Same Old Story

Member Stories
#1
  1. How did you find this forum?

Google

  1. What is your current age, height, weight?

22 - 5’10" - 70kg

  1. Do you excercise regularly? If so, what type of excercise?

Lift weights 3x a week

  1. What type of diet do you eat (vegetarian, meat eater, raw, fast-food/organic healthy)?

Low Carb - High Fat - High Protein

  1. Why did you take Finasteride (hair loss, BPH, other)?

Vanity - hair loss.

  1. For how long did you take Finasteride (weeks/months/years)?

July 2012 - January 2013 (6 months)

  1. How old were you when you started Finasteride?

21

  1. How old were you when you quit?

22

  1. How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?

Tapered. From 1mg a day, to 0.5mg a day, to 0.5 every other day, to 0.5 a week.

  1. What type of Finasteride did you use – Propecia, Proscar, Fincar or other generic?

Propecia

  1. What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?

1mg a day for 6 months. Then 0.5mg a day, to 0.5mg every other day, to 0.5mg a week.

  1. How long into your use of Finasteride did you notice the onset of side effects?

6 months

  1. 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
[ ] 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
[X] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[X] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[X] Confusion
[X] Memory Loss / Forgetfullness
[X] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[X] Slurring of Speech
[X] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[ ] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[X] Depression / Melancholy

Physical
[ ] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[ ] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[ ] Testicular Pain
[ ] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[X] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[ ] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[ ] Muscle Wastage
[X] Muscle Weakness
[ ] Joint Pain
[X] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes

Misc
[ ] Prostate pain
[X] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[X] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[ ] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[ ] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[ ] Increased hair loss
[ ] Frequent urination
[X] Lowered body temperature

[X] Other (please explain)

Had a series of panic attacks at night prior to coming off the drug - since then my anxiety is less then my ‘natural’ state. Also around this time I suffered from a week of immense vertigo.

  1. What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?

Ashwagandha
Maca Root
L-Glutamine
Tongkat Ali
Gynostemma
Zinc

  1. 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)?

3 months after stopping the drug my total testosterone was 13 nmol, now it’s 23 nmol. Free testosterone was abnomrally low, 5.5 nmol. Vitamin D was deficient.

  1. Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience with Finasteride?

  2. Tell us your story, in your own words, about your Finasteride usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.