Welcome to our community. Please fill in the following template as a way of introducing yourself, and helping others to understand your background and situation.
Where are you from (country)?
How did you find this forum (Google search – if so, what search terms? Via link from a forum or website – if so, what page? Other?)
Been reading it for years. Found on the net I guess
What is your current age, height, weight?
40
5’8
200
What specific drug did you use (finasteride, dutasteride, saw palmetto, isotretinoin/Accutane, fluoxetine, sertraline, citalopram, leuprorelin, etc…)?
Prppecia
What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
Every day
What condition was being treated with the drug?
Hair loss
For how long did you take the drug (weeks/months/years)?
Few months
How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start the drug?
33
How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit?
33
How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
Cold turkey
How long into your usage did you notice the onset of side effects?
Two weeks but ignored it. Thought its in my head. Stupid me.
What side effects did you experience that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
For six years I had erectyle distinction. Tiredness. No libido. Hard to remember words when I need them.
Check the boxes that apply. You can save your post first, then interactively check/uncheck the boxes by clicking on them. If your symptoms change, please update your list.
Sexual
[x ] Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
[x] Erectile Dysfunction
[x ] Complete Impotence
[ x] Loss of Morning Erections
[ ]x Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[ x] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[ ] Watery Ejaculate
[ x] Reduced Ejaculate
[ x] Inability or Difficulty to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[x ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility
Mental
[ ]x Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
X[ ] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[ ] Confusion
[x ] Memory Loss / Forgetfulness
[x ] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[x ] Slurring of Speech
[ x] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[ ] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[ ] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[ ]x Suicidal Thoughts
Physical
[x ] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[ ] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[x ] Testicular Pain
[ x] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[ ]x Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[ ] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[ x] Muscle Wastage
[ ] Muscle Weakness
[ ] Joint Pain
[ ] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes
Misc
[x ] Prostate pain
[x ] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[ ] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[ ] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[ ] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[ ] Tinnitus (ringing or high pitched sound in ears)
[ ] Hearing loss
[ ] Increased hair loss
[ ] Frequent urination
[ x] Lowered body temperature
[ ] Other (please explain)
What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
I tried several things through the years.
I tried iodine and I had improvement for a few days but then it went away.
I tried tribulus.
I had a surgery a year and a half ago to get rid of a varicocele. It had a slight effect but not much.
Then I gave up all hope. I accepted its over. I have a friend I owe my life to.
I did what he suggested. Had to go to many doctors to get prescriptions.
I did three months on testosterone injections and muscle building. Gained 25 pounds of mostly muscle.
Then I did a pact by my friend’s instructions with hcg and clomid and tamoxifen.
I felt like shit and thought it didn’t work but I continued it
A week after I was done with the pct something changed.
Penis grew again. Erections were easy to get. Another two weeks and I started getting horny.
That was two months ago. I wanted to see it lasts and so far it didn’t. I pray to god it continues.
I was following this forum for years and decided to come write something. I had nothing important to say before but now I do. I think.
One thing I noticed is caffeine and alcohol still are bad for me. If I touch them my erections are weaker. Without them I feel like I healed 99%
Think much faster. Stronger horny
That’s all… two months back to life after being dead for six years.
I hope god allows me to fully heal for good.
If you have pre or post-drug blood tests, what hormonal changes have you encountered since discontinuing the drug (please post your test results in the “Blood Tests” section and link to them in your post)?
I was on “normal” range on the low side. According to why all my doc said.
Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience?
Tell us your story, in your own words, about your usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.
Took it for a few months.
Poe state started burning. Then erections stopped. Doctor said just stop taking it. I did.
Prostate still burned for years. Also no erections unless I tried very hard. Tired. Can’t think.
I’ll add the pct I did.
I don’t recommend anyone trying it without a doctor.
But maybe some doctor is reading it and can use this to help someone
I did the pct for four weeks exactly.
I did the first day 300 mg clomid, then 100mg for the first two weeks, 50mg for the third week, and none for the forth week.
Tamoxifen I did 20mg during the four weeks every day.
Hcg I did 3000iu the first day then 250iu every other day for the four weeks
I didn’t feel any improvement and felt worse during that period but after that period I healed which is very weird.
Seems my second message is lost somehow ?
Anyway I said I would not suggest anyone does this himself. I’m writing this in case there is a doctor here that can use this information.
As I mentioned the first thing I did was to build muscles with testosterone and then I did pct.
Pct was four weeks
First day 300 mg clomid. Then 100 mg for the rest of the first two weeks, 50mg on the third week, and no clomid on last week.
