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Why I highly recommend you don't take finasteride


Matt Skiba

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I feel your pain. I recall a few months back you and I were both considering adding finasteride to our regime.

 

Well, its been about 5 months on it and I'm considering stopping. Originally, the side effects were minimal (some testicular pain) but now it *seems* as though its becoming harder to get aroused, etc.

 

 

Which brings me to a question: did anyone here who experienced some sexual side effects with finasteride stick with it and use viagra/etc to assist with the 'other' problems?

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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.

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I won't lie, I haven't been doing much of anything right lately. My sleep schedule has been all over the place, definitely no circadium rythm left. i have actually been exercising recently, but i guess i'm still not too regular about it. i have actually been eating pretty well though. but the sleep and the exercise are bad. i need to run too, that's my main problem. i have no endurance while running, and i think that could cause problems with endurance elsewhere, so my next goal is to work on that.

 

 

sorry for the attrocious spelling, trying to get to bed.

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Thre is no reason to call matt names.

 

He should have a voice here like anyone eles.

 

He is sharing his experience as it happened to him, & what he is doing about it.

 

As far as the drugs he is taking or thinking about taking to counteract his side effects I would say that desperate times call for desperate measures.

 

As Robert said, nobodys forcing anything down anybody's throat.

 

Just because you don't suffer sexual side effects from Propecia many men do.

 

And of course it will freak you out!

 

If you had one thing to be proud of it is your manhood & for a hairloss drug to take that away is ironic.

 

So stop bashing Matt.

 

Why stick up for Merck unless you are working for them.

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Hi

 

Well, My experiences are the opposite & Matt you cannot blame drug companies because you freaked out about your hairloss. How is that their fault, honestly?

 

I have had zero side effects especially in the sexual area..

 

But please, don't blame drug companies ( and I certainly don't work for Merck) , because again, if you do that , blame all of the other companies which spend millions advertising trying to get us to buy their products..

 

Alcohol

Tobacco

clothing

Cars

Fast food industry

 

 

Propecia, can be a legit treatment as many people do find.. You want to see side effects, look up diet coke side effects on the web and you will find crazy reports as well.

 

This certainly does not downplay possible side effects one may get from Propecia but please, take broad view of corporate American when speaking about drug companies.

 

Do your research and make a choice based on your needs, not mine or anyone elses.

JOBI

 

1417 FUT - Dr. True

1476 FUT - Dr. True

2124 FUT - Dr. True

604 FUE - Dr. True

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My views are based on my personal experiences, research and objective observations. I am not a doctor.

 

Total - 5621 FU's uncut!

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I think the problem is that there are more men suffering from side effects of finesteride than the 2% found in the Merck trials.

 

I think maybe we need a poll on here to come up with our own percentage based on posters answers.

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I think the problem is that there are more men suffering from side effects of finesteride than the 2% found in the Merck trials.

 

I think maybe we need a poll on here to come up with our own percentage based on posters answers.

 

Though I certainly don't have the means to validate Merck's claim, certainly taking a poll on this forum would not invalidate it either.

 

Interesting thought though.

 

The bottom line is that people can and will experience side effects.

 

Whether or not Matt's condition has been caused or even increased because of Propecia is still a mystery to me. Given the evidence, it's possible, but not absolute. Matt's best move would be to continue to seek a doctors input.

 

Regarding finasteride or any other topic...everyone is entitled to their opinion. Name calling is unnecessary.

 

I am neither gung-ho nor against the use of finasteride. I use it because I hope to keep the hair below my crown without a transplant.

 

Do I like the fact that I need this drug to keep any existing native hair? No!

 

Am I convinced it's even working for me? No again. But the fact that it could be keeps me taking it.

 

The drug is available...

 

Do the research and make an educated decision as to whether or not to use it. If you experience side effects...make the necessary adjustments to minimize/eliminate the side effects.

 

Cheers,

 

Bill

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A few points to consider:

 

 

A poll on this forum would not be scientific of course. How many guys could say for sure it is the finasteride itself causing the problem or the placebo affect of hearing this stuff will shrink your dick. The mind is a powerful thing, the more you think it will have a negative affect, the more likely you will.

 

Not taking up for merck by any means but if one of these drug companies ultimately find a cure for baldness without any risks, how many of you would still keep bashing them?

 

I have not had any problems using fin myself and really cannot tell if it has regrown anything, but if it saves what I have for some time I will be satisfied.

NoBuzz

 

 

 

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If Propecia was being held off the market for decades to wait for safety trials, then we'd all probably be screaming for them to get over the "minor" incidences of sides and just let us try it & decide for ourselves.

