Hey Trans Folks--Important Finasteride Fact
Finasteride causes temporary hair loss, known as Finasteride shedding, that starts roughly 2 weeks-2 months in to beginning treatment. My doctor did not mention this to me, so I googled it in a panic yesterday after running my fingers through my hair had me pulling away 20-30 hairs at a time. So if you started taking Finasteride to counteract hair loss or encourage new hair growth, please don't panic and think it's not working! Hair regrowth is a long, slow process, and you won't start to see new grown until the 3-6 month window, with full results showing up after a year. This site focuses on cis men, but does offer good information about Finasteride treatment and hair shedding. Also if you didn't know about Finasteride and are experiencing hair loss on testosterone, or experienced hair loss before starting estrogen/spiro (and spirolactane isn't helping you on that front), talk to your care team about finasteride. Finasteride blocks testosterone from turning into DHT and has shown to stop hair loss and encourage new hair growth. (On the down side, DHT is what encourages bottom growth, vocal changes, and facial hair growth if you're on T, so be aware of that and do your research. I am still getting facial hair growth and vocal changes personally, just slower and with fewer "cracks" in my voice.)
