I need to write this down in the hope it will give someone else some solace if they stumble across this place in the same fashion i did.
I’m 39, I started taking Propecia in 2013 cos I’m losing my hair, I was worried about the ED side-effects but thought better to take the risk and stop those side effects happened. They didn’t, so i carried on til 2 months ago.
Recently I’ve started to slow down, I have to read things several times, even just reading a status on Facebook would take me a few attempts to “digest” the info to the point where i nearly had to read aloud in order for the words to ‘go in’.
People would hold their phones up with jokes on them for me to see, and it may as well have been shape or colours rather than text, cos my brain wasn’t recognizing it as text for the first few moments until i did the mental equivalent of putting my finger under each word as a 4 year old would, when they’re learning to read.
This is a disaster for me - I’m a computer programmer and I need my eyes to be working well and my brain to be in top working order.
I thought maybe my eyes were going - I had just bought a new computer screen, and while everything seemed to be sharp on screen it was like something wasn’t right, there was halos and spots, like I was looking through a fog, or like a dark version of conjunctivitis with stuff on the surface of my eyes. I kept having eye baths to get rid of the spots but they wouldn’t go away.
Eventually during a very bad bout of this where I was evaluating some code with my boss and i just couldn’t see it properly. I decided to google “Propecia Eye problems” and my world just stopped.
Suddenly here was a community full of people who had all the same symptoms as me but the news was terrible, the damage was irreparable and it also explained a lack of sureness on my feet, depression, anxiety, a general twitchyness, lack of concentration etc etc
Knowing the damage was done, and that at least i knew what I was facing I tried not to blame literally everything in life on the pills and set about fixing stuff.
This was 2 months ago, I still have some spots, but everything else has gone away and is back to normal and the spots are fading and are less pronounced, i only really see them if I’m looking at a white wall or surface, or when i’m really tired.
Here’s what I did.
Stop taking that fucking filth.
I was at the end of a pack, so i just didn’t order any more, didn’t reduce dose or anything, just shaved my head and got on with it. I’d lose every single hair on my head to get my old life back without these crippling side effects.
Full Eye Test and Retinal exam.
This revealed I needed glasses for anything happening at arms length completely common for someone of my age. The eye strain was causing me to blink less cos I am concentrating causing dry eyes which in turn made matters even worse. I haven’t purchased my glasses yet, but I had two examinations both revealing the same thing.
Hydration
i drink two liters of water every day, and ensure if I have any alcohol I have enough water to make it back up in terms of dehydration.
Diet
I ensure I get my 5 portions of fruit and veg a day and I take supplements Vitamin D3, Fish oil, for Omega3, Milk Thistle for liver function and a daily Berocca too.
I think the point is that these things would make me feel better anyway, but the marked improvement in every aspect of my life since i stopped taking the pills cannot be ignored. I’m sure many people will just say that I needed glasses and that it’s not the same thing, but all I am saying is do what I have suggested, these 4 things, give it two months, eat well, look after yourself, stay positive, exercise and get a full eye test and you could be fine.
I understand that this isn’t the case for some people but don’t lose your shit over it like I did.
Don’t run to meet trouble. Have faith that the fog will lift and you can get on with your life.
All the best, good luck - any questions, please PM or post.
SN.