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It Happened. Sexual Side Effects with finasteride.


Gatsby

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10 minutes ago, MachoVato said:

Half life is interesting. Let's say you take 1mg pill. In 5 days, half of it will be gone, leaving you with 0.5mg in your scalp. Then 5 days later, half of that is gone, leaving you with 0.25mg in your scalp. Then 5 days later you will have 0.125mg... and on and on. So even if you take a pill every 5 days, there is still residual build-up. 

Ah ok. Got you. 
 

So assuming this, orally is likely to remain in unwanted areas of tissue at the same rate. A further argument for trying to avoid first pass, and go topical? 

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4 minutes ago, Curious25 said:

Ah ok. Got you. 
 

So assuming this, orally is likely to remain in unwanted areas of tissue at the same rate. A further argument for trying to avoid first pass, and go topical? 

I agree. I tried to go topical myself. But once my transplant started growing, I couldn't apply it to the scalp any more, it just got an the hair. So I went back to oral. I'm thinking of quitting for a few months to see if there's any impact. I'll stay on oral minoxidil, though.

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8 minutes ago, Curious25 said:

I have long hair so applying topical isn’t the easiest I have to agree. I try to part my hair and directly drop onto the areas of the scalp and massage it in. 

It helps if you only need it on a small area, like your crown or something. I have diffusion so I needed it everywhere. No way topical works for me.

That said, I'm starting testosterone injections soon. I need to consider that if I'm going to ease up on finasteride. 😎

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I take it 0.2-0.5mg every other day, or twice a week if I forget sometimes.

It has had the opposite effect on me where my libido is actually increased the day I take them. I read that this is because there’s more free testosterone circulating instead of being converted to DHT. No clue 

Thing is libido changes around your life/diet/day to day stuff. Sometimes it’s at peak, other times you’re preoccupied with other stuff that it doesn’t matter. 

Also sexuality/sexual performance is something that’s very easily influenced since it’s all psychological which is why I avoid threads like these to avoid giving me a nocebo effect. I only read it to share my experience.

I actually like it since it allows me to last a lot longer and calm down a bit 😂 The imaginations are also a lot more vivid for some reason when I am alone. Sorry if this is too much information but yeah I would check if you’re just having a nocebo effect because you read something online. We don’t really think about our bodies that much and when we do notice something, it feels out of ordinary when it’s always been like that unnoticed 

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9 hours ago, Euphoria said:

I take it 0.2-0.5mg every other day, or twice a week if I forget sometimes.

It has had the opposite effect on me where my libido is actually increased the day I take them. I read that this is because there’s more free testosterone circulating instead of being converted to DHT. No clue 

Thing is libido changes around your life/diet/day to day stuff. Sometimes it’s at peak, other times you’re preoccupied with other stuff that it doesn’t matter. 

Also sexuality/sexual performance is something that’s very easily influenced since it’s all psychological which is why I avoid threads like these to avoid giving me a nocebo effect. I only read it to share my experience.

I actually like it since it allows me to last a lot longer and calm down a bit 😂 The imaginations are also a lot more vivid for some reason when I am alone. Sorry if this is too much information but yeah I would check if you’re just having a nocebo effect because you read something online. We don’t really think about our bodies that much and when we do notice something, it feels out of ordinary when it’s always been like that unnoticed 

There are many cases of the nocebo affect, that's true, but when they're real they're re real. For someone who's had multiple experiences on finasteride with a calm perspective, they can been a good idea of what their 'normal' libido is allowing for natural fluctuations and know when something is off.

Others do get the opposite effect libido increase (lucky people), but that's not the case for everybody

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58 minutes ago, BurnieBurns said:

There are many cases of the nocebo affect, that's true, but when they're real they're re real. For someone who's had multiple experiences on finasteride with a calm perspective, they can been a good idea of what their 'normal' libido is allowing for natural fluctuations and know when something is off.

Others do get the opposite effect libido increase (lucky people), but that's not the case for everybody

Oh, no doubt. It’s suppressing hormones after all . Perhaps they have low levels to begin with or just genetics. I can’t take a particular medicine, get serious heart palpitations and ended up in hospital once, my family member accidentally overdosed on it and was still fine. Just genetics 💁🏻‍♀️

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For whatever, reason, some people are just sensitive to Finanseterid (or changes in hormon levels). Of course, people who do not have sides do want to acknowledge that. This Hair Loss Forum is clearly the most favoutable to Fin. While it it the most efficient drug for hair loss out there ann well tolerated by a lot of folks, it is not a miracle drug as. There are a few facts that are rarely pointed out here:

- It does not work for around 10% of users. 

- Even while on Fin, you will likely continue to use slowly ground while on Fin.

- If you have aggressive hair loss, it is possible the hair loss genes will overpower the medication

- It is possible to develop sides in the long term (even after 10 years plus).  

- For a small subset of people, it can cause permanent sides

 

 

Edited by Mike10
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On 4/28/2022 at 8:02 PM, Euphoria said:

I take it 0.2-0.5mg every other day, or twice a week if I forget sometimes.

