Matt Skiba

This is actually an enzyme found naturally in the human body, kinda like 5-alpha reductase, I guess you could call it the anti 5-alpha reductase because instead of converting Testosterone to DHT, it converts DHT back to testosterone, I also understand that by inhibiting 5-alpha reductase, testosterone and lieutinizing hormone production is raised via the negative feedback loop of the hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular axis (HPTA). For those of you who don't know what the HPTA is, basically it is the system by which your hypothalamus gland in the brain senses the amount of androgens and estrogens in your body and sends a chemical signal accordingly to the pituitary gland, which sends a chemical signal to your testicles telling it the amount of hormones to produce. If the hypothalamus detects less DHT in the blood, your balls start producing more testosterone to make up for it, this could have possible negative consequences. One possibility which is a fact and does happen for some people is that the excess testosterone gets converted to estrogen via the aromatase enzyme and this causes such problems as ED and gynocomastia. Also, keep in mind that aromatase levels rise when there is less 5-alpha reductase. I think another possibility is your balls can't handle the excess workload so they shut down, even another possibility is that for some people waaay too much testosterone is made, and this creates an excess negative feedback in the hypothalamus, so your body shuts down and creates a much smaller amount of androgens and goes into a hypogonadal state, similar to that experienced by body-builders who've abused anabolic steroids. The enzyme CYP3A4 which is found in the liver is what's responsible for metabolizing and getting rid of finasteride (among many other drugs) in the body. I feel that for some people who ingest certain things that inhibit this enzyme it makes them more likely to get side effects. I believe the most common of these substances would be red wine and grapefruit juice, but oddly enough the list also includes ketoconazole (nizoral). So basically if you inhibit this enzyme, you could be getting a mega-dose of finasteride since your body isn't able to fully metabolize it. You can see a list of substances in the following wikipedia link. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CYP3A4 Now lets talk about 3 alpha-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase, often times referred to as 3-alpha HSD. This enzyme acts by converting DHT back to testosterone, and also has some other roles that I think involve progesterone, pregnenolone, and allopregnenolone, but I am not very sure of the details on this, what I do know though is that it doesn't inhibit the effects of the conversion of progesterone to allopregnenolone like finasteride does, but instead it is an enzyme, like 5-alpha reductase, that also converts progesterone to allopregnenolone, so any neurotoxic effects are avoided, and may even be ameliorated as there is more allopregnenolone being produced. I believe HSD is found in heavy concentrations in muscular tissue, and is the reason that DHT has no anabolic muscular effect. Now... correct me if I'm wrong, though DHT may be a much more powerful activator of an androgen receptor than testosterone, I have read that it pretty much has the same level of interaction with the hypothalamus as testosterone, so if you are converting DHT back to testosterone, you are not messing with the HPTA and you are avoiding adverse endocrine effects. Of course reducing DHT could have negative consequences of it's own, but I believe that with HSD it wouldn't be too hard to play around with dosages to find a healthy amount so there is sufficient DHT to maintain reproductive tissue and sperm, as well as libido, and be able to stop as much hair loss as possible with as little side effects as possible. http://www.jbc.org/cgi/content/full/276/45/42091 HSD is of course a natural thing found within the body, and for this reason, the FDA would never approve it for anything. So it would have to be sold as a supplement. I could imagine that it could be expensive, and possibly not easy to synthesize and manufacture. But I'm sure that it could be sold. I'm actually surprised that someone isn't already doing this, I'm sure there's some sort of reasoning behind it though. I would be very interested to find out why. In any case I would love to hear what someone else thinks of this, as long as I'm not labeled as being crazy, a fear-mongerer, or a hypochondriac.

Here's an even better page with a big PDF file to go with it. The proof is there... but if you want to be a bonehead then go ahead and keep taking it. http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1527-3458.2006.00053.x

Okay, here is a VERY good article about the danger of finasteride use and how it does in fact effect everyone who takes it in a negative way, especially in the long term, especially if you're older, and especially if Alzheimer's disease runs in your family. 5-alpha reductase has more than the role of converting testosterone to DHT, if that were the case it would be very safe to inhibit it, but it also converts progesterone to allopregnenolone like I mentioned before, and allopregnenolone is critical for neurological function, if you end up with a deficiency of allopregnenolone (which I believe I have) then you are at a risk of suffering from neurotoxic effects that are much worse than ED, low libido, or weird sex hormone levels, this goes to the core of your existence into your brain, it is indeed some scary stuff. http://www.bio.net/bionet/mm/neur-sci/2004-August/058929.html If I had known about this I would have never touched the stuff!

