In dire need of advice! Please help

trespass
Sat, 27 Dec 2008 14:23:03 +0000

0. Where are you from (country)?
Sweden.

1. 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?)
“Side effects propecia” on google.

2. What is your current age, height, weight?
24y, about 193cm, about 110kg.

3. Do you excercise regularly? If so, what type of excercise?
At this point I do not perform any regular exercise activities. However, during this summer and up until about 2 months ago I was training more regular about 3-4 times a week, mostly with conditioning. But before this I havent really been very physicly active.

4. What type of diet do you eat (vegetarian, meat eater, raw, fast-food/organic healthy)?
I eat alot of meat, but also trying to eat vegitables even tho its not on regular basis. I used to eat some amount of fast food, but during last 6 months it has been rare.

5. Why did you take Finasteride (hair loss, BPH, other)?
I experienced hair loss around age 19, so started for cosmetic reaons to regrow my hair.

6. For how long did you take Finasteride (weeks/months/years)?
I actually dont remember exactly when I started (can look this up if its super important), but it has been around 4½ years of use.

7. How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start Finasteride?
Unsure of date, but was around summer of 04 which would be around my 20th birthday as I’m born in august.

8. How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit?
Monday 15th of december 2008.

9. How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
I used propecia for about 4 years on a regular basis. At this point I was about to quit because I was not happy with the result of the drug (I keep loosing hair, maybe at slower rate but that’s hard to know for sure). I started taking the 1mg pill less regular on a 2nd day basis or so for some time. About 3 months ago my use was very irregular, some weeks I didnt take a singel pill, other weeks I took a pill most of the days in the week. (The reason I continued taking the pill was basicly to just get rid of the pills hoping for some sort of positive effect for my hair, after all I had bought the pills). About 1½ month ago I didnt have many pills left so I took the last pills as perscribed, once a day for about 3 weeks. At this point I experienced my first case of erectile dysfuntion as I was unable to get en erection when trying to mastrubate. I emediatly stopped taking the drug and started searching the internet for answers.

10. What type of Finasteride did you use – Propecia, Proscar, Fincar or other generic?
Propecia 1mg finasterid pills

11. What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
I was perscribed 1mg/day. My useage pattern as described above in 9).

12. How long into your use of Finasteride did you notice the onset of side effects?
Well to be honest at present time throuout my use I didnt experience any side effects at all. It was about 1½ month ago I first started notice that I at some occasions was unable to maintain my erection while having sex with the girlfriend. As it had never happend before I didnt think much of it as this sometimes happens to guys because of other real life issues. I got my wake-up-call about 2 weeks ago when I was unable to even get an erection when trying to mastrubate. This has never ever happend to me before so I was emediatly alarmed. Since then I’ve been unable to get it up after several attempts and discontinued use of propecia.

At this point, thinking back on my time using propecia I can relate to some problems during my usage concerning lowered sexual drive, genital shrinkage and “watery semen”. Tho, I never thought of these things as any problem related to use of propecia before as nither I or the girlfriend had any complaints.

13. What side effects did you experience while on the drug that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
extremly low labido, unable to get an erection, “watery semen”, genital shrinkage (tho more a feeling than actual fact).

Put an X beside all that apply:

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

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

Physical
[x] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[ ] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[ ] Testicular Pain
[x] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[x] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[ ] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[ ] Muscle Wastage
[ ] Muscle Weakness
[ ] Joint Pain
[x] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes

Misc
[x] Prostate pain
[ ] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[ ] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[ ] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[x] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[ ] Increased hair loss
[x] Frequent urination
[x] Lowered body temperature

[ ] Other (please explain)

14. What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
None really.
I am however, still taking my “vitamax for men” food suppliment pills. Been taking these for about 6 months now, 1pill/day.

15. 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)?
None.

16. Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience with Finasteride?
Pleas read my own story below.

