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Thinking about quiting propecia; erection problems


densedream

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  • Senior Member

I have had 4 HT surgeries and taken propecia for 7 years. I'm terrified of quiting because of the progress I've made with my hair and the thought of losing all the hair around the transplanted is giving me nightmares. I don't even have enough in the donor hair bank to make it look normal should it all fall out.

 

My erections have been getting softer for quite some time. I was too worried about my hair and took erectile boosting medication to cover up the weakness. Now it's not even helping that well. I am healthy, don't smoke, eat well, and have no reason to have ED. I'm only 33 years old! Also I stopped porn 60 days ago in case it was about that because youbrainonporn.com and many people have said that it could be the cause.

 

Not sure what to do next. I'm now taking 1/4 of a proscar every other day. I think I'm gonna half that soon and see what my hair does for a few months. Then maybe half it again and reassess. Hopefully less of the drug will help my erections. If not I will quit all together and pray they come back and I'm not another story on propeciahelp.com Scary stuff.

 

Do you think this is a wise plan. Anything you would do different? I won't use Minox, that stuff is straight poison to me.

 

If worse comes to worse I'm hoping my I ca use my remaining grafts to cover what falls out and use SMP and rock a short cut. As short as my FUT scar will allow. fukc hair loss man

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This is a really tough decision I'm sure, but in the end, you are going to have to terminate what is more important. To me, if I knew for sure that Propecia was causing erectile dysfunction, I would quit it in a heartbeat. In fact, I already have quit it sometime ago and that was not experiencing any side effects. Thankfully, I have not lost any additional hair since I've stopped. But the fear of unknown and the potential for long-term side effects made me decide to quit. In the event that I lose the hair below the crown area which is what Propecia might have been saving, I will get another hair transplant to compensate.

 

Of course, not everybody has more doing her hair to use and that may not always be an option for people for many reasons. But for me, if I knew Propecia was the culprit, I would quit in a heartbeat because my sex life is more important than having just a few more hair follicles.

 

That said, the fact that you've been having sexual problems gradually over the years rather then suddenly or in the first year, makes me think that Propecia may not be the culprit. What I would suggest is consulting a doctor to get a medical opinion. The meantime, you might consider trying to cut down on the amount of Propecia you use, for example if you use it every day try using it every other day because the half-life suggests that it may still be in your system after 48 hours and repeating use hi The meantime, you might consider trying to cut down on the amount of Propecia you use, for example if you use it every day try using it every other day because the half-life suggests that it may still be in your system after 48 hours and repeating use daily may not be necessary. That said, if Propecia is the culprit, cutting down may reduce or eliminate the side effect.

 

I also suggest exploring alternative reasons that you are experiencing some sexual problems. To do this, you will need to consult with the doctor and undergo testing of sorts. But I suggest doing that to rule out all other possibilities.

 

I hope this helps.

 

Bill

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Thanks for the reply. Unfortunately, I've already been to the doctors and had all the "test" and they came back normal. Seems like the doctors just does what big pharma says... "take these pills for a boner".. the end. I'm gonna try to find another doctor that will be more thorough and not just rush me out with a prescription.

 

Good to hear you didn't lose additional hair. I too can't believe that I committed to taking this drug forever without knowing the long term effects. I hope I have the same result if I quit. I am ready to give up hair if it means a better sexual life. Pulling out a wet noodle with a hot woman and saying , " At least have a great head of hair".. is not how I can live my life.

 

Anyways, I will keep this journey updated to help others in a similar situations. Cheers

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Dense dream I was in the same perdicament, I took proscar when I was 22 and experienced erectile issues, there's absolutely nothing more embarrassing than having a hot woman in the bed ready to go and you pull out a limp noodle. To be honest, those events still haunt me till today, I always have a fear in the back of my mind of that happening again even though I don't take fin anymore. Luckily the side effects went away. I know I've put myself at risk being a Norwood 6 at age 30 and getting transplants with no fin. I would rather risk being Norwood 7 then risk being permanently impotent. In the long run, I know as I get older hairloss will affect me less and I feel differently today about my own hairloss than I did when I was 20.


