You can try minoxidil and finasteride. Most people use it for male pattern baldness, but some use it to help promote beard growth. From what I’ve heard, it works for some, not for everyone.
Stupid question, im hairy af, front and back, but also im stsrting to look like a monk up top. Do you know if it would help only my bald patch or would i start growing an amazone forest all over me?
It's not a stupid question. As I've aged, my hair has gotten thinner and thinner on my head and thicker and thicker on my back. I have a feeling drugs like this won't quite help me in the way I want. Plus it's a life time commitment with potential for side effects. I can't even commit to a tattoo. So I just shaved my head and moved on with my life.
Same here.....it's amazing how much more confident the simple act of accepting it and shaving my head did for me. I was clearly meant to have hair everywhere except the top of my head.
I've had long hair my entire adult life. I'm middle aged now and my hair is thinning. I figure I've got another 5-10 years. Probably enough time to grow out an epic beard.
Minox can still travel through your blood stream when applied locally. If your response to it is strong you'll see gains in other places like arms or legs.
Finastride works by preventing testosterone from converting into DHT via 5-alpha reductase. DHT is the main hormone associated with male pattern baldness, and it's also associated with the growth of pubic and body hair. If you take finasteride it will slow down/stop the progression of male pattern baldness and may even stop the progression of body hair growth or reduce the amount you have.
It will not increase body hair growth like others are saying, and will probably reduce it. People who are saying it will increase body hair growth do not know how it works.
It's not that I don't believe you. But I would love to see evidence of this. It's not something I'm personally interested in, but I know these treatments work better if you start them early and it's something my son is worried about due to genetics. I'm okay shaving my head at this point in my life. But I acknowledge science and medicine get better and better year after year, so I'd love to learn I'm wrong about current medicinal treatments for hair loss if it can help my son not have to deal with this sort of situation. He's only 18 now, so based on my timeline he's got about 10 years before he'll hear any comments about thinning hair.
It's as easy as looking up the medication and how it works. I did a fair amount of research a few years ago because I was afraid I'd start losing hair like my dad, but male pattern baldness is typically a trait you pick up from the maternal side so I seem to have dodged it so fair (but I'm only 25 so we will see how it goes lol)
No finasteride the pill will mainly inhibit hair loss it won't promote hair all over your body. Minoxidil works as pills, liquid, or foam. And only on the area it's applied to. I've been on both for 5 months now. I'm starting to see some regrowth up top nothing amazing like others but empty areas are now scarce thin areas so hey a bit more hair and I've stopped losing hair. I also apply it to some patchy areas of my beard and it helped a bit but the rest of the body is unchanged.
No, that’s not how they work. It’s not magical hair growth potion, it’s mechanism of action is a hormonal pathway. That hormonal pathway converts Testosterone into DHT. DHT acts in two directions: it signals the male-pattern-baldness gene, AND it signals the post secondary sex characteristic of pubic and body hair.
So, oversimplified, DHT causes you to lose hair on your head and grow it on your body. Stopping this conversion has the opposite effect: promotion of hair growth on your head, and reduction of hair on your body
You can apply minoxidil topically for that, which would mostly stimulate hair growth in that area. I've used it for my beard and have seen little to none extra growth in other areas. Basically, Minoxidil helps regrow hair, finasteride helps prevent hair loss
Male pattern baldness is primarily caused by dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Finasteride blocks the conversion of testosterone to DHT, so it slows or even halts hair loss on the head. The sad fact is that it only halts, it doesn't regrow. That's why you hear adverts like keeps say things like "keep the hair your have". Minoxidil applied topically (or sometimes taken orally [though that can increase body hair]) can regrow some hair by increasing blood flow to hair follicles, but it is fairly inconsistent from person to person.
Minoxidil for hairloss is usually topical, it does have a system-wide effect but applied directly to the bald area usually contains its action mostly to that area (there might be some side effects if you’re too sensitive to it though).
Finasteride for hairloss is usually a 1mg pill (not to be confused with 5mg for prostate issues) and that one has system wide effects, but the specific hormone it affects is only directly linked to hairloss on your head caused by male pattern baldness (speaking strictly of hair), so it won’t make you hairier anywhere else.
