7 years on, 9 days off.

Member Stories
#1
  1. Where are you from (country)?

England.

  1. 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?)

I googled “Propecia Arthritis”.

  1. What is your current age, height, weight?

37, 6’1", 210lbs (approx)

  1. Do you excercise regularly? If so, what type of excercise?

Not enough as I should. Apart from walking the dog, that’s about it.

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

Meat eater.

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

Hairloss.

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

Almost 7 years.

  1. How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start Finasteride?

I was 30. It was September 2003.

  1. How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit?
  1. The date was 24th August 2010.
  1. How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?

Cold Turkey.

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

Propecia.

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

1mg per day.

  1. How long into your use of Finasteride did you notice the onset of side effects?

About three years.

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

Put an X beside all that apply:

Sexual
[X] Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
[ ] Erectile Dysfunction
[ ] Complete Impotence
[ ] Loss of Morning Erections
[ ] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[ ] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[X] 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
[ ] Depression / Melancholy

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”
[ ] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[X ] Increased hair loss
[ ] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature

[X ] Other (please explain)

Dizziness and a much more reduced tolerance to alcohol, to the point where I can’t even get drunk if I wanted to.

  1. What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?

None as yet.

  1. 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)?

I had blood tests last year when I presented with the symptoms of MS, but the hospital reckoned that they didn’t detect anything abnormal.

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

None.

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

I started losing my hair from the age of 14. Luckily, I had very thick hair to begin with, so it wasn’t until I was in my late twenties that it started becoming noticeable. At the age of 30, my then girlfriend broke up with me, and as I was deeply in love with her, this affected my self esteem. For this reason, and the fact that being newly single, I wanted to look my best, and I began using Propecia. This was September 2003. It took a few months to kick in, but I got good results. I got regrowth and no more thinning. As I had no apparant side effects, even after the whole ex-girlfriend thing blew over, I still carried on using Propecia.

I was aware when I started Propecia that this was at the time a drug that had not been around for a while, and therefore doctors were unaware of what the long term risks were. I did go and see my GP around the time I started taking the drug, and she told me (as I expected she would), that she would not recommend me taking anything that was a relatively unknown drug, so to do so would be at my own risk. So I decided to take the risk and I told myself that if I ever started feeling any concerning side effects, then I would stop the drug. I never thought in a million years that there could be the possibility of long term (or at least indefinite problems), which could occur for months or years after stopping the drug.

I first noticed health problems about four years ago, when I started getting these feelings of drousiness, lethargy, insomnia, and depression. They would come and go, but would either all be present at the same time, or not at all. In the end I noticed that there was a link with alcohol, and at the time although I wasn’t drinking any more than what I had done since the age of 18, I would get these hangovers for days which would manifest the above symptoms. I had tests done by my GP, and they couldn’t find anything wrong. I just put it down to getting older, and assumed that my liver was slowing down as a result. I couldn’t help but notice though that none of my male friends who were the same age as me and who drank the same amounts of alcohol or more appeared to not have the same problem.

About two years later, I noticed that I had developed the signs of breast enlargement from holiday photos that I had seen. The difference was noticeable, but not to the extent where it was a problem, so I carried on.

The next thing to occur happened a year ago, when I started displaying the symptoms of MS. My limbs would feel slightly limp and floppy, and it felt difficult co-orinating myself. I suffered from numbness in the face and shoulders, dizziness, and often felt faint and generally very ill. These symptoms lasted about three months. So far (touch wood), apart from some dizziness now and again, they have not returned. I had tests done and to cut a long story short, a Neurologist discovered that I had an Osteophyte (a growth spur), on one of the vertebrae in my neck that was putting pressure on my spinal cord. It did leave me with fatigue and ever since I would get tired out easily. However this has improved over the last few weeks/months.

Over the last year I have also begun to rapidly develop joint pain. This began about a year ago with a small pain in my right knee, and in the last year progressed to pain and stiffness in both knees, back, right shoulder, and neck. It got to the point over the last few weeks where it really made my mobility difficult.

