- 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?)
Website search - What is your current age, height, weight?
38yrs – 6ft – 75kg - Do you excercise regularly? If so, what type of excercise?
Recently started regular weight training – cardio exercise twice a week - What type of diet do you eat (vegetarian, meat eater, raw, fast-food/organic healthy)?
Healthy diet mainly consisting of fruits, vegetables and meat - Why did you take Finasteride (hair loss, BPH, other)?
Hairloss - For how long did you take Finasteride (weeks/months/years)?
3,5 yrs - How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start Finasteride?
30 yrs - 1st Aug 2006 - How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit?
33 yrs – 1st Jan 2010 - How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
Cold turkey - What type of Finasteride did you use – Propecia, Proscar, Fincar or other generic?
Proscar - What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
1,25mg every other day - How long into your use of Finasteride did you notice the onset of side effects?
The side effects crept up very slowly - 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
[X ] Complete Impotence
[X ] Loss of Morning Erections
[X ] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[X ] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[X ] Watery Ejaculate
[X ] Reduced Ejaculate
[ ] Inability to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility
Mental
[X ] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[X ] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[X ] Confusion
[ ] Memory Loss / Forgetfullness
[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
[X ] 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
[ ] Increased hair loss
[ ] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature
[ ] Other (please explain)
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What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
Tried various natural supplements with little benefit -
If you have pre or post-Finasteride bloodtests, 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)?
Commencing blood tests in the next few weeks -
Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience with Finasteride?
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Tell us your story, in your own words, about your Finasteride usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.
I took propecia for 3 and a half years. I stopped because my girlfriend and I wanted to start a family and I read somewhere that propecia may effect fertility.
Once I stopped I didn’t notice any change then after about 2 weeks it was as if someone had switched on every light in my body. I was rampant and we were having sex 4 to 5 times a day. This lasted for about 10 days until I started to feel low. Nothing serious at first, but just not myself. After about 2 weeks of this I woke one morning and was unable to get out of bed. I had never felt anything like it in my life. I felt terrible and cried all day. I was like this for about 2 weeks.
That’s when I started to notice all the classic symptom’s like brainfog, no desire for sex, shrunken genital’s and unable to sleep properly. There has been little improvement in the last 5 years and needless to say I am no longer with the woman I loved and we never had that family we were planning.
Several visits to my GP were unsuccessful. I now have a new GP who is prepared to talk to an endocrinologist and start some testing.