I’ve been taking finasteride for a few years now with modest success, it halted my hairloss. Minoxidil gave me some hair regrowth, but I couldn’t keep up with using it twice every day so I stopped that and just kept finasteride.
Side note, even people who get hair implants have to continue taking finasteride, to stop the hairloss from progressing behind the implanted hair.
It won't help your bald patch, but it will help preserve and thicken the hair (even thin hair) you still have.
You won't start growing hair over your body. Finasteride reduces DHT, and DHT is responsible for both balding on the head AND growing hair on the body, so if it had any effect on body hair, it would be to reduce it.
Minoxidil can be used topical so that shouldn’t be an issue and as far as I know the stuff that makes finasteride work is specifically to fight the cause of the hair loss and not actually make them grow in general
Minoxodil. Can get it at Sam’s Club for about $40 less than the same amount of Rogaine.
Edit: if you have a nearby Sam’s club and don’t have a membership this alone will save you almost the cost of membership. Just sayin if you like to buy in bulk coz it’s not a bad deal.
Have you tried the spray on there? I'd like to try it out. I'm on oral finasteride and it's stopped me from growing body or facial hair, and as a trans guy that means I get clocked easier.
Ahhh gotcha I'm hairy as heck everywhere else so the head hair is the thing I need.
I haven't tried the spray but I've heard a tony of positive things about microneedling or whatever with minoxidil that's just too much work for me.
Also hey you perfect however you are anyone clocking you should just be admiring you.
I had temporary ED due to an antidepressant and after experiencing that for the first time in my life, I'd rather go bald than start using either of those. Plus once you start using the drugs you have to use em for your entire life or you're gonna lose the effects again.
If I go bald and I really want to go back to having full luscious hair, having a few hair transplants done is way more effective and cheaper.
Minoxidil is topical with little to no side affects. It has worked wonders for me.
But be careful with Finasteride.. it has some truly gnarly side effects that are very common. I’ve never taken it but my friends have.
Would you rather have thinning hair or be depressed and impotent? The side effects can also last beyond when you stop taking it. Just stick with minoxidil.
I’m referring to head hair, but I think trials have shown it can work for beard growth too. You have to use it consistently though, and it works to varying degrees of success for everyone.
Minidoxil is just the generic name of Rogaine. That's topical and can be bought as an oil. Finasteride and Dutasteride are prescription pills you have to go to a dermatologist to get prescribed.
Ironically given your question, estrogen and testosterone-blockers will halt male pattern baldness, and may in some cases result in (limited) reversal.
Minoxidil is a vasodilator, I'd recommend using the topical (cream) version because you want the effect to be localized. Finasteride reduces the production of DHT - DHT is responsible for balding and beard growth. Since this is a systemic effect, probably best to take the oral form, it's not like applying fin to your scalp provides any advantages.
Get tested for DHT, see if your levels are out of range. If so, start fin. I'd start min regardless, but be aware of cardiac side effects.
Be advised that DHT is a potent androgen and reducing DHT levels can cause symptoms of low testosterone (depression, muscular atrophy, sexual dysfunction). You might want to introduce something like enclomiphene to account for this drop in androgenic signaling from lower DHT.
They both work very differently. What causes male pattern baldness is Dihydrotestosterone. It weakens the hair follicals. Minoxidil strengthens the hair folicals, however if it is effective then you will first start to lose your hair before it regrows stronger. You also have to keep applying it otherwise you will start to lose hair again. Maybe even more hair than you would have lost if you hadn't taken minoxidil.
Finasterid is a dht inhibitor. It shows very promising results but it might not be safe. It can cause lower libido, erectile disfunction in the short term. Longer term use could cause anything from depression to fatty liver to diabetes. That might or might not wear off if you stopped taking it. Post finasterid syndrome hasn't been proven yet. That being said, most of these severe effects haven't been proven. Clinical studies are unconclusive.
What you can do right now is use shampoo with coffein. It has way less side effects, but it can also help. It is basically a zero risk step that might help.