20mg tamoxifen daily for the four weeks
3000iu hcg the first day of the four weeks and then about 250-300iu every othe day for the four weeks.
I felt like shit all that period. I healed only a week after this period which is very strange.
Maybe some doctor can use my experience in trying to help others.
Also I should mention I am healed but for some reason caffeine and alcohol can still fuck me up when I touch them.
So why is that?
I can live without caffeine and alcohol though. Finally I have erections and libido and my motivation back.
I feel I lost six years of life. But I will need to deal with this psychologically.
Congrats on the recovery, man! I hope it lasts forever. My only question is regarding the PCT. you took 300 mg of clomid?! That is so much. I took 12.5 eod and that alone made me want to cry and go watch The Notebook. What kind of side effects did you have on that?
I took 300mg only on the first day of the pct.
I was afraid of side effects. But mostly I was tired and think I had some blurry vision. Maybe the hcg would balance it?
again, I don’t recommend anyone does anything without a doctor. We were fucked up so badly, don’t fuck yourself up more.
Did you experience dull or pleasureless orgasms? And you said genital sensitivity improved?
Yea. The whole feeling changed to what I guess is normal now.
It feels so much more sensitive now than before. Also it’s much more enjoyable
I’ve been wanting to take the plunge with HCG for a couple weeks now. My symptoms have improved dramatically over the past nearly two years, but I am definitely not “cured.” I spoke with Dr. Bruhin in San Diego(who has PFS btw) and he said that besides time, HCG was the by far the most beneficial thing he has done. I’m just terrified of making myself worse off.
I tried hcg alone in 2014. It had a little effect on me but it passed after that.
I read an article about bodybuilders who fuck up their hormones and it said you need hcg together with seems to keep results.
I.e. ad very little though.
Most of what I did was just based on what a friend who is a bodybuilder told me to do and I followed blindly while having my doctor keep tabs on my health.
Fortunately I also managed to get the medications I needed from my doctors as they knew how fucked your my body was and I basically begged them and kept asking.
I meant hcg together with SERMS
Before prophecia I drank a decent amount of coffee and never had erection issues.
So personally I can’t say this sensitivity was there before.
Alcohol I’m not sure. I drink so little and so rarely it is hard to know the effect. Coffee I used to drink twice daily.
As for me not having post finasteride syndrome, I doubt it. I’m pretty sure it was it. As i had no issues before and all my system collapsed two weeks into prophecia and I’ve been a zombie for six years with zero libido and zero motivation.
I tried many things, like testosterone replacement and hcg alone and so on and nothing worked for six years. Not to mention iodine, tribulus, many vitamins and things I read about in this forum.
Only when I did the threee months with test and muscle building plus the pct did I heal and only after!
While I was doing it I didn’t see any effect which is weird. I almost stopped the pct, and I’m glad I did not (it does make you feel like shit).
That I think is a weird thing. I though that all this is not working and gave up completely and a few days after I was done with pct I started getting strong erections and the feeling of the penis changed and it started growing.
I should mention I tried clomid alone for two weeks a year ago and I had no success with it alone.
I would guess it is a combination of changing my body composition and the three medications together.
I am not here to argue though as to what I had. I’m here to give my story and each person can decide for himself if he is in a similar situation or not.
I came back to let people know about my experience as I think it is the responsibility of someone who heals from a nightmare like this.
If I help one person coming back here was worth it.
Again, my hope is that a serious doctor sees this and can responsibly use this to help find a cure even if it only works for part of the sufferers, wouldn’t it be worth i still?
I had all the symptoms of pfs and it started just after taking prophecia. I don’t care if you say it wasn’t pfs, pfs is not a known issue, maybe there are seVeral causes, and there are people here who have the same cause I did.
i don’t understand what is the biological cause to this day. I suspect it is receptors. Because that’s what pct is supposed to fix and that is what breaks with body builders. I have no clue though.
I’m a simple guy whose life was fucked and somehow was lucky to get out of it. I know the pain of suffering so I am not here to argue with anyone, there is a big emotional component that comes with this disease.
Could it be that the muscle building before the pct is part of the answer? I gained a lot of muscle when’s I took test and I worked out and ate a lot.
could that have made me more likely to heal from pct? That’s the question for a doctor if he reads this.
Anyway I think I said all I have to say. I may connect again if you have other questions but I don’t think I have much to add to my story.
While bloodwork can and lab tests often show numerous endocrine imbalances (often including low LH/FSH), conventional treatment and therapies to correct them meets with little success in addressing the symptoms of the Post-Finasteride Syndrome.
I’ve read at least ten accounts on this forum and others where people have experienced significant benefit from undertaking TRT.