- Where are you from (country)?
US - 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?)
Google search- “propecia side effects help” - What is your current age, height, weight?
27, 5’8, 185 - Do you excercise regularly? If so, what type of excercise?
Yes. Lift weights 4 times per week. Cardio typically a few times a week. - What type of diet do you eat (vegetarian, meat eater, raw, fast-food/organic healthy)?
pretty much anything - Why did you take Finasteride (hair loss, BPH, other)?
hair loss - For how long did you take Finasteride (weeks/months/years)?
4 months - How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start Finasteride?
24. I started finasteride on January 12, 2012. - How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit?
I quit on May 15, 2012. - How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
Cold Turkey - What type of Finasteride did you use – Propecia, Proscar, Fincar or other generic?
generic finasteride - What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
1.25mg every other day - How long into your use of Finasteride did you notice the onset of side effects?
I didn’t notice any side effects until I had a sudden onset on May 13, 2012. - What side effects did you experience while on the drug that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
Put an X beside all that apply:
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 to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility
Mental
[ ] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[ ] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[ ] Confusion
[ ] Memory Loss / Forgetfullness
[ ] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[ ] Slurring of Speech
[ ] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[ ] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[ ] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[ ] Suicidal Thoughts
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
[ ] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes
Misc
[ ] Prostate pain
[ ] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[ ] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[ ] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[ ] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[ ] Increased hair loss
[ ] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature
[ ] Other (please explain)
-
What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
I am currently being treated by Dr. Alan Jacobs. He has had me on 50mg Clomid/1mg Anastrozole for the past month. -
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)?
will do -
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.
I took finasteride for four months when I was 24 from January to May 2012. During that time I never noticed any side effects. On May 13, 2012 I remember being a lot hornier than usual. I think I masturbated like 4 or 5 times. Later that night I was unable to get an erection. My testicles were throbbing. All of a sudden they were dangling way lower than usual and than constricting tighter than usual. My scrotum looked deflated and wrinkled. I took one more pill two days that crash (I was considering try to taper off) and then decided just to quit cold turkey.
Since that crash I have had difficulty getting erections. I can get an okay (but definitely nothing like before) erection via manual stimulation but I never get aroused mentally like I used to. I have almost no libido. For the most part I don’t get morning erections. My penis/testicles have lost a great deal of feeling. My ejaculate is great reduced and watery.
After that crash I obviously immediately started making doctors appointments. The hair loss doctor that prescribed the drug to me in the first place told me that my symptoms would go away in max a few months. He told me that in all the years of prescribing finasteride he had never had anyone else complain about these side effects. I went to my general practitioner who did some blood tests and found I had low testosterone. He referred me to an endo and a urologist. The endo found that I had low Vitamin D as well. Other than that he really had no idea what to do for me. By the time I saw the urologist about 4 months had gone by. He told me that finasteride couldn’t cause side effects months after quitting and that all this was just in my head. He also told me that my lowered sex drive was simply because I was getting older. Which is absolutely ridiculous since I had just turned 25 only a few months before. As if it was totally normal for a 25 year old to have absolutely no sex drive. He did at least (begrudgingly) prescribe me 2.5 mg (and then later 5mg) cialis, which does definitely help give me a pretty good erection.
I tried to wait and see if I would improve naturally and I have a little but still haven’t gotten anywhere close to being back to how I was before finasteride. In February I had a phone consultation with Dr. Jacobs. He ended up putting me on 50mg Clomid/1mg Anastrozole daily which I’ve been taking for the past month. I’ve noticed that since taking them that I have been waking up with semi-decent morning erections more frequently. I also ejaculate more . On the other hand , I think it’s actually become somewhat more difficult for me to get an erection since I started this treatment.