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Where are you from (country)?
United States -
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 several years ago. -
What is your current age, height, weight?
age 44, 6’3", 180 lbs -
Do you exercise regularly? If so, what type of exercise?
1-2 times per week. light weight training. -
What type of diet do you eat (vegetarian, meat eater, raw, fast-food/organic healthy)?
Pre-prepared healthy meals with an emphasis on lean proteins and fresh veggies. -
Why did you take Finasteride (hair loss, BPH, other)?
hair loss -
For how long did you take Finasteride (weeks/months/years)?
3 years -
How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start Finasteride?
Started Sept 2004, age 35 -
How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit?
Stopped Sept 2007, age 38 -
How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
cold turkey -
What type of Finasteride did you use – Propecia, Proscar, Fincar or other generic?
Propecia 1mg tablet -
What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
1mg/day -
How long into your use of Finasteride did you notice the onset of side effects?
Noticed decreased sexual sensation almost immediately but was told symptoms would lessen with long term use and they did seem to for a while.
Symptoms got severe enough around year 3 to the point they scared me and I quit cold turkey, expecting my normal sexual function to return, but
6 years later it has not and only seems to worsen with time. Some days are better than others, but the overall trend is a worsening of the
problems - sexual, emotional, and mental. -
What side effects did you experience while on the drug that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
Put an X beside all that apply:
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
[X] Reduced Ejaculate
[ ] Inability to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[X] 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
[X] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[X] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[X] Suicidal Thoughts
Physical
[ ] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[ ] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[X] Testicular Pain
[ ] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[X] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[ ] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[ ] Muscle Wastage
[ ] Muscle Weakness
[X] Joint Pain
[X] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes
Misc
[ ] Prostate pain
[X] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[X] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[ ] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[ ] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[ ] Increased hair loss
[X] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature
[X] Other (please explain)
- Difficulty Ejaculating / Reaching Orgasm (as opposed to Inability)
- A physical change not listed is that I’ve developed patches of skin discoloration - possibly vitaligo on the foreskin.
- A mental change I’ve developed is very frequent typos in emails - it almost seems dyslexic - missing, added, or out-of-sequence words that I somehow can’t notice until a later re-read.
- Also developed frequent earing dropouts (temporary deafness in one ear or the other), intermittent blurred vision, headaches and acid reflux but now am sure those were side effects of the ED meds Viagra, Cialis, and Levitra.
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What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
General practitioner prescribed ED meds which only helps with one aspect of all the problems and even then, these meds only help sometimes.
GP also prescribed an antidepresent very briefly but stopped because it made me groggy and the mental fog worse.
A urologist tried a couple months of testosterone therapy but stopped when it had no effect.
Saw an endocrinologist who could find no explanation for my symptoms so did nothing. -
If you have pre or post-Finasteride blood tests, what hormonal changes have you encountered since discontinuing the drug (pls post your test results in the “Blood Tests” section and link to them in your post)?
Since stopping Propecia, I’ve had multiple basic CBC tests that show me in “normal” ranges. I have no tests prior to taking Propecia to compare to so no good measure of how I’ve changed pre vs post.
A sperm test showed very low sperm count and motility. -
Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience with Finasteride?
Be careful with the ED medications (Viagra, Levitra, Cialis) that doctors will prescribe for your sexual dysfunction. Besides the fact that they only help with one specific issue of sexual problems and seem to loose effectiveness with time, for me these drugs caused other side effects I worry could be doing permanent damage. When I take these meds, I experience temporary deafness (intermittent hearing drop-outs in either ear), dizziness, vision problems (Viagra makes me see everything with a blue tint), Cialis and Levitra give me blurry vision which can last for several hours. This scares me and I worry they could be doing their own type of long term damage. They also cause me to have acid reflux, which can lead to esophageal cancer, as well as the more common side-effects like bad headaches and skin flushing. I didn’t make the connection and neither did doctors for quite a while so they tried to treat the temporary deafness and acid reflux problems with additional drugs. The blurry vision side effect is a new one that has only started this past year. I no longer have a girlfriend and am longer having sex so at least I’m not having to take these ED meds anymore. -
Tell us your story, in your own words, about your Finasteride usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.
Its hard to write this (I’ve taken probably an hour so far) because I’m experiencing the memory fogginess, anxiety, general motivational apathy and depression that has become the norm for me since taking Propecia. It’s difficult to complete simple tasks like this at times but I think it’s important.
I believe Propecia slowed my hair loss during the time I was on it, but I also believe it is far too dangerous to men to continue being prescribed for that indication. I’d say I can’t believe it is still being prescribed except that I work with a pharma distributor and see what a big business it is. Taking Propecia has been devastating for me personally. I feel like I’m barely holding on to what remains of my life and I rarely feel joy or look forward to anything anymore. I lost a long term girlfriend and second one due to problems caused by Propecia. The idea of meeting anyone new and having a relationship is gone. Besides the hope for a mate and family, I’ve lost the energy and ability to engage with much of life as well. My motivations and hopes are fading away. My thinking feels slow and my memory is so poor it is hard to maintain simple conversations. My job requires a sharp mind and I worry it will be the next casualty. After that, not much left. People don’t understand what has happened to me and it’s embarrassing and ego killing to talk about so I’ve become withdrawn and reclusive. I want to find a way out of what Propecia did to me and every other man suffering the same problems. I want to find answers so we can salvage the remainder of our lives.