 

 

But since it's been put out there as "safe" and Merck's side effects figures are way lower than the "feeling in the air" in the hair loss community, I think we probably react more negatively than if we just didn't have any info about it at all.

 

To each his own.

 

I personally think Merck is lying through their teeth (or else they just didn't want to know what was really going on for plausible deniability reasons). But that doesn't make the drug evil. Just a little more problematic than Merck's sale pitches want us to think.

 

Either way, if Propecia wasn't on the market, it would be the hottest underground hair loss drug out there. There'd be tons of users claiming it's got no side effects at all.

 

 

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I think the problem is that there are more men suffering from side effects of finesteride than the 2% found in the Merck trials.

 

I think maybe we need a poll on here to come up with our own percentage based on posters answers.

 

Not a terrible idea, but (and this is coming from someone has symptoms of side effects (i say SYMPTOMS b/c i can't know for sure if it's from the drug)) the internet will always attract a disproportionate amount of people who think they have something wrong. First of all, it attracts the people who come on and check before they take the drug, and those people are more likely to scare themselves into believing they are afflicted. Second, people who are afflicted will come here more often. If you're 40, you have a job and a family, you went to the doctor and everything went great, you probably won't spend too much time talking about it to people on hair loss message boards.

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Originally posted by jackisback:

 

 

Not a terrible idea, but (and this is coming from someone has symptoms of side effects (i say SYMPTOMS b/c i can't know for sure if it's from the drug)) the internet will always attract a disproportionate amount of people who think they have something wrong. First of all, it attracts the people who come on and check before they take the drug, and those people are more likely to scare themselves into believing they are afflicted. Second, people who are afflicted will come here more often. If you're 40, you have a job and a family, you went to the doctor and everything went great, you probably won't spend too much time talking about it to people on hair loss message boards.

 

Took the words right out of my mouth. Great post, bud.

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Check out the results of my surgical hair restoration performed by Dr. Jerry Cooley by visiting my Hair Loss Weblog

 

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Well... I did read that about 2% of the trial study participants experienced sexual related side effects before I took it.

 

So I didn't think I would fall into such a small percentage.

 

I agree about the physiological symptoms being a factor.

 

However, in my case it is physiological.

 

You can't prove me wrong.

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Folica, we don't want to prove you wrong icon_wink.gif

 

Ironically The girl I was with commented the total opposite about my "erection quality" (seriously). No problems in that area whatsoever here..

 

I can tell you though, it has crossed my mind and sometimes screws with my head.. I think sometimes it is easy to let you mind get the best of you..

JOBI

 

1417 FUT - Dr. True

1476 FUT - Dr. True

2124 FUT - Dr. True

604 FUE - Dr. True

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My views are based on my personal experiences, research and objective observations. I am not a doctor.

 

Total - 5621 FU's uncut!

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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!

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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

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Even more information on negative consequences of finasteride..

 

Link between finasteride and depression:

 

http://www.leaddiscovery.co.uk/admin%20gu/files/14467.asp

 

 

Some more info on the GABA, and allopregnenolone affecting properties of finasteride on the highly reputable pubchem website, which is offered by the United States National Library of Medicine.

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=...anel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

 

 

Having anything wrong with the chemicals inside of you is not an easy thing to go through. I've had to do lots and lots of research on a bunch of subjects that I would have never cared about in the past, but right now it seems like to me that gaining knowledge is pretty much the best thing I can do for myself to be able to start living any sort of normal life again. I'm sure that if there's people out there who can cure themselves of cancer I can cure myself of finasteride side effects..

 

And to Bill, I'm sorry, but after reading as many things as I have, I can't help but feel that taking Finasteride for any reason of vanity is a foolish and weak-minded thing to do. It is definitely one of those things that can affect you adversely neurologically without you even noticing it.

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Matt you sound very passionate about what you put into your body and how it effects it. Your perspective is just that: yours. It doesnt apply to everyone. You have given out some good information for people to chew on. I read the first couple pages of this thread and noticed you said you smoked. Nothing is worse then then in constricting blood vessels. Have you ever seen the face of a smoker. Yes it looks real bad. Your penis is effected by many things. When I was a teenager I took accutane and it severely effected my erections. At times I was depressed and unable to get it up despite being very young.( this was off accutane). I noticed you or another poster talked about depression and anti-depressives. Both effect your ability to get an erection.

 

The natural community is no different then the allopathic community. Both have agendas. I have suffered from bad arthritis since my early twenties and I do whats best for myself. Wether its from the western side or eastern (natural) side. So be careful who your crusading for.