Mrjb, provided that you aren't offended by this question, but just how old were you about 5 years ago? There is no doubt that the herbal methods are weaker, but I think it can be effective in those that are younger or whose hair loss isn't that bad. Everyone on here knows that some people have more severe hair loss than others, and if you have it bad enough to the point where you're destined to become an NW6 or an NW7 I could imagine that saw palmetto and other herbs would probably do little to nothing, it might slow it down a bit. I still wouldn't consider saw palmetto a waste of time, it is scientifically proven to lower DHT. For some men, (mostly older), they actually do get a "side effect" of an increased libido while on finasteride. This is because with age, testosterone levels decline, but DHT increases. So finasteride helps to balance things out a bit. This doesn't really happen in younger men, and a lot of times the opposite happens, so one must be careful.

Come on now, this is unrelated to the topic here, that is only my signature. Regardless, the FDA does not approve the use of many herbs, vitamins, amino acids, nutrients, and the like for anything, but instead treats them as food, so it only regulates the fact that they're not poisonous or something. Look up The Dietary Supplement Health & Education Act of 1994 if you want to know what I'm talking about. Side effects probably can happen on saw palmetto, but they happen much less often than finasteride, and when they do they are probably milder and always reversible. As for supplements being contaminated with toxic metals and that sort of thing, I think that would be an issue of the reliability of the supplier.

With all due respect I'm gonna have to disagree with Bill on his statement that saw palmetto doesn't do anything. Saw palmetto is a known inhibitor of 5-alpha reductase types 1 and 2, and some men even say it is even more effective at treating a benign enlarged prostate. I do not argue the fact that finasteride is a much more potent inhibitor of 5-alpha reductase, but with herbal methods the chances of side effects are much less, they are pretty minimal. And also the FDA doesn't approve herbs for any indication. If you are to use herbs to try to combat hair loss, you would probably want to combine saw palmetto with stinging nettle and pygeum. Someone posted a very good link to a page where herbal and natural options are discussed. You can find that page at the following URL.. http://hairlosssolutions.blogfreehere.com/going-natural...air-loss-remedi.html As a matter of fact I think I will add that URL to my signature. Just don't end up like me and be sexually incapacitated indefinitely at a young age.

Dr. Lee stated somewhere that you could leave his ketaconazole (active ingredient in nizoral) shampoo on your head overnight, so I would think that it would work if you left it on like rogaine as you said, but I think if you are looking to put more stuff on your head to cease hairloss and maybe regrow something, then spironolactone would probably be a better bet.

I just made the post to see what people on here would think and maybe it might be an interesting read. I was just wondering whether people who masturbate chronically, like multiple times a day, throughout the day, every day, might be exposing themselves to more DHT. I honestly can't really say whether it's true or not.

All you need to do is read this medical study and you will see that post-ejaculation men do indeed have higher levels of testosterone, and thus DHT. http://joe.endocrinology-journals.org/cgi/content/abstract/70/3/439 Maybe it's not just an old wives tale after all!

All you need to do is read this medical study and you will see that post-ejaculation men do indeed have higher levels of testosterone, and thus DHT. http://joe.endocrinology-journals.org/cgi/content/abstract/70/3/439 Maybe it's not just an old wives tale after all!