I have had no sexual problems during my 7 years of using Propecia. However some weeks ago I noticed a sudden drop in my libido, and I was becoming much more tired and exhausted after ejaculation. I have also noticed reduced and watery ejaculate. Since then I have not needed masturbation or sex as much. I also noticed that my appetite reduced.

A couple of weeks ago, I happened to come across this forum and it was like discovering a secret cave of important knowledge that I had never discovered before. As a result, I dropped Propecia cold turkey. That was 9 days ago. Since then my breasts have completely returned to normal, and my joint pain has improved dramatically. I have also noticed my appetite increase noticably, but also my dizziness has come back quite badly. I occasionally get very slight pain in the testicles. I am also not noticing any tiredness or lethargy the next day following ejaculation.

I am aware of the possibility of having a crash, but not only has the main cause of my concern (joint pain) improved considerably, but I am loathe to put any more of that stuff in my body. I know i’m taking a risk, but I’ll just have to deal with it if it happens.

#2

Take good care of yourself in the next few weeks. Get plenty of rest, eat well (plenty of fruits, veges and lean protein). Try to exercise more. Dont masturbate too much, maybe once a week. Try to stay calm. Take a good multi vite. Also supplement some Vit d3 and some ZMA at night before bed.

You might very well be fine and not crash. I think that your hair is starting to fall out now is probably a good sign.

#3

“Not masturbating should bring prolactin levels down. Prolactin is released after orgasms to keep your libido down. The evolutionary reason for this, anthropologists speculate, is to promote bonding with the female so you don’t run off right after looking for someone else to fuck!”

Read this from another post. This may be why many of us have crashed after masturbating several times. I think when some members have seen their bodies change and experience the ED for the first time they panic. Instead of being calm and weening off the drug and relaxing, they quit cold turkey and begin ‘testing’ themselves to see if they are sexually functional still. Prolactin gets further out of whack and then BOOM. The bomb ignites. I think not masturbating should be emphasized for quitting users along with all the other mandatory items.

#4

Thanks guys. I must admit that I have been masturbating more recently for that very reason, to check that everything is still in working order. However after having read your posts, I’m going to try stop now! This is the thing though, a year ago, stopping doing it completely would have been near to impossible. No it’s no big deal.

As I said before, I noticed in the weeks leading up to me dropping Propecia, my testosterone levels had decreased (noticed lower appetite, reduced libido etc, no morning erections). I noticed that during the week after stopping Propecia, my testosterone levels noticeably increased. Normally I have a shave about twice a week, but by the time I shaved a couple of days ago, the growth on my face was more like about a week rather than 3 or 4 days. My appetite also increased dramatically. However now over the last two days it seems to have stabilsed back to the lower level again. I don’t know if it’s my imagination or not, but the hair seems to have stopped thinning now. But then again I have started using Minoxidil instead of Propecia, so that may be having an effect on my hair already. The main problem at the moment is that surprisingly, the MS like symptoms have come back a little after a year of nothing. I’m dizzy all the time and my limbs and fine motor skills feel slightly clumsy as they did back then. My breasts have still remained at the pre-propecia level though, which I consider a good sign.

Another thing I have noticed is that insomnia has set in this week. I keep waking up between about 4.30am and 5.30am for no reason, and then can’t get back to sleep. Curiously though, I don’t feel any more tired! It’s like i can survive on less sleep!?

I will take your health advice, Boston. I’m going to get the vitamin suppliments you mentioned tomorrow. What is ZMA though?

Thanks.

#5

Alex

I feel a bit of a bond with you mate, we quit at the same time, similar ages, both on it a few years and I live about 30 miles up the road. Hope we can get through this crap together.

#6

ZMA is zink, magnesium and vit b complex. Its made by twinlabs. Take 3 tabs without any calcium and on an empty stomach right before you go to bed.

#7

Thanks Boston. I’m going into town later, so will see if I can purchase those vitamins.

Hi Chris. I’ve read your “member story”, you and I quit on the same day! It’s lucky that you didn’t end up taking it as long as I did though, otherwise like me, you might be displaying symptoms of Arthritis and MS (although officially like I say there is no trace of dyemylenation of the brain and nervous system).