It has had the opposite effect on me where my libido is actually increased the day I take them. I read that this is because there’s more free testosterone circulating instead of being converted to DHT. No clue 

Thing is libido changes around your life/diet/day to day stuff. Sometimes it’s at peak, other times you’re preoccupied with other stuff that it doesn’t matter. 

Also sexuality/sexual performance is something that’s very easily influenced since it’s all psychological which is why I avoid threads like these to avoid giving me a nocebo effect. I only read it to share my experience.

I actually like it since it allows me to last a lot longer and calm down a bit 😂 The imaginations are also a lot more vivid for some reason when I am alone. Sorry if this is too much information but yeah I would check if you’re just having a nocebo effect because you read something online. We don’t really think about our bodies that much and when we do notice something, it feels out of ordinary when it’s always been like that unnoticed 

Do you still take it at this dose

I have just taken 0.5mg today and am planning to run it at maximum twice a week, has it been effective for you?

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On 4/23/2022 at 3:15 AM, Gatsby said:

If I knew now what I knew then I would never have had a hair transplant at all. I would have shaved my head. End of story. My recent hair transplant was more about hiding the scars and damage from the first surgeries when I was a kid as it was about hair. If I didn’t have the scars from this now I would have stuck with my shaved head and SMP. No drugs, shampoo, hair cuts, thousands and thousands of dollars spent, etc. Surgery is always a last resort. I strongly suggest you consider going down this path rather than having surgery. All the best! 

I tried shaving my head, and I looked fine, but I am sure I look better after the hair transplant. There are great doctors nowadays, but it is not like fixing your teeth to improve the way they look; it is a long process that requires lifelong discipline.

I agree that finasteride is a tricky medicine that works differently depending on your body; working out, stress and mental health, in general, make a big difference in your sexual "performance". It is difficult for some people to find the right combination, others don't have any side effects, and the lucky ones get great results without side effects.

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I have just started taking topical minoxidil 5% foam tonight and I will seriously consider going back to 0.5mg Finasteride every other day and stay at this dose. I will be looking into seeing if I can get Xylon topical Finasteride also and if possible, will drop the oral dose. 

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On 4/22/2021 at 1:15 PM, Gatsby said:

 people who have had the same experience as I have and if by giving the drug a break found that starting it again (say a month later) at a much lower dose (ie. .5mg three times a week) found that the sexual side effects discontinued?

I'm on 1mg a day now for about 3 months and I can tell that my sex drive did go down a bit. But then again, I also didn't work out anymore. Next to that my alcohol consumption increased significantly and my diet became really crappy (high carb high fat low protein). This caused a massive body fat spike which does not promote sex drive either.. So there were multiple major changes that certainly could also be (partly) the cause of the side effect.

Currently I'm hitting the gym again and back on my former diet. Doing this now for just a week so I need to give it time. Also the alcohol consumption is something I want to push down to max 2 beers or 1 vodka a week instead of 40+ beers (converted heavy liquor to beers so those are included). That lifestyle also messed with my sleep which makes me feel fatigued and that doesn't boost my sex drive either.

If this doesn't help I will go back to my baseline of 1mg every other day which was perfectly fine for me. 

Just wanted to see what the effects were on 1mg a day in regards to har growth and recovery.

Another side effect which I had months back (feeling depressed) didn't came from fin as I increased the dose during that time and the depressed feeling went away when the evenings became longer (which I had the year before as well). That's a seasonal thing for me it seems now.

What I'm trying to say is that it is important to figure out all changes and try to change those first. Also, I've read that for some there is an adaption phase where they have issues but a few weeks later those are gone again.

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I’ve just returned from Thailand for a month and I was at the gym neatly everyday. I’ve challenged the drug several times and so far it appears that I tolerate it at 0.5mg. When I go to 1mg my libido disappears. My health, exercise routine and diet are excellent for an old buggar! 😉

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I've been on oral finasteride for 27 days so far. I take 1mg everyday after dinner time. 

I haven't noticed any difference in my body yet. Maybe it's too early for me to notice something ? I know it will take at least 6 months to have a strong affect on the hair, but I am not educated enough to say the earliest it can affect someone's body regarding side affects.. I'm sure someone can confirm me with that one 

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7 hours ago, Ryan Daniel said:

I've been on oral finasteride for 27 days so far. I take 1mg everyday after dinner time. 

I haven't noticed any difference in my body yet. Maybe it's too early for me to notice something ? I know it will take at least 6 months to have a strong affect on the hair, but I am not educated enough to say the earliest it can affect someone's body regarding side affects.. I'm sure someone can confirm me with that one 

Hey Ryan,

It can take up to two years to see the full benefits of Finasteride. It has a half life of 22 hours (which will vary from individual to individual) and is still active in the dermis for up to 30 days once you cease the drug. Try not to think about side effects while you are on it so a placebo effect doesn’t occur. All the best! 

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