mental side effects with propecia?

[jspence09]

Has anyone ever experienced mental side effects w/ propecia?

 

The middle of July will 2 months of me on propecia and with my foam I'm seeing very pleasing results.

 

But I've been depressed and feeling/thinking unwanted thoughts?

 

I feel like I'm going crazy and this did start after I took the drug. I don't wanna stop because my hair is growing but I want to stop b/c I feel like I'm going crazy.

 

Is it giving me a chemical inbalance?

 

I'm going to see a therapist tomorrow and see my dermatologist july 21 for the 2 month check up...

 

Help

[jspence09]

Helppppppppppp

[Danielkiwi]

Hi jspence

 

I am not sure you will get a definite answer for this question but i will share my experience with you...i started taking prop about 2 months back and everything was fine for about a week....then my mind started imagining the side effects and wondering if i will become impotent forever...i constantly started thinking about it and had real issues getting out of the bed in the morning...i was thinking just like you that i have gotten crazy etc....to make matters worse, i had already scheduled my HT which i have cancelled for now just to make sure what the hell i need to do to deal with propecia...

 

I then decided to hit the gym bigtime and get myself really tired in the evening by doing strenous workouts...it makes me feel a lot better now and my libido also feels a lil better (Not perfect yet) as you might be aware that weight training increased the testesterone levels in the body...i think the deal with propecia is that whenever you feel a lil low in life, you might end up blaming propecia...

 

I am sure how going to a therapist will help you apart from the fact that you will feel lighter talking to a stranger about it..but then you will have to comeback to your bed and deal with it yourself...

 

Try to get out of it for a week or so and see how you feel..you might get your answers there!!! also, what dosage are u taking? try reducing the dosage a bit and go hit the gym and be a man....please dont depend on a therapist to bail you out!!!

[jspence09]

I think I'm going to stop taking it to just see if its the propecia.

 

Is it possible that I'm seeing propecia results (after almost 2 months) or am I seeing rogaine foam results (on my 3rd can)?

 

I want to stop the propecia but continue the foam. I hope the foam is doing the job rather than the pill.

[jspence09]

I think I'm going to stop taking it to just see if its the propecia.

 

Is it possible that I'm seeing propecia results (after almost 2 months) or am I seeing rogaine foam results (on my 3rd can)?

 

I want to stop the propecia but continue the foam. I hope the foam is doing the job rather than the pill.

[Danielkiwi]

yes try that..who is to say what is doing the job but if i were to guess, i think that propecia is more potent and it might be doing the job for you ....Did you experience ED side effects while on propecia

[jspence09]

I noticed some issues this morning.

Edited July 6, 2010 by Future_HT_Doc
removed inappropriate content

[jspence09]

& I started taking propecia on 5/13/10 so why would I be seeing results from the pill now?

 

Started the foam 5/01/10

[jspence09]

& I started taking propecia on 5/13/10 so why would I be seeing results from the pill now?

 

Started the foam 5/01/10

[Danielkiwi]

& I started taking propecia on 5/13/10 so why would I be seeing results from the pill now?

 

Started the foam 5/01/10

 

 

 

i dont understand your question..what results are you talking about...propecia starts blocking DHT immediately and DHT is what causes hair loss..results might vary depending upon the degree of your hair loss

[jspence09]

???????????????

 

The results I'm talking about is the hairgrowth I'm seeing. Is it from the foam or the pill. I wanna stop the pill b/c I feel its messing with my brain chemically and I'm going crazy

 

What I'm asking is if its possible to see propecia results after 2 months. Or is the foam doing the job??

[jspence09]

???????????????

 

The results I'm talking about is the hairgrowth I'm seeing. Is it from the foam or the pill. I wanna stop the pill b/c I feel its messing with my brain chemically and I'm going crazy

 

What I'm asking is if its possible to see propecia results after 2 months. Or is the foam doing the job??

[Blake Bloxham]

Jspence09,

 

It usually takes at least 3 months before any significant change occurs, and most hair restoration physicians will tell the patient to stay on Propecia for up to 12 months before making an evaluation.

[jspence09]

I've seen hair regrowth. I want the hair to continue to grow. I want to stop taking the pill, b/c I feel its making me crazy. All of this started 3 weeks after I took my first pill and its ruining my whole summer.

