I would advise against any antidepressants. I was suicidal for 4 months though and one day I got better. Still having brain fog and fatigue, but will never touch antidepressants as they do more harm than good imho
Guys I just received my blood test and it seems like short period of finasteride treatment has messed with all my hormone levels. Keep yourself away from the drug. I’ll start hormone therapy from tomorrow on.
Yeah that’s pretty low dude , was the blood test done in the morning or the afternoon?
Afternoon. The last couple of weeks have been psychotic for me, with severe anxiety and depression. Today I guess my hormone levels have balanced out so my symptoms are not severe anymore luckily. It’s going for the better.
I avoided them for 2 years but fell into a severely suicidal state. Been taking half a dose (5mg) of escitalopram for like 5 months. Seemed to a help a bit at first, now I don’t know.
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I strongly advise you not to do this, at least not so early after developing problems from finasteride. Several patients over the years here have tried resolving their PFS symptoms with hormone therapy only to have no change or even a worsening in their symptoms. You can read more about it here:
As others have also said, if what you have is PFS, SSRIs should be avoided.
It has been less than 2 weeks since you ceased your use of finasteride. Please give yourself more time to see if you can recover naturally. There have been some members here who turn up in a similar state to the one you find yourself in and then find their situation improve significantly quite quickly after.
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Guys, I found out that my T4 is rocket high which is indicating hyperthyroidism. Symptoms of hyperthyroidism generally include anxiety.
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Update: just received recent blood test results and it seems like my testosterone has reached a normal level.
My pre finasteride T was 17nmol. It went from 5 to 20nmol within a few weeks. My only issue is an overactive thyroid indicating hyperthyroidism. I experience all symptoms (mental ones including being anxious, nervous, fatigue etc).
I have no sexual sides.
Here are the thyroid results from my first blood test (24/6) and second blood test (01/7). The T4 values have increased, TSH has further decreased.
First test:
Second test:
I’ve recently been taking Wellbutrin (not in the SSRI class) for depression caused by this horrible PFS and while it seems to be working, it makes my skin extremely sunlight sensitive, which I don’t mind, but now was tested and think it’s the cause of a rapid drop in white blood cells, way below the lower limit, which is dangerous. Because of that, I now have to stop a medication that seems to be working, and go through its withdrawal symptoms.
PFS is a such a challenge and extremely problematic, but I’m definitely not going on SSRIs due to the risks mentioned by others.
Why do you assume your white cells count sre related with wellbutrin?
I have them also low, and i am not taking it.
It’s always been low for me, but dropped to half of what it was in the period after Wellbutrin. My hematologist said Wellbutrin is a known cause of low WBC and it’s also listed in its warnings. Unfortunately, I don’t have any lab results before PFS (it’s been 12 years) so I don’t know if PFS contributed to the low WBC count.
On the lab side, liver function is also off, and I attribute that to PFS.
What mental sides are you suffering from? And have these sides somewhat improved after quitting fin (in terms of the following months)?
I took finasteride for less than a week over a decade ago. I started to feel physical and mental sides immediately. The mental sides included memory loss, loss for words, inability to form complex sentences (as I used too), loss of train of thought, inability to focus, forgetfulness, complete emotional bluntness, etc…
This was before I knew anything about the mental sides and had attributed all these to a brain tumor or radiation exposure or something unexplainable. It’s only when I learned about PFS and read others experiences the same thing that everything made sense.
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What about anxiety? And did you recover from these sides?
I have not fully recovered from any of them, but either they improved slightly or I got used to them as they are the “new normal”.
In the 12 years, the only things that have helped have been exercise, healthy eating, intermittent fasting and keeping body fat down as much as I can keep it. These things are very tough to do consistently, but when I do, I feel better.
The only memorably happy moment I’ve had in over a decade is when I was between jobs and joined a Bikram Yoga place (hot yoga, 90 minute sessions). I would go 3-4 time a week and only consume super healthy foods during that month. I lost a lot of weight (over 10 pounds) and remember being “happy” as I walked there. I specifically remember telling myself that this is how normal people must feel.
I’ve been on lexapro for the last month and it has been a life saver as far as my anxiety and panic attacks. My libido and erections have actually gotten better after letting myself adjust to the med. at first I had sides and increased anxiety though. I’m
Not advocating ssris as someone else could have a completely opposite reaction but it was the right move in my case
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Just an update. It’s been 5 weeks post-fin and it’s been up and down.
Anxiety, nausea, insomnia etc were WORST the first two weeks. I cannot describe the feeling, fear of everything (even going to the bathroom). Brainfog was intense and derealization too.
These symptoms have lessened, however the anxiety is still here but not enough for an attack.
Depression has begun to kick in very hard, to the point that it becomes painful. The feeling of hopelessness. I don’t get how it is possible to have a day where I can be social and ‘feel’ myself again, and the next day feeling like a zombie. This feeling is not persistent to the same degree every single day, it comes and goes. However when it comes, it feels like there is no way out of it ever. Quite scary. Also ANY stressor trigger my anxiety and elevated heart beat…
After my first crash, I’ve had it twice that my penis went totally numb and I could not stimulate it at all. Some days passes and it functions just normally again, however low libido.
I am taking the following supplements: GABA, Magnesium, Omega 3 Fish oil, vitamin pills.
Eating lots of Kefir and garlic.
Also having aches in my left testicle which affects the whole left area (abdominal, upper leg, left butt etc.). Did a scan, and everything seemed normal. I do not masturbate at the moment due to the left testicular pain which becomes worse after ejaculation. I have been to numerous doctors and they all believe that I am suffering from an anxiety disorder (duh I have NEVER). I will be getting Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), perhaps that will make it a little easier to live with my current condition, I am not sure. Giving it a chance.
The improvements I have seen after just 5 weeks are great, but not sufficient. I hope to see some more improvement after 5 weeks again, but nothing is guaranteed.
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Hey. I’m all great, no issues anymore luckily. It all cleared up within 6 slow months.
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