Welcome to our community. Please fill in the following template as a way of introducing yourself, and helping others to understand your background and situation.
Where are you from (country)?
Brazil
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
What is your current age, height, weight?
32yo, 180cm, 88kg
What specific drug did you use (finasteride, dutasteride, saw palmetto, isotretinoin/Accutane, fluoxetine, sertraline, citalopram, leuprorelin, etc…)?
Finasteride
What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
1mg daily
What condition was being treated with the drug?
Androgenetic Alopecia
For how long did you take the drug (weeks/months/years)?
1 year and 3 months
Date when you started the drug?
Around June 2021
Date when you quit the drug?
Semptember 24th 2022
Age when you quit?
31
How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
Cold turkey
How long into your usage did you notice the onset of side effects?
1year and 1 month
What side effects did you experience that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
Check the boxes that apply. You can save your post first, then interactively check/uncheck the boxes by clicking on them. If your symptoms change, please update your list.
Sexual
[X] Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
[X] Erectile Dysfunction
[ ] Complete Impotence
[ ] Loss of Morning Erections
[X] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[ ] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[X] Watery Ejaculate
[ ] Reduced Ejaculate
[ ] Inability or Difficulty to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility
Mental
[X] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[X] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[X] Confusion
[X] Memory Loss / Forgetfulness
[X] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[ ] Slurring of Speech
[X] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[ ] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[ ] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[X] Suicidal Thoughts
Physical
[X] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[ ] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[ ] Testicular Pain
[ ] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[ ] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[ ] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[ ] Muscle Wastage
[ ] Muscle Weakness
[X] Joint Pain + popping Joints
[ ] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes
Misc
[ ] Prostate pain
[X] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[X] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[X] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[ ] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[X] Tinnitus (ringing or high pitched sound in ears)
[ ] Hearing loss
[ ] Increased hair loss
[ ] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature
[X] Other (please explain)
- Cold testicles
- Prone to injuries when exercising
- Injured joints not healing
- insomnia
What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
- I have tried several, nothing has helped
If you have pre or post-drug blood tests, what hormonal changes have you encountered since discontinuing the drug (please post your test results in the “Blood Tests” section and link to them in your post)?
- After the first symptoms appeared, the levels of Vitamin B12, Vitamin D, and Iron dropped dramatically. Now, I can only maintain them within the ranges by using supplements.
Tell us your story, in your own words, about your usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.
=============
I’m a 32-year-old guy who’s been hitting the gym regularly for the past 10 years, usually 4-6 times a week without fail. I’ve never dabbled in any kind of steroids.
When I was 29, I started taking finasteride, 1mg a day, to combat hair loss. I stuck with it for about a year and three months.
For the first 1.1 years, everything seemed fine. Then, around the 1.2-year mark, I began experiencing digestion issues, although I didn’t immediately connect them to finasteride.
Shortly after that, my libido vanished, and I for the first time in my life I started dealing with ED. That’s when I realized these side effects were likely linked to finasteride. I quit it cold turkey.
Even with those two side effects, I could still manage a somewhat normal life. I’d read that there was a good chance they’d subside over time.
But then, around 1.5 months later, on November 2022, I experienced what’s known as the “crash.” That’s when my living nightmare began.
I woke up at 5 am of this day with severe anxiety and brain fog, something I’d never experienced before. I felt so awful and distressed that I even ended up at the hospital.
Tomorrow marks one year since my hormonal crash. Some symptoms have subsided, such as muscle pain, anxiety, and testicular pain, among the minor ones.
However, I’m still living a nightmare because of the remaining and worst symptoms:
- Accute, 24/7 Brain fog, I feel like I have dementia, I can’t organize my thoughs, I can’t consolidate memories, the time passes and I can’t feel it, I can’t be a functional human being.
- Anedonina
- Imnsonia
- Digestion related issues