Losing my hair because of testosterone. Advice please?

Hi there





I'm an FtM (female to male) transsexual and I've been taking testosterone shots for about 4 and a half years, now... maybe closer to 5. Within about the past year I've noticed that the hair on the crown of my head and across the top of my head has started thinning, so a couple of months ago I went to my doctor. He sent me for blood tests to check for all sorts of things, like liver dysfunction, thyroid problems, diabetes, anaemia and hormone levels. The tests came back and they were all fine. He said it seems I am just experiencing male pattern baldness due to the testosterone.





Now, he did say the hormone levels were *slightly* high, but only by about 3 points... not enough to justify lowering my dosage, anyway.





The thing is, I'm 23 and while it might sound a bit shallow, my hair is *important* to me. I really, really don't want to lose it. I've started getting stressed about going out and I'm paranoid that people are looking at my head whenever I hang out with friends and I don't want my life to become that.





My question is, would coming OFF the hormones completely make the hair re-grow? I know I would have to face getting my period again and the fat redistribution to thighs and hips, but I'd be willing to do that if it meant the hair would re-grow. I'm also curious as to whether there would be any other potentially harmful side effects of coming off the testosterone? If not, then it's certainly an option I am giving great consideration to.





Thanks for any help.








DeejLosing my hair because of testosterone. Advice please?
Yes, coming off hormones would probably make your hair regrow, and subsequently you would start to shift physically back towards a female shaped body. Your voice and beard would remain unchanged.





I'm astonished that your doctor didn't put you on 1 mg daily of Propecia (Finasteride.)





http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finasteride





This will more than likely stop your hair loss - and probably grow a little back. It works in about 80% of men. It blocks the conversion of Testosterone into Dihydrotestosterone (DHT), which is responsible for male pattern baldness. There are a couple of minor drawbacks.





1) It's expensive. In the U.S. there is currently no generic available. In other countries, finesteride is marketed under the generic name Finpecia, and it is available from certain online pharmacies (be aware that generics which are not FDA approved are often manufactured to lower quality standards.) Another way to save money is to convince your doctor to prescribe your Proscar, which is 5mg of finesteride, and then cut it into fours.





2) You must continue taking it for as long as you want to keep your hair. If you stop, the hair you've maintained, and any regrowth, will fall out. The good news is that a number of stem-cell based baldness cures are in the works, and should be out sometime within the next 5-10 years, so eventually baldness will be a thing of the past.





3) It doesn't work for every person. Usually that means older males who've already lost a significant number of hair follicles, but some younger males can also be non-responders.





4) When you start taking it, you will LOSE hair first. This is known as shedding, and it's scary as hell. The reason you lose hair first is because Propecia works by reversing hair miniaturization. Miniaturization is the process whereby each time your hair goes through a complete growth cycle (3-5) years, the new hair that comes in is smaller because the hair follicle has shrunk due to the effects of DHT. When the DHT is blocked, as long as the hair follicle has not gone dormant, it can usually recover. In order for a follicle to grow a thicker hair, it must first shed the hair, and then rest for about 6 weeks, during which time it will get a bit bigger, and the new hair that grows will be a little thicker. In time, your thinning hair should reverse itself. It takes about 8-12 months to see any sort of significant results, so you have to be patient and dedicated. I've been on Propecia since March of this year, and I've had a number of shedding cycles, and I've seen a decent amount of regrowth which is also thicker than the hair before.





As a transsexual woman, I will stop taking the Propecia when I begin hormones, but for now it is preventing any further hair loss.Losing my hair because of testosterone. Advice please?
This other alternative to the Finasteride (aka Propecia, Finpecia, Proscar) is Avodart (aka Dutasteride, Dutas). The advantage of Avodart over Finasteride is that Avodart blocks both kinds of DHT, while Finasteride blocks one (that one accounts for approximately 80% of DHT). The problem with Avodart is it is more expensive than the Finasteride.





Anywho, coming off T is not necessary. You need to block that DHT. It's the DHT that is causing the hair loss.





Consult your endocrinologist.