MarioBros' story

Member Stories
#1

I was 21 when i first noticed i was losing my hair. Naturally i got pretty freaked at the idea of having a combover in my mid-20’s. i went and saw my doctor who gave me a prescription for propecia. He seemed pretty indifferent about it and didn’t seemed to know any more than what he read on the label, but under the assurance that side effects were rare and ceased upon stopping the drug i decided to give it a go.

I haven’t really tried any serious treatments. I have always been into weights training and am going to continue with that of course as i have heard that it increases testosterone. I would be willing to try something if i knew it would work but i am scared about pharmacy meds screwing me up further.

I have read on the forum however about guys trying natural test boosters and estrogen suppressors, aswell as certain amino supplements. What have your successes been like with these? particularly in regards to libido and erection function?

It sucks that something as trivial as an erection can mean so much. i look at my dog, how happy he is and he doesn’t even have nuts.

Regards.

#2

Welcome to the forum. You might also want to post this info into your thread:

propeciahelp.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=371

Check the NATURAL SUPPLEMENTS section sticky posts for some info on natural treatments which may help.

I find Horny Goat Weed is helpful (natural viagra) 1-2hrs before sexual activity… gets bloodflow to your dick, helps you stay hard during the act.

Maca supposedly has libido enhancing properties and is a stimulant. Same goes for Yohimbe (but can affect blood pressure, very potent… Yohimbine is the actual drug version).

Tonkat Ali (extract) and Tribulus Terrestis are natural T boosters which may help with libido, erections, muscle etc. They may also cause gynecomastia if you have elevated estrogen levels.

500mg of L-Arginine (Nitric Oxide precursor) before bed once in awhile helps with more restorative and deeper sleep, I’ve found. It can also aid with erections, but shouldn’t be mixed with a PDE5 inhibitor (ie Viagra).

But – you really should get bloodwork done per the list in HORMONES section to see where you are at today, after the drug. It’s the only way to assess next steps.

Don’t beat yourself up too much, we all wish we could turn back the clock but we must look forward and change that which we can. Cardiovascular excercise, clean diet, Omega 3s, plenty of good sleep, weight training and TIME are your allies.

#3

Hey there mariobros. It really sucks to have this happen, and I totally feel for you. I suppose I can offer a few bits of advice from my own experiences (though you may want to look through Mew’s posts, as he’s the resident expert).

  1. Don’t live with regret. You’ve fallen into a trap you probably would have avoided if you had been told more about it. It’s not your fault the official drug information was wrong.

  2. Be strong. As someone else put it, having a victim mentality will only lower your testosterone. You’ve got a nasty syndrome you don’t know how long will affect you, but you’ve got to do your best to live every day the best way you can.

  3. Most doctors have no idea about this condition. Check out the doctors section for people who can help you.

  4. Juicing. I’ve been drinking craploads of fruits and vegetables freshly juiced with a $100 juicer I bought at Target. It cleans your liver and gives you a huge boost to nutrition. Some people get much better with this, others get very little effect. It all depends on your body.

If you’re looking for a good way to start without getting into heavy duty medications, you may want to give it a try. Maybe also take a Zinc and Omega 3 suppliment along with it. Here’s a list of the ingredients I use:

Vegetable Juice:
• carrots
• celery
• cucumber
• broccoli (with stem)
• tomato
• garlic
• ginger
• apple

Fruit juice:
• apple
• orange
• pear
• blueberries
• grapes
• strawberries
• blackberries

You’ll have to tweak how much of which ingredient to use to find what you like, but I may recommend going easy on the garlic and ginger. Buy organic vegetables whenever possible. I can usually get about a week worth of produce for around $60. Finally, drink your juice as soon as you make it. It oxidizes (rots) extremely fast, so don’t let it sit around!

Well anyways, I hope that helps, and I really hope you get better! I’ll be sure to say a prayer for you tonight!

#4

Hey Guys,

Thanks so much for your support. Sorry for the delayed reply but the last couple of days have been a bit of a roller coaster.

I’ll definitely take your advice, and I’m trying my best to stay positive. I know that a healthy body and mind are my best bets for a recovery (or at least partial recovery until we find a cure). I have been reading through the posts and doing some research on what has worked for other people.

I’ve learnt a lot about the endocrine system in the last two days. Before this i had no idea what hormones did what. And after doing my research it amazes me that the medical community can be so casual about something so dangerous as messing with hormones.

I’ve created a list of sorts of things that seem to be worth trying and i think might be the first step for me:

Broccoli Treatment: I figure I’ve got nothing to lose by trying this. At the very least i’ll get a good dose of vitamins.

Juicing: As per your advice tryingnottoworry. Again i can’t see how this can hurt.

Supplements: Fish Oil, L-Arginine, Vitamins C and E. Possibly Zinc, Magnesium and Horny Goat Weed/Natural T Booster

Heavy weights training: Already doing this but just figured i’d give it a mention. Might also consider swimming as well for cardio.

The last thing is something called Testosterone Recovery Stack by a company called Primordial Performance. It consists of a cream and two supplements. I think it’s designed for bodybuilders who are coming off a steroid cycle but is OTC so probably not as strong as some of the other meds but i don’t think I’m quite ready to go down that road. I heard oneday mentioned that it worked for his libido so i think I’ll give it a try.

So that’s my current coarse of action. Just having this plan makes me feel alot better. Yesterday was terrible. I had all these thoughts running through my head like “I’ll never get married and have kids” etc. But I’m not ready to give up.

I’d really appreciate anyone’s thoughts on this plan. Anything i should add or if anyone else has tried these approaches with success please let me know.