I do understand I might come off as a whack job, but I am trying to do my best to keep a grip on myself and stay logical under my circumstances. As for scare tactics, it is ultimately your choice what you put in your body, and I ultimately have no say in your decisions. I would also like to state that I am in fact not a drug user/addict. I will admit to the use of some cannabis every now and then, but I would imagine that there's plenty of people on here that also do it, especially those that are in my age group, and by now it is common knowledge that marijuana doesn't do the type of damage that the heavy shit does. I still smoke cigarettes, though I am trying to cut down and quit given my medical status. I have also not consumed any alcohol in recent times, mainly because if I do drink, it's almost always in a social context and in the presence of females. Add to that the fact that being plastered isn't really something that helps with erections. I've generally been trying to avoid parties and I haven't really gone out much lately... you can imagine why. As for viagra, to my knowledge it is not a true aphrodisiac. I don't really think it makes you able to be more horny, it just makes your heart beat faster and your dick get harder. So in essence it does more for your mate than it does for you. Though being harder can have a synergistic effect on your pleasure. I really can't say though, I've never never done viagra cialis, or levitra, maybe there is someone on here who is more qualified at answering this question? If you would like to try out a herbal alternative, you might want to check out the product called aspire36. Supposedly it works well for 36 hours, and doesn't have the side effects that the medications might have (heart beat, headache, sleeplessness, etc). I suggest doing further research though... As for lifting weights I could see how that works, and there is definitley science behind that, but a discovery I made yesterday was that aerobic exercise can be pretty beneficial. I played an intense game of basketball yesterday, and this morning when I woke up I had one of the hardest morning woods I've had in a long time. I think I will try a combination of lifting weights, aerobic exercise such as swimming, basketball, and maybe soccer and tackle football if I can find enough people. Along with a GABA neurotransmitter enhancer of some type right before I go to bed.. I'm honestly still having trouble believing that I'm suffering side effects months after I quit the drug. I honestly did believe that I wouldn't have any side effects when I started taking it, but I have made it my goal to bring myself back to optimal health, and take it one step further and make myself even healthier than how I was before I took the drug.

Your editing of my post is understandable, and I respect your decision. As for my problems being confirmed to have been caused by finasteride, one only needs to look at my blood tests to see that my hormones aren't all that normal, 5-alpha reductase also converts progsterone to allopregnenolone, and this is a biochemical process that helps with the repair of the brain. I personally have a high amount of DHT, a ridiculously high level of progesterone, lowish testosterone, and low follicular stimulating hormone levels. A very good theory is that I am in a condition of adrenal fatigue, where the adrenal glands (which produce progesterone) are overworked and tired, and take a very long time to recover by themselves. These things are very complex.. Perhaps living life on an irregular schedule and having odd sleeping patterns could play a role. As has been mentioned before, this would probably be the cause for the bags under the eyes. Things like depression and anxiety can also be factors, The doctor said adrenal fatigue could be a possibility and ordered a salivory test for me. I would also recommend not using caffeine or any other sort of stimulant. Another possibility mentioned by the doctor, one that personally scares me, is that I have a pituitary tumor. He said something about the prolactin level being off. I am not at a point of helplessness to the point where I get an MRI just yet, and this is probably a worst case scenario type of thing. Also I think men that are older, that are at least 30 years old are less prone to getting side effects from finasteride use, I think that Bill belongs to this group. I say this because 5-ar activity increases with age, so older men generally produce more DHT, which would also explain why older men are more prone to losing hair, I'm sure aging of the DNA and the cells of the skin and follicles may play a role as well, but finasteride may even be beneficial and preventative against things like bph and maybe other prostate problems. There are still guys that are as old as in their 50s that I've heard of who've gotten some problems from propecia use though so one can never be sure. As for the guy whose criticizing me for calling myself a young boy, I only wanted to emphasize what I'm going through; sexual dysfunction well before an age that I thought such things were possible. Oh and I still do look young and am referred to as a boy, my hair loss is pretty minimal and easily covered up, I can make it look flashy too (if you look closely you might notice that the likes of Keanue Reeves and Jake Gylenhaal have slightly receding hairlines), which makes me all the more bitter about what I'm going through.

Maybe you didn't read what I said closely enough, I was only offering to give the URLs to some supplement vendors, who only sell legal things. Maybe you should take a good look at your own ignorance before calling me an idiot. Long-term finasteride side effects are undocumented in allopathic medical literature, so you might actually run into some doctors who won't offer you much help at all. I am only giving what knowledge I have on the issue, it may be unorthodox, but one must keep in mind that in this world, things are really not black and white.

I don't exactly think that this is a herbal thing, I think it is a chemical, but it is a supplement and something you can buy without a prescription nonetheless. This is something that is supposed to help with several different things, mainly things that have to do with aging, but some people report an improvement in the condition of their hair and nails. No sexual side effects of course, and supposedly it gives you more energy and improves your vitality. Do a google search on it and tell me what you think...

