Propecia thoughts

[easternpromise]

No, I don't use anything.

What source do you have for 2%? It's likely one sided, not independent, and an underreported amount.

It's mostly the younger guys that have PFS. Other guys have PFS and not know the Propecia caused it.

Yes, guys have had wives and kids leave them, and the young guys don't have a chance at starting a family.

Studies that can be accessed on NCBI, some of which studied by the same organization/individuals that are used on this site time over time to prove things about TRT, hormones, etc

My question is this: many younger guys that are low in testosterone experience hair loss, has any of these "PFS" folks have hormonal panels, blood tests etc to rule out other issues? Are they going into propecia with some sides already that may be exacerbated by the reduction of DHT? So so many variables that have to be accounted for especially since the amount of men who use finasteride successfully and without major side effects is large, hence the continual sales of the medication, and general approval from the scientific community. However, if you believe the scientific community is complete horse crap, then we on this forum are in deep trouble as well, as we use the data we get from the same scientific community to analyze our own hormonal situations.

 

[Vvs1]

A bit dramatic don’t you think?

First story off the board: Please note it lists most common symptoms, and he checked about half of them.

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 (Turkey)?
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
What is your current age, height, weight?
37 178cm 99kg
What specific drug did you use (finasteride, dutasteride, saw palmetto, isotretinoin/Accutane, fluoxetine, sertraline, citalopram, leuprorelin, etc…)?
Finasteride
What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
2 years 1 mg day 5 years 1.25 mg a day
What condition was being treated with the drug?
Male patern baldness
For how long did you take the drug (weeks/months/years)?
7 years
How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start the drug?
25
How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit?
32
How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
Cold Turkey
How long into your usage did you notice the onset of side effects?
Immidiately i lost some some of my extereme libido 4 years later i noticed my erections are not that much hard. I droped when i failed one time arter 7 years and it got worse much worse for 4 years now i have recovered a bit.
What side effects did you experience that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
Ed, loss of libido. After discontinuation panick attacks, anxiety and short term memory loss started.
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
Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
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
Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
Confusion
Memory Loss / Forgetfulness
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
Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
Weight Gain
Gynecomastia (male breasts)
Muscle Wastage
Muscle Weakness
Joint Pain
Dry / Dark Circles under eyes
Misc
Prostate pain
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
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?
Tried Extenze containes pregnelone progesterone gaba yohimbine
It worked then i got my panic attacks
They prescribed me Effexor it made much worse.
Then i started trintellix plus methylphenidate it recovered my libido
I added 10 mg metylfolate 1g niacin 2g epa fish oil.
That gave me back my bone hard erections for 20 minutes.
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)?
Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience?
Tell us your story, in your own words, about your usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.
Hello Guys,
That drug killed my life it ruined me.
I started this when i was 25 years old.
It immediately stopped my hair loss and i regrew a lot of hair back it also tempered my extreme libido, i liked it art first because i was unable to speak with opposite sex because of my bone hard tool… at first it make me normal human, i thought now my brain manages my dick not the otherway around.
In time approximately 4 years later i noticed that i lost some sensitivity 7 years later i had to rip off my skin to feel satisfied then i got suspicious about drug stopped it.
In time i lost spontaneous erections becoming hard mentally becomes impossible.
I had to touch it to be erect.
3 more years later i tried some combo pill contains 100 mg pregnelone 100 progesterone 100 mg gaba and some yohimbine, it restored my libido dramatically but not ed but, after 7 days i got a huge panick attack and memory problems started.
I had to go to psychiatrist he gave me Effexor, it fixed my panic attacks but killed my libido after several tries he changed to methylphenidate plus trintellix, thank god this reversed my libido loss and ed problem a bit then i add 10 mg methylfolate 1g niacin 2 grams of epa fish oil. This gave me back my bone hard erections at least for 30 minutes looks like i am improving yet this is incomparable with my state before the damn drug.
May lord help us all brothers.

 

[fifty]

So he checked every box. I agree pfs is a thing but some of these kids embellish a bit I think. What would he post if he got drafted in WW2?

