PROPECIAHELP: Persistent Finasteride Propecia Proscar side effects info & discussion forum

First my story, I began taking Proscar about 2 years ago. I took it for about 8 months (two full packages and I left the third one unfinished). I first experienced negative side effects about 1 month after I began taking it, I was having sex with my girlfriend and went soft, and I could not get it hard anymore. After that incident, instead of quitting I decided to diminish the dose I was taking, I began to cut the pill in 5 instead of in 4. I thought that would work, and it did for a while. But then the side effects came back, I could not have spontaneous erections, and when I had erections they were soft I was unable to have decent sex with my girlfriend but I still could do it so I kept taking the pill, even though I was experiencing other sides (felt tired, experienced pain, I gained a little weight) The tipping point came when, being on a weekend trip with my girlfriend I just couldn´t have sex with her at all, that is when I panicked. The following day I quit taking Proscar.

After quitting first I thought everything was Ok, I began to have spontaneous erections again and I felt great. But after about two weeks I crashed. I felt always tired, flu like tired, and I could not get any kind of erections. I also experienced a certain kind of pain in the groin area and in my testicles, like small cramps or something, those cramps came also when I drank more than one drink of any kind of alcohol. I also had a hard time when I had to concentrate. That is when I really panicked I thought I had damaged myself permanently, I could not have sex and I could not drink two things that I loved, I also felt tired all the time, and I felt stupid because I was not able to concentrate well. The worst came about two months after quitting, I really felt completely like crap, and the pain in my groin area was constant.

I decided not to get depressed and I began to research about the subject, that is when I bumped into this site, and here I read some horror stories that freaked me out even more. But I decided to stop reading all those horror stories and stopped visiting these site and I set my mind to fight these syndrome because I do consider it a withdrawal syndrome.

Here is what I did:
I quit drinking more than one drink (since every time I drank more than one I experienced pain in my groin area it was an easy thing to do).
I began working out every day, even when I felt like crap and tired. I ran every other day. I did interval sprinting and I lifted heavy weights on a daily basis.
I began taking a multivitamin supplement.
I went to bed early about 10 pm or earlier (since I felt always tired that too was an easy thing to do).
I kept close watch of my diet, I began to eat more broccoli, asparragus and the like veggies, and less red meat, I also added more fruits to my diet and less dairy products.
I took 500 mg of MACA extract twice per day and 1200 mg of TRIBULUS TERRESTRIS extract, also daily. Both are used by bodybuilders to boost testosterone levels. Also MACA is used in Peru like a natural Viagra.

Following that regime it took me about 10 months to feel healthy again. I still follow the regime except that I have decided to quit taking both MACA and TRIBULUS (I do not want to take any pills anymore). Now I can say that I am fully recovered. I can have normal sex even 3 or 4 times per day, I can drink as much as I want to, without feeling any pain in my groin area (however I do not drink much anymore), and the flu like symptoms have gone away. I could say that I am 100% normal again.

And I have a bonus from all this now I am fit, the fittest I have ever been, I even have six pack abs. So now I have shaved my head and I do not worry anymore about my hairloss.

It is my first post here, and will also be my last one, I just wanted to share my experience and hope to help someone with it.

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Finding a Cure

Thanks very much indeed for this report. It's great that you have beaten this.

I wonder if we could squeeze just one more post of you to answer a few questions:

How old are you?

Did you also suffer lowered libido?

Did you suffer a smaller penis and testicles?

Any muscle wastage or pains?

Did you ever have blood tests and if so what did they reveal?

For how long have you been feeling 100% or close to it?

Your post helps to give everyone hope, so thanks.

Since I am still on the site I will answer your post.

I am 30 years old, I took Proscar when I was 28.

Yes I did suffer from lower Libido, I think NO Libido would be the right answer.

I do not know if my penis or testicles became smaller, I do not think so, but I did not measure them. However when erect, if it did erect at all, it was certainly smaller and softer.

I did experience muscle waistage, before taking Proscar, I was somewhat fit, but when I was on it I looked bloated, like I was retaining water or something. I also gained a little weight. Also one time my girlfriend made a joke out of my "man breasts" (she did not knew I was on Proscar so it came as unintentional, but I certainly noticed). So I did not realize it, but maybe I had the beginnings of gynecomastia.

I took 1 blood test about two months after quiting Proscar (when I felt the worst), to check T levels, and they came out in the normal range, however on the lower end of it (I would say T levels of a 50 year old). Unfortunately I have not checked again my T levels, perhaps I should, just to see if there is any change. But since I feel normal again I have neglected doing them.

I have been feeling normal for about six months now. And I am not taking any supplements anymore (for about 5 months). However I have kept both my diet and exercise regimes.

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Finding a Cure

This is just a fabulous post! Thank you for the great advice. I think this is one of the best posts I have read. Peace all..

http://www.healthybodyhealthyspirit.com/spring.html


http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/ ... renow57-20 A book I may buy now.

congratulations on your improvement.
i always use matt.gardson method and recovery stories are giving me a lot of positive energy

Thank you for telling us this. Thank you and congratulations!