I don't exactly think that this is a herbal thing, I think it is a chemical, but it is a supplement and something you can buy without a prescription nonetheless. This is something that is supposed to help with several different things, mainly things that have to do with aging, but some people report an improvement in the condition of their hair and nails. No sexual side effects of course, and supposedly it gives you more energy and improves your vitality. Do a google search on it and tell me what you think...

Hey sorry it took me a while to respond to your post, as you can imagine this isn't the happiest place on the internet to be spending your time on. First off, with hormone blood tests, you don't really need a doctor's permission to have one done. You can do a google search to find a medical lab in your area who will do it for you without any questions asked. They even have labs on the internet that send you kits in the mail for you to send back your sample. Also for testosterone levels, remember that for a young man it should generally be in the upper one third of the reference range. My level was kinda low, but oddly enough my DHT level was above the reference range. To look into what tests you should be getting you can go to propeciahelp.com and find it on there. Remember that if you have just quit propecia, chances are you have nothing to worry about, since for the vast majority of men everything clears up within about a month, there's a chance you might even end up with an enhanced libido since propecia makes the body produce more testosterone to try to compensate for the loss of DHT. I guess a possible theory is that for some younger men, you're already producing the maximum amount of testosterone, and the added stress tires out the balls. A good idea would probably be to take or continue to take a multi-vitamin, try to eat healthy, exercise and lift weights, try to rest and sleep well, and try not to smoke cigarettes. As for your penis curving, you might want to look into the idea of peyronie's disease, you'd be surprised how many stupid doctors there are out there, believe it or not medical malpractice is one of the leading causes of death in the USA. Generally I believe that changes in penis shape are reversible, especially if you're under the age of 25. As for hair on penis shaft, this could be a normal thing, it actually happened to me naturally when I was not using any meds, it began showing up around the same time chest hair started appearing for me, it has never really bothered me, but there are permanent hair removal solutions if you feel so inclined. There's theories that sleeping odd hours or sometimes not getting enough sleep can predispose you to hormonal disorders, since the body works on a circadian rythm and testosterone levels are highest at night and in the morning, hence "morning wood". I think some substance abuse history might be able to play a role. Pollution in the environment is another theory, as is having an infection of candida albicans yeast in your digestive tract. Anti-depressant use can in fact cause sexual problems for both men and women. There's many studies done on this and you can look on the internet for it. GABOB - It is claimed to help you sleep well and release growth hormone. X-dream - I think this product may contain GABOB but I'm not sure on this, in any case it contains a GABA analogue molecule in it which helps you sleep well and give you growth hormone benefits, and also contains a cannabinoid molecule in it which is something found in marijuana that gives you a relaxing effect. Beyond GHS - This product contains hypothalamic and pituitary peptides which is supposed to help your hormonal system, I guess this is supposed to help libido nicely as it is under the libido enhancement product section of the site I'm at. It has a hefty pricetag of 76 dollars. Melatonin - This is a common sleeping aid supplement found at many stores such as GNC, I don't think it does much for growth hormone, but it does give you a nice night of sleep. Aspire36 - This doesn't really have anything to do with sleep but supposedly this is the most effective supplement/herb you can take for sexual activity, this is very expensive at 27 bucks for only 12 caps, but the customer reviews on the site are very positive, as are the forum postings for it. This is probably your best bet short from using viagra (some say they even like it better). There is also a prescription drug called Baclofen which is supposed to disable the negative feedback loop of the hypothalamus gland but my knowledge on this drug is very, very limited and as you probably already know, care needs to be taken with prescription drugs. In a best case scenario you will completely recover your sexual senses, with improvement as well, imagine getting intense orgasms and horniness like being 14 again combined with the endurance and expertise that you generally get with age and experience, after being what I'm still going through, I can't help but feel the need to bring myself to a point where my sex is enhanced to being above that of the average man. And one positive aspect of my experiences is that I have become educated in the cutting edge of anti-aging, which makes me feel less fearful of living life after hitting 30. Good luck and best wishes!

