Propecia side effects

[hakona]

Hi Friend, appreciate you take the time to read.

late 30 here. NWIII, thinning in frontal hair line, no active excessive shedding. A recent microscopic evaluation during a consult reveals an 80% miniaturization in frontal hair line (nor surprising) and 30% in top. 20% is the average.  The doctor recommended Propecia that will maintain my hair and even thicken the existing one and also will minimize shock loss if I decided to proceed with the transplant. He said at least for 6 months after HT.

 I know that Propecia is the best but  I also heard many side effects about Propecia. I want to ask for your honest opinion.  I know that there are lots of articles online, but as we do in this forum, patients' experiences are king and I would rather listen to real people rather than biased articles.

1) have you experienced any sexual side effect? and if so what & when it started? 

2) did it get better with continual use and if so when?

3) if you have experienced sexual side effects, did it go away after you stopped using it, and after how long?

4) what is the safest/effective dosage that worked for you?

5) When do you expect to see  effects in terms of growth and thickening?

 

Thanks very much friend! 

Happy growing everyone!

[hairlossPA]

been on finasteride for 1.5 years. no sides

1) have you experienced any sexual side effect? and if so what & when it started? - no

2) did it get better with continual use and if so when? - N/A

3) if you have experienced sexual side effects, did it go away after you stopped using it, and after how long? - no sexual sides

4) what is the safest/effective dosage that worked for you? - 1mg per day

5) When do you expect to see  effects in terms of growth and thickening? - I saw drastic improvements within 4 months. I have a thread on my journey here: https://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/topic/53087-finasteride-results-6-months/

 

[RepairingNW3]

1.25 mg finasteride daily for exactly 6 years now. It's also worth noting that I started taking oral minoxidil 5mg daily at the exact same time.

1) Yes. My erections are 10% less hard than they used to be. It's had no impact on my sex life/performance so far other than I can't get "rock hard" anymore. I'm also aging, so that could be contributing too. It's not a big deal at all. Side effects probably started within the first year.

2) No. If anything, I think it has gotten a little worse over time. Again, I'm not sure if this is age-related/

3) I briefly discontinued finasteride for 1-2 months a few years ago. Because the side effects were so minimal I couldn't really tell if they changed during that time

4) I take 1.25 mg daily. I'd like to take 1mg but I haven't figured out a way to cut my 5mg pills into fifths. Too much work. I have a pill cutter and just cut them into four.

5) I took pictures before and after, and there was a major difference at 3 months. My hair became thicker and I grew new hair, which I believe the oral minoxidil helped with.