5ar2god intro

Member Stories
#1

  1. Where are you from (country)?
    USA

  2. 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?)
    hairlosstalk

  3. What is your current age, height, weight?
    25 yo
    5’6" 140 lbs

  4. Do you excercise regularly? If so, what type of excercise?
    on and off

  5. What type of diet do you eat (vegetarian, meat eater, raw, fast-food/organic healthy)?
    ok diet, minimal junk/fast food

  6. Why did you take Finasteride (hair loss, BPH, other)?
    mpb

  7. For how long did you take Finasteride (weeks/months/years)?
    18 months

  8. How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start Finasteride?
    22 yo, august 2011

  9. How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit?
    23 yo, feb 2013

  10. How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
    quit fin and zinc picolinate cold turkey (idiot)

  11. What type of Finasteride did you use – Propecia, Proscar, Fincar or other generic?
    proscar

  12. What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
    .15mg - .8mg

  13. How long into your use of Finasteride did you notice the onset of side effects?
    within 24 hrs

  14. What side effects did you experience while on the drug that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
    complicated

Put an X beside all that apply:

Sexual
[ X ] Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
[ ] Erectile Dysfunction
[ ] Complete Impotence
[ X ] Loss of Morning Erections
[ ] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[ ] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[ ? ] Watery Ejaculate
[ X ] Reduced Ejaculate
[ ] Inability to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ? ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility

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

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

Misc
[ ] Prostate pain
[ ] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[ ] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[ ] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[ ] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[ ] Increased hair loss
[ ] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature

[ ] Other (please explain)

  1. What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
    none

  2. If you have pre or post-Finasteride bloodtests, what hormonal changes have you encountered since discontinuing the drug (pls post your test results in the “Blood Tests” section and link to them in your post)?
    posted

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

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

#2

Your story please?

#3

I don’t think horror stories are very productive. Better to take a scientific approach. I’ll just go ahead and copy/paste more info from this thread below:
viewtopic.php?f=4&t=9775

OVERVIEW

I have 3 blood tests to post and would appreciate some feedback and recommended treatment. The 1st test is from 2 months before using fin (I had not ever used any steroids/hormone altering drugs and did not have any pre-existing conditions or hormonal problems.). The 2nd test is from 6 weeks after stopping fin. The 3rd test is from last week (19 months after stopping fin). Unfortunately I never got tests while on fin.

I am hopefully getting 3adiol-G, SHBG, pregnenolone, GnRH etc. tests but my current endo is a dumbass. Thankfully my hormone levels aren’t too messed up but I’m still suffering and I want to go back to normal even if it means losing my hair.

–

SYMPTOMS

Side effects while on fin:
-mild ED
-loss of libido
-no morning erections
-OCD sexual thoughts/anxiety about sides (reason I quit)

Current main problems (including NEW symptoms after stopping fin):
-long refractory period (consisting of shrinkage and sometimes “burning” discomfort)
-fibrosis/prostatitis symptoms (may be recovering from this)
-no morning erections
-low libido
-“crash” after weightlifting, body sensitive to stress?
-genital numbness/“pressure” discomfort (rare, usually after workout crash), nut ache (rare)

Signs of partial recovery:
-improved erectile function
-improved orgasms
-increased nocturnal erections (mornings still rare/weak)
-oiler skin/itchier scalp
-increased chest/back hair
-increased sweat/BO
-5-10% increase in hairloss (nothing compared to pre-fin)

–

OVERALL CONDITION

Before fin: 100%
During fin: 40-60%
Post-fin crash: 0-10%
Now: 50-80% (If I go 5-7 days without ejaculating I feel 90-100% recovered including hairloss. Ejac brings me back down to 50-80%. Workout brings me down to 30-50%)

–

BLOOD TESTS

2 months BEFORE fin (wish it was more comprehensive):
T total: 847 (249 - 836 ng/dL)
TSH: 1.57 (0.35 - 4.00 uIU/mL)
PSA: 0.56 (< or = 2.5 ng/mL)

1.5 months after stopping fin:
T total: 992 (250 - 1100 ng/dL)
T free: 132 (35 - 155 pg/mL)
TSH: 2.14 (0.4 - 4.50 mIU/mL)
T3 free: 3.7 (2.3 - 4.2 pg/mL)
T4 free: 1.2 (0.8 - 1.8 ng/dL)
PSA: 0.4 (< or = 4 ng/mL)

19 months after stopping fin:
DHEA: 294 (61 - 1636 ng/dL) low
DHEA-S: 243 (85 - 690 mcg/dL) sort of low
T total: 790 (250 - 1100 ng/dL)
T free: 113 (35 - 155 pg/mL)
DHT: 50 (16 - 79 ng/dL) sort of low
Androstenedione: 74 (50 - 220 ng/dL) *low?
Estradiol: 20 (7 - 43 pg/mL)
Prolactin: 4 (2.1 - 17.7 ng/mL)
Progesterone: 0.6 (0.2 - 1.4 ng/mL) *low?
FSH: 4.7 (1.4 - 18.1 mIU/mL) *low?
LH: 3.7 (1.5 - 9.3 mIU/mL) *low?
TSH: 1.13 (0.35 - 4.94 uIU/mL)
T3 free: 3.7 (2.3 - 4.2 pg/mL)
Cortisol urine 9:30am: 12.8 (6.2 - 19.4 ug/dL)

–

Feedback and advice appreciated.

#4

My experience with supps I’ve taken recently

GNC Phosphatidylserine 300mg
Note: This is soy-based PS which may work differently than bovine-based.
Took it 5 different days before lifting each time. Compared it with lifting without taking it. Didn’t really notice much of a difference. Possibly has slight androgenic effects but they only last for maybe 6-8 hours, then cause a mild crash. When I took 600mg, I had noticeable scalp itch after workout, but then had a crash twice as bad the next morning…
Conclusion: Not very effective, and the effects aren’t sustainable. Costs $40 for 30 capsules…

Ultimate Nutrition Tribulus 750mg
Initial effects were mild headaches/nausea. Took for 5 days. Pros: possibly increased energy and mental libido. Cons: Gential numbness/weird aches, DECREASED sexual arousal/erectile function, which is the opposite of what its purported to do by the companies selling and by idiots on bodybuilding forums. I have no idea who those people are.
Conclusion: Was countereffective. Would not recommend.

Next on my list to try…
-safed musli
-eucommia extract
-forskolin
-dilauroyl phosphatidylcholine
-ashwagandha gold
-maca

Last resort:
DHEA

Not very hopeful… PS and trib were at the top of my list. MIGHT try to find bovine-based PS.