Oh, my login name is totally random by the way. I’m neither Italian nor in the plumbing business in case you were wondering.

Regards.

#5

Definitely do the broc treatment…or get on DIM, which is pretty much the same thing but in an easier pill form. And I say avoid alcohol entirely, it has an exponential effect on E levels. And remember that zinc may boost T but it blocks DHT. But al of this depends on what your body really needs to recover, many of us are different and you need to find what makes a difference in you. For me it’s been blocking E and allowing for T DHT to do their work. But the best of luck to you

#6

Hi InLimbo1 thanks for the tip. I plan to star the broccoli treatment first thing tomorrow.

As an update, i had a good experience today. I took some Yohimbe extract this morning. Just the regular Yohimbe Bark in a liquid form, not Yohimbine the concentrated extract. Went to the gym and when i came back decided to watch some porn (as you do). I have to say my erection was solid and consistent could of pretty much kept going as long as i wanted. Normally i have to try and maintain stimulation and focus or i lose my erection quickly (sorry if this is getting a bit too in depth) but this stuff seemed to really help, also i seemed to feel more into it aswell, more aroused, not just “banging one out”. I’ll need to do a few more “experiments” to be sure it wasn’t a fluke but it seemed to help a lot.

I should note you’re not meant to use this stuff everyday i don’t think. probably put a bit of a strain on your nervous system and i do feel abit jittery. but better all the same. the dosage said 15-30 drops and i probably took closer to 30 i’m pretty sure.

Oh, also. I’m almost embarrassed to admit it but i ordered a ball zinger off ebay this morning. Believe me i know how retarded they sound (and look) but cdnuts and a couple of other guys seemed to be pretty happy with it. I just hope customs don’t call me up and ask me to explain what the hell it is.

Anyways, stay safe and strong.

#7

ROFL!! Oh my, that just made my day!

#8

Broccoli has ingredients in it that are found in concentrated form in DIM. And DIM has been shown to reduce 5 alpha reductase activity (I believe Type 2, the critical type). I would not consume large quantities of broccoli, nor take DIM, without first taking the adiol-G blood test to see if your levels are depressed.

Just my opinion, but fish oil and L-arginine make a lot more sense.

Mew - why would you not cross a PDE inhibitor with arginine?

kazaman

#9

This article states that broccoli, and in particular DIM, lowers DHT levels, and is a anti-androgen. Not sure how that would balance out against the anti-estrogen effects it is supposed to have, but not good for people in our situation.

nutraingredients.com/Researc … ncer-agent

#10

L-Arginine isn’t quite the same as taking nitrates, but there are warnings about concurrent use of PDE5 inhibitors with nitric oxide donors due to potential for hypotension.

Rationale for not combining nitrates and PDE5 inhibitors.
goliath.ecnext.com/coms2/gi_0199 … rates.html

“While use of PDE5 inhibitors is safe in men with CVD for whom sexual activity, by itself, is not associated with significant risk, these drugs must not be used by patients who are taking concomitant organic nitrates and/or other nitric oxide (NO) donors commonly used in the management of angina and myocardial ischemia. (4) The contraindication of PDE5 inhibitors in men who are also taking nitrates arises from the synergistic effects of these drugs in relaxing vascular smooth muscle and lowering blood pressure.”

The Nitrate Contraindication
medscape.com/viewarticle/556235_7
“All three PDE5 inhibitors are contraindicated in patients taking organic nitrates (including short-acting or long-acting nitroglycerin, isosorbide dinitrate, isosorbide mononitrate, amyl nitrate and others). Organic nitrates increase cyclic GMP production whereas PDE5 inhibitors decrease cyclic GMP breakdown. Therefore, there is a synergistic drop in BP when PDE5 inhibitors are given with organic nitrates that results in symptomatic hypotension in some patients”

#11

I thought i read somewhere here that broccoli stopped DHT from binding to androgen receptors not that it actually inhibits 5 alpha 2 from converting T>DHT or is that the same thing?

#12

I don’t know if anyone’s following this thread but i just had to get something off my chest.

I went through a really dark time this past week. after realising that i had fallen on my own sword and inflicted this illness upon myself i couldn’t eat or sleep. i dropped about 6 or 7 kilos in bodyweight. today is the first day that i feel like i have truly come out of the dark and am looking forward.

At my worst i seriously was wishing i could just end it. i’ve never in my whole life ever felt like that until this week. i think the only thing that stopped me was thinking about my parents, how much i love them and how i could never let them bury their youngest son. i had a friend who commited suicide when i was at school and i saw how much it tore up his parents.

Luckily i came to my senses and realised that this isn’t the end of the world. people are defined by how they deal with the challenges that life gives them and i plan on defeating this. i want to get married and start a family oneday. Even if it takes us years to find the answer i know we can do it because i’ve seen how passionate the people on this forum are. day by day we are finding new information and yeah maybe everyone who suffers won’t get back to 100% of their former selves but i guess life is like that. what i do know is if we give up then we definately won’t get better.

I guess the one thing we can all take away from this experience, as hollow as it might be, is that once we have defeated this, then no challenge we ever face for the rest of our lives will seem insurmountable. Because we’ve stared down the barrel of the gun, faced humiliation and denial from those whose job it was to protect us from this and we still have the detirmination to persevere.

Thanks Mew and everyone who contributes to the forum.

#13

I can totally relate to the feeling of being alone in darkness, as I’m sure all of us have. I had a breakdown a couple of weeks ago and I couldn’t stop crying until my girlfriend talked me down. It’s hard to be optimistic when you feel broken inside, but even still, crying it out is probably better than bottling it all in.

Stay close to your loved ones. Sometimes we need someone else to help carry the weight on our shoulders.