Still taking Propecia for 7 years but want to quit. Kicking sleeping dog??

[Alejandro]

0. Where are you from (country)?
   USA
1. 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 search for: Propecia
2. What is your current age, height, weight?
   57 years old, 6’-0’ tall, 175 lbs.
3. Do you excercise regularly? If so, what type of excercise?
   Light gym work out 3 times per week. Treadmill, high rep/low weight circuit training.
4. What type of diet do you eat (vegetarian, meat eater, raw, fast-food/organic healthy)?
   Light meat eater, but lots of raw, organic vegies and fruit multiple times per day.
5. Why did you take Finasteride (hair loss, BPH, other)?
   Anticipated mail pattern baldness.
6. For how long did you take Finasteride (weeks/months/years)?
   7 years and still taking it.
7. How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start Finasteride?
   50 years old. October, 2004.
8. How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit?
   I am still taking it. But have been on half dose (.5mg) for about 3 years.
9. How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
   Still taking it.
10. What type of Finasteride did you use – Propecia, Proscar, Fincar or other generic?
    Generic from Canadian mail-order Pharmacy.
11. What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
    .5 mg every day.
12. How long into your use of Finasteride did you notice the onset of side effects?
    Not sure that any of symptoms are related to Propecia or other issues.
13. What side effects did you experience while on the drug that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
    Regular fatique, very slow muscle recover, intermittent depression and mood swings. I still have a brain/penis connection but not nearly what it used to be, and low libido which could just be old age.
    Put an X beside all that apply:

Sexual
[x ] Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
[ ] Erectile Dysfunction
[ ] Complete Impotence
[x] Loss of Morning Erections
[x] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[x] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[ ] Watery Ejaculate
[ ] Reduced Ejaculate
[ ] Inability to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility

Mental
[x] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[x] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[ ] Confusion
[ ] Memory Loss / Forgetfullness
[ ] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[ ] 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
[ ] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[ ] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[x] Muscle Wastage
[x] 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
[x] Lowered body temperature

[ ] Other (please explain)

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

15. 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)?

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

17. Tell us your story, in your own words, about your Finasteride usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.
    I have experienced fatigue for the past 4-5 years, very slow muscle recovery and some atrophy. Intermittent depression and low motivation and mood swings. I still have a brain/penis connection but not nearly what it used to be. And, a very low libido (satisfied with sex once per month).
    I have been on Propecia for 7 years, starting with the normal 1mg dose but reducing to .5mg dose about 3 years ago.
    I am not sure that my issues are related to the Propecia or other causes (or maybe just old age-57 years old).
    My concern is that if my issues are NOT Propecia related, should I then be concerned that I WILL experience PFS problems by discontinuing it? In other words, might I be kicking a sleeping dog? Howver, if my issues ARE somewhat Propecia related, should I be concerned that they will be worse if I discontinue?
    Also, is there any indication that it might be better to ween myself off Propecia or quit cold turkey?
    Thanks for this great forum.

[martinM]

The symptoms you describe can very well be coming from finasteride. There is a good chance that they will go away if you stop taking the drug, however you’ve been on it for a long time so who knows. I suggest seeing the recommended bloodwork section of this forum and getting blood tests prior to quitting.

I think that the overall opinion on this forum is continuing to take finasteride is only going to exacerbate your growing problems. There is disagreement as to the best method of stopping, however you should try to live healthy during this period. Eat a paleo diet, get to bed early, low stress, light exercise (be very careful not to overdo it), and restrict sexual activity, porn, ejaculation to no more than once every three days (best estimate given commentary in this forum). Be careful with drinking or anything else that could affect hormone levels. If you improve, continue to do this until well after the side effects from finasteride have gone away.

Since you started taking finasteride at a late age, can you give us some insight as to how your sexual performance was before taking it? How often did you have sexual thoughts, spontaneous erections, and ejaculate? And what are these things like for you now?

[Alejandro]

Before taking Propecia at age 50 (now 57 year old), my sex life was fairly normal. No problems with erection or ejaculation/orgasm, etc. I had the typical boredom with the wife that comes after 20 years of marriage, but my brain/penis connection was definitly in tack. I still have the brain/penis connection but not as vigorous as before. But, again at 57, it just may be my age. I certainly don’t want any more deterioration in my brain/penis connection, but for now I am more concerned about any possible connection of Propecia use to my intermittent depression and emotional highs and lows, along with my fairly signifcant insomnia and general fatigue. Unfortuantley, these symptoms are analogous to just about every other possible underlying desease or illness out there.
I am seeing my Endrocronologist for my second appoint within a couple weeks. Last week they took 7 vials of blood, so I will post the results when I get them. She also had me get a brain MRI to rule out an Pinal Gland damage due to toxicity or tumors, etc.

[Mew]

I am more concerned about any possible connection of Propecia use to my intermittent depression

Depression is now an officially listed side effect on the label, updated by Merck themselves. See bottom of thread, in addition to everything else.
viewtopic.php?f=8&t=38

and emotional highs and lows,

Finasteride inhibits neurosteroids in the brain, which can cause changes in mood, cognition, anxiety, depression and memory, amongst other things.
viewtopic.php?f=9&t=5478

Also, see attached images regarding effects in the CNS.

along with my fairly signifcant insomnia

Finasteride inhibits Nitric Oxide release as well as interferes with GABA-A receptors/GABAergic system in the brain.

Decreased sleep quality/loss of REM sleep is a possible outcome.
viewtopic.php?p=28657#p28657

and general fatigue.

See attached images on androgen deprivation, which is what taking Finasteride does by inhibiting nearly 70% of Dihydrotestosterone, the most potent androgen. Loss of androgen can cause fatigue.

---

In my opinion, your best bet is to get the required bloodwork before coming off the drug ( viewtopic.php?f=4&t=92 ), and considering your usage history, consider weening off over several weeks or longer even.

Nobody knows if stopping cold turkey or weening makes any difference ( viewtopic.php?f=32&t=4338 ), but odds are probably likely that your side effects should resolve after discontinuation, since we with persistent issues are in the minority of Finasteride using men.