Minoxidil Rogaine Shedding Phase

Like I said in my last post the side effect of itchiness from the Rogaine has deftly gotten better thanks to using Nizoral 2%. However, now I’m starting to experience what they call the shedding phase. For the most part from all the recent research I’ve done, it is basically a sign that the minoxidil/Rogaine is in fact working or starting to work. In a nutshell, the basic idea is the Rogaine is pushing out the old hair, and new and thicker hair is supposed to replace that eventually. For the most part, if you read any of the forum posts on Hair Loss Help etc., people talk about shedding in a generic sense. They will talk about how they got used to their normal daily routine and then all of a sudden, they lose some hair, or their hair gets thinner, or they find some balding spots two weeks after starting to use rogaine.

And if all goes well not only is the hair thicker but the Rogaine will also cause brand-new hair growth in areas that you don’t have hair anymore. So, in combination with the shedding phase and the new hair growth in theory the balding process is reversed. Like I mentioned before I will be very happy if it just holds my hair loss or slows it down to a very slow pace. Now I feel that way because I still have a lot of hair on my head as opposed to someone who is watching over every strand possible. I’m trying to prevent myself from reaching that stage as much as I can until father time truly takes over.

My shedding started a couple of days ago. I noticed some hairs falling out in the shower, and it was more noticeable than usual. Then my wife, who was brushing my hair when she noticed that some strands were thinner. So, I did a visual inspection and sure enough, there were some less hairs. However, as I said before, the Rogaine/Minoxidil is working. And while I can say that I don’t have a full head of hair again, the hairs on my head are a lot thicker now. So, from what I can observe so far, the thinning process has stopped completely.

So, in conclusion, the shedding phase is completely normal and for most people should last 2 to 3 weeks but it can last a little longer. I will make some more observations about the shedding phase over the next few weeks. I’m also going back to update this post as time goes on with any additional observations and side effects. And if all goes well the shedding phase should be followed by new hair growth. It is not uncommon to experience some itching during the shedding phase but that itchiness should go away if you use a dandruff shampoo. During this time, you will lose hair at times what will appear to be an exaggerated rate. However, you shouldn’t worry too much, all the hair that is lost should come back stronger and thicker than before. Remember the shedding phase should only last for a couple of weeks if it lasts much longer, I would recommend speaking to a dermatologist or your general practitioner about it. They would be in a much better position to offer advice about your continued usage of minoxidil/Rogaine.

NIZORAL ketoconazole 2 Percent Shampoo

I believe in the post before this one I stated I was having the minoxidil side effect of increased acne. Well, the acne hasn’t got any worse however I still get them. I don’t know if it is a side effect that people get with minoxidil or if I just have sensitive skin. I tried to use a topical shampoo once and the increased acne got worse. I guess the shampoo was too harsh on my skin so it caused severe irritation and gave me more red bumps. Funny enough I seem to get more acne towards the backside of my head for some reason and at times it can be quite painful. It’s the type of acne that swells up and hangs around for a while. Unfortunately, now in combination with the acne my entire scalp is becoming very itchy. It started with occasional itching so I didn’t really pay too much attention to it.

However, now it’s much more noticeable and bothersome. I constantly feel some itchiness throughout the day and it gets very annoying at times. At this point, I’m not sure if the itchiness has something to do with the acne or is a completely separate issue. After some further research on Rogaine's side effects, it turns out I am not alone, many people in fact either get acne breakouts or various degrees of itchiness on the head. In terms of treatments, there is various do-it-yourself type of treatment advice you can find online.

One treatment that seems to be helping the majority of people and seems to have a side benefit of increased hair growth as well is the usage of NIZORAL 2% / ketoconazole 2% shampoo. In simple terms, the shampoo is supposed to help because it is a topical antifungal agent/ DHT Blocker. In some studies, NIZORAL grew about as much hair as minoxidil 2% on its own. Those were studies performed on men and women with androgenic alopecia, a.k.a baldness which is seen in men as well as women.

I am not currently at a point where I can see any significant hair growth but I have noticed that since using this shampoo my fine, thinning hair has improved quite a bit in quality. It’s now much easier to comb through and it feels better to the touch. My ultra-fine hair is also growing faster than normal and even though I have only been using Rogaine for 1 month, I’m confident that the NIZORAL 2% / ketoconazole 2% shampoo will continue to help me out for some time. 

In the United States, it’s very hard to find NIZORAL; a lot of people tend to buy it from overseas. There are some online stores that sell NIZORAL but no one has really tried to list them out here so I don’t know how much they cost. The best I can tell right now is that they usually tend to cost around $20 – $25 per bottle depending on how many bottles you buy. In general, buying over the internet does have its drawbacks such as different shipping services and not being able to try the product before buying. I am deftly going to give it a try; I am going to try to procure NIZORAL 2% from an online source or even eBay. From what I’ve heard some people were able to buy it directly from eBay from an overseas seller. I will for sure give an update once I’ve used it for a little while.