At the moment the joint and bone aches have got a little more noticeable. The dizziness is still there, and although my co-ordination feels ok, I’ve already noticed some muscle cramps this morning.

Another thing I forgot to mention in my top post was the fatigue and exhaustion I’ve had since I had the MS like symptoms last year. This doesn’t make exercise easy. I used to go for a walk every weekend for half an hour, but had to give up because I would feel completely exhausted for the rest of the day.

#8

Hi everyone,

It’s been exactly six months to the day yesterday since I stopped taking Propecia, so I thought I would update you all to let you know how i’ve been getting along.

Regarding the sexual side of things, I do not appear to have yet had (touch wood) a crash. The odd thing is that I appear to fluctuate between periods of almost zero sexual desire for say a couple of weeks (as if I have had a crash), and then what appears to be normal Libido. I have noticed recently that diet may also play a role in this. Eating red meat seems to fire up my Libido after a couple of days, whereas eating other kinds of meals reduces it. In an attempt to eat heathier, for the past few months I have been eating more things like Tofu, fish, and seaweed, all of which I am eating on a regular basis. I am wondering if Tofu may been having a dampening effect on my Libido as MartinM told me that it is estrogenic. I have also noticed another scary but interesting thing, during times of zero Libido, my manhood definitely appears to shrink, but when my Libido increases to a normal level, so does the size of my manhood!

Regarding the MS symptoms, I had some dizziness and weakness of limbs in late November for exactly a month, following a drunken holiday weekend. Exactly a month later to the day, these symptoms subsided again and have not been back since. However I had a period last year where they disappeared for months and came back again, so I am not counting my chickens just yet.

I have noticed a radical difference in my body’s tolerance to alcohol within the last five years. Before I couldn’t go more than a week without having at least one alcoholic drink. Now not only can I take it or leave it, but even just a small amount makes me feel tired, lethargic, and generally ill for days. If anything, my body feels like it’s rejecting it. For the most part I consider this to be a good thing though, because I am more mentally alert now due to cutting being forced to cut down on my drinking.

My main problem at the moment is still the Arthritic pains, which has continued despite giving up Propecia 6 months ago. The joints do not ache all at once, or all the time, but at any one time at least two of my joints are aching, and all my joints have been affected. Since my last posting 6 months ago, my wrists, hips, fingers and toes have also become affected. I still believe that this is Propecia related, as not only myself, but other Forum members on here have described a feeling of joint popping, and a feeling of reduced tension holding together the joints. I went to visit my GP last month, and told her about my joint pain and how I believe it may be linked to having taken Propecia. She arranged for me to have some blood tests done, which included a test for Testosterone levels. I got the results from her a couple of weeks ago. All the tests came back clear. The tests seemed pretty comprehensive. No Rheumatoid arthritis was detected; my Liver, Kidney, and Thyroid functioning is fine, and my Testosterone levels are apparently normal. No virus was detected that could be attacking my joints. I can’t really complain at the results, nor really am I in a position to challenge them.

Whether Propecia related or not, I still believe that I have some kind of Arthritis. Apart from anything else, the neurologist I saw explained to me that the MS symptoms are probably the result of the Osteophyte (growth spur) on my spine pushing against my spinal cord. It appears from my own research that the presence of an Osteophyte is usually one of the first signs of Arthritis. I am still not entirely convinced that the MS like symptoms are all down to the growth spur. Surely the symptoms would be there all the time and if anything get progressively worse, not come and go and be influenced by things such as alcohol? Afterall, a boney protrusion doesn’t fluctuate between getting bigger and smaller, it either stays the same size or gets bigger.

What is interesting, and not surprising, is that Arthritis is a disease more common in women than men, due to the presence of Oestrogen.

arthritis.about.com/od/arthritissignssymptoms/a/women_arthritis.htm

I still think there is a link here, and possibly the raised Oestrogen levels that we may have experienced have created the arthritis problems.

I still get exhausted easily, and still feel older than my years. I think that this may have improved slightly since six months ago though. I seem to be able to walk longer distances now before I feel exhausted.

Although my breasts reduced noticeably after stopping taking Propecia, I still don’t believe that my chest is as flat as what it used to be, or should be.

