Wintermoon's Story: Small amount of Finasteride has ruined my libido and erectile function

Member Stories
#1

Where are you from (country)? Netherlands

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?) via https://www.pfsfoundation.org/

What is your current age, height, weight? I’m 29, 1m91, 70 kg. I’m thin for my age and length.

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/day for 30 days straight.

What condition was being treated with the drug? Receding hairline, hair loss.

For how long did you take the drug (weeks/months/years)? 30 days/1 month

How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start the drug? 29, August 1 2019

How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit? 29, September 1 2019

How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)? Cold Turkey, didn’t get new batch.

How long into your usage did you notice the onset of side effects? I think it started somewhere in the third week.

What side effects did you experience that have yet to resolve since discontinuation? Erectile dysfunction, decreased libido, increased numbness of the penis, sometimes my urinary tube aches or burns very slightly. No more morning erections, watery sperm.

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

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

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

[ ] Other (please explain)

What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug? None, I’ve only increased my amount of food supplements like Vitamin D, B12.

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)? not applicable

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

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

Hello everyone,
I’m from the Netherlands, 29 years old.
I started noticing my hair getting thinner and my hairline moving up pretty fast the last couple of years.
I’ve always worn my hair long and took a lot of pride in it and it was something girls always liked about my looks. So eventually I went to the GP to see if he knew anything about combating hair loss.

He suggested Finasteride as he claimed it is the only scientifically proven method of ending hair loss but it would only become noticeable after taking it for at least 6 months.
He told me that the side-effects only really occur with long-term users and that any potential side effects would wear off eventually after I quit the drug.

Since I try not to trust everything I read on the internet, I decided to trust my GP and give it a try.
I took a standard dosage of 1mg Finasteride per day orally for 30 days (one box of 30 pills).

After around 3 weeks I started experiencing erectile dysfunction and decreased libido. This scared me a lot, it didn’t go away and I decided to quit (cold turkey), in hopes of regaining my libido, because I thought I’d still rather be bald than have no sex life, or a lousy one.

This was almost a year ago. After almost a year things have not gotten any better. To make matters worse, I probably didn’t suffer from hairloss in the first place, and it was in retrospect a moment of vanity and emotional weakness.

I don’t have morning erections anymore and I have difficulty maintaining very hard erection for longer than a few minutes. Even when I’m quite aroused my penis usually just won’t get really as hard as it used to. My sperm is transparent and watery, and I no longer have the same ejaculatory volume and velocity.

A month or two after quitting the pills these side effects had not subsided so I decided to visit my GP again. I tell him about my erectile problems ever since taking the finasteride.
He responded by saying it was impossible for this little Finasteride to affect me so strongly and suggested that when people read things on the internet they get nervous and the side-effects become real kind of like a placebo. I experienced this as being portrayed as a delusional person or hypochondriac.

He suggested to do a blood test to check my testosterone levels and to try Viagra to see if I “could regain my confidence in my erections”.

I did the blood test, and without being given any numerical value I was told that my testosterone level was within normal value. The only thing that seemed off was elevated prolactin, but not to a dangerous degree.

The viagra only sporadically succeeded at making the erection more firm, but my penis is still numb and there is no pleasureable sensation. It feels more similar to my elbow, to give you an indication.

The few sexual encounters I have had were horrible and awkward.

I found this website after I started googling finasteride side effects and found out I’m not the only one with these problems.

I am probably going to contact my GP again soon about my side-effects not having gotten any better.

If anyone has tips for me what to do next I’ll be very glad to hear them.

2 Likes
#2

Good for you for reaching out and posting all this info. These are symptoms I recognize well.

Your doctor is wrong. He’s probably just repeating what he heard from other doctors. This is the old “It’s psychological” response that I and others have gotten. It can be demoralizing but don’t let it get you down. He’s just not informed.

Please consider seeking out another GP who is more open-minded.

There is a packet available from this site that you can share with doctors.

As for treatment, my understanding is that there is no confirmed effective treatment.

I have a bit of good news which is that after seven years I am no longer experiencing 24-36 hours of physical and mental exhaustion after orgasm. A small step forward.

See if you can adapt in terms of relationships and redirect some life energy into other pursuits.