So you had T levels at the low end of testosterone's range? Okay, that's promising. Did you test ANY other hormone besides testosterone, like LH or FSH?

How did working out uh WORK after finasteride? HOW much muscles did you lose:was it notable enough/did it ruin your performance completely? Were you able to gain muscles during the first year or even at the second year?

Can you please do another blood test? It would be good to know where your body is going on now, even though it's fantastic to hear that you seem to be doing fine! Like uh, could you take Total Testosterone, LH and FSH?

And uh, how did your girlfriend take on your new condition? You don't need to answer if you don't but it sounds like your girl was swell with your troubles, so to speak.

Great stuff! I know our problem is not irreversible. Thanks for giving us hope.

It is two year old post.why are you responding now?

Congratulations man! Its so nice to hear success stories, especially after reading so many horror stories... This gives me plenty of hope on my path to recovery

Wonderful to read this - I am suffering most of these problems (and then some) and right now I need to hear the stories of people who have beaten this. Many thanks :)

I know this topic is a bit old and I apologize in advance, but I too recovered 100%. I was one of the lucky ones that made a full recovery two weeks after stopping the medication.

Some of the things I did include: going to the gym regularly and doing cardio and weight-lifting, taking multivtamin every day, taking horny goat weed twice a day, taking maca, and getting lots of rest. I don't know if any of those contributed to my recovery but they couldn't hurt to try.

So have hope! It's possible to recover from this drug.

Glad to hear it Jackal, but that falls within the expected "Merck" timeframe for most side effects to resolve after discontinuation, considering 5AR/DHT should start to come back online 10-14 days after stopping.

Sounds like you recovered naturally per the manufacturer's claims, as is supposed to happen for all men... which unfortunately is not always the case, as noted by those here. Thanks for stopping by and good luck to you.

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thanks for sharing your recovery story. There is no story for you here.

1- how severe were your side effects?
2-Any Gyno or other life croppling effects from propecia?
3-how long did you use the poison?
4-how long have you been off of this drug?

Lastly ,but very improtant ,if you recovered withing 2 weeks what made you to come to this web site. Please don't take as an offence.

It's always good to hear that someone recovered from this nightmare. I'm still waiting to read the story of someone who used this poison for more than 5 years like myself that went on to recover.

Bostonusa, I have read plenty of stories of guys who've taken it more than 5 years and recovered. I myself would have been one of them if I haven't had gone on and off the drug in the last year. Guys can crash after less than a month while others can take it for years and even have sides all the way through but still quickly heal.

btw I personally think the opening recovery in this thread is bogus, from the vague awareness of symptoms and hormone levels right down to the cheesy 'finding a cure' tagline. I don't understand the motivation for that but the old recovery section had lots of them.

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Donate to the PFS Foundation or remain a eunuch for forty years, choice is yours.

http://www.pfsfoundation.org/donate/

I agree. Besides given the lifestyle changes he's made the most he could say is that he's managing symptoms.

I really disagree, the lifestyle changes mentioned in his post could very well have given his system a kickstart to function properly again.

The heavy weightlifting and running (cardio exercise) really stands out to me as well as his diet which gives him the right fuel his body he needs to build muscle. The running he mentions most likely helped him to burn excess fat and down regulate his estrogen levels. Lifting heavy weights has shown to boost testosterone naturally. I can only confirm this, after crashing I suffered from low end within range T. I started lifting weights like there's no tomorrow sticking to a very strict schedule in early june and about 2 months later my blood test (blood taken around 4pm!!) showed my T increased significantly to now being in the upper third of the normal range. For the entire month of august I've also incorporated compound exercises in my working out schedule which has really been working wonders for me. Compound exercises have also shown to boost testosterone naturally as well, combine this with lifting as heavy as you can and you'll definitively be boosting your testosterone levels.
http://www.livestrong.com/article/23031-increase-testosterone-exercise/

Been doing heavy workouts for 3 months straight now while keeping a close watch on my diet and I'm feeling better and better as time goes on. I can only pray to God it will do the same for me when I stick with it for 10 months like this guy did.

Another thing that stands out to me is he decided not to get depressed reading all the horror stories and actually tried to work on his situation. You shouldn't underestimate the effects depression has on your body and the ability to let your body recover. A lot of times when I come to this forum and read posts from certain members it's almost impossible to not get carried away in a depression by the almost contagious cynicism being displayed in their posts. Cynicism and passive attitude which are very characterizing for people suffering from a depression. I understand the whole situation is devastating but I don't think either of you calling this a bogus story can honestly say they stuck to the regimen as posted by mlevyholden.

Again another accusation of someone saying "Oh, if you would have just followed what someone else anecdotal tells us you'd be better".

