Propecia side effects

[chi-town37]

Been on Propecia for 2 and a half weeks now. I think I am experiencing some of the low % side effects, or uncommon as some articles I've read. I am no longer waking up in the morning with an erection, and while watching porn, It takes longer to get anything to move down there !!! I don't have any loss of libido, and I have had sex with my wife, getting an erection felt different, like before it would happen quicker, I guess you could say.

Are these normal, and will go away as my body gets used to the drug being in my system? Or are these all signs of potential long term problems? Anybody that can give me some insight, I thank you !!!

[ontop]

From my own personal point is that it would subside once your body get used to it.

I've been taking Fin for almost 8mths & morning wood showing up for me more regular than the start just like how you are now.

 

Keep in tune with your body but try not to overthink it the same time...easy said than done right? But really you can do it.

 

Good luck.

[chi-town37]

Great, thx

[ostrich]

Been on Propecia for 2 and a half weeks now. I think I am experiencing some of the low % side effects, or uncommon as some articles I've read. I am no longer waking up in the morning with an erection, and while watching porn, It takes longer to get anything to move down there !!! I don't have any loss of libido, and I have had sex with my wife, getting an erection felt different, like before it would happen quicker, I guess you could say.

Are these normal, and will go away as my body gets used to the drug being in my system? Or are these all signs of potential long term problems? Anybody that can give me some insight, I thank you !!!

 

it happened to me after 52 days of taking propecia 1mg.

it was quit serious and i stopped taking it. one of the worst side was watery cement and decreased pleasure during ejaculation!!

 

after 2 month ,i just started it 4 days ago.

i want to see how it goes this time,i am thinking of taking it 3x per week for the 2nd box.(provided the sides don't apear .

 

if the sides come back again,i quit it forever and try topical stuff.

 

will keep you posted .

[chi-town37]

I'm actually going to do the same thing. I took my last pill on Monday, and I will not take my next until next Monday, and only 3x a week. If side effects continue, I'm done !

[TakingThePlunge]

Another thing you can try is modifying your dosing. Years ago when I first took finasteride I was quartering a generic 5mg tablet. I experienced some of the sides you mentioned as well as minor testicular pain. I played around with the dose and ended up settling on 1/4 tablet Monday, Wednesday and Friday which seemed to alleviate most of the complications.

 

I quit the drug for a few years and started again a couple of months ago after my recent hair transplant. This time I've got 1mg generic tablets and I'm taking 1/2 tablet per day. I have not experienced any sexual side effects at this time. But, it does seem to casue acne for me. I had this experience both times I used the drug.

[Jopps123]

I just joined this group and saw this so thought I would chime in. That stuff is poison and I would stay away. I used Propecia for about 4 years and suffered severe side effects, some of which have not subsided after 6 years. If you notice any changes at all stop taking it immediately. I just wish my Doctor would have told me about the possible side effects before I started on it. I would have never taken it.

[ontop]

Why did you wait 4 yrs to find out its no good for you?

[Jopps123]

Because I didn't have side effects at first and when they started they came on very slowly and I just attributed it to being over 30. But they progressively got worse and worse and when they finally got bad enough that it was causing me serious issues I went to the Doctor and he said "That is definitely the Propecia" so I stopped immediately. I guess I should have been more aware but everything I knew about Propecia was that if you were to have side effects they would be when you initially started taking it. That wasn't the case with me at all. It didn't even register in year 2 or 3 when I started having some initial minor side effects that it was due to the Propecia.

 

Some of the side effects subsided after I stopped taking it (slowely over time) but others I am still suffering with after 6 years.

[Yonex]

Because I didn't have side effects at first and when they started they came on very slowly and I just attributed it to being over 30. But they progressively got worse and worse and when they finally got bad enough that it was causing me serious issues I went to the Doctor and he said "That is definitely the Propecia" so I stopped immediately. I guess I should have been more aware but everything I knew about Propecia was that if you were to have side effects they would be when you initially started taking it. That wasn't the case with me at all. It didn't even register in year 2 or 3 when I started having some initial minor side effects that it was due to the Propecia.

 

Some of the side effects subsided after I stopped taking it (slowely over time) but others I am still suffering with after 6 years.