Many men have attempted to bring forth a lawsuit against Merck for damages caused by Propecia, but it doesn't work out because very few men have blood hormone profiles of how they were before taking the drug. So of course Merck is gonna have some expensive ass lawyer whose gonna use this fact as an advantage and state that the plaintiff has no proof that they weren't like this before taking the drug. Propecia will also subtly affect your personality, as it does alter some mechanisms in the brain (look this up if you want to). It's easy to see how some men can be so defensive of this drug since it does stop hair loss and grow some back in most cases, but the price for this can be very high. Well I'm just about done making these posts, I do not work for any company, nor do I really care what ends up happening to you, because you can't say that I didn't warn you.

Why I say that I have fallen victim to the pharmaceutical company is because they make no mention of the fact that side effects can last after quitting the drug, and there's more than a handful of men who've suffered because of this. Finasteride was a drug originally developed to chemically castrate men with prostate cancer (at much higher doses of course). I am not making blank statements, people so far have not been able to bring about a lawsuit against Merck for the reason that very few men get hormone profiles before taking finasteride, so in effect they have no way of proving that they were not like that before taking the drug. DHT is really not the culprit for hair loss, it's the follicle's fault, DHT is a natural hormone that has beneficial functions in other parts of the body. The DHT receptors on the hair follicles are at fault so thats what you should be trying to combat. By taking finasteride you are doing nothing less than mildly castrating yourself on the molecular level, all of your sex homes work at some extent to give you life, vitality, and virility. Yes it is true that you get a boost of testosterone shortly after taking the drug, but this wears down over time and you end up with reduced production. Funny how you call me a fear-mongering head case, I will admit that the majority of men do use finasteride without issue and for the majority of those who do get issues that they do clear up upon quitting the drug. The percentage of men who do get issues is much higher than the 2% Merck would have you believe though, I would not be surprised to find it as high as 25% or even 30%. Being optimistic, I still do have faith that I will make a 100% recovery, no doubt, but the fact that you call the members of propeciahelp.com head cases is highly unjustified. If you go to the hormone profiles section of the site, you will see that there are quite a few guys who've been messed up by this stuff, and are still messed up sometimes for as long as 2 years after quitting. Just take a look at the different abnormal hormonal levels Propecia has brought on to some for them to live with. Of course I wouldn't be surprised to find out that many of you guys wouldn't even notice the sexual side effects since you don't have a sex life anyways, hell a pretty big reason why I can see many of you caring so much about your hair is the lack of sex. All I know is that I've lost about 3 months worth of time in the bedroom because of this shit, and there's probably a fully bald guy whose enjoying some ass right now. And of course it is finally your choice whether to take the drug or not. But don't ever for a second think that the "the man" cares more about your health than your money.

I've used xandrox on and off for a few months and my hair loss seems to have pretty much halted. I've also had a little bit of thickening of the temples and the sides of the frontal hairline, so far just peach fuzz growth and thickening of hairs that were already peach fuzz to begin with but according to any manufacturer of minoxidil the fuzz should become regular hair with continued use. I've also been using the xandrox 15% minoxidil formula, which is three times the minoxidil found in rogaine. Let me tell you, you do not wanna apply this stuff in the morning or do you ever wanna be seen after you've put it on. The 5% formula of xandrox is definitley an advantage over using rogaine. The stuff messes up your hair a lot less, and of course has the added benefit of azelaic acid. I have honestly not read a bad thing that someone has said about xandrox, if you look through this forum or do a search I'm pretty sure you'll find people who've mentioned it and rightly so. The one drawback of xandrox is that it is more expensive than rogaine, but honestly I think it is worth it. As for your question about applying your concealer I can't really say because I don't really have any thinning on the top of my head. But I think you should be ok to put on any hair product after you wait about 10 minutes for it to dry, I also think the baby dropper might be better than the spray for the top of the head, but I could be wrong. Also know that thinning on top of the head generally responds better to minoxidil than the front, and with a powerful formula like xandrox I wouldn't be surprised if you didn't even have to use a concealer anymore after a few months. As for azelaic acid in pill form, I don't think it would work out because it either doesn't get digested and metabolized or it is too strong of an anti-DHT agent that it is not used. Spironolactone is a much more powerful anti-androgen, and as a matter of fact is the crap that many transvestites ingest to make themselves more, shall we say, womanly. Dr. Lee also happens to be selling spironolactone in cream form, I honestly think this is more effective than finasteride for eliminating DHT in the scalp, spironolactone not only eliminates DHT but also binds to the DHT receptors in the follicles and keeps DHT out of these receptors. Topical spironolactone seems to not have much popularity though, probably because people see it as too much and you have to apply it seperatley than minoxidil. Ketaconazole is also a topical DHT blocker and an anti-inflammatory agent. It is the active ingredient in Nizoral shampoo. Dr. Lee of course has his own version which also contains salyclic acid which is supposed to give the ketaconazole more absorption into the skin. If you do decide to use a ketaconazole shampoo your hair will really suck unless you also use some sort of moisturizing conditioner. There's some info, hope it helps, good luck.

