Still recovering but have made progress

11:11 PM

Well I’m still recovering from minoxidil damage. The photos on the left are a few days after I stopped taking minoxidil, and the photos on the right were taken tonight, around 5 weeks after I stopped using minoxidil. I planned on shaving so that the before and after photos could be equalized, but decided not to yet since I’m going on vacation soon and enjoy the texture that a stubble and beard gives me.

I think there’s been improvement and recovery in my appearance. All that happened was that my face became dull, lost its color, became flat, became saggy, became wrinkly, became bloated, all at the same time, killing the previous appearance and character it once had. My overall face shape remained the same, it’s still attached to the same skull, but it lost some plumpness and life, and due to that, my appearance changed completely and dramatically.

It’s so weird how such a simple change like a 0.01mm in skin thickness in just one area can completely alter our appearance and make us look so different from before. It’s something I never thought about nor considered until it happened to me.

We don’t know what we have until it’s gone. I hope I can recover my previous appearance and even surpass it, I’m literally putting in all my effort into doing so.

Minoxidil damages collagen and fibroblast cells, so my plan was to fast for 5 days, so that all the damaged cells could be recycled or destroyed, and replaced with newer healthier cells through autophagy. The only way this can be done is through at least a 5 day fast, according to ChatGPT, anything shorter than that won’t target deep enough cells for autophagy, anything longer and the benefits become less and the risks increase. It’s very difficult to fast for 5 days. It’s all a mental battle.

A 5 day fast isn’t good for weight loss at all. I lost 7-10 pounds and have probably gained all my lost weight back already, in just a week. For permanent weight loss, I think 14 days is the minimum, in my experience I gained all my weight back even after a 10 day fast. I don’t recommend doing any fasting though, as that’s one of the most difficult things ever and it can be risky.

The last two photos are one taken a month before minoxidil, and one taken tonight. I would have used the same lighting and environment but couldn't since I"m not there right now. My face looks very different from before. I only get gaslighted that it's all in my head. I see my face every day and know there's a night and day difference prior to minoxidil and after using it.

Another trait about me is that my hair stands up on its own, as can be seen in the second to last photo a month prior to minoxidil. I don't have to use any gel or anything. Skin and hair are connected, if one is damaged, then it shows in the other as well. My hair no longer stands up on its own, and it won't until my skin is also recovered again. It might just be that my hair is longer now, but even at this length, my hair usually would still stand on its own.

Anyway, I've been trying a lot to recover. I am not going to microneedle anymore, due to the side effects some people have posted in which they ended up with facial damage worse than mine. At least, I won't microneedle with a dermapen, I might still do it with a dermastamp.

There's this supplement and gel called MSM. Someone who suffered from microneedling damage said it was what worked in helping her, so I ordered it myself and have tried it for two days now. So far no difference, but it takes around a month or longer for any results to show. Just like how a wound takes days to heal, the deep parts of our face take even longer. I actually injured myself while I was fasting, and got this cut in which a blister and then scab formed, and it took days to heal. These cut injuries are relatively quick healing compared to everything else, and it still took days. I watched it every day as it healed, and there's still this discolored patch of skin where it once was.

Today my parents and I were supposed to fly to Seattle, and then Vancouver. We missed our flight though, so we rebooked it to Sunday. It's pretty cool that airlines allow rebooking with just a small fee, especially if you miss your flight. I think people just complain a lot about missing their flights or something, so they made their rebooking and refund policy really easy.

I ordered Silica and Vitamin C supplements today too, they are supposed to help rebuild fibroblasts, elastin, collagen, as well. similar to MSM. I researched collagen peptides, but they're not as effective as MSM, Silica, and Vitamin C, and only work on a surface level or not even work at all, while MSM, Silica, and Vitamin C rebuild collagen from underneath. Collagen peptides aren't vegan either. I do get a lot of Vitamin C from my diet already, 2-3 oranges is all it takes to meet the daily recommended intake for Vitamin C, but supplements just have a much more concentrated amount, the equivalent of eating lots more oranges.

Anyway I am still doing all I can to recover from minoxidil damage. I don't think I'm close. Some people post that they haven't recovered ever, even after 5 years. I don't want that fate. Actually, I'm not sure if I will recover either, but I will try to recover as much as I can. They have probably not tried fasting for 5 days to get rid of all their damaged cells, so that could be a factor. Supposedly every 7 years all our cells are replaced, but since damaged cells replicate too, they just get replaced with more damaged cells.

Anyway, I'm very sleepy. I think my skin is plumper and more lively than before at least.