 

Hi Jopps

 

Would you mind elaborating on the sides you had and have to this day?

 

I have been on Propecia for almost 2 years and I also believe the sides have slowly caught up with me now to the point where im seriously considering throwing the stuff away. Its a tough one because as we get older our sexual function does diminish but ive reached the point now where its just ridiculous and i dont think its purely old age, im almost 39, hardly ancient!

 

My sides are very watery semen, poor orgasm sensation, weak erection, hardly ever get morning wood, cold balls, all sexual as you can see, its a nightmare at the moment to be honest

[Jopps123]

Hi sure. My side effects initially was just lower libido which eventually turned into zero libido for the last few months that I took it. After a couple of years I started noticing weak erections and no morning erections. What really freaked me out and caused me to see the Doctor was that I noticed significant loss of size to my erections. It started happening gradually and then one day i looked down and I kid you not the base of my erect penis was only about as big around as my thumb with the head and outer shaft normal size. It looked like a cone. I saw the Doctor that day and stopped taking it immediately. It took a few weeks for that cone effect to go away but to this day I have lost significant size. It's probably a good 25% shorter and a bit less thick than it used to be. Propecia also killed my testosterone levels. Before I started taking it I had my levels checked during a physical and they were very high (around 800). After stopping I had them tested again and they were a dismal 150.

 

For about 2 weeks immediately after I stopped taking Propecia i would wake up with serious Morning Wood every day(super hard like when I was in high school). That stopped but I still wake up with morning wood just about every day now, which is good. The lasting side effects that I still have:

 

Low testosterone and low thyroid levels. My testosterone has improved a bit but still very low (around 300). My thyroid levels are also low and have been ever since I stopped.

Low libido. I am 39 too so that has to have an impact but I still don't have anywhere near the sex drive I once did. It has improved quite a bit from where it was but still not where I would like it to be. It is not normal to have a woman wanting to have sex with you and you say no. That used to happen with my wife all the time and really caused issues with our marriage for many years. Almost led to a divorce.

Erections have just started getting firmer again. That took about 5 years for a noticeable difference. Still not like it used to be though.

Worst thing is the loss in size though. I'm still hoping that one day that will come back but after so much time I am not very optimistic.

[Yonex]

Man that is horrific, thanks for sharing your story , I hope everything eventually goes back to normal for you

[BaldingBogger]

Merks side effects percentage of 2% for Propecia is Science Fiction! Personally having tried i would not go near this stuff again.

 

Hair loss sufferers really need a better option.

[MAGNUMpi]

Hi sure. My side effects initially was just lower libido which eventually turned into zero libido for the last few months that I took it. After a couple of years I started noticing weak erections and no morning erections. What really freaked me out and caused me to see the Doctor was that I noticed significant loss of size to my erections. It started happening gradually and then one day i looked down and I kid you not the base of my erect penis was only about as big around as my thumb with the head and outer shaft normal size. It looked like a cone. I saw the Doctor that day and stopped taking it immediately. It took a few weeks for that cone effect to go away but to this day I have lost significant size. It's probably a good 25% shorter and a bit less thick than it used to be. Propecia also killed my testosterone levels. Before I started taking it I had my levels checked during a physical and they were very high (around 800). After stopping I had them tested again and they were a dismal 150.

 

For about 2 weeks immediately after I stopped taking Propecia i would wake up with serious Morning Wood every day(super hard like when I was in high school). That stopped but I still wake up with morning wood just about every day now, which is good. The lasting side effects that I still have:

 

Low testosterone and low thyroid levels. My testosterone has improved a bit but still very low (around 300). My thyroid levels are also low and have been ever since I stopped.

Low libido. I am 39 too so that has to have an impact but I still don't have anywhere near the sex drive I once did. It has improved quite a bit from where it was but still not where I would like it to be. It is not normal to have a woman wanting to have sex with you and you say no. That used to happen with my wife all the time and really caused issues with our marriage for many years. Almost led to a divorce.

Erections have just started getting firmer again. That took about 5 years for a noticeable difference. Still not like it used to be though.

Worst thing is the loss in size though. I'm still hoping that one day that will come back but after so much time I am not very optimistic.

Hi Jopps123,

Holy molasses!

