Welcome to our community. Please fill in the following template as a way of introducing yourself, and helping others to understand your background and situation.
Where are you from (country)?
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?)
What is your current age, height, weight?
What specific drug did you use (finasteride, dutasteride, saw palmetto, isotretinoin/Accutane, fluoxetine, sertraline, citalopram, leuprorelin, etc…)?
What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
What condition was being treated with the drug?
Hair Loss
For how long did you take the drug (weeks/months/years)?
Three Months
Date when you started the drug?
Sept 2023
Date when you quit the drug?
Nov 2023
Age when you quit?
45
How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
Cold Turkey
How long into your usage did you notice the onset of side effects?
2.5 months
What side effects did you experience that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
Word Finding problems, memory retrival, slowed thought process, reading and spelling errors
Check the boxes that apply. You can save your post first, then interactively check/uncheck the boxes by clicking on them. If your symptoms change, please update your list.
Sexual
[ x] Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
[x ] Erectile Dysfunction
[ ] Complete Impotence
[ ] Loss of Morning Erections
[ ] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[ ] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[ ] Watery Ejaculate
[ ] Reduced Ejaculate
[ ] Inability or Difficulty to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility
Mental
[ ] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[ x] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[ ] Confusion
[x ] Memory Loss / Forgetfulness
[x ] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[ ] Slurring of Speech
[ ] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[ ] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[ ] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[ ] Suicidal Thoughts
Physical
[ ] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[ ] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[ ] Testicular Pain
[x ] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[x ] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[x ] 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
[ ] Tinnitus (ringing or high pitched sound in ears)
[ ] Hearing loss
[ ] Increased hair loss
[x ] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature
[x ] Other (please explain)
Anomic Aphasia
What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
HCG, TRT, NAC, Omega 3s, Tongkat Ali, Neurotropics
If you have pre or post-drug blood tests, what hormonal changes have you encountered since discontinuing the drug (please post your test results in the “Blood Tests” section and link to them in your post)?
Persistently low DHT, High Testostorone, High Estrodial, Normal Free T. Normal Folic Acid, Normal Vitamin levels
Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience?
It has been intolerable at times and I can’t make love or fluently articulate as I previous was blessed in my ability to do before PFS. God, please help us.
Tell us your story, in your own words, about your usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.
I took topical finasteride for hair loss when my dermatologist told me it was exceedingly rare to have long-lasting side effects. The dosage was .5 mg of fin. I applied it daily. Everything was fine for 2.5 months, then I noticed I had trouble with word retrieval. My unconscious recollection of my lexicon of words was nearly cut off completely. I studied what could cause such a sudden onset of this symptom. I also realized I could not sleep well, my ability to ejaculate properly was curtailed, and I wasn’t feeling aroused. Lo and behold, PFS had everything that fit to be the culprit. I am a year and a half out from cessation, and word finding was tested twice, showing a quantifiable increase in word finding and recognition. However, it is still present. My sex drive has steadily gotten worse, and ED is something that has more recently afflicted me. I used to have horrible depression for a year and one month, then it was gone. I have had an MRI, blood tests, cognitive tests, etc. The MRI showed nothing remarkable. I noted my abnormal hormonal levels, my cognitive tests improved, and I am praying that this completely abates.
Self-reporting template - ONLY USE FOR FUTURE POSTS TO REPORT ANY TRIALS OF TREATMENTS, NOT YOUR INITIAL MEMBER STORY
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Name of the therapy/substance:
- Dosage:
- How often you took it:
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Status
- Still using [ ]
- Stopped with no lasting change to initial symptoms [ ]
- Stopped with persistent change to symptoms [ ]
- Duration of use: Days [ ] Months [ ] Years [ ]
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Response when you started:
- Greatly improved [ ]
- Slightly improved [ ]
- Stayed the same [ ]
- Slightly worsened [ ]
- Greatly worsened [ ]
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Current response (if you’re still using the therapy/substance) OR Response in the time before you stopped the treatment
- Greatly improved [ ]
- Slightly improved [ ]
- Stayed the same [ ]
- Slightly worsened [ ]
- Greatly worsened [ ]
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Lasting changes to initial symptoms after cessation (if you have stopped for more than 3 weeks)
- Greatly improved [ ]
- Slightly improved [ ]
- Stayed the same [ ]
- Slightly worsened [ ]
- Greatly worsened [ ]