I had a somewhat similar experience. But I am very confused. I took Propecia off and on for 2.5 years. But, I never experienced any side effects whatsoever…NONE. I just came off Propecia the last time about 5 weeks ago, and that was after taking 1mg/day for 1 month. Again, no side effects while taking it. THEN, in a matter of 24 hours, I went from being able to have an erection as hard as I wanted, whenever I wanted and having no other side effects at all…to not being able to get an erection at all, not even after long bouts of trying manually! I was fine on Wednesday, and then Thursday I couldn’t climax, Thursday night I could not sleep (not due to worry, I hadn’t found this site yet), and Friday I couldn’t get an erection at all. This all happened in one day…and 5 weeks after stopping with no side effects! Has this happened to anyone else? I am also now experiencing a narrower penis that feels detached from my body, as well as no arousal at all when I see porn, which used to be easy. Again, has anyone had it on set like this? Any advice?
The issues you describe are common for many men that come off the drug, self included… in some cases there is a brief perod of recovery 1-2 weeks after discontinuing, then the ensuing issues start to happen (as you are experiencing, albeit soon after quitting). I know there are other guys out there that have had a similar experience as yours.
My sugestion is as always – get bloodtests as outlined in the Hormones & Bloodtests section to see what is going on with your body. The sooner, the better, so you can effectively guage what effect Finasteride was having.
From there you can evaluate further options should your symptoms not recover in weeks or months.
Thanks Mew, I definitely will get the blood test as soon as I can…I, like everyone else, hope I can find a doctor willing to help.
Mew, I have some important question, I thank you in advance for your time!
-
Have others have had onset of symptoms within 24 hours…from zero (and never having had any), to total?
-
Are there any downsides to taking Viagra while trying to recover?
-
Are there any downsides to taking sleeping aids, like Ambien?
-
Are there any downsides to taking anti-anxiety drugs, either SSRI, or dopamine re-uptake inhibitors?
Thanks again…I am still VERY VERY sad and angry as I have only been dealing with this for 4 days, after 2.5 years of taking it off and on. Why oh why did I have to take that last course…
I have talked with Dr. Crisler about this, as well as many people across the forums, who end up with cases like this, and the trend apparently tends to be that even when hormone levels are brought back into range, the physical side effects still remain.
We know from research on mice, that following androgen deprivation, there are tissue changes, but then if androgens are readministered “within a period of time” (in the words of one source) function is restored to essentially 100%. Now, rather than scheduling appointments, and waiting for a qualified doctor to assess your situation, and then waiting for blood tests to come back, and so on, I’m thinking that it may be in your best interests to pursue immediate hormonal restoration (the herb Tribulus, an LH analog, comes to mind, which would cause an immediate surge in testosterone).
It’s just a thought, though, and I’m certainly no doctor, so I’m just throwing that out there, but I’d hate to see another person face irreparable damage, on account of something could perhaps be preventable but time-dependent.
Once again, take this with a grain of salt.
I can’t recall seeing that exact scenario on this forum (most experience sides beforehand, or quit taking it and things happen a few days/weeks later) but if you were to dig through the old Yahoo group or on various other websites, you may come across an exact match of the 24-hr event.
However, I will say it seems odd that missing a dose (which is essentially what you did when you stopped taking it) would cause such problems immediately, considering that DHT levels take up to a week to recover to baseline after a single dose. Most people usually feel better when they stop taking it, not worse, because of this.
Aside from Viagra side effects, absolutely no downsides and if you are NOT getting nocturnal, morning or spontaneous erections, you should consider taking it to help maintain these as much as possible. In fact I wish I had known about “penile rehabilitation therapy” (Google it, also check the studies in the Sexual Side Effects sub forum) when I quit, so I could’ve possibly prevented the shrinkage issues I experienced post-fin.
Nitric Oxide enhancers like Viargra/Cialis/Levitra (particularly before bedtime, to help with nocturnals) help promote erections and thus, delivery of fresh oxygenated bloodflow into the penis.
Erections/oxygenated blood is key to preventing penile tissue fibrosis/shrinkage & is what maintains proper veno-occlusive function in normal men. So, if your penis is now constantly in a flaccid state post-Fin and is not getting nocturnals/morning/spontaneous erections, and seems to be shrinking (as many of ours here are), taking Viagra as an erection-inducing preventative measure is certainly advised.
Can’t comment on this other than I wouldn’t introduce any extra variables into this situation, particularly if you are considering getting bloodtests. You want to be sure if this is indeed due to Finasteride and not something else, or another drug-induced interaction.
I would NOT take SSRIs as many of them have their own sets of negative side effects, particularly libidoloss/erectile dysfunction.
In fact many have noted a similarity between the symptoms of Finasteride sufferers and those who have Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction, which have led some to speculate there may be dopamine/serotonin and other neurotransmitter issues at play in the post-Fin syndrome (in addition to the hormone issues).
Dopamine certainly has been one of the catecholamines that many would like to try and boost around here, as it is known as having a significant impact on libido.
The anxiety issues could be due to Finasteride’s interference with GABA-A receptors, due to the drug’s blockade of the 5AR enzyme and depleted Allopregnanolone (which can lead to anxiety). I would bet that yur anxiety symptoms will definitely dissipate over the coming weeks and certainly months. If not, you can look into trying GABAA supplements.
At this point try not to worry too much, just get your bloodtests and do your reading. This forum has lots of info and many questions you may have will likely be answered by reading others’ posts.
