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)? INDIA
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?)
Reddit
What is your current age, height, weight? 26 y/o, 5’11 ft, 83kgs
What specific drug did you use (finasteride, dutasteride, saw palmetto, isotretinoin/Accutane, fluoxetine, sertraline, citalopram, leuprorelin, etc…)? Initially Finasterside then Anastrazole
What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)? Fin- 1mg/day, Anastrazole- 0.25 mg
What condition was being treated with the drug? Fin for hair loss and Anastrazole to lower high e2
For how long did you take the drug (weeks/months/years)? FIn for 4-5 days and anastrazole for 4-5 doses
Date when you started the drug? 1st novemeber 2023 for fin and used the anastrazole randomly in month of June 2026
Date when you quit the drug? 5th novemeber 2023 and anastazole last dose was on 25th June 2026
Age when you quit? 23 year old for fin and 26 year old for anastrazole
How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)? cold turkey both of them
How long into your usage did you notice the onset of side effects? immediate for fin and within a week for anastrazole
What side effects did you experience that have yet to resolve since discontinuation? I will provide this down below in my story
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
[x] Watery Ejaculate
[ ] 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)
[X] 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
[X] Muscle Weakness
[X] Joint Pain
[X] 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
[X] Lowered body temperature
[ ] Other (please explain)
Dry mouth and Dehydration
What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug? For fin i did nothing, recovered by around 75-80% within months, for the crash caused by anastrazole i lowered my dose by 50% and am here for further advice
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)?
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.
TL;DR: Long PFS history since Nov 2023 (fin crash → partial recovery on TRT for over a year, doing well). In June 2026 added anastrozole (3-4 doses over ~3 weeks) to a 300mg test + masterone protocol → crushed my E2. Dropped test dose from 200mg to 100mg/week in July to try to fix the T:E2 gap, added HCG 500iu EOD. ~20 days later developed a new, severe symptom cluster: joint pain, dry mouth/lips/skin, frequent urination, worsened tinnitus, insomnia (new — never had this before), full-body muscle twitching, increased body hair, worse speech/brain fog/anxiety, flu-like symptoms, cold hands/feet. Not sure if this is a fresh crash from the AI, or from dropping test dose (less substrate to aromatize), or both. Scared this is Post-AI Syndrome / permanent on top of already occured pfs. Need input from anyone who’s navigated this.
Background: PFS since Nov 2023 (fin, even short low-dose exposure, crashed me hard each time confirmed on rechallenge). Recovered substantially through 2024 on no treatment. Started TRT Jan 2025 (200mg/week) for residual Pre mautre ejaculation did very well on it for over a year, best I’d felt since PFS onset, aside from persistent tinnitus. Ran 500mg/week + masterone briefly in late 2025, no issues. Back to 200mg/week through early 2026.
What changed June 2026: Bumped to 300mg test + 100mg masterone/week, added 0.25-0.5mg anastrozole only for 2 weeks, 3-4 AI doses total. Masterone gave no results (possibly already acting as a mild anti-estrogen itself), and between that and the AI I believe I crushed my E2.
July 2026 the new crash: Developed severe anxiety, no dopaminergic response, libido gone, genital numbness/no blood flow, cold glands. Bloods: TT ~2000 ng/dl, E2 only 46 pg/ml at trough (should be closer to 100 on that dose given my normal ~20:1 TT:E2 ratio). Cut test dose 200→100mg/week to close the gap, added HCG 500iu EOD (helped briefly, now stopped helping).
~20 days after the dose cut, new symptoms appeared: joint pain (elbows, knees), dry mouth/lips/scalp/face, dry foreskin, frequent urination, tinnitus spiking, new insomnia/fragmented sleep (never had this before), full-body muscle twitching, increased body hair growth, worse speech and brain fog, flu-like symptoms with runny nose, cold hands/feet. Losing muscle and glycogen fast.
My question : Is this a continuation of the AI crash, or is it a separate effect of dropping my test dose (less aromatizable substrate on top of an already-suppressed E2)? Everything was stable from 2024 until I touched anastrozole in June I’d used it before on a 500mg/week blast without any issue like this. Should I come off test entirely, go back up in dose to give E2 more room to aromatize, or hold and wait it out? Has anyone recovered from a crash like this, especially the joint pain / insomnia / dry mucous membrane cluster?
I’ve read about people developing permanent estrogen receptor damage from AI use and it terrifies me I know of a few people in this community who didn’t make it through something similar. I had clawed my way back to feeling mostly normal by June after years of this, and losing that in a month has been brutal. If anyone has real experience with this or if anynoe can give me any guidance what should i do next? should i increase the testosterone to make room for aromitastion or should i stop the testostreone altogether or should i change ester the for faster aromitastion or should i add dbol or e2 valerate to increase my e2?? please help me i cant continue like this. i Used to so handsome and happy before but this low/crsuhed e2 has taken life out of my body. i dont find joy in anything, i cry everyday seeing my body like this. One thing i know is that i had got better from the pfs crash with time but this time i am on exogenous testosterone i dont know what should i do alleiviate my symptoms? Please help me, Please !