 

I'm asking you this: do you think being on this pill for <70 days is making my hair grow or is it the foam? (On my 3rd can)

 

I want to stop the pill, continue the foam, and get these results w/out my depressive mood swings/ mental ocd behavior.

[mahhong]

jspence,

 

A few people report symptoms of depression and/or a general inability to concentrate and maintain mental strength when they use propecia. The difficulty is in determining whether it is definitely propecia that is causing those symptoms, or whether they may be psychsomatic or brought on by other factors.

 

Have you spoken to a doctor about the way you feel? It would help to discuss everything with a professional before making any decisions in my opinion. I'm on the fence about propecia's reported mental side effects because whilst you cannot rule out the possibility it is propecia, it's equally possible that the stress and worry about being on propecia causes a lot of these effects. If you start taking propecia and have a bad day, then begin to believe propecia causes it and start to worry and start having more bad days... well, you can see where I'm going! That's not to say propecia can't be causing these feelings, just that there isn't any concrete evidence to support that and you should probably see a professional first.

 

On to your other question; it's hard to say whether it's the foam or the pills that are helping your hair regrow the most. The truth is, though, propecia is far more effective in the long term than minoxidil at keeping your hair. Using minoxidil on its own can certainly give you healthier, thicker hair that possibly lasts longer, but without propecia to back that up most hair will continue to fall out eventually.

 

So, you certainly don't have to take propecia and if you're really worried about what it's doing then you can always stop for a few weeks and see how you feel, and probably return to the propecia if you want to without much detriment to your hair. My advice, though, would be to talk to a professional and (as condescending as it sounds, I apologise) relax a little and think objectively about why you're feeling mentally not right. It's in your interests to stay on propecia but only if you're comfortable with its side effects - if you really do not want to experience them and you're sure propecia is the cause, then I guess you have to make the decision whether to stop or not.

[jspence09]

Well I'm supposed to see a therapist the 19th and my dermatologist the 21st. I just have a gut feeling its the propecia.

 

& now yesterday I've noticed I haven't been waking up with a hard on. Is my dick done for good now?

[mahhong]

Well I'm supposed to see a therapist the 19th and my dermatologist the 21st. I just have a gut feeling its the propecia.

 

& now yesterday I've noticed I haven't been waking up with a hard on. Is my dick done for good now?

 

I very much doubt it's "gone for good", but this is a good example of the problems in linking propecia to mental/sexual side effects. When men experience any kind of erectile dysfunction or abnormality they worry (obviously!) , and this in turn can cause further problems with erections and desire for sex.

 

It's a chicken and an egg conundrum; is propecia causing your problems, or are you worrying so much about propecia that the stress and anxiety from that is causing your problems?

 

Propecia could be causing your lack of erections but few men report this problem (around 2%, possibly a bit more) and, of course, once you're convinced you can't get it up, getting it up again is very difficult!

 

My advice would be see your professionals and, maybe, just come off propecia for a few days (maybe a week). The way propecia works your hair won't suddenly start falling out if you don't take it for a week, so you'd be fine. If everything returns to normal and you feel better then you can make a decision on whether you want to return to propecia.

 

Perhaps you could also try taking a slightly smaller dose of propecia? It can be a balancing process trying to find a dose that minimises side effects whilst also having positive benefits for your hair. A lot of people take propecia every other day, or half a pill every day, and still see good results with their hair.

 

As hard as I know it is, the main thing is to try and get back to normal with your life and worry less about propecia. I cannot say whether propecia is doing these things to you or not, but there's no definite evidence to say that it is. The problem is when people see a change in their health or begin a new medical regime they often overly analys things and start to notice and exacerbate problems. To use an extreme but personal example, I know someone who had cancer (thankfully they're fine). They did a lot of reading on the internet about how and why cancer spreads around the body, and where it is most likely to spread to. Sure enough they started getting chest pains, back aches, abdominal pains etc. Every time it happened they were sure something was wrong - that they could feel something was not right. Thankfully, every time they went to the doctor it wasn't the return of cancer. It turned out that the vast majority of the symptoms were causes by, you guessed it, stress and anxiety. They particularly concentrated on the areas they feared were most likely to be affected and that's where their pains and problems were the worst.

