Hi there, I was born in China but lived in the UK, US, Brazil and Spain.
I came across this website via pfsfoundation.org.
I’m now 34 years old, 1.69m, 70kg
I used Propecia (finasteride) 1 mg/day to battle what I thought was an imminent baldness Armageddon at the age of 20! (2005-2006) only for 1 month or a bit more. I reacted badly immediately and stopped.
Symptoms:
Sexual
[ ] 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
[x] Reduced Ejaculate
[x] Inability or Difficulty to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility
Mental
[ ] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[ ] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[ ] Confusion
[x] Memory Loss / Forgetfulness
[ ] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[ ] Slurring of Speech
[ ] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[ ] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[ ] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[ ] Suicidal Thoughts
Physical
[x] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[x] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[x] Testicular Pain
[x] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[x] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[ ] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[ ] Muscle Wastage
[ ] Muscle Weakness
[ ] Joint Pain
[ ] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes
Misc
[x] Prostate pain
[ ] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[x] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[x] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[ ] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[ ] Tinnitus (ringing or high pitched sound in ears)
[ ] Hearing loss
[ ] Increased hair loss
[x] Frequent urination
[x] Lowered body temperature
[ ] Other (please explain)
No treatment was ever given to me as all doctors thought I had prostatitis initially, but then the tests for blood, urine came back all good.
In my own words: what a drama! at 20 I was worried about my hair. Now ironically I still have quite a bit of it, and I’m burdened instead with an unrealised sexual life at 34. Due to my initial trust in the doctors, who diagnosed me with prostatitis, I accepted it as a prostate condition. Little did I know that the erectile inconsistencies and poor sexual performance during all those years were the result of post-finasteride syndrome!
By 2011 my then girlfriend was unhappy about our sex.
By 2013, I was completely inconsistent in bed.
By 2016 I literally dreaded being with a woman
All the while though flying solo was flawless and I was a happy solo flying man. Then just recently the bomb fell. In September 2019, after a year of bad quality sleep due to waking up to pee, I completely lost spontaneous erection. No visual or tactile cue could get me aroused. To get an erection now I have to properly work towards it. I literally need the stars to align to get it going. Ejaculations are weak and at 80% erection. and I don’t know if it’ll get worse or better…
Now I started to read, now I realised that this is no prostatitis. I marvel at my own naivity in trusting Propecia, and trusting my doctors (NHS and Spanish health care in particular). I’m hoping to be part of this community to support others and receive support. I hope there are partial remedies and breakthrough research… I’m hopeful. Nice to meet you all!
Merlinm