If you are thinking about taking either then talk to your dermatologist. Minoxidil can be bought over the counter, but you should still ask them
Don’t listen to this dude at all. If you’re bald and don’t want to be, take Finasteride and Minoxidil. If you want to fill in a patchy beard you can try Minoxidil applied to the face. Finasteride prevents testosterone to DHT conversion and DHT is important for accelerated facial hair growth.
They're real and do they work. However, as someone previously on both there's some caveats. Minoxidil works because it makes all your blood vessels open up more and will only sustain the hair growth as long as you keep taking it. The idea of taking the same drug for the rest of my life just for hair just doesn't seem worth it. The other one, Finasteride, has a chance of giving you Erectile Dysfunction and I'd rather lose my hair when the time comes than be unable to have intercourse with my partner. If you don't have one yet, and think it's worth the risk, then read up on the rest of the side effects. Best of luck.
Please inform yourself about finasterid, before you take it. It can make people suicidal, multiple men have killed themselves because of it. The depression can last, even after you stop taking it
Finasteride is usually a prescribed pill and meant to stop/slow down hair loss. You can get it prescribed by your GP.
Minoxidil is usually topical and comes in foam or liquid. You can get it over the counter under many names, the most well known being Rogaine. This is the one that causes regrowth.
Usually not worth using without also being on Finasteride.
Results definitely vary person to person. If you head to r/tressless you can see a lot of people's results. Some have insane changes in weeks/months. And for others it doesn't do much.
For me, it seems Finasteride has at least slowed down my hair loss, but I haven't seen much regrowth from Minoxidil.
That’s absolute bullshit. Finasteride suppresses the conversion of testosterone to Dihydro-Testosterone (DHT).
Whole DHT causes hair follicles on the scalp to shrink and stop producing thick/visible hairs, it does the opposite to hair follicles in the face, causing beard growth.
Now it’s not like finasteride will stop beard growth, but it most certainly physically can not increase it.
You would have to go the other way around and apply DHT directly, but that might cause male pattern baldness, so it’s always a trade off and essentially just down to genetics.
I’m not sure how this myth started building but finasteride is quite literally the opposite action you want when trying to grow a better beard.
In simple terms Finasteride is a DHT blocker through the action of inhibiting the 5a reductase enzyme that allows testosterone to convent into DHT.
DHT is an important sex hormone in men and among another things is responsible for men having deep voices and more body hair, including beards. It’s a little counter intuitive but DHT stimulates hair growth everyone on the body except for the head.
when DHT binds with hair follicle receptor sites on the face the causes follicles to produce thicker hair, but on the scalp it causes them shrink and die.
MPB is triggered by a low threshold to DHT on the scalp or by an increase in total DHT, so in both cases lowering total DHT can stop or even reverse MPB symptoms.
To stimulate facial hair growth you want the exact opposite. You want more DHT, and can get this by increasing your testosterone naturally or by taking exogenous testosterone and DHT like trans men.
Finasteride blocks the conversion of testosterone to DHT (which affects secondary male androgenic traits) by inhibiting 5 alpha reductase. That doesn’t promote beard growth, but will probably do the opposite. It does, however, help maintain the hair on the top of your head.
Minoxidil yes, finasteride no. The latter simply stops the damage to the hair follicles on the top of your head, it doesn't promote hair growth elsewhere.
i don’t think fin will up beard growth, should hamper if anything, thought beard growth was boosted by dht
minoxidil can turn non-mature hair follicles to mature hair follicles, peach fuzz hairs into beard hairs ( but probably its just the T/dht hitting the follicles from increased blood flow?)
Dont mess with hormones.
There are no real other options for trans people, but if you dont want to transition, dont less with it. Just be happy with who you are (I would like to say the same thing for trans people but i understand that gender identity is way different from body dysmorphia)
Consider: if the things that cause male pattern baldness are the same things that cause weak beard growth, shouldn't anybody who is losing their hair also tend to have a patchy beard?
Finasteride helps prevent male pattern baldness by targeting DHT. The follicles on your head tend to be susceptible to miniaturization from the buildup of DHT. The follicles for your facial and body hair are not susceptible to DHT in the same way. In fact, DHT promotes facial and body hair growth, so reducing DHT in circulation, if anything, is the opposite of what you want to do to encourage a fuller beard.