 

I know that's a very different situation but a lot of the underlying psychology is potentially similar. If you get obsessed about something it's amazing what your body can convince you is happening.

 

I'm not saying propecia isn't a problem for you, but you're doing the right thing by seeing professionals. The main thing is though don't worry and, most importantly, don't start convincing yourself you have all sorts of permanent problems and irreversible side effects. That's very, very. very unlikely to be true at all but if your mind gets into that way of thinking your body can very easily do quite alarming things.

 

See the professionals and maybe think about taking a little break from propecia. Most importantly, spend more than 80% of your day not even thinking about propecia, or hair, and just go and enjoy yourself and get on with your life as best you can. A positive mental attitude is imperative in the world of hair restoration so that's the one thing you can definitely get to work on and change by yourself!

[Danielkiwi]

Well said mahong. I agree with everything that you have said because i have been through this. If it was not for weight training, i would have gotten rid of propecia long time back. You seem to be very knowledgeable and i want to ask a question...

 

After a good session of weight training, my erections are pretty normal but if i miss a couple of workout days, i kinda loose the hard errections. Do you think this is psychological or there could be a scientific evidence for it..Although i see sense in seeing a Urologist, i dont see how seeing a therapist would help in this case..It is a long term question and all of us have to listen to our body and take the call. although a therapist might make one feel better for a short term, i dont see this as a long term solution

[jspence09]

Mahhong, thank u so much for that long detailed answer.

 

The thing is, I've always kindve felt like I had a tiny mini case of OCD and it just got waaaaaaay worse when I started taking this medicine.

 

Another thing that worries me is that I read stuff online about some guys who have permanent ED problems and aren't able to make babies. Plus its harder for them to lose weight and gain muscle. This is extra hard for me considering I'm trying to break in the modeling/acting/entertainment industry. Where I need the perfect hair, body and everything.

 

Could I take anxiety/ocd medicine WITH my procepia to balance things out?

[mahhong]

Well said mahong. I agree with everything that you have said because i have been through this. If it was not for weight training, i would have gotten rid of propecia long time back. You seem to be very knowledgeable and i want to ask a question...

 

After a good session of weight training, my erections are pretty normal but if i miss a couple of workout days, i kinda loose the hard errections. Do you think this is psychological or there could be a scientific evidence for it..Although i see sense in seeing a Urologist, i dont see how seeing a therapist would help in this case..It is a long term question and all of us have to listen to our body and take the call. although a therapist might make one feel better for a short term, i dont see this as a long term solution

 

Hi Daniel,

 

I'm no expert or not a professional in any way so these are just opinions, but I believe there could be a scientific reason for why weight training helps.

 

DHT is a bi-product of testosterone, it's more well known counterpart. When you produce testosterone your body metabolises some of that testosterone into DHT. I'm not sure of the ratio between testosterone and DHT but it stands to reason that if your body produces more testosterone because of the weight training, there will be more testosterone to convert into DHT.

 

To use a very bad but simple numerical example let's say there is 1 DHT for every 4 testosterone in your body, so when there is 100 testosterone there are 25 DHT. If you take propecia it will be lowering that value of 25 DHT, let's say by 75%, so in that case propecia would lower your DHT to 6.25.

 

But, if you were working out and increasing your testosterone levels to say 150, you'd then have 37.5 DHT by comparison. If you took propecia it would then lower your DHT but, in this case, only to 9.375, so you'd have more DHT in your body.

 

That, as far as I can see, is a potential scientific explanation. Of course, it could be psychological as well, but to me there is a potential scientific explanation.

 

I have no evidence to back up my theory, but my own personal theory is that men are individuals with differing testosterone levels and endocrine systems. I would say that when it comes to propecia the trick is to find the balance between having enough DHT so that it can do its job, but lowering it by enough that it has a positive effect on your hair. Propecia is given out in blanket doses of 1mg but I reckon doing a blood test before you start taking it and maybe 6 months later would be a good idea, as well as monitoring your own body and listening to it.

