Minoxidil and hair washing

[DontBorrowTomorrowsTrouble]

When do you apply and when do you wash your hair?
I wash my hair in the evening as I’m up at 5am so no time to wash and dry my hair am.
Some days I’m back around 2/3pm. Do I apply it then and then wash my hair as normal in the evening, or apply after hair washing and sleep with it on, risking having a greasy looking head the next day?
Any tips please?
Tia.

I apply on hair wash day as it makes my hair greasy looking. Sometimes I will apply in the morning and just do a slick back bun so it doesn’t look as bad as go out for the day. I think you should apply when you get in then wash that evening. BTW it’s highly toxic to cats if anyone is reading and didn’t know, I didn’t know this until recently, so be careful if you have a cat.

Oh god. I do have a cat! Not that she licks my head or anything but she does sleep next to me in bed.
I was worried about residue being on my pillow and then ending up on my face as I moved around, I’ve heard of someone getting hairy ears! Now I’m doubly worried about the cat so will throw something over my pillow when I get up. Thanks for the warning.

Have you found that it actually works?
How long have you been using it for?

I have cats too, so I apply in the morning and then I’m not on my pillow until bed and have washed my hair by then, and they are too old so stay on the ground and are not climbing up near my head.

I have been using the women’s 2% regaine one for a few months and have noticed new hair regrowth in one spot. My issue was the hairline balding and the right side is growing back but haven’t had any growth in the centre or the left. I’ve seen dermatologists online saying the men’s one is the best though, so have bought the men’s foam, just haven’t tried it though as I’m waiting to finish the women’s one that I am already using. Which one are you using?

i have noticed some facial hair growth that I never had before like sideburns but I do think that’s my fault for not washing my face after applying. I am going to try and be more careful. Apparently you can get a 0.5 derma roller and roll first for better absorption but I’m too scared to try that.

I don't find the foam makes my hair greasy, so I put it on straight after shampooing and drying in the evening. I try to always have it on my head, basically. I think I read somewhere it needs to be on for a minimum of four hours a day to work, but I'm not sure where I got that info from.

Mine is 5% womens foam one. I did hear that the men’s one is cheaper but I could only find the spray, not foam, and reviews said that was trickier to apply. The reviews for this one, one said to squirt in the cap and dip a cotton bud in and apply, so that’s what I’ve done.
Funnily enough I also bought a 0.5 Dermaroller, but I was too nervous to use it before applying today, I wanted to make sure I didn’t have a horrendous reaction to it before poking holes in my scalp and then applying! Glad to hear you are getting some growth. I will be sure to wash my face after applying in future so thanks for that warning.

Good to know my hair shouldn’t look greasy with the foam, I will be applying after hair washing from tomorrow. I can’t think how long I’ve had this on today but will def be over 4 hrs when I wash off. I wondered how long the absorption time was and was going to Google, I’ll have an in-depth read of the instructions at some point and will update if it mentions anything.

I'm struggling to imagine how it would work with a cotton bud... you have to cover the whole affected area. I use my fingertips.

I think I was nervous about having it on my fingers and there’s only a couple of areas I’m putting it on. I might see if I have an unused makeup brush, or maybe I will just use my fingers. The bud definitely got it on my scalp though as I could feel it.

I use my fingers every time and then give my hands a good wash with soap and haven’t grown any finger hair yet 😄

I just saw this about applying so thought I’d share. Unfortunately one side of my press down bit has come unattached, so I need both hands to squeeze the foam out, but I will definitely try this way with the next canister.
vm.tiktok.com/ZNdJU7kLx/

Can I butt in and ask a question?

Were you all prescribed this or did you just buy it? I have quite severe hair loss at the front which a doc told me years ago was hormonal but they couldn't do anything about it.
I finally got prescribed regaine, but the pharmacy took ages to get it in, and then all the packing said 'NOT FOR FEMALE USE' so I didn't use it. The doc had been so dismissive that I never went back.

My hair makes me so sad.

I'm currently using sons minoxidil 5% I use it twice a day. (Trying to make this a solid habit as I do forget sometimes) Morning and night.

It also helps if you use a dermaroller on your scalp so it penetrates the follicles better.

I lost most of my hair and have stunted growth due to iron deficiency anaemia. I've correct that with an iron infusion and hoping the minoxidil helps with re growth!

I tend to just wear my hair up anyway so I don't mind using it every day.

My hair is thinning now I've hit meno.

Had bloods done, all fine and doctor said it was just part of the ageing process.

I've been looking into Minixidil but am to scared because I've read that you can get a dread shed after the first couple of weeks of use and I don't want to lose anymore hair.

I bought regaine with minoxidil on amazon for about 45 quid.

The doctor just shrugged me off and said they didn't notice hairloss, I saw in her notes. But my hair has thinned substantially at the front, I can see my scalp at the front.

This regain lasts about 4 months and then you have to buy more.
I think you have to use it for the rest of your life or the hair will just fall out again.

@poshme I bought the women’s one pictured above off Amazon. It says not to be used by men!
I think it’s just to make us pay more tbh as there’s a menopause dr on TikTok who buys the men’s one as it’s cheaper.

I’m actually regretting starting this tbh. It’s a whole other level of faff I could do without after doing 10 hour work days. I can’t believe I have to be prepared to do this for the rest of my life. I definitely didn’t think this through.
If there hasn’t been any drastic results after the first can I don’t think I will continue.

@Sillybillyawards @GabbySolisX @fedup1212 @poshme @TreesWelliesKnees

I’ve given up. There are days I’m out 12 hrs a day when working and I just can’t do this for the rest of my life.

I have one full unopened can and the rest of the can I started. I only used it for 3 weeks on 3 small patches. (the nozzle has half come off but does work if you use both hands to squeeze it out on to something).

If anyone wants to PayPal/bank transfer me £15 I will post them both to you. Private message me if interested.

I've been using 2 months before bed (no cats!) and it did slow the longer hair loss after about 3 weeks, and now I have lots of baby hair at the temples and front so 🤞

Makes my hair sort of moussey, not greasy, if that makes sense.

@DontBorrowTomorrowsTroublethere is a tablet form of minoxidil if you’d find that easier? I think you’d have to try and get it prescribed online though as I think it’s only patented for men’s MBP. I am on a FB group for women with hair loss and loads take it.

I have read reports of women growing extra facial hair when taking the tablets so just not going to attempt taking them, I’d have a tache to rival Tom Selleck if I didn’t wax weekly as it is!

are they still available @DontBorrowTomorrowsTrouble

Yes. I’ve sent you a PM.

If you do ever want to try it again - before I was pregnant/breastfeeding I personally always used the men’s unscented foam (often cheaper than the womens) and applied once a day every morning as it also was useful for styling- helped keep my parting in place and so hide some of the baldness.

From what I remember (it was 3 years ago) - I just filled the cap half full to estimate the amount, parted my hair in several places and just rubbed it in with my fingers all over the the top of my scalp then quickly washed my hands. Perhaps I just found applying easy as my hair is very thin and I have a short pixie cut.

Then I’d wash my hair as usual each night and just reapply in the morning. I didn’t like the idea of anything staying in my hair overnight as I’m also spot prone (due to PCOS).

Personally I found the minoxidil foam great for reducing the shedding but unfortunately I’d started it too late to get any actual regrowth (I’d had 15 years of androgenic alopecia by this point so I think most of the follicles have died- wish I’d known about the foam when I was younger). HTH and good luck