Yeah it sucks ass. I took the plunge. I started Custom's Minoxidil (also on Azelaic/Spiro). Once you start, you can't stop, forever, unless you want all that shiny new hair to fall out.
I figure at $10 a month, 5-10min a day, its not so bad, considering a year from now, if I had not started, my hair would look way worse.
I wouldn't take Finasteride (Propecia) because it messes with the DHT levels in the entire body. Just use the Minoxidil/Azelaic/Spiro combo. That whole combo will be more effective than just using Finasteride, and it will be way cheaper unless you have a great source.
I'm doing 1ml via oral syringe (to apply to head) of Azelaic Acid follwed by 1ml of Minoxidil in the morning. At night, I repeat what I do in the morning, wait 5 minutes or so, then apply 1ml of Spiro. I also bough the Regrowth Shampoo at
www.minoxidil.com. I figure the shampoo is not something you will have to use for more than 3 years or so. After the 3 year mark on all that stuff, it should be just "maintaining" the gains.
So for all the stuff, the Minoxidil, Azelaic acid, Spiro, and shampoo, they all should last 30 days at the doses I will be using them at. And for each one, each 30 days, its ~$10 a piece, so right now $40/month.