One of the things that the Doctor did was assess my BMI levels, and we agreed that I am into the realms of being overweight (although this seems a surprise to those who know me) At 6 foot one, my ideal weight should be between 168 and 189 pounds, and I am currently about 211 pounds. The fact is, it’s obvious that she can’t explain where the joint pain is coming from, but we have agreed that I am going to look at losing some weight, and see if that makes a difference. For the last two weeks I have been getting more exercise and eating less. I’ve lost about 4lbs already. If the weight loss doesn’t make a difference, then we’ve agreed that I’ll go back and see her. The joint pain does appear to have improved over the past couple of weeks, but it still early days yet.

#9

It’s now been a year today since I stopped taking Propecia.

In terms of the sexual side effects, up until a few weeks ago, my Libido was still fluctuating between periods of normal, strong Libido, and having no interest in sex at all. Over the last few weeks there seems to have been an improvement though, and I appear to have had a normal Libido for some weeks. I still don’t have a problem with impotence, and over the past few weeks I have been getting more morning erections.

In conjuction with this, my body seems to not crave the healthy food as much these days, and I feel more like eating my former diet, which was higher in protein. This would be consistent with producing more sperm, as I have always noticed that after ejaculation, the next day my body will want more protein.

Since my last update, I have noticed something that another member on here noticed with themselves, which is that my Scrotum has been colder than what it used to be. Rather than being warmer than most of the rest of my body, it appears to have been the same temperature. However, again in the last few weeks, this may have improved.

All in all there seems to have been general improvement. The only thing that hasn’t really improved in my joint pain and arthritic symptoms. This is despite the fact that I continued to follow my diet and have now lost two and a half stone (34lbs). My BMI is now within normal parameters. Once I got down to my target weight, I visited my GP again, to point out to her that the weight loss had not made any difference. She agreed at my suggestion to do some X-Rays, one on my right knee, and the other on my lower back where the two most painful areas where. X-Rays showed up no problem with the knee, but showed up spinal degeneration in the lower back. She told me that this was likely as a result of having a slipped disc some time ago (something I suspected when I first started with the back problem about 15 years ago), but the point was that over the past few months, the lower back pain appeared to have got worse in conjunction with the joint pain issues. Anyway, the bottom line is that apart from that, none of the blood and hormone tests, or X-Rays are showing up any problem, so I’m not really in a position to argue with her! So bearing in mind things haven’t been too bad recently, I’m just going to live with it for the time being, and if any of the symptoms get worse, then I shall go back to the GP.

I also appear to still have the same intolerance to alchohol that I developed about 5 years ago, and whilst I can still drink alchohol, just having a few drinks on a night out can make me feel tired, drowsy and breathless for a few days afterwards. I’m not saying this is necessarily Propecia related, but I wouldn’t know, because again tests have showed nothing wrong. In the meantime though, although I wasn’t a particularly heavy drinker before, at least it gives me a reason to moderate my drinking.

I hope you have all seen some improvement in your symptoms as well.

#10

I have it too. It’s probably caused by low T and low E2. Not sure why, but taking DHEA made it go away pretty much immediately, although my T hasn’t gone up. Now, I’m taking DHEA daily and I don’t have joint pain anymore.

#11

Any update here?

#12

Yes. Sorry. There have been improvements. Certainly things have not got worse. My Libido seems to have improved and I can tolerate more alcohol than what I could since my last posting. The joint pain seems to have gone away now, but then again I don’t know if it’s gone or if it’s actually still there and it’s just being masked by the Glucosamine with Chondroitin that I have been continuing to take daily. I ran out of tablets around January time and monitored what happened, but the joint pain started coming back, so I started taking the tablets again. Sperm production seems greater now, my Scrotum doesn’t feel cold and I only get ball ache rarely now, and then when I do the ache seems fainter. Another positive sign (which of course I have mixed feelings about), is that over the past few months, my hair appears to have been getting thinner again, despite me continuing to use Rogaine. As I get older though, the less I worry about it.

#13

Sounds like your doing well. How is libido compared to pre finasteride?

#14

Sorry, I didn’t realise I’d had a reply. My email didn’t tell me for some reason, and I’ve only just logged back on here after some time.

