dude, i thought i had brain fog to until i realized i was just thinking about finasteride too much. I also think the brain fog occurs in the adjusting phase, if at 2-2.5 months your still feeling it then maybe its not adjusting and a real side but my brain fog significantly went down since when i started, im spry and witty again while still on the same dose.
3rd time trying finasteride...this time at .25mg! Still got side effects!
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dude, i thought i had brain fog to until i realized i was just thinking about finasteride too much. I also think the brain fog occurs in the adjusting phase, if at 2-2.5 months your still feeling it then maybe its not adjusting and a real side but my brain fog significantly went down since when i started, im spry and witty again while still on the same dose.
I will explain my situation. 3 months ago i noticed my hair was looking pretty ****ty (nw2.5). My girlfriend broke up with me that time too, i landed in heavy depression, anxiety and severe insomnia. I was thinking about losing my hair 24/7, and i started to be more forgetfull. Then i went on minoxidil+finasteride (4 weeks ago), while being on finasteride i started to feel detached from life, it builded up to a point where it became sort of unbearable. depression and sleeping troubles worse than ever. And i know for sure it is a brainfog because i just started a new education this year and i can barely think clearly. I did do some research on brainfog's (what the causes can be) and some of em were: stress, depression and shortage of sleep.
So there's two things what could cause my brainfog: My mental issues or the finasteride. I think it was the finasteride. ( i quitted for 10 days now and it dindt really subside yet )
I hope my message is a little bit clear to you, it's hard for me to explain things in my state right now.
*im going to try finasteride again when my brainfog is cleared, if i get it again, finasteride is not for me which sucks because i had my hopes up high.
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i read thru your posts and it seems u also had sides, they went away?
Also i smoke weed daily to get myself asleep at night, do you think weed+finasteride > higher estrogen lvls > giving me those weird feeling in my chest/nipples which could build up to gyno?
So there's two things what could cause my brainfog: My mental issues or the finasteride. I think it was the finasteride. ( i quitted for 10 days now and it dindt really subside yet )
I hope my message is a little bit clear to you, it's hard for me to explain things in my state right now.
*im going to try finasteride again when my brainfog is cleared, if i get it again, finasteride is not for me which sucks because i had my hopes up high.
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i read thru your posts and it seems u also had sides, they went away?
Also i smoke weed daily to get myself asleep at night, do you think weed+finasteride > higher estrogen lvls > giving me those weird feeling in my chest/nipples which could build up to gyno?
your girlfriend broke up with you, and you went into a heavy depression, anxiety and insomnia BEFORE you took finasteride. Now you take finasteride, well you're depressed by your girl and your hair so i dont think finasteride is a culprit, but i also wanna say that propecia definately isnt HELPING your depression. I suggest you get off finasteride for maybe 1 month or so just to get your head straight. If you dont come out of a depression after a month, id say finasteride has nothing to do with it. If you do come out of depression, well then pop finasteride like its candy till that hairline comes back brotha.
thedarkcolor
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Chiming in on my own thread. I recovered from the side effects of my 3rd trial of taking finasteride. It took about a week for me to feel normal after cessation of medication.
Yesterday I took .5mg to see how I felt. I woke up today feeling like utter, complete garbage. I got kicked awake at 6:00am and was in a heavy mental fog all morning until around 3:00pm today. It's not night time, and I just took my second dose of .5mg before bed. I'm headed to sleep soon.
For those that are curious, I've gotten side effects every time I've tried finasteride, all at different doses and intervals. And the side effects always appear almost instantly. I wish I weren't so sensitive to this medication.
I'm trying it again because I don't want to lose anymore hair. I feel like someone else commented on this thread and asked about body hair. I have tons... My arms and legs are forests. My beard grows so quickly and I look like Sam Beam, the Iron & Wine guy, only my hair is more receded than his. My hair is quickly receding to a Norwood 3 to 3.5 and I'm now seeing noticeable crown loss.
Yesterday I took .5mg to see how I felt. I woke up today feeling like utter, complete garbage. I got kicked awake at 6:00am and was in a heavy mental fog all morning until around 3:00pm today. It's not night time, and I just took my second dose of .5mg before bed. I'm headed to sleep soon.
For those that are curious, I've gotten side effects every time I've tried finasteride, all at different doses and intervals. And the side effects always appear almost instantly. I wish I weren't so sensitive to this medication.
I'm trying it again because I don't want to lose anymore hair. I feel like someone else commented on this thread and asked about body hair. I have tons... My arms and legs are forests. My beard grows so quickly and I look like Sam Beam, the Iron & Wine guy, only my hair is more receded than his. My hair is quickly receding to a Norwood 3 to 3.5 and I'm now seeing noticeable crown loss.
thedarkcolor
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A few days later now. I think this is my 4th time trying finasteride. I took a day off of medication and then took another dose of .5mg name brand Propecia. I feel like ****. I feel like I'm close to getting fired at work. I've been so freaking forgetful, and everyone can obviously tell I'm in an extremely altered mental daze. I've forgotten things, lost things, and been acting very distant apparently. It's hard for me to get out of bed. Everything, even simple tasks such as taking out the trash require so much energy and make me want to break down crying.
