So, I can’t stop thinking about why some of us take the pill 1 time and others of us take it 3,287.25 times (thats me every day for 9 years) until the effects are horrificaly evident. I also can’t stop thinking that the effects of the 1 pill taker and the 3,287.25 taker are nearly identical, except perhaps the severty and extent of the effects. The actual umbrella of PFS is identical. In other words, some people seem only to have brainfog and fatigue but have taken the drug 10 years and someone else may have all the sexual sides w/brainfog and fatigue after just 1 pill. Are we to assume that the longer someone has taken finasteride the worse the effects are? The answer I believe would be no. I can’t subscribe to the belief that overtime the cumulative effects eventually affect someone worse because…well there are just the cumulative effects. I was sharp as a tack (still am) for 9 years, quick thinking, humorous, highly motivated, energetic, extremely intelligent (actually think I got smarter on fin) up until the final moments of taking the pill. So when exactly when did my neurosteroidal degeneration or neurological damage occur? Did it just coincidentally happen to take place out of the blue 9 years later on the same day I quit the drug? Vice versa, are we to believe that one pill has depleted someone’s neurosteroids to the point of complete PFS meltdown? Perhaps it would be that powerful, but then why was I ok for so long? If I have identical symptoms 9 years later to the 1 pill taker than I probably should have had the 1 pill meltdown as well. Ok, so what am I getting at. Perhaps it is not what finasteride has done to us, but other levels/hormones in our body which did not properly adjust to the usage of finasteride. I find it fascinating that finasteride in clinical trials has proven to increase testosterone 10-15% by inhibiting the conversion of Test to DHT. Over the years, my libido and energy actually increased while I was taking finasteride as well. Just read an article on-line about Wayne Rooney and how well he is playing because perhaps finasteride has increased his testosterone levels. There are also anectodal reports on this site and others as well of people benefiting from the use of progesterone and other 5ar inhibitors. This would be counterintuitive to what most of us see as the problem. Also some anectodal reports of at least temporary benefits of taking finasteride again. Imagine this, progesterone is a precursor for testosterone and finasteride increases testosterone production, but at the same time finasteride might affect progesterone production or synthesis which could lead to diminshed testosterone levels (estrogen dominance) Did I survive so long because I may have had low progesterone but my initial spike of testosterone from taking finasteride (even though it may have been low) was at enough of a ratio that I didn’t feel the effects of diminished progesterone levels? In other words, did the inrease levels of finasteride induced testosterone production outweigh any effect that may have taken place with the inhibition of pregesterone/allopreganlone? Again I am assuming, that there is no cumulative effect of finasteride, and that what happens with one administered dose on me happens with one dose to the person affected by one pill. So, when I decided to quit finasteride or become lazy with the 1mg dosing etc, my testosterone drops to the same level as the person who has taken just one pill. So now what? I experience low testosterone from the drop in finasteride, and the neurosteroidal depleted affect (which presumably happened with the first pilll I every took but I never knew about) I have a friend who took finasteride for about 4 years and discontinued the usage about 3 years ago. He has been freaking out it since he has seen what has happened to me. He decided to get his testosterone checked and it was 200! He says he feels great though and doesn’t understand why he doesnt feel the effects of such low levels. Just food for thought