The Libido is still a problem. It’s still nowhere near as strong as it used to be. At the moment I am still able to perform, but I seem to vacillate inbetween having a low libido and not feeling like doing it at all. The ball ache has still gone.

On the plus side, I stopped taking Glucosamine several months ago, and the joint pain didn’t come back.

#15

Alex, there is a study starting up in the US that will look into altered gene expression. Please participate. This work will contribute to finding a possible cure.

#16

Thanks. Yes I will have a look into that. Is there a link or thread on this site for more information?

#17

Hi all,

It has now been almost four years since I stopped taking Propecia. The good news is that things haven’t got any worse. The only bad news is that they haven’t got that much better either.

The joint pain is still gone. This was the biggest improvement after stopping taking Propecia. However I still get a small aching in my joints if I stay in one position for a long time, and arthritic symptoms are still there.

The dizziness still comes and goes, but I have it rarely. The growth of the growth spur on my spine doesn’t seem to have progressed. Again, the seemingly rapid onset of arthritic symptoms is something I attribute to having taken Propecia. I believe if I had never taken Propecia, I would never have had the joint pain or the growth spur on my spine. I am very stiff when I get up in the morning (although not in a good way!). Once I’m up and about and being mobile, I’m fine. But I’ve noticed the longer I’m in bed for, and the deeper I’ve slept for, the stiffer my joints are the next morning. Clearly there’s a link between lack of movement and my body stiffening up. I guess none of us are getting any younger though, so that’s also something you have to bear in mind. Having said that, at 41 I feel that I have the body of a man in his 60’s.

I have still noticed my ball sack is quite cold, whereas in my pre-Propecia days, it was very warm. I know chemical reactions generate heat, so maybe this is symptomatic of there being less going on down there these days?!

Surprisingly, my erections are still intact, and have survived throughout this whole experience. The problem I have is still lack of Libido. Within about 3 or 4 years I went from needing to ejaculate a good eight times a week to only needing to about twice a week, which is how it has remained until now. Sexually, everything is normal, just less intense than it used to be. Orgasms are still there but not as intense, and I recover more quickly. There is still less ejaculate than what there used to be and it is also still more watery than it used to be.

Although my breasts reduced in size, they never really fully went back to what they did before. However it’s not like it’s pronounced enough to be noticeable as anything more than average middle aged man boobs.

I also still get exhausted easily and have nowhere near as much energy as what I used to. That never really improved. In some ways that’s a good thing though. If anything I used to have too much energy, and that used to spill over into having a quick temper, restlessness, and anxiety. Now I’m much more chilled out and things that would once have riled me or stressed me out, flow off me like water off a duck’s back these days.

I’m still hopeful. I do believe that there’s balance in everything, and I hope this turns out to be just a cloud that lingers for a long but finite period of time after stopping Propecia, and one day normal balance will be resumed. As men, our testosterone levels all decline with age. I just think that certainly in my case, Propecia has accelerated that process.

I read up recently on foods that increase libido. Certainly, anything with high amounts of zinc seems to be the key. I also read recently that drinking Pomegranate juice helps increase erections. Having tried it, I actually found that to be true!

#18

Hi everyone. I’m just posting my annual update. In two days it will be five years since I stopped taking Propecia. Since the last update, there has been no real change. Everything that I mentioned last time is still the same. If there has been any change, it’s that my libido may have diminished slightly more than last year. Since the last post I stopped drinking Pomegranate juice (I got bored with it), but when I suspected that my libido may have diminished even more, I recently went back on it. I drink a pint a day. It does provide a small but noticeable boost to my testosterone levels. The results aren’t immediate though. It takes a few days to start making a difference.

I did get paranoid recently that I’d had some penile shrinkage. It does feel smaller than it used to, but I don’t know how much of that is inside my head or how much is real.

While I’m still attracted to women, I have more of a “I can take it or leave it” attitude to women and sex. 10 years ago I couldn’t live without either. At the moment I am still single, and that doesn’t bother me at all. There was a time when it would have done. On the occasions where I do have sex, sometimes it feels like a chore. The best way I can describe it is that I feel like a high performance car that has had it’s engine taken out, and replaced with a small, low performance engine. The car still runs, but there is less drive. The attraction to women is still there, and although everything still works, it just works much more feebly and much smaller and less powerful way than it did before.

