this post was submitted on 18 Aug 2024
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Is hims minoxidil acceptable for facial hair growth? I tried rosemary oil but so far nothing has improved. I'm also unable to upload photos. I don't know where else to ask about it so I'm sorry this is off topic. I get this message: {"data":{"msg":"Failed with status exit status: 1","files":null},"state":"success"}

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[–] Borger@lemmy.blahaj.zone 8 points 2 months ago (2 children)

Just thought I'd put it out there because I feel like it would be neglectful of me not to: minoxidil fucked my skin and aged me by a good 5-10 years. And I was only using it topically on my scalp for balding! The effects on my face would have been from the residue on my pillow as I roll around in my sleep. I can't imagine what would have happened to me if I put it on my face. Look up "minoxidil collagen breakdown" for more details; I'll spare you them here, but taking minoxidil for 1.5 years is one of my biggest regrets.

There is very little data on the likelihood that this impacts someone taking it, mostly bc the hair restoration industry is extremely quick to silence anyone who complains of any kind of side effect. I was even told by the Dr who prescribed it to me that I was "imagining things."

Whether you heed this caution or not, I wish you the best in your journey to glorious beardom.

[–] RatBastard@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 2 months ago

Thank you for sharing your experience. I'm sorry you went through that. I'll definitely keep this in mind.

Damn that's crazy

[–] kittykittycatboys@lemmy.blahaj.zone 5 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (1 children)

meow the error is just cuz blahaj lemmy is slightly behind on updates, u can try upload it to an image host like imgur and then link it into the post meow!

i cant really with the facial hair stuff tho meow :< best of luck !!

[–] RatBastard@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 2 months ago

Thank you, I'll try that :)

[–] cowboycrustation@lemmy.blahaj.zone 4 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

It's not off topic you're good

I haven't tried it myself but I've heard others have had luck with minoxidil for facial hair growth

[–] fracture@beehaw.org 2 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

uh... so, hims minoxidil looks fine. i've mostly used costco/kirkland brand (you can get this off amazon too). the bigger concern with minoxidil, imo, is price. shit's expensive, so try to get the best deal you can, buy in bulk (it's a long term thing anyways), just make sure it's a 5% concentration.

anyways, i've been on minoxidil for probably 3 years (mostly facial application, too)... and i look my age, tbh i would look older if i didn't minox my temples too lol (fwiw i'm in my 30s). i think minox is probably pretty safe to take re: aging effects, but everyone's body is different, and you always take the risk of something weird happening when you consume Chemicals. i'd probably also consider it safer for topical use than rosemary oil, but i tend to be suspicious of those kinds of oils anyways

btw, it doesn't really matter if you do oil or foam. i've done both, i tend to prefer oil because i feel like it's easier to apply to specific areas. but the foam was... fine. most people seem to prefer foam more, from what i've seen. i don't think it really matters

[–] AlligatorBlizzard@sh.itjust.works 2 points 2 months ago (2 children)

I'm using a different brand of minoxidil on my face, whatever's still on my fingers after applying it to my scalp (yes, trans men can have male pattern baldness, but anecdotally it seems to be uncommon and I'm just unlucky). It seems to be helping but I'm not certain because my dad couldn't grow a full beard until well into his 30s and it could just be filling in regardless of the minoxidil.

Any brand should have the same effects assuming you get the higher concentration of minoxidil. It can be drying so you may want to use some facial lotion too. The foam versions are easier to deal with and more likely to stay where you put it but the liquid is cheaper and should still work. The Walmart equate brand foam is probably going to be the cheapest foam option and I liked it well enough the times I've used it, but I usually go with a different store brand because of reasons.

[–] cowboycrustation@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Wait, really, male pattern baldness is uncommon in trans men? I was under the impression that it was at a similar rate to cis men.

[–] AlligatorBlizzard@sh.itjust.works 2 points 2 months ago (1 children)

What I heard (this is third hand information explained to someone with no biology background but some stats) is that the primary gene for male pattern baldness is on the X chromosome, and because most trans men get two of those there's a chance the MPB gene isn't expressed or something.

I've heard that before. Makes sense to me. In that case you can't use the "if your maternal grandfather is bald then you're likely to be bald as well" rule since there's the mother's and father's X chromosome to work with as opposed to just the mother's. Lucky me, both sides of the family are very bald 😑.

[–] RatBastard@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Cheers for the response. Unfortunately foam looks to be a bit too expensive for me currently. The stuff I've seen generally has 5% concentration, is that high enough?

Yeah, 5% is the right one.

I only see the one month supply for the hims, most other brands sell a three month supply and per month the store brand is cheaper. But in the case of using it for scalp hair, you keep using it or you lose whatever growth you got. And it takes a few months to start working, you'll want to give it at least three months of consistent use to see if it'll work.