 

jspence, in response to your question, I cannot say, but I would imagine you could take OCD anxiety medicine and your doctor will tell you if that's the case. Also, I wouldn't read so much of the anti-propecia stuff on the net. Propecia can potentially cause side effects but a lot of the permanent impotence and physiological symptoms stories are dubious. The truth is, in a lot of the cases, people read about propecia, take the plunge and start using it and straight away feel worried they've made some massive, irreversible mistake, and that anxiety causes them to feel many of the symptoms they were worried about. It's interesting that in the medical trials very few people reported sexual side effects and I believe a big part of the reason is because they didn't scare themselves by having anything to read on the net!

 

If propecia is causing problems then I think the worst case scenario is that you have to stop taking it and wait a few days/weeks for the side effects to cease. There are some stories about so-called permanent problems but they are few and far between and often quite dubious (plus, considering the drug has only been out just over ten years, the word "permanent" is a bit soon!). If you think how many millions of men are taking propecia without a hitch in this world then it stands to reason whilst the drug warrants monitoring and using with caution, if you listen to your body and relax it's perfectly safe!

 

Oh, one thing I did want to mention, although I plan to start using propecia and have done lots of research into it (both on the net and talking to professionals), I'm not using it yet (although I will be very soon). I just wanted to put that in because I felt like a bit of a fraud airing my views without being upfront about the fact I'm not taking the drug! Rest assured though I'm looking forward to starting propecia shortly and my opinions are based on honest assessment of the facts and figures!

[jspence09]

I thank you so much for your detailed response.

 

I'm going to not take propecia for the next week (starting yesterday) to see if the mental confusion clears up. However I'm scared if I tell my dermatologist about the mental symptoms I'm having, that she'll take me off the meds & won't give me a script anymore. I need it. I need my hair to grow but my mind is just acting different and the timeline fits pretty good.

 

Idk what to do. is this ED thing only for the first few months? Or perminent? & will i no longer be able to make babies. (Although I'm only 19 & not thinking about kids now, just thinking about the future.)

[mahhong]

I would imagine, whilst taking your situation seriously of course, your dermatologist wouldn't take you off the propecia if you mentioned your mental symptoms. She's more than likely, if anything, going to recommend you see another doctor to discuss and analyse those symptoms separately. There's no evidential link between propecia and mental problems that I know of and so your doctor is very unlikely going to jump to that conclusion.

 

A lot of men who experienced some form of erectile dysfunction on propecia reported improvements in the following months, so there is a good chance that is the case. As your body adjusts to the lowered DHT quite often there is temporary drop in libido and sexual function that can return as your body adjusts to the new hormonal levels.

 

Your week of propecia will do you good, if only to see how you feel. Tell your doctor what, if anything, changes when you're on/off propecia and this can only help them make any diagnosis that needs to be made.

 

The main thing though is to stop worrying. I know it's hard but all this worry about not being able to have kids and having OCD is going turn you crazy long before propecia would! The overwhelmingly vast majority of men either have very little side effects with propecia or at least return to their normal state when they stop the drug. Those that claim propecia has permanently changed them, whilst they may or may not be right, are in the very small minority and it's difficult to make a proper diagnosis about what has really happened to them. Other factors like stress, illness, age, lifestyle, fitness or undiagnosed medical conditions may also be playing a part in their problems so it's not as easy as just blaming propecia.

 

The first thing is to take the week off, see the doc and find out what the options are. don't worry about whether you'll be able to make babies - getting frantic about questions that big is going to make you feel worse and is unnecessary. I'm sure you'll come to a happy result with this problem!

[Danielkiwi]

Hi Daniel,

 

I'm no expert or not a professional in any way so these are just opinions, but I believe there could be a scientific reason for why weight training helps.

 

DHT is a bi-product of testosterone, it's more well known counterpart. When you produce testosterone your body metabolises some of that testosterone into DHT. I'm not sure of the ratio between testosterone and DHT but it stands to reason that if your body produces more testosterone because of the weight training, there will be more testosterone to convert into DHT.

 

To use a very bad but simple numerical example let's say there is 1 DHT for every 4 testosterone in your body, so when there is 100 testosterone there are 25 DHT. If you take propecia it will be lowering that value of 25 DHT, let's say by 75%, so in that case propecia would lower your DHT to 6.25.

 

But, if you were working out and increasing your testosterone levels to say 150, you'd then have 37.5 DHT by comparison. If you took propecia it would then lower your DHT but, in this case, only to 9.375, so you'd have more DHT in your body.