In the meantime I am still continuing to try and eat more and more healthily. Like many guys on here, my instincts are telling me that the best way to heal (if there is ever going to be improvement) is by leading a healthy lifestyle, to avoid using any kind of non-prescription drug again in the future, and to not fall victim to vanity. As it is, over the last year, my hair has continued to get thinner, which I guess is a good sign (although that’s probably been helped along by work related stress). But of course being less interested in sex, and therefore women, and therefore my appearance, at least makes me more indifferent about going bald.

#19

Hi everyone. It has now been six years since I stopped taking Propecia. Since the last update, nothing has really changed. I did get worried shortly after last year’s update, as I went through a phase where for what seemed like a good couple of weeks, my libido crashed to the point of being non-existent, but it came back again.

The pattern over the last year has continued to be the same. My libido has been patchy. I can get periods of between a few days and two weeks where my libido is reasonably strong, and then suddenly it’ll drop to nothing for the same periods of time. At these points i’ll have zero sexual desire. Then suddenly out of the blue it’ll shoot back up again. Generally speaking however, my libido is still nothing compared to what it used to be. I can still look at women and find them attractive, but it’s like there’s no lead in the pencil, no engine in the car. 10 years ago I would have been confident that even after a skinfull of booze I could show a woman a good time. Now even sober I question how much my libido will allow me to perform. And on the subject of alcohol, I am still largely intolerant to it.

At the moment, the frequency at which I feel the need to ejaculate (whether by sex or masturbation) can be anything between as little as 9 times a month to as much as 22. Even as little as 8 years ago, in my pre-crash days, that would have been at least 30 times per month. The ejaculate is still watery and smaller in volume than it used to be. Orgasms are still not as deep or as pleasurable as they used to be.
Back in March I finally got round to asking my GP to test for my testosterone levels. The results came back showing that there were no problems. My “serum sex hormone binding globuline” levels stood at 43.4 nmol/L. The normal range is 18.3 to 54. Midrange is 36.2, so that was on the high side of normal. Higher is what I would have expected as high levels of this are bad for testosterone as the more of this globuline there is, the more of it there is to bind to Testosterone and take it out of action.

As for my levels of Testosterone, the normal range is 8.6 to 29 nmol/L, making the mid-range 18.8. I scored 18.1, which is only a fraction under and pretty much spot on.

There was therefore not much else I could say or do as the results indicate that everything is fine. However as I have gone from very virile to having almost no libido in 10 years, a constant lack of energy, a constant feeling of exhaustion, weight gain and occasional short term memory loss at 43 years of age, I know it isn’t.

However in the absence of any proof of anything being wrong, and no cure for this in sight, I shall plod on in the vain hope that one day these side effects wear off. I intend to have another testosterone test in 5 years time to coincide with my 5 yearly check up for the over forties. At that point I will ask them if they can also check my oestrogen levels. Maybe a man can have normal testosterone, but high levels of oestrogen at the same time?

The other thing that has concerned me over the last year is that my manhood looks and feels smaller than it used to be. I’m sure it’s not my imagination.

I would love to be virile again, but as time goes on and my libido seems to if anything get weaker, my main concern is just protecting my overall health from now on.

My joint pain doesn’t seem to have got much worse since last year.

Incidentally, I often now get emails from tv producers asking me if I would be interested in taking part in a documentary about the long term side effects of Propecia. I usually reply to them and tell them I am (depending on where they are). They tell me thanks and that they may get back to me. However they never do!

#20

Hi everyone,

It has now been seven years to the day since I stopped taking Propecia, after having also taken Propecia for a period of seven years prior to that. This is a landmark for me. Being a believer in balance and karma, I was kind of hoping that my price for seven years of vanity might come to an end after seven years, and this is when the side effects might disappear. No sign of that happening yet though, if ever.
As usual, none of this is easy to talk about, but you have to bite the bullet and be candid. Otherwise people on here may think that these symptoms are just happening to them.

