Story from Jorden

Member Stories
#1

  1. Where are you from (country)?
    A: Netherlands

  2. 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?)
    A: I read about it on another forum.

  3. What is your current age, height, weight?
    A: 30 years old, 1.85, 75 kg

  4. Do you excercise regularly? If so, what type of excercise?
    A: I do light exercises everyday. I used to cycle (race) a lot. But i am putting that on a hold for a while because its too intense and not good for recovery.

  5. What type of diet do you eat (vegetarian, meat eater, raw, fast-food/organic healthy)?
    A: I eat very healthy. If i eat meat than its only chicken. I eat fish more.

  6. Why did you take Finasteride (hair loss, BPH, other)?
    A: Hair loss.

  7. For how long did you take Finasteride (weeks/months/years)?
    A: 4 1/2 years

  8. How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start Finasteride?
    A: 26 years old

  9. How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit?
    A: 30 years old, i quit on 8 september.

  10. How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
    A: I am tappering off for about a half a year. And since 8/9/2013 haven’t had any finasteride.

  11. What type of Finasteride did you use – Propecia, Proscar, Fincar or other generic?
    A: Proscar from MSD.

  12. What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
    A: I used to take 1,25 mg but the last half year 0,75.

  13. How long into your use of Finasteride did you notice the onset of side effects?
    A: From the beginning. I experienced some loss in libido and the sperm became watery. Also i used to be more fatigued and couldnt resist alcohol that good anymore.

  14. 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
[X] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[X] Watery Ejaculate
[X] Reduced Ejaculate
[X] Inability to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[X] 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
[X] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[X] Depression / Melancholy

Physical
[X] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[ ] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[X] Testicular Pain
[ ] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[X] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[ ] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[X] 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”
[X] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[ ] Increased hair loss
[X] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature

[X] Other (please explain): oily face

  1. What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
    A: I did almost everything that seems to help: drink more water, go to bed early, eat healthier (more bananas), take magnesium pills and zinc pills, cold showers, no masturbation, no alcohol, avoid stress, light exercise.

  2. 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)?
    A: no blood test.

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

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

Success Stories Compilation
#2

Your story?

#3

Story:
I started finasteride 4 and a half years ago and it took a long time before there where any great side effects. But in november 2012 the side effects grew stronger and i decided to take less finasteride (1.25 became 0.75). It took me till september this year that i realised that i really need to quit this thing. So last sunday 8 sept i took my last pill. Two days later i had a severe crash. I had brain fog, no libido and felt depressed / anxiety. It took all the advises that are on this forum and others on the internet. I drank a lot of water, eat very healthy (a lot of fruit / vegetables and no meat), light exercise, no alcohol, try to avoid Sugar, take zinc and magnesium pills, eat a lot of bananas and sleep a lot.

I had three very hard days. But last Friday i felt improvement. The brain fog was not gone but it was less severe. On saturday is felt great again. I had great libido and everything worked fine. Haven’t had that feeling in some years :slight_smile: But right after that i felt somebit tired again, but not as severe as the last couple of days. But now on a sunday evening i am having trouble with the brain fog again.

I will do everything i can to beat this thing. Ive been sick before and been operated (on the urinary tract and the prostate). I can handle this

2 Likes
#4

Hi Jorden,

Can you explain any dry eye and/or visual sides you have had and if they have improved.

Thanks,

Matt

#5

My advice? Get off this forum and take care of yourself, hopefully it’ll pass. Probably my worst mistake was coming on here and reading all the horror stories, putting huge stress on my body.

No intoxicants, no stimulants, no junk food. Just try clean, healthy living and hopefully you’ll come out of this fine. If you still feel bad a month or two afterwards, then it’s worth coming back and seeing what you can try to do to recover. Best of luck.

1 Like
#6

Dannyfc,
While I really understand why you’re suggesting our new fellow here to keep a safe distance from the forum, I can’t disagree more when you say your WORST mistake was coming on here and reading the stories.

Your worst mistake without a doubt was taking finasteride. I think most of the guys here, myself included, just found out about this forum AFTER realizing that something was wrong with their bodies. This forum was/is a big help for me - I didn’t have a clue of what was going on with me and neither did I know that this forum even existed.

So, in my opinion: yes, it’s always bad put a big stress on your body, but this was not your worst mistake. You would be stuck in the same position right now, reading the horror stories or not.

This forum is a big help for the PFS community.

1 Like
#7

Maybe i’ll better wait for two months and wait till the side effects might disappear or become less. I hope so. Btw i am not becoming stressed from the stories. I havent even read them yet.

@IthinkFingotmetoo: when i had the brain fog my visual became foggy. Or maybe it came because i was so fatigued. Today i experienced some fatigue but not as strong as last week and also my visual isnt that bad as last week. I still have dry eyes tough.

#8

Jorden,
Besides the dry eyes, do you have eye floaters?? Those little white spots moving in your field of vision…

#9

I am having a few bad days (anxiety/depression again which i think is the worst symptom), but not so bad as during the crash. I am doing somewhat better now but libido is all gone. I am doing the following thing to battle this:

  • mineral complex
  • vitamine B complex
  • vitamine B12
  • fish oil
  • vitamine D3
  • zink
  • iron
  • fruit and vegetables
  • fish
  • apple juice
  • exercise: i do mountainbiking
    Doing these things for almost two months now.

