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)? Poland
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?) I searched on google ways to treat PFS and saw this forum.
What is your current age, height, weight? 22, 1.80 cm, 75 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.)?
topical finasteride spray 1%
What condition was being treated with the drug? hair loss
For how long did you take the drug (weeks/months/years)? 4 days, twice per day
Date when you started the drug? 16.10.2023
Date when you quit the drug? 20.10.2023
Age when you quit? 21 and 10 months
How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)? cold turkey
How long into your usage did you notice the onset of side effects?
few minutes after first use I felt hazy and exhausted like I was drugged / poisoned.
What side effects did you experience that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
brain fog, sometimes insomnia, high fatigue, depression, low libido, bad orgasm, testicles shrunk, less semen, hairs on the body including the beard grow slower and are thinner, dry skin (all my life I had oily skin mainly in my face, now it’s very dry), very dry eyes, lost fat from my face but not from the body, thicker lips, less appetite and I feel my metabolism has changed, I am more prone to fattening. and the weird thing is that my hair loss has STOPPED like I continue taking the drug wtf.
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
[ ] Erectile Dysfunction
[ ] Complete Impotence
[ ] Loss of Morning Erections
[ ] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[ ] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[ ] Watery Ejaculate
[x] 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
[x] Slurring of Speech
[x] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[x] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[x] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[x] Suicidal Thoughts
Physical
[x] 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)
[x] Muscle Wastage
[x] Muscle Weakness
[ ] Joint Pain
[ ] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes
Misc
[ ] Prostate pain
[x] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[ ] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[ ] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[ ] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[x] Tinnitus (ringing or high pitched sound in ears)
[ ] Hearing loss
[ ] Increased hair loss
[x] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature
[x] Other (please explain)
Prolonged eye allergy.
thinner and brighter hair.
first month i struggled to breath and had few chest pain.
What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
I started acupuncture for once a week, sexual desire, fog brain and mood improved a little. I don’t know what medicine to take and I met 3 doctors that don’t know what is going on me, they said the drug only effects hair, f*ck them.
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)?
I did testosterone check before taking this poison and two month after I stopped.
before - 15.8 nmol/l
after - 16.5 nmol/l.
Maybe it confirms the claim that the 5a-reductase enzyme is still silenced?
I also have post-drug blood and hormonal tests month after I stopped and everything was fine except:
FSH was low but in the scale, maybe it indicates the testicles shrinkage?
High cholesterol and that’s weird because I’m skinny.
Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience?
I will just write my story below.
Tell us your story, in your own words, about your usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.
I was a programmer in the army and just released in august. I trained 3/4 times per week in the gym, ate 3 good meals per day and was in good shape. in September I started University entrance exam preparation course that last until December. everything was fine, I’m good at learning especially math.
In mid-October (16.10.2023), I started use topical finasteride 1% with minoxidil 5% for 4 days twice per day. (Worth mentioning that I used topical minoxidil 5% for 5 months without see results, but I had NO side effects at all). So after 4 days of using, the nightmare started. I really f*cked mentally and cognitive as if I had received brain damage. Exercises I easily solved in the course suddenly became difficult, as if my cognition was screwed. I was in psychic anxiety and crazy fatigue but I tried to continue to study. After 3 weeks, I broke down and rejected the reception test to February. Now, three months later, I feel slight mental, cognitive and libido improvement but I am still not what i was before.
I’m still depressed and anxious that i won’t recover. In addition, I went through an emotional change as if I had taken hard drugs. I back to the gym month ago and gaining muscle is slower, like i have progression of woman or child (it easy for me to notice because i train years). I wanted to add my story here when i crashed, but I was too depressed and the cerebral overthrown was so strong that it took me a long time to think and write. Many people in forums and YouTube comments suggest supplements that may help like NAC. Are there really supplements that can help?
thank you for reading, I’m desperate for help.
Self-reporting template - ONLY USE FOR FUTURE POSTS TO REPORT ANY TRIALS OF TREATMENTS, NOT YOUR INITIAL MEMBER STORY
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Name of the therapy/substance:
- Dosage:
- How often you took it:
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Status
- Still using [ ]
- Stopped with no lasting change to initial symptoms [ ]
- Stopped with persistent change to symptoms [ ]
- Duration of use: Days [ ] Months [ ] Years [ ]
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Response when you started:
- Greatly improved [ ]
- Slightly improved [ ]
- Stayed the same [ ]
- Slightly worsened [ ]
- Greatly worsened [ ]
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Current response (if you’re still using the therapy/substance) OR Response in the time before you stopped the treatment
- Greatly improved [ ]
- Slightly improved [ ]
- Stayed the same [ ]
- Slightly worsened [ ]
- Greatly worsened [ ]
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Lasting changes to initial symptoms after cessation (if you have stopped for more than 3 weeks)
- Greatly improved [ ]
- Slightly improved [ ]
- Stayed the same [ ]
- Slightly worsened [ ]
- Greatly worsened [ ]
. Yeah I’m gonna give myself 6 months and then then decide on doing something.