To make it easier for me and others to follow, I’ll give an update on all my symptoms:

Weight gain: Whilst 20 years ago I ate three meals a day, snacked on top, drank as much booze as I liked and never put a pound on, now it’s impossible to keep weight off. I can pretty much manage now without having any lunch at all. I just don’t feel hungry. Yet I have a 45 inch waist, despite walking at least half an hour a day every day. This again I attribute to increased levels of Oestrogen. I realise that at the age of 44, middle aged spread happens to all men, but I believe the effects have been much more pronounced due to testosterone decrease and oestrogen increase, and have also progressed rapidly since I stopped taking Propecia.

Mood: I’ve never appeared to suffer from any depression while I’ve had these side effects. Yet ironically, I did experience depression in my twenties, long before taking Propecia.

Gynecomastia: I definitely have man boobs, and developed these while I was taking Propecia. Nobody seems to remark on them (believe me, I have “mates” who would!). I think people just probably assume it’s a middle aged spread thing. Hopefully these will reduce again if I can lose some weight.

Joint pain – My joint pain doesn’t seem too bad these days. I definitely have body and joint stiffness for some time after I get up in the morning though.

Manhood – The biggest thing I noticed after coming off Propecia was that my ball sack went from being warm to cold, and it still is. I am also now convinced that I lost pretty much exactly an inch from my manhood somewhere around a couple of years ago. It hasn’t however changed in length since then in either direction. I also think i’ve lost some from the girth. Generally both that and my balls look and feel smaller, whilst my belly gets fatter. Around a couple of years ago I also noticed that the level of sensation had reduced from my manhood. It feels much more numb now than what it used to.

Libido – This is still patchy. I can go for several days having virtually zero libido, then another period of a few days where it is quite reasonable. Generally speaking it’s still nowhere near what it was in my pre-crash days. What makes a big difference is alcohol. Consuming alcohol completely wipes out my libido, like covering a fire blanket over a fire. I probably need a “release” about 15 times per month on average. However then the semen volume is still small, and can fluctuate from being normal to being almost 100% water. I still can still see an attractive girl or woman, admire her body, and dream about putting my hands on it, but in terms of doing anything about it, there’s definitely a sensation of there being no lead in the pencil. Last time I actually had sex was last year, and I didn’t have a problem getting it up. Part of the reason why it’s been so long is that I don’t really miss it anymore.

Muscle fatigue – Muscles still get more tired than what they used to. Haven’t noticed much of a change in this respect.

Fatigue and exhaustion – I get exhausted very easily these days. Doing just one 8 hour shift at work wipes out all my energy, and we’re talking office based, non-physically demanding work. Sometimes I can’t even sit down. I need to lie down as it’s almost too much effort even to sit. If I have a couple of days at home however, then energy levels seem to get back to normal.

Alcohol intolerance – This can fluctuate, but in general my tolerance of alcohol is still poor. I can pretty much take it or leave it now (like sex!), and if I do have a few drinks in one session, I will feel drowsy and generally just ill for about three or four days afterwards.

Memory loss – I have problems with short term memory, and concentration, and although my recognition memory is fine, I have a problem with recall. This seems to be related to whatever level of tiredness and exhaustion i’m under though. The more tired and exhausted I am, the more I have these problems. I even find that sometimes i’m slurring my words a little. Again if I am on holiday or have a few days at home, i’m pretty much normal.

Sexuality: The scary thing about what has happened to me that I have noticed over the past couple of years is that before my pre-crash days, not only was I very virile, but felt 100% heterosexual. The thought of doing anything like that with a man was repulsive. Now of the sexual feelings I do still have, i’d say I feel more like 85% heterosexual, and the other 15% I can feel a small attraction to the same sex. This doesn’t surprise me because I attribute this to a lowering of Testosterone and an increase in Oestrogen.

I’ll keep plodding on for the time being and will try and lose some weight. This may help slightly anyway. The irony is that low testosterone can lead to weight gain, but weight gain can also lead to a lowering of testosterone! I plan on having one of those generic check ups that you can have at your GP in a couple of years time. At which point I will ask them to check my testosterone and oestrogen levels again.