During heavy anxiety and depression i need to urinate very frequently. Sleep is quite good, but not 7 or 8 hours.

PS. i don’t have eye problems anymore. The healthy diet is definately helping. I am planning on doing a 1 day water fast during the Christmas vacation and a 2 day water fast in februari. I want to build it up.

#10

Update: 5 months off. I am in a period of anxiety, depression, melancholy again. Its Obvious that this thing comes in cycles. Libido is still very low. But the positive thing is that there are moments of very little clarity. And the last two months i am able to do my work. Sleep has been somewhat better the last weeks. But am not able to sleep more that 7 hours.

I am still taking supplements and eating healthy. Also hoping that summer comes quick. I ride my bike once a week but with this bad weather is hard to keep going. Maybe then i would feel better.

1 Like
#11

Almost forgot: i did a 1 day water fast. But that was not a succes because it was very hard for me. But the PFS symptoms did dissapear a bit for a while.

#12

6 months off:
I still have all the symptoms from the first post. I also have constipation now. I still eat very healthy (no sugars) and do a lot of sport. A week ago i had a sort of second crash. I was suicidal at that time. But things (the depression/ anxiety) are starting to clear up now. This happens after i did some bicycling (50 km or more) or mountainbiking. I had a few days of bad sleep but thats over again. I dont really have a bad sleeping pattern, but no more than 7 hours. I try to get up at 6 in het morning and go to bed at 10 in the evening.

The food i eat / drink:

  • apples and apple juice
  • bananas
  • nuts (especially pistache)
  • broccoli / bimi
  • beans
  • potato
  • tomato
  • asparagus
  • i drink a lot of water
  • i still eat bread: especially brown bread
  • eggs

In the above i also mentioned the intake of supplements.

I just hope that things clear up after a while…this is no life . I just dont want another crash. It has hit me very hard the last time.

#13

I’m going to begin a paleodiet (i ordered the books and programs). The depression is starting to clear up a little but it’s still there. But i’ts not that severe anymore. I just made my first smoothie and try to keep the sugars down (also the natural sugars). I still exercise (running and cycling).

This anxiety and depression is by far my most challenging symptom because my sexual symptoms aren’t even that bad in comparison with other members. After this small carsh (which always happen after too much sex) i tend to have a few days in lack of libido (with shrinkage and ED). After a week or so this resolves slowly.

My constipation had diminished and is almost completely gone. This due to Aloe Vera.

Oh and another thing: i just ordered niacin (300mg) with the flush. Hope this brings some relief. If this doesn’t help than i wil give progesterone cream a try. I just don’t want to do everything at once because i wouldn’t know what brings the benefits (if they come).

#14

I am making very very little progress and i want to speed things up. I am already doing a lot of things but i am going to ad a lot more. I had some very small moments of recovery and this gives me the motivation to do even more. I am in the middle of a vacation and therefore have enough time do so research and especially reading this forum. I completely read the ‘chi’ and ‘ihatepropecia’ story. This means i am going to stick to their protocol for a long time.
modernherbalmedicine.com/art … owth-(sibo.html?page=2

oh and by the way: i also started progesterone (5mg in the evening).

i can add to my supplement list:

  • vitamin c (2 or 3 times a day)
  • DIM
    (Niacin bring some relief; nothing more)
#15

Progesterone works really well for me! I am now in the second week on and it works especially on my depression. I no longer have suicidal thoughts and i would say i have a mild depression. The only thing that is really annoying is the shifting between good mood and bad mood. It’s definitely a rollercoaster. Also the 4 off-days are heavy, but the spikes in good mood click back on when i am on progesterone. I am now able to do my work again.

Still on a very healthy paleo diet with much vegetables and very low sugar. I also take bentonite everyday and a mix of black walnut extract, clove extract, adrenal support, swedish bitters and wormwood. This all to heal my colon. Hope it helps a bit.

#16

Did Progesterone help with your libido? That is a crucial thing?

#17

My libido is better when i’m in a good mood. But the question is: did progesterone immediately increase my libido? I can’t really tell at the moment. I’ll have te be a bit longer on progesterone. I am planning to use progesterone for at least 4 months (maybe 6 depends on the results) and see what the results are.

I still have frequent urination, muscle twitches, little anxiety / depression and low libido. But this comes and goes in waves and isn’t contstantly there anymore.

#18

Hi Jorden. I am in a similar condition to you now. Coming up to 6 months off with no consistent improvements. I have some spikes in condition but always fall back into hell quite quickly. I think I will try progesterone as it has helped with your cognitive sides a lot? When you dip down on progesterone is it as bad as the normal downturns? I struggle with my work a lot and you say you do too. This has helped you a lot in this situation?
Thanks.

#19

The first period on progesterone was spiked with severe downturns. Now i am in the second period and the downturns are a bit better to cope with but they are still heavy. The downturns i had in the first round contained: anxiety/depression, no libido, frequent urination, fatigue, and muscle twitches. But it doesn’t contain the constipation anymore. Overall my physical health got a bit better following the healthy diet i did the last months. But progress is very slowly and comes with ups and downs.

#20

I quit progesterone because the downs were just too heavy too handle. Maybe i’ll pick it up some other day. I am curious though if i will get an upward swing because some others had this too. I’ll just wait and see.

Meanwhile i bought the book ‘Adrenal fatigue’ by Dr. Wilson. I still take all the other things mentioned above.