This morning, putting my clothes on after I got out of bed...I just had to throw everything on the floor. I didn't even make it up to the clothes hamper. It drains me so much. I just sit around all day exhausted. I want to cry, but I can't.
I also had a friend take a shirtless photo of me last night after work, and I've got gyno and stomach fat build up for sure.
This stuff is poison.
Said pictures are attached.
shyyguy123
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Why would you go back up to .5?
Anyway at this point you may be doomed. Sounds like you're so convinced that you'll get awful finasteride sides no dose will work for you.
Yes you might be sensitive to finasteride and get real sides, but there's no doubt a lot of it is in your head too.
You're claiming you've accumulated stomach fat and gyno after ONE .5 dose of finasteride? Come man you're just being ridiculous right there. I can believe brain frog and other things after a single dose but physically accumulating fat within 24 hours solely due to one dose of finasteride is absolutely ridiculous.
You need to get out of your own head before giving finasteride another shot. And if you do give it another shot you need to ween on it as slow as humanly possible. Like .25 mg once every 4 days or something for a month or so, then move up to every 3 days. Your psyche is clearly too fragile to just jump on it every day.
Anyway at this point you may be doomed. Sounds like you're so convinced that you'll get awful finasteride sides no dose will work for you.
Yes you might be sensitive to finasteride and get real sides, but there's no doubt a lot of it is in your head too.
You're claiming you've accumulated stomach fat and gyno after ONE .5 dose of finasteride? Come man you're just being ridiculous right there. I can believe brain frog and other things after a single dose but physically accumulating fat within 24 hours solely due to one dose of finasteride is absolutely ridiculous.
You need to get out of your own head before giving finasteride another shot. And if you do give it another shot you need to ween on it as slow as humanly possible. Like .25 mg once every 4 days or something for a month or so, then move up to every 3 days. Your psyche is clearly too fragile to just jump on it every day.
thedarkcolor
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Hey man,
I appreciate the reply, however if you would have read through the thread, or my previous post history...or even the post above, then you would have known that this is my 4th or 5th time trialling finasteride. I've been on other doses for longer than ONE DAY. Of course no one can get gyno tissue build up or fat accumulation after one pill. That is absolutely ridiculous. That is not what I'm stating.
I previously tried .25mg for almost two weeks about a month ago, and just prior to that I tried .5mg for about 2 weeks.. And about a year ago I tried both 1mg and 1.25 mg for about a month, which initially led me to crash with many PFS like symptoms and I was in the ER. I'm saying over the gradual timeframe of trying out different doses and spacing out doses, I've developed fat tissue in my stomach and breasts. I also haven't felt 100% normal (mentally or physically) for about about 2 months due to constantly tinkering with doses to try and find something that did not effect me.
This has been an incredibly long process. I have to tap out at this point. Dude, I've tried every dose of finasteride: 1.25mg generic from Target pharmacy, 1mg of generic right after I got HORRIBLE sides from 1.25mg. .5mg of generic, .25mg of generic...and then as of January 2015 I visited another doctor who gave me name brand Propecia which I've tried at the following doses: .25mg and .5mg at varying lengths of time.
I've put my body through a lot, including reflex hyperandrogenicity, brain fog, weight gain, and sleep issues... some of which are still plaguing me. And who knows how long it'll take for me to recover this time.
None of this is in my head. I've tried finasteride enough times to know the signs and symptoms and the time frame of them appearing and being an issue. Those, along with my body chemistry that I'm very familiar with and my natural state of being. It's very easy for me to know what and when something is different.
For example, the past two days since I've had .5mg worth of finasteride in my system I have had noticeable body odor, increased oiliness on my face, more pimples on my arms, issues being "kicked awake" in the morning, brain and mental fog, increased shedding and scalp itch, fatigue, and athlete's foot. I have not changed my diet, physical activity, or anything else about my daily routine. This tells me reflex hyperandrogencity is an issue because as we all know, DHT is responsible for body odor, sweat production which will lead to infections if not cleaned properly. And guess what, more sebum!
I just don't know what to do- I can't take finasteride. Too many issues with that medication. I just wonder if a visit to an endocrinologist would be of any help at this point.
I should also mention I have blood work pre-finasteride and post-finasteride if anyone is curious. I've posted it here several times before and on Reddit's "AskDocs" section and never got any answers.
thedarkcolor
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Updated photos. I've now been on finasteride 1mg for about 2 months... I feel like I'm still losing hair and have made no progress. In fact my recession seems worse.
br1
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Did all the symptoms you posted before go away?