1 Like
#3

The packet can be downloaded from here:

There is also a research bibliography here:
https://finasteride.network

3 Likes
#4

A little update:

I had an appointment with my urologist a while ago. Physical examination showed no abormalities. He also investigated my second set of blood tests since quitting Fin.

My prolactin is very high, (reference value between 73 - 407, it measured almost 900 in my case) but other values seemed normal.

I have an appointment with an internist soon, who will attempt to investigate the cause of this high prolactin level.

1 Like
#5

Cabaser and Ashwaganda lower prolactin if I remember correctly.

#6

Hello forum,

Small update:
Due to my symptoms and high prolactin levels I have undergone an MRI scan of my brain. If everything goes well I will probably receive the results in two weeks. I will keep you all updated.

Hope you are all doing well.

#7

Fingers crossed everything is ok mate, I’m sure it will be.

1 Like
#8

Today I went to a doctor to discuss the results of my brain MRI.
Results showed no clear abnormalities or enlargements and no real reason to suspect a prolactinoma is the cause of my symptoms. While I am relieved I do not carry any brain tumor, I also left empty-handed with no answers and no real suggested plan of action.

Elevated prolactin levels remain unexplained, though the doctor suggested it is natural for prolactin to fluctuate somewhat and that it can happen especially when dopamine is somehow low or disregulated.
Usually they only connect sexual symptoms to a prolactinoma when the prolactin levels are much higher.
Since I have taken ADD / antidepressant medication in the past (bupropion, Wellbutrin) he suggested this may have influenced my dopamine regulation.

Although we had a lengthy conversation about my symptoms and experiences thus far and I told him that I find it very unlikely at this point that the symptoms are psychosomatic in nature,
based on my recent medical records including blood tests, physical tests and the MRI he had no clear suggestions for other physical examinations to rule out obvious causes of sexual dysfunction.

Thyroid function seemed normal, brain physiology seems normal, prostate seems normal, blood hormone levels seem normal. No measurements at this point strongly indicate physical cause.

He recommended to try more exercise and prescribed me cialis/viagra to see what that does for me.

Despite my dissapointment in my doctor’s lack of suggestions to other means of research, I’m going to try and follow up on his advice to do more exercise and see if that does anything at all. So yeah I guess I’m just going to do that.

Also, I am going to be brought into contact with a sexuologist somewhere in the coming weeks. I know most people here will think I’m crazy for even trying, but I have no way of finding out if my symptoms aren’t indeed psychosomatic if I do not open my mind to the possibility of it. That said, I’ve been in this for over a year and I have mentally been much better than where I was when this whole thing started so I am kind of sceptical as I would have expected my symptoms to have at least improved by now.

In better news, I managed to get a new job so I’m hoping that despite the stress of it it will provide me some relief and more money to spend on anything that makes me happy.

I’ll let you guys know how things proceed. If nothing improves with lifestyle changes I will probably seek out a neurologist or neuroendocrinologist or someone like that.

#9

Logging update for myself.

  • Tried Viagra, didn’t do anything.

  • Deliberately relaxing the pelvic floor / ischiocavernosus muscle during masturbation has a (minor) positive effect on erection quality and genital sensation. Flexing this muscle (which I unintentionally do regularly) appears to have some kind of negative effect on either blood flow or nerve function. No effect on ejaculate quality or volume (still concerningly low). I suspect my prostate is physically altered by Finasteride, producing little to no fluid. I consider getting prostate imaged and doing more blood hormone tests soon to see if prolactin is still high and if there are other abnormalities in serum blood levels.

  • Taking L-Arginine, L-Citrulline and Rhodiola supplements each at 500mg daily. Vitamin D (3000 iu daily). Planning to add L-Carnitine at some point. Hope it may positively influence sex drive and erection quality but I expect little results, as viagra didn’t work either. Not trying to spend too much on these things as I am saving up money for PFS research.

  • Started serious weightlifting schedual after not having done any sports for a long time. Taking daily protein shake.

