"It's all in the head".

General Discussion
#1

I read one story by a woman on AskDocWeb about her husband who did not know about the possible side effects of Propecia because the prescribing doctor didn’t say. A few months later he lost sex drive in the bedroom, and it was only then she went online and was relieved to find out it was the Propecia.

I have to admit, when I took Propecia, only for five days, I was constantly concerned for my sex drive, I decided to stop because the paranoia on all the side effects would have consumed me. There are just so many! Affecting EVERY part of the sexual anatomy, muscle growth and mental effects, it is just too much to be concerned about experiencing. Sometimes I wish I didn’t know about any possible side effects, or was told that there wasn’t any, so that way I could take the drug, and it would be blatantly obvious if I do experience any side effects because I’m not expecting any.

Do some of you think that this could all be in your head, or is it very much real?

#2

I’ve already thought about, and I think this may have been posted on here before. Honestly I doubt this could be in your head, especially if you’re young, because I could honestly get erections before I even knew what sex was. While I was on propecia, I had trouble believing this was happening to me if anything.

Not only that but I’ve felt pains in my genitals and testicles, also my semen has and still looks kinda weird, not to mention mine and many other’s abnormal hormone profiles.

There’s no shot this is in my head, arousal is something that I can’t control, I used to get erections not even thinking about sex, and sometimes even the slightest mention of something sexual or even something as simple as a girl sitting close to me could get me aroused and hard, as a matter of fact I still feel these feelings, they’ve just been heavily weakened and are inadequate. Man I used to be one horny bastard!

I suggest you backtrack and look through the older posts on this forum, you might learn a thing or two.

Not only that but I think Mew may have told you this before but you might wanna try to get a blood test for your hormones.

I wish you the best and I’m sure you’ll be able to beat this thing, personally I’ve noticed quite a bit of improvement in the last 2 or 3 weeks. It might take a while, and for some it takes longer than others, but I believe that for 98% of people on here it’s really not permanent, and if it is you probably have some problems unrelated to finasteride.

Best wishes and good luck!

#3

I’d also want to add that even if the core of the problem is physiological, it can be psychologically affected, as stress does raise cortisol levels, and cortisol is made by the adrenals, so it could make adrenal fatigue worse.

#4

Let’s make this nice and simple when it comes to erections.

It is physiological if your have weaker or no morning erections or nocturnal erections which can be tested for by the stamp test or ridgidity testing.

The fact is morning erections remove the psychological possibilities because they occur or do not occur on the basis of involuntary action.

This is a well understood medical reality.

#5

Did you mean to say that Morning erections remove the physiological and not psychological aspect from the root cause of ED?

I understand that if you have nocturnals and wake up with morning erections than your issue is most likely psychological and when you have zero or very weak nocturnals and morning erections than it may be hormonal/physiological.

#6

Yes this is generally the case, the operative word being generally.

#7

Hypo, what does it mean if they are weaker?

#8

If you have weaker morning erections post finasteride use; then it is a reasonable indicator that the problem is physical as opposed to psychological.

This is because this erection is not controlled by thoughts conscious or subconscious thought by and large- but the body’s natural response to the circadian hormonal rhythm and appropriate hormonal levels and adequate function of the penis.

If the body is not responding as it did prior to finasteride, then it is likely that there is some defect, be that hormonal or structural (in terms of the penis).

Weaker in the above context means “poorer erections”, I hope that clarifies.

It might sound very awkward to know whether erections or weaker/poorer post finasteride use if the differences are small and you are unsure about the matter.

Of course it can be very difficult to know unless the change in erectile function in morning erections is very noticeable and the change significant. Whilst it probably isn’t possible to know what erectile function was like prior to the use of the drug, unless you had prior studies in this area, it is possible to have erectile function evaluated with a competent urologist who can consider your current circumstances. This is done via overnight stamp/rigidity testing and other such means.

The point is that if you know or strongly believe that erectile function is poorer post finasteride use;

You can consider morning erection as a helpful indicator of potential problems and if you have much poorer morning erections or no morning erections and this is a problem that you did not suffer from prior to finasteride; you can consider that this mean the probably is likely to exist because of a real problem and not a psychological one. You can then seek out an endocrinologist and urologist to assess hormones and erectile function respectively.

I hope this explains what you can do with the information that your body can provide for you.

#9

Yes, but how come very few of you ever mention the prostate? Instead people are always saying “the veins” and the penis…
This is primarily a prostate issue. As much as everyone’s problems are all slightly different, hence each individual, they are all possible symptoms of prostate trouble.

Do you know at all the role of and how hormones work with the prostate, and/or how they can have any sort of an effect on the prostate?

I am curious to know if Shippen mentions anything about the prostate, esp. regarding hormones, in his book “The Testosterone Syndrome”. because I’m thinking of buying the book to find out.

