Would My Regrowth Be Even Better If I Didn’t Take 2 Weeks Off Propecia Last Year?

Dr. Rassman,

Thank you for taking the time with this blog and the questions you have answered for me over the past year. I’m 30, I take Propecia and have been on it a year for crown thinning. I’ve gotten very good results but have a question that has been bugging me.

Last year, after a month on propecia, I read a lot of scare-stuff on the internet about it causing permanent impotence, premature aging, etc. I freaked out and started to think it was happening to me and stopped taking it for a week. It was generally a painful summer,there were days where I got very depressed and thought the baldness was getting worse and the propecia wasn’t working; altogether I skipped about two weeks worth of days before I started reading your blog and got a grip. I haven’t missed a dose for a year now (mid July ’09 to now).

What I want to know is: do you think the approximately two weeks of days I skipped last year have any impact on the results I have gotten now, that is, would my regrowth be even better if I had never missed those days? I am quite happy, the drug has reversed most of the apparent baldness in my crown area.

Thanks always for your time, have a great day

I don’t believe two weeks away from Propecia will have a deleterious or negative effect on your hair. Generally, I advise patients not to take a vacation from this drug, but in your case, what’s done is done. I don’t see the point in beating yourself up about whether your results are 95% of what they could’ve been. If you’re happy with the results thus far, that should be what counts.

Remember, you will still lose hair even if you take Propecia, but it should slow that process down. Stick with the medication as you’ve been doing and try not to let yourself get worked up about everything you read online.