New sufferer and worried about the future

Member Stories
#1

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)? United Kingdom

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

What is your current age, height, weight? 26, 5 ft 11, 80 kg

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.)? 1 mg

What condition was being treated with the drug? Hair loss

For how long did you take the drug (weeks/months/years)? 7 days

How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start the drug? 26, 21st April 2020

How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit? 26, 28th April 2020

How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)? cold turkey

How long into your usage did you notice the onset of side effects?

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
[x ] Loss of Morning Erections
[x ] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[x ] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[ ] Watery Ejaculate
[ ] Reduced Ejaculate
[ ] Inability or Difficulty to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility

Mental
[x ] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[x ] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[ ] 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
[x ] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[x ] Suicidal Thoughts

Physical
[ ] 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
[ ] Tinnitus (ringing or high pitched sound in ears)
[ ] Hearing loss
[ ] 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? N/A

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)? N/A

Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience?

Tell us your story, in your own words, about your usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.

I started taking Finasteride on the 21st of April for seven doses and have since been off the drug for the last fortnight. I have simultaneously been experiencing a period of low mood/depression stemming from the end of my relationship six weeks ago which has no doubt contributed to the mental side effects. Since ending the treatment I have noticed no libido whatsoever, no erections whatsoever and being pretty much flaccid when trying to ejaculate. I have found myself struggling to concentrate at work and have slipped into periods of depression and hopelessness with suicidal thoughts I have never experienced before. I appreciate in the first instance it is primarily a waiting game, however I am worried that I have caused permanent damage. I am trying to get outside and exercise daily, however I am finding little enjoyment in anything I am doing. I am also struggling with poor sleep patterns and insomnia. The current Covid-19 lockdown in my country is clearly not helping things either.

2 Likes
#2

Hi aw93,

I am sorry this is happening to you. You are right, at present this is a waiting game. Many people get better over time, sometimes quickly. The odds are in your favor. Try to relax, try to occupy yourself with other things and don’t do any “treatments” or other drastic changes to your habits.

If this does not resolve in the next few weeks, we will be here for you. Irregardless, given your sensitive reaction to just a few doses of Finasteride, never get back on the drug or any of the other drugs mentioned here. This is a sign that you are sensitive to substances with antiandrogenic proprties.

Good luck!

2 Likes
#3

That sucks brother. I am in the same boat as you. Only did 5 doses (1x oral, 4x topical) and i am already chemically burned by this drug.

I did my last dose 17th of april, so 3 weeks have passed and I have gained even more side effects (i.e. dry eyes and some joint pain). Its the waiting game to see if the damage done is permanent…

Eat healthy (high protein perhaps?), lots of vegetables and salmon. Try to get outside whenever the sun shines to get a dose of vitamin D.

Do you have any non sexual related side effects?

#4

Hey man. I am sorry you have to deal with sides. I have exactly the same issues.
You need to report it to Yellow Card which is a government scheme

4 Likes
#5

thanks, I filled in the form. Do you know what they do with this information?

#6

I guess they just collect. The more people submit side effects the stronger our voice

#7

It gets better,
I’ve been off like 3 weeks, i don’t know if icrashed, but I lost erections one week and lot of sides, then had one good day, and a bad week, I kept hope, prayed a lot, many people helped me with anxiety, and I’m getting better, Im very thankfull to God. This is an opportunity to be better, i tried to improve my relationship with people, family, God.

Right now i’m just scared about the fact that I saw a extrange vein in my penis, i’m scared because many people say here that it could involves damage to the tissues, i dont want that, gonna see an urologist as soon as posible, its been some hard weeks. I really need to know that everything is ok in my body and recover 100%.

Try to live healthy, eat vegetables, be good.
I really hope you get recover soon.

#8

brother im off three weeks as well. do you only have sexual sides?

I got very loud tinnitus and extreme muscle stiffness/cramps. Tinnitus is really killing me the most.

#9

Hey bro,

I recommend to stop ejaculating immediately. Do not masturbate to ejaculation any more. Get as much blood flow going and try hard to keep your penis hard, but do not ejaculate.

#10

okay brother, will do

#11

Hi all,

As an update over the last couple of days. I have had some periods of better mood where I have experienced positive thoughts and a couple of nights of somewhat improved sleep. I believe the onset effects of Finasteride were masked significantly by my breakup which had placed me in a real emotional low prior to starting the drug. I was therefore struggling to differentiate any suspected crash with depressive thoughts emanating from the end of my relationship and have probably crashed unwittingly. Over the last couple of days I have had a couple of sexual thoughts and experienced a semi erect state without manual stimulation on two occasions. I also woke up abruptly from a dream last night with an erection which was a strange sensation however it went away immediately.

I am still experiencing significant emotional flatness, depressive thoughts and struggling to concentrate on work or taking any interest in things I would usually enjoy. Funnily enough I was speaking to my ex girlfriend last night and managed to smile, laugh and cry which at least shows I still have some emotions there! I am finding myself obsessing over the forum and realising the long term effects I have likely caused myself and struggling to accept this is my new reality. I am really struggling to keep a positive mindset in light of what’s happened. Going from an outgoing, caring and loving person prior to my breakup into my current flat mindset is very disheartening and I am struggling to think about my future as I am unable to perform at the level required for my job or feel any interest in engaging with my friends.

I am trying to meditate, cycle and read to occupy my mind outside of work, however I keep coming back to the forum obsessively which is not healthy, however I have now somewhat accepted the permanent damage caused by this ludicrous pill.

#12

Your in early phases, you can still make progress over time.

Does anyone know how many days/weeks it takes for fin to leave your system?

#13

Fin does not stay in body, but the havoc it creates stays for a long time

#14

Hey Telpek,

I did some searching and found the following.

There is evidence indicating that the longer someone takes finasteride, the higher the risk of developing PFS. Additionally, although the drug is eliminated from the blood relatively quickly (half-life 4.8 to 6 hours), it remains active for much longer because it irreversibly binds to (and blocks the normal functioning of) the target enzyme 5-alpha-reductase (half-life 30 days). After finasteride is discontinued, the body must produce new 5-alpha-reductase molecules to replace the ones that were inactivated by the finasteride. In other words, the biological effects of finasteride ensure a relatively slow tapering of the “drug effect” over about 30 to 60 days, even if you stop the drug cold turkey.

#15

But why are we still suffering after so many months/years?

#16

I dont know brother, the article states that taking it for a longer time increases the risks of PFS (chronic/long term issues).

Im almost one month off. So im hoping that I will be seeing progress, especially in the tinnitus department. This symptom is currently bothering me the most…

#17

My tinnitus is still going strong even after almost 5 months((

#18

im curious is it a high pitched sound? both ears?

#19

It varies. At the moment in both ears. Usually in the right one only

1 Like
#20

How do you guys cope with the suicidal thoughts? Realising what I have done to myself and the fact that I am struggling to function with my job, friends and family is eating away at me every minute of the day. It has been less than three weeks since I stopped taking finasteride, however I have already let my work know that I am struggling to function due to the cognitive issues I am experiencing. My family and ex-girlfriend are the only people keeping me going.