Rogaine
- Toppik Hair Building Fibers
- and at the moment Finpecia as well

And is it working? For me, I'd say yes. Like I said earlier, the results of the above will vary from person to person but the key to success is consistency. I had to learn the hard way but my hair is on its way back to being fuller again.

Will I ever consider hair transplant surgery? Well, yes, if it gets to the point where I'll need to. I like my hair and I'd like to keep as much of it as I can. I have done a lot of reading on the subject and have also explored alternative methods of stopping hair loss. For anyone interested in such an alternative approach one book in particular seems to be very popular.

It claims that in 15 minutes a day using only natural ingredients you will be able to thicken and regrow your hair in a few weeks. I haven't personally tried this but I do know of many people who are averse to using the methods I've described on this page. For those who are interested the book can be found here.

So wish me luck, and I wish you the best of luck as well. Just remember that you are not alone and there are plenty of forums and resources on the Internet to assist you with this process.

Take care.

Thank you for all the positive comments. I have decided that I will be going for a hair transplant to fill in my crown.

I have the appointment set and will keep you posted. I have to say, I am very nervous.