- Where are you from (country)?
USA
- 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?)
Google, can’t say I remember how I found this.
- What is your current age, height, weight?
21 years old, 5’9, 130ish pounds
- Do you excercise regularly? If so, what type of excercise?
Currently, not a lot. Was running 3-4 days a week, but currently next to nothing. Will start exercising again soon though.
- What type of diet do you eat (vegetarian, meat eater, raw, fast-food/organic healthy)?
I eat meat, vegetables, and fruits… I try to diversify. Some foods really make me feel bad and it has been a struggle trying to figure out exactly what foods make me feel sick. I try to avoid fast food whenever possible, but I do end up eating it every once in awhile. I try to eat as healthy as possible though. I will be trying a Candida diet soon.
- Why did you take Finasteride (hair loss, BPH, other)?
Hair loss.
- For how long did you take Finasteride (weeks/months/years)?
1 day.
- How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start Finasteride?
- February of 2011.
- How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit?
- One day later.
- How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
Cold turkey.
- What type of Finasteride did you use – Propecia, Proscar, Fincar or other generic?
Propecia
- What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
1mg
- How long into your use of Finasteride did you notice the onset of side effects?
Later that night, also see explanation.
- What side effects did you experience while on the drug that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
Later that night I tried to masturbate watching porn and could not get it up AT ALL. Also my balls seemed to ache the rest of that night. Was extremely panicky after this happened. Read my story below for more details.
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
[ ] Watery Ejaculate
[ ] Reduced Ejaculate
[ ] Inability to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility
Mental
[ ] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[x] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[ ] Confusion
[ ] Memory Loss / Forgetfullness
[ ] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[ ] Slurring of Speech
[ ] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[ ] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[x] Depression / Melancholy
Physical
[x] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[x] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[ ] Testicular Pain
[ ] 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
[ ] Prostate pain
[x] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[ ] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[ ] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[ ] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[ ] Increased hair loss
[x] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature
[ ] Other (please explain)
- What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
Tribulus Terrestris, Super Horny Goat Weed, Cialis.
- 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)?
My post tests are very incomplete. I will link them in the Blood Tests section later once I have more data. This is what I have now though:
Total Testosterone: Range 240-950 ng/dL 542 (@ 11:32) 508 ng/dL (@15:57)
Bioavailable Testosterone: Range 83-257 ng/dL 190 (@11:32) 163 (@15:57)
Free Testosterone: Range 9-30 ng/dL 15 (@11:32) 14 (@15:57)
DHT: Range 112-955 pg/mL 434 (@11:32) 335 (@:15:57)
Prolactin: Range 3-13 ng/mL 5 (@ 11:32 and 15:57)
- Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience with Finasteride?
0/10. Would not recommend.
- Tell us your story, in your own words, about your Finasteride usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.
Alright, my story is kind of fucked up and I’m not totally sure what happened, but try to bear with me. When I was 19 I went through a break up and was the typical angry and depressed person who got dumped. So, my resolution is to start lifting heavily, get into great shape, and find me a new woman. Sounds good. Before I get into the main part of it, these things should be known. I have had chronic insomnia since I was 16. Fixed it with marijuana. Developed tinnitus. Marijuana makes it much worse. Having insomnia again. I was also on the following medications: Alprazolam (.5mg 1-2 at night), Ambien CR (12.5 mg), Melatonin (.5mg) Cyclobenzaprine (10 mg. Off and on as needed for muscle pains), Rogaine, Optimum Nutrition Serious Mass (Protein for lifting), Ultima (pre workout supplement). Even on all this shit, was “normal” for me. Then I did one of the stupidest things I’ve ever done, and add two more lifting supplements by USP Labs. One called Prime ( usplabsdirect.com/anabolic-pump.html ). This is when shit really starts to hit the fan. I took these two new supplements for one week, and developed the following sides: Decreased libido, penis shrinkage (flaccid and erect), very slight curvature (always tilted to the right now seemingly starting at the base. was always extremely straight), erectile dysfunction, pain/discomfort in lower abdomen (4-6 inches below the belly button), and increased urination. Once I noticed these symptoms, I quit all supplements cold turkey. I remained on Alprazolam, Melatonin, Ambien CR, Cyclo, and Rogaine.
One month later, I am a complete mess, aware of this board, and make the decision to get Propecia. I figured, “fuck it, my dick doesn’t work anyway at least I can have hair.” Well, another mistake. I took only one pill, and later that night I tried to masturbate to porn. After taking the lifting supplements, I was able to at least get a poor erection that was hard to maintain, or semi erect. When I tried to masturbate, I could not get it up for the life of me. Not an inch. Later I noticed my balls started to hurt. I freaked out and threw away the Propecia bottle and tried to calm myself down the rest of the night. I am unsure if my fatigue and lesser ability to concentrate got worse from taking Propecia. It was not good from being such a poor sleeper, but I almost feel as if it has gotten worse since. It is extremely hard to concentrate, I am extremely fatigued all the time (seriously can barely even function unless I have some stimulant in me), and I have muscle pains all over. I fear that taking Propecia has exacerbated whatever issue(s) I seem to have accumulated. I also feel that my depression really took a turn after I took Propecia, however I don’t know if it was actually caused by Propecia.
Right now I am on only two drugs, Aplrazolam and Mirtazipine. I quit everything else. I have been to a couple doctors. They found my Testosterone to be within normal ranges and basically drew the line there. One guy gave me sample of Cialis which helped me gain an erection and maintain it for a much longer period of time, however it didn’t seem as pleasurable and I still had that slight curvature. My erection was normal sized with Cialis, however it did not help the flaccid size at all, which still remains at about half the size of what it used to be (girth and length). Super Horny Goat Weed helps me get in the mood, but doesn’t really do anything to help ED or penile shrinkage. I feel that in combination with Cialis it can be an improvement though. Tribulus Terrestris hasn’t really seemed to do anything for me except make my pain/discomfort in my lower abdomen worse. I ended up seeing a Psychiatrist (last month) who prescribed me Sertraline for anxiety which helped produce a stronger erection, however it was still not near pre-disaster. I was switched off Sertraline though because it was doing the opposite as prescribed, and I have been losing weight steadily (15 pounds in less than a year) and I have since been switched to Mirtazapine (which also helps with appetite). Only used it a couple days so far, but it hasn’t helped my erections like Sertraline did.
So, here I am. A balding, dickless, have horrible tinnitus and insomnia, depressive, have pain and discomfort in abdominal regions, 21 year old guy. Completely fucked. Doctors don’t know, and I don’t know. I almost feel bad posting this here, because I know Propecia wasn’t the initial cause of my Urologic issues. However, like I said, I fear it may have made me worse. Maybe my story will be of some use for you guys. Could it have been the Rogaine? I had been taking Rogaine for a year with no sides though… I feel like it was the lifting drugs (which are OTC at GNC, where I got them), but they hardly list any ingredients as it is their “special blend”. I don’t know, all I know is that I suffer a lot of side effects which many of you on here suffer, and I feel for each and every one of you. I lost my dick and sex drive, I almost hardly feel human sometimes.
I will be trying to obtain as many blood tests as possible and compare them with you guys to see if I share any similar results. I will also be undergoing Physical Therapy for Pelvic Floor Dysfunction to see if that does anything (probably won’t), and will try the Candida diet as well. Too scared and lack enough info to fuck around with any type of hormone replacement atm. That may be in my future though.
Good luck with your fight and best wishes,
hotpocket
P.S. TL;DR - Took drugs, my dick and sex drive is fucked up. Abdominal pain. Depression. Etc…