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Where are you from (country)? USA
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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?) PFS symptoms
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What is your current age, height, weight? 39, 6 feet, 175 lbs
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Do you excercise regularly? If so, what type of excercise? Yes, Weights, Crossfit, Running, Mountain Biking, Climbing, Skiing
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What type of diet do you eat (vegetarian, meat eater, raw, fast-food/organic healthy)? Lower carb, Higher Fat, Medium Protein, Akin to Paleo / Mediterranean diets.
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Why did you take Finasteride (hair loss, BPH, other)? Hair loss
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For how long did you take Finasteride (weeks/months/years)? 17 years
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How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start Finasteride? 23
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How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit? 2 weeks ago, 39 years old.
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How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)? Cold turkey
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What type of Finasteride did you use – Propecia, Proscar, Fincar or other generic? Proscar
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What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)? 1 mg 3 times a week.
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How long into your use of Finasteride did you notice the onset of side effects? Not sure, hypothyroid started 3 years ago.
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What side effects did you experience while on the drug that have yet to resolve since discontinuation? Mild ED, Low Body temperature, constipation.
Put an X beside all that apply:
Sexual
[ ] Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
[x] Erectile Dysfunction
[ ] Complete Impotence
[x] Loss of Morning Erections
[x] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[x ] Watery Ejaculate
[x] Reduced Ejaculate
[ ] Inability to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility
Mental
[ ] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[ ] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[ ] Confusion
[ ] Memory Loss / Forgetfullness
[ ] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[ ] Slurring of Speech
[x] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[x] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[ ] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[ ] Suicidal Thoughts
Physical
[ ] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[ ] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[x] Testicular Pain
[ ] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[ ] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[ ] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[ ] Muscle Wastage
[ ] Muscle Weakness
[ ] Joint Pain
[x] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes
Misc
[ ] Prostate pain
[ ] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[ ] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[x] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[x] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[ ] Increased hair loss
[ ] Frequent urination
[x] Lowered body temperature
[x] Other (please explain) Melasma, Puffy face, low cortisol
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What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug? Did 1 24 hour fast. Vitamins, Agrinine, Evening primrose, Ashwaghanda, Testosterone
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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)? Low T3, Low cortisol, Normal Testosterone, Occasionally upper end of normal estradilol.
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Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience with Finasteride? Pretty much symptom free for the 1st 14 years. Maybe mild ED, but wasn’t a huge issue. Thought it was more psychological. 3 years ago was diagnosed with low thyroid and adrenal fatigue. It was assumed that this was due to stress and shift work / sleep deprivation. Thyroid levels are normal now but still have a low body temperature.
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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.
Again, I hadn’t had a problem until 3 years ago when I was diagnosed with stress related adrenal fatigue and hypothyroid. My wife has been sick and the stress time line coincided with the symptoms. Now that I have corrected the thyroid with diet and supplements I continue to have low body temperature, puffy face, dark circles under my eyes and constipation. I just recently went through a divorce. I developed more severe ED and increased anxiety. In trying to determine if my continued and worsening symptoms were thyroid specific or just stress, I came across PFS. I have never heard of it all these years. I stopped taking the finesteride immediately. I am 2 weeks off of it. There is some swings in poor mood, but nothing super notable other than days 2 - 6 I had good morning erections which is something I never had in recent memory. Those have now gone away. I am fearful that I have yet to even come close to the crash. I have been off finesteride many times in my life due to military training and deployments. I don’t recall any issues, so I am hopeful.