37 days on 47 days off Finasteride

Welcome to our community. Please fill in the following template as a way of introducing yourself, and helping others to understand your background and situation.

Where are you from (country)? UK

How did you find this forum (Google search – if so, what search terms? Via link from a forum or website – if so, what page? Other?)

What is your current age, height, weight? 26, 11stone, 6ft

What specific drug did you use (finasteride, dutasteride, saw palmetto, isotretinoin/Accutane, fluoxetine, sertraline, citalopram, leuprorelin, etc…)? finasteride

What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)? 1mg 2weeks .5mg 2 weeks

What condition was being treated with the drug? MPB

For how long did you take the drug (weeks/months/years)? 1 month 7 days

How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start the drug? 26

How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit? 26

How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)? cold turkey

How long into your usage did you notice the onset of side effects? last week of quitting

What side effects did you experience that have yet to resolve since discontinuation? hard to get erections, poor concentration, brain fog, low mood

Check the boxes that apply. You can save your post first, then interactively check/uncheck the boxes by clicking on them. If your symptoms change, please update your list.

Sexual
[ ] Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
[ ] Erectile Dysfunction
[ ] Complete Impotence
[ ] Loss of Morning Erections
[ ] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[ ] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[x] Watery Ejaculate ( more lumpy and jelly like )
[ ] Reduced Ejaculate
[ ] Inability or Difficulty to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility

Mental
[x] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[x] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[x] Confusion
[x] Memory Loss / Forgetfulness
[x] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[ ] Slurring of Speech
[x] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[x] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[x] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[x] Suicidal Thoughts

Physical
[ ] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[ ] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[x] Testicular Pain
[ ] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[ ] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[ ] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[ ] Muscle Wastage
[ ] Muscle Weakness
[x] Joint Pain
[ ] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes

Misc
[ ] Prostate pain
[ ] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[ ] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[ ] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[x] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[x] Tinnitus (ringing or high pitched sound in ears)
[ ] Hearing loss
[ ] Increased hair loss
[ ] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature

[ ] Other (please explain)

What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
cbd for depression/anxiety

If you have pre or post-drug blood tests, what hormonal changes have you encountered since discontinuing the drug (please post your test results in the “Blood Tests” section and link to them in your post)?

post tests show normal testosterone/dht levels so far

Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience?

i have the opposite of most people i have constant erections even when im not horny…and they are more solid than they used to be sometimes painfully because im so hard so much pressure

i also get insane pressure in my head like its being clamped in a vice

Tell us your story, in your own words, about your usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.

Hi guys im hoping some of you can give me a heads up on what to expect and what to concentrate on to recover as im totally lost and the more i read the more i panic so i need to stop

took propecia 1mg for just over a month … 2 weeks i was taking 1mg and the final couple of weeks i took 0.5mg.

I stopped cold turkey i crashed while on them that’s why i decided to stop treatment

I was in work and got hit by a wall of confusion, dizzyness, was spaced out and talking strange and acting strange i felt like i was going into shutdown.

So far ive had a few days where i feel normal maybe 2 in total of the 47 days off where id say i felt 100%

i dont have erectile dysfunction just the mental side affects and ive thought about suicide allot i cant even stop the feeling its like somethings telling me to do it

i feel better now than the first week but the depression has got worse and i have no control over it

ive noticed drinking small amounts of gin alleviates the mental sides a bit …anyone else noticed this ?

Welcome to our community and thank you for taking the time to share your story @Spyrodragon122. I’m sorry to read of what you describe, many of us know how harrowing this can be, particularly in the first months after the crash.

We have an action guide for new members, please give it a read.

It’s heartening to read that you’ve felt 100% normal for a couple of days since crashing - I would interpret that as a good sign for you. I don’t often read of patients feeling completely normal so soon after crashing (or even at all). Hopefully, you experience more of those days as time continues on.

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Hey fren, are you doing better now after 2 years?