 

[easternpromise]

So he checked every box. I agree pfs is a thing but some of these kids embellish a bit I think. What would he post if he got drafted in WW2?

I would also like to state that either way, one must look at hormonal conditions prior to prescribing finasteride. I know my Dr, who is in Kaiser, does not. Hence who knows, maybe many PFS guys are really suffering from something before hand.

Also would like to note, the fear being spread throughout the internet is bad, there are many many men whose hair loss has a profound impact on them. Some going into major depression, compulsion, etc. This medicine can possible turn lives around too. So to take such a small fraction to scare away all that are in need is sickening.

Food for thought: TRT in some cases can do terrible things to men. There are proven times that TRT for men has caused issues, albeit an infrequent amount. And people will argue, "well their doses were not correct" "they didnt time it right" "they didn't test the right hormones during use", well then why in the same forum these questions aren't raised about finasteride?

 

[Vvs1]

It's POISON. I don't know why you're trying to reason with everyone that it's safe. Guys would do anything to reverse the symptoms they feel after finasteride. Some have symptoms after 1 pill, others after multiple years.

Ask the ones that suffer, not me.

I'm done with this thread guys. I would never recommend finasteride to anyone I know. See the PFS foundation, website, and forums if you have questions.

 

[Appassionato]

Whoever is claiming PFS doesn't exist, needs to do some research. I'm on TRT thanks to finasteride and I've been diagnosed with PFS by an endo.

Please educate yourself:
Home - Welcome to the Post-Finasteride Foundation - The Post-Finasteride Syndrome Foundation

There have been 59 cases of known suicides due to that, included a former admiral of the US Marine if I'm not wrong.

 

[Nelson Vergel]

Blood tests may not reflect the finasteride syndrome. Here is interesting data using two tests using CSF samples.

Endocr Connect. 2019 Aug 1;8(8):1118-1125. doi: 10.1530/EC-19-0199.
Altered methylation pattern of the SRD5A2 gene in the cerebrospinal fluid of post-finasteride patients: a pilot study.
Melcangi RC1, Casarini L2,3, Marino M2,3, Santi D2,4, Sperduti S2,3, Giatti S1, Diviccaro S1, Grimoldi M5, Caruso D1, Cavaletti G6, Simoni M2,3,4.

Abstract
CONTEXT:
Post-finasteride syndrome (PFS) occurs in patients with androgenic alopecia after suspension of the finasteride treatment, leading to a large variety of persistent side effects. Despite the severity of the clinical picture, the mechanism underlying the PFS symptoms onset and persistence is still unclear.

OBJECTIVE:
To study whether epigenetic modifications occur in PFS patients.

METHODS:
Retrospective analysis of a multicentric, prospective, longitudinal, case-control clinical trial, enrolling 16 PFS patients, compared to 20 age-matched healthy men. Main outcomes were methylation pattern of SRD5A1 and SRD5A2 promoters and concentration of 11 neuroactive steroids, measured by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry, in blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples.

RESULTS:
SRD5A1 and SRD5A2 methylation analysis was performed in all blood samples (n = 16 PFS patients and n = 20 controls), in 16 CSF samples from PFS patients and in 13 CSF samples from controls. The SRD5A2 promoter was more frequently methylated in CSF of PFS patients compared to controls (56.3 vs 7.7%). No promoter methylation was detected in blood samples in both groups. No methylation occurred in the SRD5A1 promoter of both groups. Unmethylated controls compared to unmethylated SRD5A2 patients showed higher pregnenolone, dihydrotestosterone and dihydroprogesterone, together with lower testosterone CSF levels. Andrological and neurological assessments did not differ between methylated and unmethylated subjects.

CONCLUSIONS:
For the first time, we demonstrate a tissue-specific methylation pattern of SRD5A2 promoter in PFS patients. Although we cannot conclude whether this pattern is prenatally established or induced by finasteride treatment, it could represent an important mechanism of neuroactive steroid levels and behavioural disturbances previously described in PFS.

KEYWORDS:
5 alpha-reductase; epigenetic changes; finasteride; neuroactive steroids; side effects