Thanks for your help!
B

#10

You are talking about a separate issue.

The fact is a poorer androgen to estrogen ratio and increased action of estrogens is something we often see post finasteride use in the pathology of the men here at the site.

This is the perfect endocrine environment to inflame the prostate and cause BPH.

An enlarged prostate is just one more symptom of adversely affected hormones and is something that can be rectified in many cases by a correction of the hormonal imbalance.

The prostate problem (BPH, inflamation, difficulty urinating, a pulsating prostate etc) is not a cause of problems, it is not higher in importance than anything else being spoken of, just yet another nasty symptom that can occur.

#11

Well, what causes the prostate to shrink when finasteride is taken, and then couldn’t problems occur within the prostate when this happens? i.e such as blockages and infection due to an obstruction??
This is what I think happened to me.
Whether it was caused by lowered androgens or an androgen problem, I got infected due to an obstruction I think.
I’m sorta actually feeling like I may be fine once I get rid of this infection here real soon as well.

But so I hope I won’t then have to go try to track down another andrologist, a good andrologist such as maybe a Dr. Ricardo Munarriz here in Boston (has anyone heard anything good about him), or otherwise a man by the name Shippen!!

#12

With a poor androgen to estrogen ratio and with elevated estrogens men often get enflamed/enlarged prostates, urinary infections and the like.

You might need to lower estrogen, SHBG or increase testosterone in order to rectify your problem.

You should have an evaluation with an endocrinologist.

#13

I am new here… I am also a medical student and I am considering beginning a propecia regimen to combat my hairloss. Over the next couple of months I am going to do comprehensive research in some endocrinology texts and peruse some studies.

Some of my initial contentions about the advice you’ll find on this website will be published later today in a new thread.

I hope that you guys can overcome some of these problems you’ve encountered, but I fear that much of it is psychosomatic.

#14

If you are considering starting the drug, that is your perogative. This site will not be of much use to you unless you experience side effects from the medication.

Fantastic. In the meantime, here’s a selected sampling of some of the studies we’ve managed to find, that showcase the negative aspects of this medication:

propeciahelp.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=8

With all due respect, gynecomastia, reduced ejaculate volume, penile/testicular shrinkage, genital tissue changes and numbness and other such physical changes are NOT psychosomatic.

Good luck in your quest with Finasteride if you are hellbent on taking it.

#15

You must see the obvious counterargument.

Much of this is self-reported. Ever heard of body dysmorphic disorder?

I said I fear it… I’m not trying to laugh in anyone’s face. I regret if I’ve offended you.

#16

Obviously you have not looked through the adverse effects reports submitted by medical professionals to the FDA and other health agencies on behalf of their patients.

propeciahelp.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=21
propeciahelp.com/forum/viewt … =7376#7376

Not to mention the numerous other studies contained on this site that list various adverse effects from this medication, to men in controlled clinical trial settings.

This is not “self reporting” in the least… and honestly we are not interested in arguing with disbelievers, so if that is your intention you are in the wrong place. No offense.

#17

this afternoon i had a visit with an endo, he said that i should start thinking that i don’t find a problem because there isn’t a problem in me! he also said that a day i will meet a right girl and with her everything will be simply. what a romantic endo! this beautiful advice cost me 105 euro…
if i revive i’ll be a doctor… a lot of money for say crap!

#18

Other drugs approved by the FDA have a much higher incidence of side effects. I think it’s hard for physicians to believe that there are such severe side effects to an outwardly safe medication.

I hope that you are able to work through your situation, and I apologize that you feel as though the endocrinologist ripped you off.

#19

ltomed84,
You sound like a serious tool. Why dont you go take Propecia and see what happens then. If your T levels plummet, and you start experience prostate problems at such a young age, and you lose morning erections, then you can tell yourself that it is all in your head. Then when your girlfriend asks you what is wrong after you put your dick in her mouth and it doesn’t get hard, you can tell her that it is all in your head. And then your doctor can tell you the same thing, and then you can go on living with a cold dick!!
Go ahead man. Take the risk. We will all sit and wait and see with you. Good luck.

Oh, and btw, next time you’re going to open your mouth and look like a bigtime fool, try doing some reading, research, first, e.g. in the scientific studies section of this forum all about Finasteride, and the hundreds of studies documenting lasting side effects after stopping. I mean you did learn how to do research as an undergrad biology major didn’t you!!

Also, you can peruse this forum a little more, and talk to some of the doctors that are here that also suffer from persisting Fin side affects after quiting propecia, or you can keep running your mouth looking and sounding like a tool ! And then go ahead, take the risk, try Propecia. I dare you!!! :smiling_imp:

#20

I can understand why he has convinced himself finasteride can’t cause these side effects - he wants to take it himself. I seriously hope you don’t have side effects for your sake.