As this poster has made significant lifestyle changes to manage his symptoms you cannot attribute "recovery" to this but rather success through symptom management. What do you think would happen if he stopped his current regime? What about you?

The point of this post was to distinguish between recovery and symptom management. If he could go back to his pre-fin lifestyle without difficulties then it would be a recovery. Until he stops the lifestyle changes and determines that he can remain at a fully functioning state it's impossible to determine what's the cause or effect and until this is proven it's symptom management.

As I have told you on here and via pm it is great that you have rallied so strongly after a crash, and it gives hope to a lot of guys. I could tell you thought I was wallowing and not doing enough though.

This is actaully not true. I have never been a fitness freak bar running, it was never my thing, and that in itself is fine. I thought gyms were for keep fit obsessives and empty headed narcissists (the irony). Despite this, after I crashed, or rather after I composed myself following the initial shock, I enrolled in a gym with the intention of beating this. However, it became clear my body was not up to the task. I lost so much muscle so quickly in my thighs and arms my legs felt wobbly when I walked, I could hardly run, and where I used to be able to do thirty push ups with ease I now couldn't do one. At this point you really have to listen to your body rather than potentially breaking it even further. Furthermore, I was told by members who had experienced muscle wastage that lifting weights could be counter productive and even break down muscle.

That's before I get started on the brain fog which had me like a complete zombie for about the best part of a year post-fin, brain fog which had morphed from the passiveness I felt on fin to horrific cognitive dysfunction which made even simple tasks difficult. Chronic sleep problems gave me extreme fatigue on a daily basis, to the point I would frequently fall asleep, and have the energy of an octagenarian.

Sexually I also had shrinkage but this was coupled with colour changes, insensitivity, veins emerging and peyronie's/fibrosis type symptoms, again a bit more extreme than what you had.

Maybe I did spend too much time panicking about what had happened, and reading about all this mess freaked me out even more. But seriously, a positive attitude will not do anything to change the extreme physical side effects I've mentioned.

I just want to say this because I have noticed on here lately some posters having a go at others for not adopting a rigorous healthy lifestyle as a means of beating PFS, or insinuated that their personalities would prevent them from being able to do this.These are usually guys who have not had extreme physical changes which prevent them doing sprints, or even jogging to a decent degree. Believe me I wanted to, and tried to, follow the example of someone like cdnuts but my body just wasn't, and still isn't up to it.

And anyway, we don't really know what has happened and how we can fix it. Guys have had muscle loss and severe fatigue yet their T levels have bounced back to a supposedly good level. Others like labrea didn't follow a rigorous exercise approach yet improved anyway. Lifting weights will not make your testosterone levels jump from the bottom to the top of the range in itself, you may have just been lucky or been more resilient because of your realtive youth.

I agree it is not good to potentially scare new members by depicting this condition as an unending source of misery with no hope, we can only convey our fellings about what has happened to each of us on an individual basis. I am happy I have made some improvements with time, and happy with myself to have withstood a condition that would have completely destroyed many a man.

Don't try and twist my words and act like a victim here. You are the one making accusations and calling this guy's story bogus without even trying to follow his regimen, who the hell are you to judge.

Really? He says he's feeling 100% normal again and you call that symptom management? He already stated he dropped his regimen partly since he stopped taking maca and tribulus and he's doing just fine. I'm a 100% positive he'd be doing just fine as well if he were to stop working out.
He's just keeping up the working out to since he's happy with the way he looks. This goes for everyone, PFS or not. To stay in shape you have to keep up working out, use it or lose it.

Bullshit.

All I'm doing is try to motivate people to do the same what I've done so far which has helped me a lot, that's all I can do to help out. If you're interpreting it in any other way than I'm sorry for the miscommunication.

It indeed can be counterproductive if you are doing it the wrong way. You really need to stick to a good schedule and listen to your body to make it work since the use of finasteride has put us in a tough spot. I too suffered from the things you mentioned except for not being able to just do one push up. I too lost a lot of strength all of a sudden. I tackled it though by taking a step back from doing what I knew I used to be a able to do with ease and just work from there. Each time I would just focus on raising the bar of my maximum potential without worrying about what I used to be able to do. I saw it as a rebuilding process.

With the right approach I'm sure you could do the same as me.

I've had the exact same, so no reason for you to not be trying the the same. Just push yourself through the fatigue and keep going, I know it's hard because I had the exact same what you just described. It's hard but it can be done, just be strong. I'm glad I forced myself into my healthy living seeing as how far it's gotten me already.

The way I see it, with no-one knowing the exact cause of PFS or what it is EXACTLY that makes people recover from it. The fact that there are reports of people recovering by healthy living and a positive attitude should be enough to at least try and do the same. And just looking at what good a regimen like this does for one's body surely makes it very plausible it's a huge contribution to beating PFS. I believe it is.

And if you can't run, try biking, crosstraining or swimming for cardio exercises. There's tons of other stuff you can do besides running.