 

That, as far as I can see, is a potential scientific explanation. Of course, it could be psychological as well, but to me there is a potential scientific explanation.

 

I have no evidence to back up my theory, but my own personal theory is that men are individuals with differing testosterone levels and endocrine systems. I would say that when it comes to propecia the trick is to find the balance between having enough DHT so that it can do its job, but lowering it by enough that it has a positive effect on your hair. Propecia is given out in blanket doses of 1mg but I reckon doing a blood test before you start taking it and maybe 6 months later would be a good idea, as well as monitoring your own body and listening to it.

 

jspence, in response to your question, I cannot say, but I would imagine you could take OCD anxiety medicine and your doctor will tell you if that's the case. Also, I wouldn't read so much of the anti-propecia stuff on the net. Propecia can potentially cause side effects but a lot of the permanent impotence and physiological symptoms stories are dubious. The truth is, in a lot of the cases, people read about propecia, take the plunge and start using it and straight away feel worried they've made some massive, irreversible mistake, and that anxiety causes them to feel many of the symptoms they were worried about. It's interesting that in the medical trials very few people reported sexual side effects and I believe a big part of the reason is because they didn't scare themselves by having anything to read on the net!

 

If propecia is causing problems then I think the worst case scenario is that you have to stop taking it and wait a few days/weeks for the side effects to cease. There are some stories about so-called permanent problems but they are few and far between and often quite dubious (plus, considering the drug has only been out just over ten years, the word "permanent" is a bit soon!). If you think how many millions of men are taking propecia without a hitch in this world then it stands to reason whilst the drug warrants monitoring and using with caution, if you listen to your body and relax it's perfectly safe!

 

Oh, one thing I did want to mention, although I plan to start using propecia and have done lots of research into it (both on the net and talking to professionals), I'm not using it yet (although I will be very soon). I just wanted to put that in because I felt like a bit of a fraud airing my views without being upfront about the fact I'm not taking the drug! Rest assured though I'm looking forward to starting propecia shortly and my opinions are based on honest assessment of the facts and figures!

 

 

Those are interesting thoughts and who knows whats going in inside our body...Sometimes i feel like i am loosing hair due to excess testesterone in my body due to weight lifting..i havent seen anbody getting bald in my ancestors and dont know why this is happening to me. I am going to see a urologist pretty soon and hopefully he will be able to answer my questions...i really appreciate your detailed response and will keep u posted

[jspence09]

I would imagine, whilst taking your situation seriously of course, your dermatologist wouldn't take you off the propecia if you mentioned your mental symptoms. She's more than likely, if anything, going to recommend you see another doctor to discuss and analyse those symptoms separately. There's no evidential link between propecia and mental problems that I know of and so your doctor is very unlikely going to jump to that conclusion.

 

A lot of men who experienced some form of erectile dysfunction on propecia reported improvements in the following months, so there is a good chance that is the case. As your body adjusts to the lowered DHT quite often there is temporary drop in libido and sexual function that can return as your body adjusts to the new hormonal levels.

 

Your week of propecia will do you good, if only to see how you feel. Tell your doctor what, if anything, changes when you're on/off propecia and this can only help them make any diagnosis that needs to be made.

 

The main thing though is to stop worrying. I know it's hard but all this worry about not being able to have kids and having OCD is going turn you crazy long before propecia would! The overwhelmingly vast majority of men either have very little side effects with propecia or at least return to their normal state when they stop the drug. Those that claim propecia has permanently changed them, whilst they may or may not be right, are in the very small minority and it's difficult to make a proper diagnosis about what has really happened to them. Other factors like stress, illness, age, lifestyle, fitness or undiagnosed medical conditions may also be playing a part in their problems so it's not as easy as just blaming propecia.

 

The first thing is to take the week off, see the doc and find out what the options are. don't worry about whether you'll be able to make babies - getting frantic about questions that big is going to make you feel worse and is unnecessary. I'm sure you'll come to a happy result with this problem!

 

 

I don't know what to do anymore. All I know is I've never really felt like this until I started the propecia. I'm just hoping that if the 2-3 months of propecia screwed my brain up chemically, then the shrink can give me something to balance it back out to normal?

 

Then maybe I could take the propecia/anxiety meds together and have a good mental state w/ a head full of hair and morning wood!! All three together would be quite nice.