Did your doctor say that these things were all because of Finasteride?

Could some of them been from something else in your life? Just wondering because my testosterone has been getting lower in the last few years also and I'm not sure why.

I mean (this is kind of personal) but when you say "loss of libido" do you mean you didn't even want to wank, have sexual thoughts, want sex at all or was it more just in real life situations?

[Uk86]

Scary that !

[Jopps123]

When I went to my Dr he said it was definitely the Propecia. No idea why he didn't warn me of the possible side effects at the beginning. Maybe he didn't know at the time.

 

Also I went to an Endocrinologist about my low testosterone and thyroid issues and he said that he saw tons of patients that were former Propecia users. He felt that my issues were entirely caused by Propecia. I had blood work test results from a year before the Propecia to prove that I didn't have any issues with that before.

 

When i say I had loss of libido I mean it was eventually pretty much gone. I was almost asexual. Didn't think about sex, didn't want sex. Stopped masturbating, no interest in porn, etc.. This happened over time and got progressively worse. I could still get an erection (I was never impotent) but because I had no interest in sex I would lose the erection during sex. And when I had an erection they were never really hard so that was psychologically difficult and made me very self conscious.

[RKHT02]

Merks side effects percentage of 2% for Propecia is Science Fiction! Personally having tried i would not go near this stuff again.

 

Hair loss sufferers really need a better option.

 

I have to agree here, I had a bad experience with Propecia and wish I hadn't tried it. I know a couple of guys who have tried it and been fine on it but I didn't agree with me at all.

[Jopps123]

I think a lot of guys have issues from it and don't even know it. They just attribute the negative effects to getting older.

[BaldingBogger]

I think a lot of guys have issues from it and don't even know it. They just attribute the negative effects to getting older.

 

100%. Bear in mind theres a lot of guys out there with not that active sex lifes and getting a bit older. They would just atrribute any side affects to that. Every drug has side effects. Add to that the lack of long term study and you have the potential for a time bomb.

 

The drug is mega powerful and i would put it on a par with anabolic steroids in terms of its strength, side effects and hormonal altering properties.

[Djlazerblue]

Did anyone experienced panic disorder whilst taking? I'm sure this brought mine on

[SatyamAmbala41]

loss interest in sex or problem having an orgasm is normal for patients taking this drug. These side effects are temporary, will gone after stop taking drug.

[MAGNUMpi]

loss interest in sex or problem having an orgasm is normal for patients taking this drug.

Nope. It's a "possible" side effect, meaning a person may or may not experience it.

 

These side effects are temporary, will gone after stop taking drug.

Not necessarily true.

[ForeverLacey]

I honestly think these drugs are hit or miss as far as side effects go. I'm transgendered, and have been on the strongest anti androgens for several years along with estradiol. Finasteride 5mg from January 2012 to January 2015 before switching to 1mg Avodart and I can say I never experienced any side effects. If you are then simply go off them. However, don't let those crying about side effect discourage you from trying at the least. They may work out for you.

[Torel]

Which is fine and all lacey and with the utmost of respect to your circumstances... well errr... trying to think of a way to put this that isnt presumptive...but if you're post op transgendered then the size of your penis, ability to maintain an erection etc... aren't going to be major things to you.

 

I'm not trying to be horrible to you (gay guy here, whose had friends within the transgendered community since I was a kid); I'm just saying considering the treatments you've been on, it might not be the same experience as it is for alot of other people on this forum.

 

Saying that I agree with you; if hair loss is really worrying someone, then trying it is something they should consider, but they really should consider the side effects first, especially if those side effects don't reverse when coming off the tablet.

 

Personally the idea of losing size in my penis is not an awesome thought; as sexually I derive alot of confidance from its size and width; so the psychological impact a reduction in that area could do, would probably be far greater than just the physical reduction.

 

Saying that I knew of the possible side effects going in but ultimately I felt losing all my hair would depress me and it was worth the gamble.

 

EDIT: and i hasten to say, for me I've not really experienced any long term sides. I had decreased libido and my penis felt less sensitive, making it more difficult to achieve orgasm, but that seems to have subsided

Edited July 12, 2015 by Torel

[KO]

Uh...penis size changes are rare. These things sound dramatic though.