Coming off finpecia/fincar (generic versions of Propecia). Advice sought

General Discussion
#1

It’s a long story but I started taking finpecia about a year ago. ( I didn’t feel I could afford Propecia). I took it for about 2 1/2 months. I wasn’t sexually active during this period. I then became concerned about my sexual response. I masturbated to check whether things were in ‘good order’. Struggled to get an erection. Assumed the problems were down to finpecia.Stopped the drug for about 2 months. Still couldn’t get strong erections. As the drug companies assure us that sexual problems will be resolved quickly once one has stopped taking the drug, I naively assumed my impotence could not have been caused by the drug. Insanely, as it must now seem to anyone reading this here, I then decided to resume taking the drug. ( I didn’t want to lose my hair). Now, a year later, I am still struggling with erectile dysfunction and, after read a lot of the posts here, have come to the realisation that my problems ARE related to the drug. I now want to come off the drug as swiftly as possible. I could really really do with some advice. Can I come off the drug straightaway without going for the recommended blood tests? (Don’t have the time to see the doctor about this for at least a couple of weeks. May see one after then). I’m sorry if this is an unanswerable question, but how likely is it that I will experience some of the horrifying side-effects listed on here? Can I be optimistic that my erections will ever return to normal? How long does it take, on average, before one’s sexual response returns to normal (given that it will eventually)?

Any advice would be gratefully received,

Albert Hall

#2

It would be advisable to have bloodwork done to see your levels before quitting, per the FAQ here:
viewtopic.php?f=13&t=7

The FAQ also talks about quitting methods. Please read through.

Odds are likely in your favor that side effects will resolve in weeks/months after discontinuation, but nobody can predict the future and there is no tests to determine such things.

For many, they feel a surge of DHT within 10-14 days after quitting drug, as 5AR2/DHT starts to come back online. They feel aggressive, horny, erection function begins to improve rapidly, etc. The issue for those with longterm issues is that AFTER DHT returns within 10-14 days of quitting, this brief “recovery” is only shortlived (ie, a week), followed by drop in Testosterone, LH, FSH production to low/hypogonadal levels, and re-emergence of side effects. Again, pls review the FAQ for further details.

For those destined to recover as Merck claims should occur, for some it can take weeks/months for significant changes after quitting. To my knowledge, the drug manufactuer does not say how long it will take for side effects to resolve after quitting, leaving the question open ended.

Please realize that those with longterm issues are in the minority of Finasteride users, although we don’t know how many there are worldwide. Again however, most guys that quit usually do go back to normal.

Rather than worry about things, I’d work to get bloodwork done before/after quitting, so you can assess what has changed should you have any issues after quitting. Hope that’s of use.

#3

Thanks a lot, Mew. So good that there are guys like you around. Thanks for all the effort you put into this forum. Have you any advice on what I should say to my doctor-other than just be totally honest? I am in England. Suspect that my concerns will just be dismissed as psychologically related. Perhaps I should print out some stuff from this site?

Does the fact that I suffered from ED while on the drug( why oh why didn’t I just quit straightaway?) have any bearing at all on how badly I will suffer now I am coming off it? Is my ED likely to get worse? How many people who come off the drug ‘crash’? ( I appreciate that most of the people you deal with are people who have had adverse effects from the drug so are not a typical sample, but any guesses/any info relating to this?)

Not too happy about the prospect of a shrinking penis. How common is that? (Again, as above, I realise this is hard to answer). I suppose even this might not seem such a big deal if I go through some of the other scary stuff that is mentioned on here.

Cheers,

Albert

#4

Shrunken penis is definately the worst aspect of this, even worse than the loss of libido. Dont drink and dont masturbate while coming off the drug. One night I masturbated three times, next day my penis shrunk down to 1/2 its normal flacid size. Not exaggerating.

#5

Yes, such as:
viewforum.php?f=33
viewforum.php?f=8

No idea. It is likely that most guys who get sides on the drug, quit and go back to normal.

A small percentage of guys that get sides on the drug, quit and find they do not. Or, they may not have sides on the drug, quit, but find problems emerge shortly thereafter.

This is asking to predict the future, which is impossible. As mentioned before, it is likely we are in the small minority of Merck’s so-called 2% of men who had adverse reactions to the drug, which in our cases did not resolve.

Compared to the hundreds of thousands of men taking this medication worldwide, we are likely a small portion of the overall consumerbase, and thus odds are likely in your favor that you probably do not fall into this camp. However, nobody can give you a 100% for sure answer, because there is no test that exists before taking the drug to determine why men like us have this problem continue while others do not.

If you wind up with hypogonadal Testosterone , LH and FSH levels within weeks of quitting, often times the genital shrinkage occurs at that time (the endocrine system “crash”).

On the other hand, there are guys who have normal testosterone levels post drug, who still have various sexual/neurological/physical dysfunction issues without the shrinkage.

If you do not fall into either of these camps, which is probably more likely, then your issues should hopefully resolve with time after discontinuation.

My only suggestion would be to get bloodwork done before quitting so you have something to compare against should you have issues after stopping. It would be your insurance policy and proof that your hormones were significantly impacted as a result of use/discontinuation of the medication.

#6

I have normal testosterone and pretty bad shrinkage.