I think 2 months is still too soon... It usually gets better after 1 year, right?
thedarkcolor
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I'm still left with watery ejaculate, decreased ejaculate, brain fog, mood swings, and gyno (fat buildup in the abdomen and breasts) but the oily skin and acne has gone away... All of the other side effects seem somewhat manageable and I'm almost tempted to try and "ride them out" but being 25 years old my recession and hair loss seems pretty advanced...
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Only a transplant can help here now, too far recessed. Good news is rest of your hair looks pretty good and can be maintained. Only dutasteride/Minoxidil might provide more help at the front. But I guess if you are getting sides on finasteride, no point thinking of dutasteride. Still, give it a year or more.
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Did the scalp inflammation disappear along with the oily skin/acne?
br1
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From the body pic you sent, I can't really see gyno there.. could just be some fat due to the weight gain ? Since you are sticking wit finasteride, try working out, running, walking, biking etc.. and see if it helps.. I never had a single side from finasteride other than the watery ejaculation, which I think was always on/off..
I have always been very active physically and I think that helps in general.. hope you get better.
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I'm the opposite. On finasteride i'm happy and get things done, maybe because i'm happy i'm doing something about my hairloss, I can relax. The things you're describing, lack of sleep, don't want to do anything, don't want to go to class, don't want to study, throwing out the garbage is a lot of work, can't focus, that happens to when i'm not on finasteride, because i'm thinking about my hairloss 24/7, and how I look, and how people look at me, and if I want people to see me. I've had about 3 months with no finasteride and I get worse and worse. I got off it because I ran out. I am going to order at least 2 years worth of finasteride very soon, hopefully this week.
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BTW, why don't you just try getting an FUE and use minoxidil every day one the hairline and vertex? Minoxidil has worked very well for me in slowing down my hairloss, it's working by itself. For a drug that is working on my hairloss all alone, it's doing a good job. I was shedding so much due to not being on any meds for 3 months, and now the minoxidil liquid helped me a lot. I was seeing a bunch of hairs falling in the sink, now I have to rub my head several times to see 4-5 hairs falling. It's about 2 weeks of use. You should try minoxidil liquid by itself every day, 1 ml on the front, 1 ml on the back, twice a day and see what it does for you.
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BTW, why don't you just try getting an FUE and use minoxidil every day one the hairline and vertex? Minoxidil has worked very well for me in slowing down my hairloss, it's working by itself. For a drug that is working on my hairloss all alone, it's doing a good job. I was shedding so much due to not being on any meds for 3 months, and now the minoxidil liquid helped me a lot. I was seeing a bunch of hairs falling in the sink, now I have to rub my head several times to see 4-5 hairs falling. It's about 2 weeks of use. You should try minoxidil liquid by itself every day, 1 ml on the front, 1 ml on the back, twice a day and see what it does for you.
br1
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I can only say I totally agree with you.
I felt the same. It was all a mental thing - and yes, quite impossible to think it could be when you are the one feeling like that.
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It's been very noticeable to me. I was so happy and determined when I was on finasteride 1.25mg everyday. Then I remember when I was running out from my batch I started feeling this way, which I ordered from inhouse, I started using less and less, to stretch it out. That's when the overthinking of hairloss started, and not wanting to get important things done. At work, school, I changed dramatically, all because I was thinking what am I gonna do without finasteride. Then after it finally finished(the finasteride), my hairloss started again, and I got worse and worse, my feelings and laziness. In december 2015 it was very noticeable, the hair shed was nuts. I am never going to get only 6 months of finasteride ever again, from now on it's going to be 1 year+. I'm getting 2 years worth very soon, that expire in a timely manner. I can't ever be without finasteride ever again, not until a hair loss cure comes out.
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Trust me I couldn't. With the bills I had, unfortunately I couldn't buy anything I actually wanted. College and other bills were killing my pockets. I barely got kirkland's minoxidil, you know that thing is dirt cheap. But for that price, it's been extremely effective for me in slowing down shed in a short period of time.
thedarkcolor
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The scalp inflammation went away by I'd say 80-90%. I still get oily skin but it seems normal, not excess oil production. Acne has been gone for about a week or two... I'd say it's normal now. Maybe even better than baseline as far as acne goes.
Only thing is that my balding areas still itch occasionally. Like after 8 hours they begin to itch. I've tried not taking finasteride everyday and if I miss a day the itch gets worse in the balding areas, like my temples, crown, and forelock. So my theory is this: finasteride has helped with DHT, but my DHT is either strong or I product a lot of it quickly because it feels like finasteride wears off at the end of the day. I also think that my body is converting the excess to estrogen or something since I have mild brain fog, am far more forgetful, not nearly a sharp, and I feel lethargic 90% of the time.
Rock and a hard place. How're you doing Dench?