Poll
Question:
Are you on finasteride? Afraid of balding?
Option 1: Yes
votes: 3
Option 2: No
votes: 7
Sounds like a commercial...dont mean it that way lol
I don't really care if I go bald. I'm not 100% convinced I will, but if I do I'm not worried about it.
I'm worried about going bald like my family did but it's a natural part of being a guy so I guess I'll just have to go with the flow, shave my head, or invest in hats.
This poll isn't that great cause you can't answer each questions separately. I am not on finasteride. I am not afraid of balding either, I just think about it sometimes. If I went bald I would just shave my head. I wonder what I would look like if I was bald. Would I go bald in the way my grandfather and his brothers have (middle of the head outwards) or would I go bald another way.
none of the men in my family seem to be going bald so I'm not terribly worried over it
I would think it would be very counter productive for a FTM to take finasteride. I mean, it is known to fem up genetic males.
Quote from: Stephe on November 10, 2012, 12:11:20 AM
I would think it would be very counter productive for a FTM to take finasteride. I mean, it is known to fem up genetic males.
The dosage for hair loss is much smaller than that used for prostate issues.
Quote from: Arch on November 10, 2012, 02:46:40 AM
The dosage for hair loss is much smaller than that used for prostate issues.
What is the dosage supposed to be? I hope my doctor has got me on the right dosage.
Quote from: Arch on November 10, 2012, 02:46:40 AM
The dosage for hair loss is much smaller than that used for prostate issues.
And the hair loss dosage has femmed up males too. And the "hair loss dosage" is 1/4 of that for prostrate issues. Anyway going bald is part of being a guy :P
Well afraid mihgt not be the right word. I haven't started T yet, but it was something I have thought about. It might take me years and years to be bald, given my age. OTOH, some of my family on both sides had tons of hair and a few were bald.
--Jay J
Quote from: Stephe on November 10, 2012, 02:35:53 PM
And the hair loss dosage has femmed up males too. And the "hair loss dosage" is 1/4 of that for prostrate issues. Anyway going bald is part of being a guy :P
Having arm pit and leg hair is a natural part of being a woman, but nobody wants that either :P
I would really hate to be bald as I hate my face and being bald would only draw attention to it.
:embarrassed:
Quote from: Natkat on November 10, 2012, 06:16:54 PM
I would really hate to be bald as I hate my face and being bald would only draw attention to it.
:embarrassed:
OMG! Wigs!
I really don't want to go bald too :(. My mom said to me I have a birth mark on my head, so being bald is not something I want. If I do I will buy some fine wigs ;). No males in my family(other than my moms brother) are bald anyway. Other than the male patten they have just as much hair as the females in my family.
Quote from: Faun on November 10, 2012, 06:06:51 PM
Having arm pit and leg hair is a natural part of being a woman, but nobody wants that either :P
Except some people do. Some girls want to be hairy, some guys want hairy girls. HTH
If I go bald one day then I go bald. I wouldn't really take anything to stop it or wear a wig, that just seems odd to me personally. Messing with my body more than I have to just seems like you'd be asking for something to go haywire.
Quote from: Sparrowhawke on November 10, 2012, 06:28:07 PM
OMG! Wigs!
I really don't want to go bald too :(. My mom said to me I have a birth mark on my head, so being bald is not something I want. If I do I will buy some fine wigs ;). No males in my family(other than my moms brother) are bald anyway. Other than the male patten they have just as much hair as the females in my family.
im not really into wigs but I guess I would have some favorite cap/hat I would wear all the time or I would get some treatment.
Quote from: Natkat on November 10, 2012, 06:49:58 PM
im not really into wigs but I guess I would have some favorite cap/hat I would wear all the time or I would get some treatment.
I whore wigs when I live role played because I had too short hair to be the race I was (they would hate you). After that I started to like them, but real hair always gets in the way for some reason. For some reason I always look the I'm in drag so I guess it would help me pass?
Male pattern baldness tends to start between the ages of 19 and 25 and progress pretty rapidly. If you haven't started by then, you're doing pretty good. Obviously if you start T later in life, then I imagine it would be a few years after that just as baldness starts a few years after cis males go through puberty.
A lot of people think of baldness as an old-age thing but that's something different than MPB.
I always thought MPB was pretty clear by age 30(ish) - I remember having a conversation where I was told if you have MPB it happens a lot earlier on than just balding because you've had too many birthdays! As for me.... I don't really care. I mean I don't particularly want to lose my hair but the possibility of it happening is all part of being a man. I don't want any further special treatment! Would I wear a wig - no. Would I take something to stop it - no. I'd probably just shave my head shorter than I already do. Not that there's anything wrong with doing those things - they're just not for me.
Guys seem to forget that although T brings the desired secondary male sex characteristics like facial hair, fat redistribution, muscle mass and so on - on the flip side there'e MPB, polycythaemia, increased risk of CV disease (to that of a cismale) etc. You're either in...or you're out - can't pick and choose.
My hair started thinning pre-T, probably connected to hypothyroidism. After starting T the hairloss sped up, which sucked since it followed a female hairloss pattern. I've been using minoxidil for a while to stall it. I've "finally" gotten a slightly receding hairline aswell, so now I'm more "meh, whatever" about it.
Also, I have two older brothers. One started losing his hair at 18, the other still has thick hair. Ah, genetics.