Hey, Propecia is pretty dangerous, read my other post or go to www.propeciahelp.com and you will see that the side effects are in fact real, and in some people they are even irreversible. You should really take my word for it when I say that it is not worth the trouble... I am actually surprised that your doctors didn't prescribe it to you, it actually kind of makes me happy to know that there actually are doctors out there who are kind of concerned. Unfortunatley the doctor I went to was not like this. Do a google search for dr. lee or xandrox and you will come across a page for his minoxidil formula which also contains azelaic acid, azelaic acid is a powerful topical anti-androgen and honestly I don't even think you need propecia if you use it... just take a look at this study on azelaic acid taken straight out of a medical journal... http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=...anel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

I'd just like to add that I do think I am recovering, but it is painstakingly slow, not only that but I might even have some days where I'll be worse than the day before it. Overall I feel much, much better after taking some zinc along with some l-phenylaline, l-tyrosine, and l-theanine (the amino acids are supposed to help with neurotransmitters). And of course l-arginine keeps the blood flowing so my body can still remember that I have a dick, quitting cigarettes has also helped with this. I am faithful that when I add the broccoli treatment to all of this that it might put the nail in the coffin once and for all to this very ugly period of time in my life.

Believe it or not this actually began happening after I'd been off the drug for a while. I'd say after about 3 weeks it happened, and for a month it stayed like that, and gradually it's been clearing up since then. I read somewhere that 5-alpha reductase does more in the body than convert testosterone to DHT. It also converts progesterone to allopregnenolone and this is what keeps the functioning of the GABA neurotransmitter receptors healthy. I think type 1 5-alpha reductase does more of this than the type 2 kind, but finasteride has actually been shown to inhibit very small amounts of 5-ar type 1 (perhaps some men are more sensitive to this than others?). The GABA neurotransmitter helps you feel relaxed and lets you sleep well, thus my theory is that I wasn't getting as much out of my sleep as I should, thus giving my bags under the eyes. Not only that but DHT also has an effect on the function on the tear ducts and tear glands, for more information on that you can read the following post. http://finasteride.jconserv.net/viewtopic.php?t=660 Oh yes and I don't know if I mentioned this in my previous post but the main action of getting side effects from finasteride is that when you reduce levels of 5-ar, you in turn get elevated levels of aromatase. Aromatase is the enzyme that converts testosterone to estrogen, funny thing is I've actually read reports that estrogen has more to do with enlarging your prostate than DHT does. I guess most men are genetically made to be able to endogenously balance out 5-ar and aromatase, but many others including myself might have a deficiency in this department. I've recently begun taking zinc since it is supposed to be a natural aromatase inhibitor, and I think it has helped me out. I will also begin doing what is known as "the broccoli treatment" which is something that's supposed to be very effective against prostatitis and broccoli is also known as a natural aromatase inhibitor. I highly suggest anyone who is suffering from any side effects do these things as it may help you out a lot. I hate to say it, but because of this fucking drug I am having ailments that generally affect people at least 30 years older than me. So here... check out the broccoli treatment. http://www.prostatitis.org/broccindex.html

As a matter of fact anything above about .05mg of finasteride is going to inhibit DHT the same amount so you're still probably gonna get side effects because of the flat dose response of the drug. Taking the drug every other day and at a reduced dosage might be a more effective way of reducing side effects, but my opinion is that you don't take it again, especially cause you grew tits, why the hell would you wanna risk having that happen to you again?