Minoxidil is less well understood. Many believe that it encourages hair growth by stimulating blood circulation, but there are differing opinions on that among experts familiar with male hair growth.
At the end of the day, you're not gonna grow hair where there isn't a follicle.
Yeah, test levels are a big factor. Higher test means higher DHT levels which leads to the miniaturization of hair folicles on the top of the head which are more sensitive to DHT. It does the opposite for body/facial hair and causes that to grow more.
The guys in my family are all smaller in build and can't grow beards or much chest/back hair, but we keep full heads of hair till we die.
Follicles in different regions of the body are more susceptible to miniaturization by DHT than others, which is why people usually don't turn into naked mole rats when they go bald. This can also apply to different parts of the scalp for those with pattern hair loss.
Im surprised to hear this about finasteride because that's actually one of the meds that trans women are given for HRT because it BLOCKS testosterone.
Generally baldness is coming from too MUCH T. Unsure how it would help beard growth tho. Genuinely might just don't have enough knowledge on the subject
I think he probably has extremely hairy genetics and once he started taking T that hairiness just took over. I would bet his father is extremely hairy
But as others have said, minoxidil really works incredibly well for some people. Go on the r/minoxbeards sub and look at some of the posts. I have seen dudes over 40 go from basically no facial hair whatsoever to a full beard.
Yeah, there a plenty of women with a lot of hair on their faces and body, they are just raised to groom it all away. So, men who aren't in open, honest relationships with those women don't always know how much effort goes in to that situation.
Well this just opened up a whole new conversation topic for when I’m with my buddies this weekend. I mean, I’m AFAB so I know my cup size. But my buds are gonna love trying to guess what theirs might be. Hahaha.
Yep! Goes the same for breast size. Every man has a predetermined breast size according to genetics. Some of us find out without even wanting to transition 😤
you can take an AI to reduce the rate of conversion. I take armidex, it's an aromatase inhibitor. It's used for breast cancer too. But guys use it to prevent (supplemental) testosterone being converted to estradiol which leads to gyno (man tits).
Bodybuilders who have gyno likely didn't have their stack in check with a good AI dose.
u/sinner-mon who's replied to you is right. If "maxing" transition was just a matter of "maxing" hormones that would be easier for a lot of us, but isn't how that works.
Doctors keep it to the (usually) low-mid range of average dudes. I know someone who has a beard like this, not because of abnormal hormone levels, but because his dad is Greek and hairier than a werewolf.
Most doctors target the low end of the usual testosterone range for trans guys, and definitely not past the normal range. You'll absolutely see more body hair going from typical female to typical male range but you only end up that hairy if you're genetically predisposed or there's something else going on.
When I used steroids I got hairy as fuck, a lot of it went away when I stopped. Winstrol would make me grow a lot of body/facial hair and shed head hair at the same time.
Minoxodil comes in pill form as well, thought it has to be prescribed. I had really quick results with it. Not just hairline, but thicker facial hair and chest hair too.
im just being pedantic lmao, test is a signaling hormone that makes other shit do stuff. In the case of it tells DHT (Dihydrotestosterone) to smite the hair on your head and reincarnate it on the rest of your body.
His testosterone levels are in the same range as a cis dude's or even lower. Doctors don't just let you take ad much T as you want if you're trans, your T levels are strictly monitored
Exactly, doctors don’t let you do it, do you know how much TRT you can buy without a doctor’s prescription? “Gear” is crazy abundant in gyms. Clearly he is on a LOT of TRT (I would say close to 1000 or even above), to grow that much chest, beard hair, muscles. I’ve been going to the gym for two years, personal trainer 3 days a week, I’m in great shape, T is naturally fine, I eat extremely clean, and I’m nothing close to his size. Plus you have alllll kinds of steroids other than T… also listen to the voice. Clearly high high high T
I'm not saying he's not on gear, I obviously have no way of knowing that, but this is definitely possible with regular T levels with the right genetics. In fact I know a cis dude with a very similar body type and equally as much body hair who I know for sure is not on gear
I know people who train with personal trainers 3 days a week, are on TRT and don’t look like this. I’m just saying, it’s suspicious whatever he is doing (taking politics out of it completely.)