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

Some has been said above but I’ll try to keep those bits short here.
I started taking propecia to battle hair loss about 4½ years ago. For more than 4 years I was not experiencing any side effects from the drug that effected the quality my sexlife to any big extent (tho, looking back now I can relate to problems as lowered sexdrive, “watery semen” and a feeling of genital shrinkage). About 1½ month ago I experienced beeing unable to maintain my erection for the first time ever while havning sex on a number of occasions. 2 weeks ago I was unable to even get an erection when trying to mastrubate. This is when I emediatly stopped using propecia.
During my use of propecia I have not been using any other medecins. I have however been using Rogaine Forte 5% on and off in periods during the this time.

Before using the drug I was something of a sex addict in many peoples eyes. I used to mastrubate at least once a day and some days up to 3-4 times. When starting the drug my “urge” to have sex or mastrubate was reduced, but I had no problem mastrubating on a dayly basis if I wished, hence I never saw it as a problem.
The “watery semen” is something I havent thought of either, until my real problems began and I read up on things. But thinking back, I do recall having more “sticky” and thicker semen.
My genital shrinkage is more a feeling rather than a fact. I havent keept track of the length and circular size of my genital as I’ve had no complaints from my grilfriend. However it does seem to be smaller than it used to and now after my real problem occured its has shrunk back into its shell.
Thinking back I’ve also suffered from sleep disorder during my use of propecia. Earlier I didnt connect the two, but now I see that it fits the timeframe and symptoms described by others. I am constantly tired even after sleeping for more than enough hours and I have a hard time trying to relax to fall asleep.

I am dying to know why this happend to me so suddenly after more than 4 years of usage without any serious problems. Especially since the drug wasn’t really working for me as I didnt experience any kind of regrowth or thicker hair. It might have slowed the hair loss process, but it’s hard to tell and the loss of hair feelt inevitable which is why I was about to stop using the drug shortly anyhow? Could it have been something to do with what I did these last couple of months that trigger it?

Could it be because of my irregular usage of the drug as explained above? Or the fact that I started using regular vitamin and mineral supplement pills, bought from the pharmacy, about 6 months ago in combination with propecia?

Could it be because I drank a whole bottle of red wine on halloween? I read something about it in (propeciahelp.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=789). Drinking is not something I usually do. I very rarly drink small amounts, and larger amounts only 2-3 times per year. But I have never before had a whole bottle of red wine.

Could it be because I changed my diet somehow into something that may have caused the problem to trigger? Or that I stopped exercising about 2 months ago due to not enough time to train?

I really think it’s strange that I could take the drug for more than 4 years and then suddenly get the negative side effects thrown in my face as I am about to stop using the drug
Something has to have changed to trigger it, right? Or can it simply have been building up in my system over the passed 4 years? If so, how come it took me 4 years to notice while it takes a month for others?

In any case, I need help as to what to do next. I have read through the FAQ etc but I still feel I need help with what to do.
Should I contact an urologist for advice, or some other type of doctor? I understand that I should take a blood test. Can an urologist do that?
Should I change my habbits in any way? I will try to start exercising again in the mornings and to get better sleep. Is there anything else? Any food or substinance I should stay away from that could prevent me from recovering?
I also read on (propeciahelp.com/forum/viewt … c&start=20) that you can detoxify yourself and your liver using antibiotix. Is this something I should try to get perscribed and do?

I hope that with your help I will be able to battle this and overcome the symptoms, but until then, are there any medications that works to give you an erection while suffering from ED because of propecia? Does viagra, erection stimulative gels or sexdrive increasing substinances like yohimbe work or are we utterly screwed if we can not fix the cause of the problem?

My girlfriend does not know anything about this yet as my inability to get an erection occured just after she left for vacation. However she is comming home in 2 weeks and I’m out of words as to what to say to her and how she will react to this. She didnt even know I was using propecia in the first place as we’ve only been dating for 4 months.
I am currrently devostated and scared that I have messed up my sexlife (and possibly hers as well) for life and I am having a huge mental shutdown due to anxiety as we speak.
I need help and guidance, please!