Best,
Mew.
Thanks Mew, I was planning on taking Viagra b/c I agree that it is important to maintain the ability to get an erection at least occasionally. I am not getting even a faint erection at night right now, forget about it during the day.
Also, just to clear up for posterity’s sake, I have been OFF Propecia for about 5 or 6 weeks, for like the fifth time now. HOWEVER, I never felt and side effects until 4 days ago…and that is when they went from 0 to 60 in 24 hours, and still going strong.
Mew, any thoughts on galapagos’s suggestion above for taking Tribulus for testosterone supplementation?
I will continue to read!
Any one else have thoughts? I am trying to see a Urologist tomorrow and will go armed with questions and pleas for blood tests.
Saw that Galapagos posted before I did, and I concur with what he said.
However, if you can get bloodtests done within days, I’d do that before pursuing any androgen-boosting therapy so you don’t skew your post-Fin-only results.
Natural supplements like Tribulus and Tongkat Ali are a good start… but you may also investigate PCT (Post Cycle Therapy) protocols advocated by bodybuilders – however typically these involve other drugs like Clomid, Nolvadex and hCG which are used at various dosages to stimulate one’s own Testosterone production.
However – unless you have plenty of experience with such things (unlikely) or your doc is willing to do so right away (ie, days), it may be a riskier venture to do PCT yourself (plus you have to obtain the drugs on your own – likely Internet pharmacies – and wait for delivery).
SO – try the natural supplements first and read through the Naturals section of this website and bodybuilding website for more ideas on how to boost Testosterone naturally.
As for your visit with the Urologist, likely it will be of little use since for many of us the issues seem to stem from a hormonal imbalance which cause the physical changes/libido loss. Unless the Uro ahs experience with Finasteride-induced changes to one’s genitalia and has the solution we’ve all been looking for… you should really be seeing an Endocrinologist in addition to the Uro… and soon I would hope.
Also if you haven’t already – read the FAQs at top of this site and print out materials from the Finasteride Studies section to bring with you, to bolster your case. Good luck.
Hello all,
I have posted briefly before…I believe a short narrative of my story is in the members’ stories section. But, to sum up: I took fin off and on for 2.5 years with NOT ONE side effect. My last round of a one-month scrip of fin finished about 6 weeks ago…then BAM, 5 weeks after being off the last time, I literally awoke in the middle of the night and felt that everything in my body had changed and felt horribly wrong. Then, when I thought back, I realized that my erections the previous day were soft, and my orgasms felt weird, like a twinge or something…but not good for sure. I declined rapidly over the next few days…complete inability to achieve an erection, complete loss of libido, penile shrinkage, scrotum expanded (don’t think it was testicular shrinkage), lots of burning/aches like prostatitis, discharge from penis when taking dumps, and severe and utterly devastating depression.
Nothing got better over the following week, I went to get minimal blood tests. My Total T was 510 (thank god), and my LH and FSH were good (can’t recall, but doesn’t matter for this post).
Another week forward. Went to Urologist, he spot tested for Total T…it was 211!! WTF!! One of two thing happened. 1. My T dropped by 300 points in 7 days. or 2. since i had just flown from UK to US before second test, meaning my body “thought” it was 4 pm due to jet lag when i was tested, my Total T drops 300 points over the course of a day. I think its a combination. I get VERY floppy and intermittent night erections…20% of total at best. If I had a total T of 510, then I would have good night erections, right?? So I think my T dropped AND it drops a lot during a day.
So, Urologist says I need TRT with a T of 211 who can blame him, but mitigating circumstances above mean no? I don’t know.
What should I do? I know symptoms often abate during the weeks and months after stopping, however, my symptoms didn’t START until 5 weeks after stopping. I am loathe to start TRT knowing the risks, but I can’t live like this, only a shell of the good person I know I am. Should I begin now and try to nip this in the bud? Should I give it six months to see if symptoms start to get better?
I failed the adrenal fatigue test, I am taking most of the supplements recommended on this forum, I was on antibiotics for a while for prostatitis until finally saw a competent Uro who did a proper exam and said it was inflamed, but that antibiotics would not help.
I tried Cialis last night…not a thing, it got a little longer, but VERY soft.
I don’t know what to do…all feels lost. Please someone help.
Do you have the necessary bloodwork besides Testosterone to be sure that in fact low T is the only issue? Do you have a high E2? High Prolactin? High SHBG? Unless you know such things, there may be other options to try before jumping onto TRT (ie, lowering E2/Prolactin, which may be causing problems).
But if you have all tests and show everything else is ok, and your endo/uro is open to it, you could suggest trying to jumpstart your own T production before you commit to TRT, via one of the following protocols:
- Clomid
- Tamoxifen (Nolvadex)
- hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin)
There is a study in the Drug Therapy section about the use of Clomid to restore an anabolic steroid abuser’s HTPA post-use, after he crashed. You may want to bring that to show the endo. Also research “Post Cycle Therapy”, as many bodybuilders use a PCT to restore their HTPA after doing roids.
If endo is reluctant to try restarting and you decide to go with TRT –
-
Suggest to them use of hCG concurrently with TRT so you can maintain testicular size/fertility (consider banking sperm before you commit).
-
Consider going to another endo/doc… ideally one that has experience in jumpstarting the HTPA… ie, those listed in Doctors section of this website, such as Dr. Shippen or Crisler.