) Where are you from (country)?
United States
- 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 found it from searching on google - What is your current age, height, weight?
I am 29 years old, 5’10’’ and 204lbs - Do you excercise regularly? If so, what type of excercise?
I was but recently I havent felt up to it. I would Bike ride, walk, jog - What type of diet do you eat (vegetarian, meat eater, raw, fast-food/organic healthy)?
Before I got sick I ate anything. After I started with symptoms I changed diet drastically to Vegetarian. - Why did you take Finasteride (hair loss, BPH, other)?
My hair was falling out and a friend had sworn about his results. It did work but man am I sorry - For how long did you take Finasteride (weeks/months/years)?
21 Months - How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start Finasteride?
I was 26 years old, around April of 2010 Dont remember exact date. - How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit?
28 years old. December 23rd 2011 - How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
Just stopped, Cold turkey. - What type of Finasteride did you use – Propecia, Proscar, Fincar or other generic?
Propecia - What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
1mg / Day - How long into your use of Finasteride did you notice the onset of side effects?
I didnt notice any side effects until October of 2011. Towards the end of use I became very fatigued like I couldnt even stand up and felt hot flashes/sweats - What side effects did you experience while on the drug that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
I am very tired/fatigue all the time. I have headaches and lightheadedness most of the time. When I stand up I get dizzy, decrease in sexual desire.
Put an X beside all that apply:
Sexual
[x ] Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
[ ] Erectile Dysfunction
[ ] Complete Impotence
[ ] Loss of Morning Erections
[x ] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[ ] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[ ] Watery Ejaculate
[ ] Reduced Ejaculate
[ ] Inability to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility
Mental
[ ] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[x ] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[x ] Confusion
[x ] Memory Loss / Forgetfullness
[x ] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[ ] Slurring of Speech
[ x] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[ x] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[ x] 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
[x] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[ ] Muscle Wastage
[ x] Muscle Weakness
[ x] Joint Pain
[ x] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes
Misc
[ ] Prostate pain
[ x] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[ ] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[ ] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[ ] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[ ] Increased hair loss
[ ] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature
[x ] Other (please explain)
Excessive sweating when normal aspiration should take place, Frequent sinus pressure, irritability, white tongue, redness of eyes, feel like complete crap
-
What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
Change in diet to vegetarian. Juiced fruits and vegetables daily. While Juicing and eating a healthier diet I began to feel better. But because I was not working it became to expensive to eat that way. Once I went back to my old diet I began feeling sick again. Coincidance? I dont know. But even while Juicing I was sweating excessively where I would get dehydrated and dizzy when rising from sitting or kneeling position. -
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 do not know as of now I will try and retain copys of blood work through Endocrinologist. -
Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience with Finasteride?
-
Tell us your story, in your own words, about your Finasteride usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.
My name is Jason and I am joining this site because I believe I am suffering from side effects of constant use of finasteride(Propecia). I stopped taking the drug in December od 2011 towards the end of the month. Around January 8th aproxiamatly 2 weeks after I stopped the drug I had such a severe anxiety/panic attack that happened at 1:30am. I felt as if I was sufficating. I ran to my sisters house thinking it was an asthma attack but I have no history of asthma. I used a nebulizer with the inhalent used in asthma pumps but it did nothing for me. Over the next few weeks I was suffering from problems swallowing my foods. I becamse sick and ended up in the hospital from what the ER doctor thought was just sore throat and dehydration. I followed up with Primary and he scheduled me for many tests. All of which came back in normal range and he cleared me a good bill of health. HE BLAMED ANXIETY and said I needed to exercise and eat better. So I went on and started walking and excercising and decided to do a Juice Diet. Where I cleansed my body and learned a whole new way to eat by juicing fresh fruits and veggies with a juicer. After losing about 35 pounds and Eating healthy for about 3 months I though I was finally FREE. THEN CAME THE DIZZYNESS when standing up. I was working for a neighbor and everytime I would stand up from a sitting or kneeling position I felt as if I was going to pass out. This went on for several weeks and I notified my Primary doctor this was happening. After a few weeks of that I became very sick with fever/nasau dizzyness, fatigue so I went back to my doctor and told him how I felt. He thought was my diet that was making me feel this way and so I entertained this idea by eating lots of chicken and rice and pasta. For 2 weeks I ate this way and while I got better from being sick the dizzyness was still happening when I stood up. Also noticed I was sooo tired all the time and started to not be able to focus on thoughts and people. I wanted to sleep all the time and then the headaches began. Now currently I am tired/extrememly fatiged, my eyes are red and tongue is white. I have a headache almost all the time and feel like my life force is being sucked out of me. I have sinus pressure and my allergy doctor gave me antibiotics to help but I also remember having a sinus pressure in January when I first became ill. After looking at everything I have been going through I know now that if its not showing up on blood work something is really wrong with my hormones and or brain. I have been battling these symptoms for months now and I don’t know how much longer I can fight it out. I NEED TO FIND A NUEROENDOCRINOLOGIST THAT UNDERSTANDS THIS DISORDER because as of now my doctors are going by blood work that shows normal. My endocrinologist has never even heard of Propecia so you can only imagine how much help she has been. She told me my cortisol levels were normal. I have read that special tests have to be done for the Adrenal Fatuge to be reconized. I also feel that my sexual desire is severly diminished at times. Before I took Propecia I was a healthy person. Never spent a day in the hospital and now Im 29 and have been to more doctors than a normal person in a lifetime. I noticed a decrease in body temperature in January everytime I took my temp. I hope someone reading this can offer some help and understanding to what Im going through. I feel like I made a deal with the devil and hes collecting big time. I just want to be normal again. I lost my job because I feel so ill that I cannot stand for extended periods of time. I cant concentrate on my work. I just want to sleep all the time it’s the only time where I feel normal. If anyone outthere can help please contact me.