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Originally posted by nobuzz4me:

A few points to consider:

 

 

A poll on this forum would not be scientific of course. How many guys could say for sure it is the finasteride itself causing the problem or the placebo affect of hearing this stuff will shrink your dick. The mind is a powerful thing, the more you think it will have a negative affect, the more likely you will.

 

Not taking up for merck by any means but if one of these drug companies ultimately find a cure for baldness without any risks, how many of you would still keep bashing them?

 

I have not had any problems using fin myself and really cannot tell if it has regrown anything, but if it saves what I have for some time I will be satisfied.

 

a good post. I had erection problems as a guy in my early twenties when I had high anxiety and some depression. Once I worked myself out of it my boner got real solid again. The good old days of sex when I went on a trip with my girlfriend and had sex 25 times in 12 days. Now I have sex 25 times a year. The erection is influenced by many things. If your a bit neurotic and unbalanced and you read something about "side effects" your probably going to be effected by them.

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Jack if you are still having side effects, chances are it is not the Propecia..

 

Again, the mind can do some funny things to you.. Panic attacks, paranoia, etc..

 

I agree with Matt that it is crazy that we take pills for vanity but that is the society we live in.. We also have had our heads cut open as well in addition to the other crazy thing people do for vanity..

JOBI

 

1417 FUT - Dr. True

1476 FUT - Dr. True

2124 FUT - Dr. True

604 FUE - Dr. True

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My views are based on my personal experiences, research and objective observations. I am not a doctor.

 

Total - 5621 FU's uncut!

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  • 9 months later...

I've been taking Propecia for 7 weeks now and for some reason, I feel like when I talk I trip over my words more. I'm usually a fairly quick and witty speaker, but I've only noticed this since I started taking Propecia. has anyone else seen something like this as well? I just moved back to the US from S. Africa so maybe that could be playing a part as well, getting used to the accent.

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Wow, interesting stuff here...Matt I agree with some things you say, but I think you are making more of a case to stay away from DUST than Fin...Fin only blocks type B Alpha5, as opposed to Dust which inhibts A & B...A (which Fin leaves alone), is the one that is in your brain and correlated with the nervous system...That being said there are rare cases when Fin can stop A & B , this is where Fin becomes as dangerous as DUST (which I dont think anyone should take for many reasons you are mentioning)...

 

That being said, to call into the merits of Merck and the FDA is silly...The test that showed the 1.8% is completely legit...Those tests are audited very thoroughly....In truth, the vast majority of people that suffer from lowered libido are themselves to blame.... I speak from experience, when I was going to be intimate , I would stop thinking about what was stimulating me and start thinking about am I getting an erection? Is Propecia going to allow me to grow errect? I would then have issues in the bed room and blame the Fin....But it wasnt the Fin, it was me taking my mind off of my partner and onto my own functionality that was making me lose my erection....

 

The study is evidence of this...Aside from the 1.8% of people that experienced lowered Libido ,1.4% of the Placebo control group also suffered from lowered libido...What this means is of the 1.8% of the people suffering lowered libido, 1.4% of it was pyschological...This means that even if you are in the 2% of people suffering lowered sex drive, there is a 75% chance it is in your head....

 

NOW FOR THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF MY POST!!!! Jack, hang in there buddy! Hair loss and loss of sexual functionality can be a terrible thing...I have experienced both in my lifetime, and I can definately relate to how depressed you are feeling...I would recommend starting a seperate thread in the support group section, as I am sure Bill will do a great job of cheering you up a bit...I promise to chime in to a bit...What I found worked for me is to try experimenting with yourself a bit...Rent a porn (sorry to get so mature here), and try to get yourself arroused...If you see yourself making progress, try to use this to build your confidence...The most important thing for you is to build your confidence...Me and Bill can help you do this...hang in there bud, and if you are trully thinking about harming yourself, there is NOTHING wrong with speaking to someone professional about it...Life is a roller coaster ride full of highs and lows...and to be frank,if you hurt yourself when you are on the low side, you'll never get the chance to rebound...But if you hang in there, you'll bounce back...Guys like us, when we go down, we go down hard, but hey, we always bounce back, right? Keep your head up, and think about starting a thread in the support group section...Hang in there , friend.

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Wow, interesting stuff here...Matt I agree with some things you say, but I think you are making more of a case to stay away from DUST than Fin...Fin only blocks type B Alpha5, as opposed to Dust which inhibts A & B...A (which Fin leaves alone), is the one that is in your brain and correlated with t

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