How can you be certain finasteride is cause of loss of libido, etc?

General Discussion
#1

Hi all. New here, and have had a good search around but couldn’t find a thread that addressed this question.

If you are suffering from low libido, or other issues, how can you be sure the problem is linked to finasteride?

My story - I began finasteride in 1998. In 2007, I started noticing sexual problems - weaker erections, inability to climax, etc. At the time, I put it down to stress at work, age, etc. I’d been on finasteride so long, it didn’t occur to me that might be the issue. However, the sexual problems didn’t go away, and at the behest of my girlfriend, I stopped taking the drug three months ago. I think I’ve seen a mild recovery in the libido since then.

But how can I be sure these problems are down to finasteride and not something else? Presumably by taking tests…

#2

Read the homepage of onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1743-6109.2010.02157.x/abstract

There are now lawsuits being filed for this issue, and loss of libido is listed on the drug insert by Merck themselves as a possible side effect. The problem for some men, is the libido never came back after quitting.

Not sure why you are even bothering to join this site to ask this question, to be honest. If you took the drug and are having this problem and it did not go away after quitting or only got worse, get bloodwork and check your Testosterone levels.

Young men in their prime who were fully sexually competent and virile before the drug suddenly developing erectile dysfunction, impotence and loss of sex drive (side effects listed on label) while on or shortly after quitting is not a normal occurrence. Neither is the often found hypogonadal levels of Testosterone, LH, FSH and elevated estrogen levels often seen in these ex-Finasteride users.

Anyway, if you aren’t sure your issues stem from Finasteride, look for alternative explanations. For many men who took the drug and who are suffering persistent issues, the difference before/after is like night and day, especially considering many were perfectly healthy with no pre-existing conditions to explain such dysfunction other than use of the drug itself.

#3

There are guys on here who took fina for 1 week and have been persistantly messed up from it. When I took it the first I was 22 before I took it I “had” to “releave” myself usually twice a day… at least before bed so I could sleep. Afterward and up to now… I have desire to do so, maybe 3 times in the last year. I dont have ever feel a urge to watch porn or look at naked women… yet I have a testosternone level of 845+ and high free test to match. No doctor has been able to explain that.

And I have to work my butt off to even get an erection… another problem that shouldnt even be an issue if your test is over 400 let alone over 800.

I only took it for 3 months, how do I know its from fina? Well the biggest sign is that a week after I stopped it I crashed like a tank falling out of orbit. If you havent experienced this I guess you can’t really understand it. All I can say is that it was without a doubt the worst few days of my life. Like super duper depression, insomnia, just plain misery that last 3-4 days.

And now this of course.

#4

I always say “if you aren’t sure you have p.f.s. then you don’t have p.f.s.”.

#5

Bollocks. Awareness is not a prerequisite for existence.

#6

Yes it is. I’ve never had any doubts, even for 1 second, that finasteride was the guilty. If he is not sure finasteride is the cause then A)he doesn’t have real p.f.s. B)like he suspects finasteride is not the cause in his case. We maintain we have this illness just because we were good before taking it and we’re bad now, just because there are no other explanations, if someone is not sure about that then he doesn’t “deserve” to be on this site to my mind.

#7

Regardless of where you choose to place guilt, the simple fact is that persistent side effects from finasteride can exist whether or not the person who took the drug is aware that the problems are due to finasteride.

Give him some time to evaluate and learn before hating.

#8

yes, but now this kind of test doesn’t exist

a scientific discrimination is not possible since we don’t have find a biological/molecular/genetic sign.

ther’s only a reasonableness link with an empirical group of symptoms.
we r waiting for that sign, researchers have already written preliminary papers, hopefully soon is available for the public

however is advisable to perform blood test and other standard test

#9

When you remove all other variables and nothing is left except for finasteride that is how you know. How else do you explain 20 somethings all losing their sex drive over night? And the only factor they have in common is finasteride? What other explaination do you offer? This is a dumbass question in my opinion.

Granted your 40 which is alittle different but their are a lot of young previously healthy men on this site. Also, you merely mention low libido in the first post this condition is far far far more then just low libido. And in fact many of us have zero libido and a hundred other side effects.

#10

Because I for one, never had these issues or damages before taking Propecia