Hello, I'm a young boy, just recently turned 20, upon looking at me you would think that I'm totally normal and there's nothing wrong with me. Hell, if you were a young lady you might even be interested in getting to know me a bit better. I am tall, thin, somewhat athletic, and with a degree of hair loss that is barely even noticeable. Upon looking at me you would think of me as someone full of confidence with a thirst for life and a lust with fire in my eyes... wrong. I have unfortunatley fallen victim to the pharmaceutical company. I started noticing that a bit of my hair was going out so I started freaking out. I did some research and found out that finasteride is effective at halting and perhaps regrowing some hair. All I had to do was pay a bit of a monthly fee and take a pill every day. I thought this could be my way of preserving my precious precious social status. So I looked through a forum where a small group of men stated that they got side effects from propecia that did not go away after stopping the drug. Of course this was a few months ago when the forum was newly established and I saw that there was barely anyone on there so I didn't really take much warning from it. I also didn't look in it enough to see that this group was coming from an older yahoo group that had over a thousand members. Alright so everyone on this forum tells me not to worry and I should go ahead and take the drug, whats even worse is that the doctor who prescribed it was not any different. So after only about a week of the drug I start noticing a subtle pain in my nuts... so I think to myself 'dont worry the side effects will go away if I keep taking the drug'. okay a few days later my cock will just not go up. So this is when I stop taking the drug for about a week. Of course vanity can have a strong effect on a person and someone on the forum mentions if I take a reduced dosage every other day that there should be no side effects... wrong. Side effects come back within a short amount of time and this is when I stop taking the shit once and for all. Alright... things yet again return to being normal. So around this time I'm feeling relieved. Things are going pretty good, but eventually, and it did kinda take me a while to figure it out, I started noticing a decay in my sex drive. Around this period I didn't even get with anyone, partly because I was afraid of my worst fears coming true. On top of that I started noticing a kind of a decay in my facial complexion. I had dark bags under my eyes, and my face kinda looked like it was starting to sag and I just looked older and uglier (this is thankfully starting to clear up). One of the worst moments of my life was the night there was a naked girl on me and I couldn't get it up. I can assure you it was not psychological. It has been a rough time for me but I am trying to stay optimistic as I'm still in a timeframe where some guys say they have recovered and my case doesn't seem to be as bad as some of the other guys since my sex drive isn't 100% gone. I think I might need a prescription for Viagra to hold me off until this is permanently cured. I will be getting a full hormone bloodwork done pretty soon so I can get an idea of what exactly has happened to me. I highly doubt that the 2% occurence of side effects is accurate and Merck is not exactly the most reputable pharmacuetical company, if you wanna know what I'm talking about do a google search for Vioxx. I would also not be the least bit surprised to find out that there is more than one Merck employee who frequents these forums. I think that it is only a matter of time before Propecia will be banned or withdrawn and you will start seeing those TV commercials with the 1-800 numbers for some law office saying they will get you your re-imbursements. For me this has been an ugly reminder of how the world is perhaps more than ever run on greed and selfishness. And I might have a hard time not beating the shit out of the next suit wearing corporate cock sucking son of a bitch I see. Well here are some web sites... http://www.propeciahelp.com - A forum full of guys with persisting side effects, some of these guys got it really bad but you can also find a crapload of very specific information on how finasteride can affect you. http://finasteride.jconserv.net/viewtopic.php?t=329&sta...d3791e6a32e56c26d4ae - Here's a nice few videos that talk about just how fucked up your precious FDA is. http://www.askapatient.com/viewrating.asp?drug=20788&name=PROPECIA - Here's a page full of people who suffered side effects http://www.propeciasideeffects.com/ - Some more info So there you have it, I am hopeful that it will be soon when the day comes (I can sort of feel inside me that I am making progress) that I will be fully recovered and I can forget about this ugly ugly episode of my life. Also remember that theres plenty of bald guys who are perfectly satisfied with how they are and live happy fulfilling lives. Not only that but I think huge advances in the field of hair loss are right around the corner.

Hey I'm glad that you made the decision to stop taking finasteride. I, as sad as I am to say, have actually become one of the unfortunate few who have persisting side effects even after quitting the drug. I'm gonna make a post about this with more detail very shortly...