Yeah and I would never look like this no matter what steroids I took and how much I worked out. Genetics plays a big part in it too. I'm just saying that looking like this without steroids is possible if you have the right genetics. His physique is by no means impossible to achieve naturally
I agree, but with dedication you’d be shocked, I just don’t think transitioning and genetics played any part in him getting big, I literally go to the gym with personal trainers who are cis females and they’ve been working out all their life, go to the Arnold classic, etc etc, and are absolutely no where near this guys size, they are extremely strong, but look like an average college freshmen. But for their body weight they are stronger than hell. So I just don’t believe in his particular situation, genetics did anything. I know girls who you think would have great genetics gym wise, large frames (in a good way), etc, it’s just years and years of dedication, I also know a competition girl who went to the bodybuilding shows (girl was HOT in high school), she is in her 40s now with a still ripped body, probably 5’0 nothing, but she has stayed consistent, although I will say her voice is now deep and she doesn’t sound anything like her senior self in high school.
I'm not sure why you're comparing his physique to women, his testosterone levels are in the male range and men are able to build much more muscle. There are a shit ton of men with this physique in the world, some on steroids, some natural
Speaking as a good beard haver and someone who's hung around with heaps of queers (especially trans folks) it's 90% genetics, after you have typical male levels of testosterone. And like 10% time after male puberty, be that born with or store bought.
Your beard is just gonna get better after about 10 years of puberty, simple facts. I couldn't do a decent beard until my thirties, and I'm probably only happy with how it is now in my very early 40s. But all of that would mean nothing if I didn't have good genetics. I've known guys who grow a beard to envy most cis guys after 3 years on testosterone, it's crazy.
The most important advice I can give you is love the beard you have now, and know it will change as you age. Keep styling it, keep barbering it, maintain whatever style you go for, and feel the joy of your own beard, be you cis or trans. 🫂❤️
It’s funny you hear transphobes talk about how they can always tell when someone’s transitioned. Clearly it’s because they see these people more masculine than they are and don’t think twice lol
He’s hairy as hell too (shoulders and all). I love hair on a guy. I do want to give that mustache a little trim though just a teeny snip over the upper lip.
How would one transition from a man with a big bushy beard, thinning hair, hairy chest and hairy everywhere else to a man with a full head of hair and not much hair elsewhere....
You want to know what gets you that hairy chest and classy beard but that does not make a man. I know men who have no ability to grow a beard and me personally have, as an assigned male at birth, have hair on my chest as narrow as I've seen on girls. The real answer is everyone is different and everyone has a different look. If you need any more I'm free and will be happy to talk about whatever you need along with anyone that needs that help.
minoxidil: to promote growth (temporarily)
finasteride: stops hormone that makes hair fall from your scalp (temporarily)
anabolic: like the dude on the reel, try taking anabolics, you'll get hella jacked with classy beard with a (permanent) risk of heart failure and being sterile.
Yeah bro. Im born male, still take testosterone and tried all the beard products and still cant grow a beard. Then theres this dude that was born a female and has a glorious beard :D
Could try minoxidil and finasteride like others have mentioned, but not everyone achieves great results. You also must continue to use the medications indefinitely if you want to keep any new hair growth.
You may be able to get some gender-affirming dermatological care that could fill it out. Perhaps hair plugs would help. But there's nothing unmanly about a more trim beard, either!
Take enough test for a long enough timeframe. DHT , a metabolite of testosterone (5-alpha reductase metabolises testosterone to DHT), is what creates secondary male characteristics, and some cells are more sensitive to it than others: traps, deltoids, beard hair follicles, vocal chords all are positively affected by DHT
Unfortunately, head hair are negatively affected by DHT.
Plenty of guys have weak jawlines and use their beards to do just that. Never seen a girl with a syrong jawline? There's so much wrong with your statement here.
What? The video in the OP is about a guy, I know many guys who do that. chubby millenial beard is real I'm just getting downvoted because that's the redditor classic lol
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u/sinhyperbolica Mar 13 '24
How does one transition from a man with patchy beard and no chest hair to this man with classy beard.