Quote from: Aussie Jay on November 11, 2012, 01:49:05 AM
You're either in...or you're out - can't pick and choose.
I'll tell that to my trans buddy who takes finasteride and who has had a miraculous regrowth of lost hair. Or, for that matter, my cis buddy who has had the same success and who hasn't noticed any particular side effects. Or my cis buddy who manages his cholesterol with meds.
C'mon. You make it sound as if whatever happens to men is completely inevitable, and it isn't. We--trans and cis alike--have to accept that we
might not be able to fight certain effects of testosterone. That's a far cry from having to simply take whatever happens. Many of us have some options with certain effects. And many of us choose those options.
I went on finasteride a while back because I wasn't emotionally ready to deal with losing my hair. So I did "pick and choose," with regard to this particular characteristic.
My doctor and I discussed it. I told him that I would review my decision later down the road. I have, and I'm ready to stop, at least for a while. But I do not consider my hair loss inevitable or even irrevocable. I might go back on the same meds, I might wind up getting a hair transplant or buying a toupee (I doubt it), or I might go on whatever the latest med is that comes out in the next few years. For now, I'm content to go off the meds and see what happens. This is my current
choice.
Arch- have you noticed any side affects of taking the finasteride?
No way to know for sure, Kenton, but I'm convinced that my body and facial hair have been affected. There may have been other effects. I have written about some of them in other threads recently.
I don't know whether my vocal changes have been retarded by the finasteride, and I don't know about stuff like muscle mass or psychological effects. My sex drive does not appear to have been affected. But different guys have different experiences.
Taking T and then blocking the conversion to DHT sounds very counter productive for a MTF. Most male secondary sexual characteristics are caused by DHT, which is a MUCH stronger form of T. I know when I was taking it my body hair was majorly reduced.
And it' not like finasteride has no bad side effects. I took it as a feminization drug as part of HRT and developed depression, which I have never experienced in my life before taking this drug. Days after I stopped it felt like a fog was lifted and the depression went away. That is a documented side effect for some people with a chemical/biological reason for it to happen. And yes this all can happen at "hair loss doses".
Quote from: Stephe on November 11, 2012, 09:24:46 PM
And yes this all can happen at "hair loss doses".
I never said that the lower dose doesn't cause any side effects. I merely pointed out that there is a vast difference between the usual "prostate" dose and the recommended hair loss dose, which is 1/5 as much--or, if you buy large pills and quarter them, about 1/4 as much. The side effects of the smaller dose are, of course, less than that of the larger dose.
Some trans guys might try the drug and find that the advantages of finasteride are not worth the disadvantages, but I would hardly generalize every trans man's experience as counterproductive. For example, on a small dose of finasteride, I have continued to develop masculine characteristics. My skin toughened up more, I acquired more body hair, I acquired enough facial hair to be worth growing out, and I went from a tenor to a baritone and then to a deeper baritone. I know another FTM who is a finasteride "success story," but he was farther along in his transition. And lots of cis guys use small amounts of this drug for hair loss without turning into eunuchs. Everyone is different.
As with any medication, other trans guys have to read up on the side effects and discuss their options with their doctors before they decide whether to try something like this--and whether to continue with it if they do start.
Quote from: Arch on November 11, 2012, 03:36:59 PM
We--trans and cis alike--have to accept that we might not be able to fight certain effects of testosterone.
That's all I meant mate. And as I said in my post - "Not that there's anything wrong with doing those things - they're just not for me.". The OP's question was are you afraid of balding and no I'm not, to me that's part and parcel of being a man. To me it's just hair :)
There are times when it seems people want T so badly but they don't want this, that or the other - in that respect I meant you can't pick and choose what effects you do or don't get. Sorry maybe I wasn't clear in what I wrote. And clearly this is just
my opinion and what you wrote is yours. But I sincerely didn't mean to imply one should not do as they wish, ie take whatever to combat unwanted effects of T. Apologies if that's what you took from my post, was not my intention.
Quote from: Aussie Jay on November 11, 2012, 01:49:05 AM
I always thought MPB was pretty clear by age 30(ish) - I remember having a conversation where I was told if you have MPB it happens a lot earlier on than just balding because you've had too many birthdays! As for me.... I don't really care. I mean I don't particularly want to lose my hair but the possibility of it happening is all part of being a man. I don't want any further special treatment! Would I wear a wig - no. Would I take something to stop it - no. I'd probably just shave my head shorter than I already do. Not that there's anything wrong with doing those things - they're just not for me
I agree. I don't plan on wearing a wig or taking anything to stop it. Although, I wonder. I started T almost 9 months ago and I'm 27. Could I still get MPB? I don't care if I do. I'm just wondering.
Quote from: Darrin Scott on November 12, 2012, 05:45:54 PM
I agree. I don't plan on wearing a wig or taking anything to stop it. Although, I wonder. I started T almost 9 months ago and I'm 27. Could I still get MPB? I don't care if I do. I'm just wondering.
I would expect it to be delayed. If you figure your average guy starts experiencing puberty in his teens and begins MPB (if he has it in his genes) somewhere in the range of 19-25, then I would expect the average trans guy to have a few years go by before any sign of MPB. But I'm not a doctor. I'm just speculating here. Point is, it does
appear to take some time on T before it's triggered. If you're watching out for it, something like Finasteride will be most effective if it's started in the early stages. It works best as a preventative of more balding.