  • Sex therapist has been a pleasant venture so far.
    It’s nice to have a person to talk to who takes the issue seriously and makes it easier to talk about.
    While receptive of the idea that Finasteride has caused the symptoms, seems hesitant to rule out the possibility that some trauma is subconsciously causing sexual dysfunction. I disagree with this idea.
    Is urging that I go on a date and try to have sex and see how it goes. I doubt my problems are going to magically disappear but I am planning to comply, despite possible unpleasant situation.
    Dating has been a bit unsuccesful and Covid-19 concerns muddle my dating motivation.

  • Finally received the first of my two-part Pfizer vaccination this morning. Stiff arm but no symptoms so far. Second shot in August. Hope to feel more confident going on spontaneous romantic adventures by then.

#10

Thanks for the update, Wintermoon. Of course your issue is not psychosomatic, but I like the date-and-have-sex idea, if you’re able to not put too much pressure on yourself (which seems to be the case), because pressure alone can make a healthy man unable to perform (so they say). What works for me is waiting until the girl and I really like each other and there’s a level of trust, so that, if I have to confess, it’s not a big deal. But this is coming from someone who’s always been more of relationship/connection type of guy rather than one night stands. If you take a pill (I don’t) there really should be no issue. If things don’t work out, and you sleep over, try again in the morning directly after waking (it makes a big difference). Also, your sex therapist probably thinks your instincts will kick in and sex will be fine, and to some extent that will likely be true (it is for me). All the best!

#11

I noticed that it’s a lot easier for me to have sex in the morning rather than evening. I wonder why is that the case

#12

I would ask the doctor to do the cavernosography test. I have the same symptoms as you do and they found a slightly leaky vein on one side. I also only have a partial erection when very highly aroused and it goes quickly without stimulation.

#13

Nw0ordeath, same here and I’ve seen this reported a number of times. We can only speculate. Perhaps sleep replenishes hormones (I’ve always had a libido boost after a nap) or the nocturnal erections may service your erection ‘system’ (my perineal area seems more alive). Or it could be the net result of a failing sexual system: my sex drive used to increase throughout the day and peak at night, but that effect is gone now (similar to how sexual abstinence no longer boosts my sex drive either). Regarding your second post, decreased sensitivity (to pleasure) is super common and has the same effect (poor erection size and losing it unless you stimulate). I’m convinced that erection is a chain reaction whereby the growth of your erection increases the pressure and therefore pleasure, which in turns fuels your erection. If the “pleasure detectors” are gone, that chain reaction can’t take place and a full erection won’t happen… unless you find another way to experience some sort of pleasure (e.g. intense manual stimulation may help some, depending on how bad your numbness is). Sorry about the thread hijack, Wintermoon.

#14

Long time since I wrote an update on my member story topic.

Last year I felt I was doing relatively good… While the symptoms hadn’t gotten any less severe, I felt like I had developed some coping mechanisms and without any obvious worsening of the symptoms I felt like I had a smooth sailing going.

Shortly after the turn of the year the symptoms really started to deteriorate for some reason. I don’t really know which factors caused it, but I’m assuming my stressful work has played a large role in it.
On top of sexual dysfunctions, I now have trouble sleeping at night. I barely ever sleep deeply anymore and I always wake up several times during the night.
I’m also constantly freezing, with especially my hands and fingers being ice cold all the time.

I have an almost constant sensation of bloatedness in my chest and belly areas, am often very tired and sometimes experience nausea for no apparent reason. I’m not eating or drinking anything weird or potentially unhealthy that could reasonably be the cause of this.
There is also a constant feeling of bubbling around my chest area. It’s constantly there and it drives me insane. I’ve visited the GP to do a heartrate measurement but it appeared to be okay at the time. But the sensation remains, especially when I’m laying in bed and trying to sleep. Sometimes it feels like a ‘bubble’ moves forcibly through my chest area and whenever it ‘pushes itself through’ it kind of sparks this short spike feeling of extreme anxiety. I’m pretty sure something is up, but I’ve lost faith in my GP so I’m probably going to transition to a new one soon.

All I know is that before I took finasteride I had zero physical issues whatsoever and for the past three years I constantly suffer from weird and vague inexplicable shit and I’m so done with it all.

6 Likes
#15

Feeling this way too. Everything gets worse with time instead of better for me.

#16

Do you get morning erections, my friend?