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HTSoon - I agree it's the absolute worse feeling a man can experience in my opinion. It still haunts me as well. And then once we internalize it we can get performance anxiety which compounds the problem. I'm 33 now and although hair loss will definitely still bother me at this or older, I would rather have the function of my junk. I've cut back to 1/8th of proscar every other day. I will do this for a few months and taper off forever. This shit is not natural at all and it can't be a coincidence that so many people have had problems. I am aware some people have no problems whatsoever, but who knows 10-20 years from now.

 

Rashid - with your level of hair loss, I see no reason to take finasteride. You should come up with a plan to best tackle your loss with SMP and hair transplant combination. The pill is used best to keep what you already have. You have almost nothing so I can't see how it would help. Why risk impotence.

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Hi DenseDream,

Why don't you consult a hair loss treatment surgeon. I have had experience of Dr. Tejinder Bhatti for my hair loss. First I had FUE hair transplant and later went for prevention of further hair loss using PRP therapy and I am happy with my results. I would suggest you to contact Dr. Tejinder Bhatti, he is a great doctor with years of experience in this sector, he can surely guide you better.

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Funny you should say that. My last surgery was with Dr. Bhatti. At the time he thought I was committed to finasteride. Might have to go see him and re-assesss if I keep balding after quiting, which is almost guaranteed.

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  • Senior Member

 

Rashid - with your level of hair loss, I see no reason to take finasteride. You should come up with a plan to best tackle your loss with SMP and hair transplant combination. The pill is used best to keep what you already have. You have almost nothing so I can't see how it would help. Why risk impotence.

 

 

 

I have alot of hair loss in the crown but still have thin hair there.

I still have hair mid and at front of head.

It looks worse in my pictures as they were taken using a flash.

 

The reasons i was thinking of giving it a go were;

 

To keep and strengthen my current hair at mid and front of head

To help and keep donor area from been affected

To get any possible regrowth of hair (bonus)

 

The reasons that stop me;

 

When i read posts like this, sides, i already have issues so don't want to risk any further

The worry the sides may last even after stopping

The cost of the med - not cheap

The thought that it is too late for any benefit

 

Some top hair doctors have told me to take it while others have said not

 

I see my GP this Friday and don't know if i should request for it ?

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Rashid- I see no harm in trying it, especially if your options are limited. It's said to promote growth in the crown, so that could be a huge bonus for you. If you experience sides, just discontinue use. The percentage of individual who experience them is relatively low, and I'd image those that have sides after they've discontinued use to be even lower.

 

You should PM spex to find out where he gets his FIN from, I'm sure he'd be able to point you to the most affordable option.

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Yes, I already have but i'm going to ask my GP and give it a try.

 

If i don't get the sides I wonder how long i should try it for ?

 

I'm suprised after 7 years it affected DenseDream but if he is sure it's the med it's better to do what he said above.

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  • 3 years later...

Erectile dysfunction is a really big problem. I also had it 2 years ago. I tried to stop watching porn, masturbating, but nothing helped me. My girlfriend ruined our relationship because of that. My friend recommended me to try very good pills for erection cialis generico precio and it really helped! Now I usually cum about 5 times per day. I really enjoy these pills and can successfully recommend them to everybody with same problems. So quit propecia becuase erection is much more important.

Edited by DupeDupex
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I was in a very similar situation, and it ultimately came down to what I valued more for myself personally... I went back and forth, tried different doses, frequency, etc. and ultimately decided that my sex drive/erections were more important to me and I stopped taking Propecia.

One key factor regarding Propecia that I think sometimes gets lost in the conversation is that the medication does not actually stop hair loss... It simply slows it down (though quite considerably). The way I ultimately looked at it was that any hair loss I experienced after stopping taking Fin wasn't necessarily hair loss that was going to be avoided by the medication. Understanding that Propecia was in many ways just prolonging the inevitable helped me to be at peace with whatever was going to happen... I just may have to address it sooner than I would otherwise. 

I am a patient advocate for Dr. Parsa Mohebi in Los Angeles, CA. My views/opinions are my own and don't necessarily reflect the opinions of Dr. Mohebi and his staff.

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FUE surgery by Dr. Mohebi on 7/31/14
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  • 4 weeks later...

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