junior_senior
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Hi all, it's been ages since I last posted here--almost 10 years. I came back to write this post in the hopes that some experienced and knowledgeable forum members will read my story and offer some advice.
I've been taking 1mg of finasteride daily since January 30th, 2006, which is 9 years + 2 months on the treatment. I was 22 years old when I started, and I'm now 31. In terms of hairloss, I've been an excellent responder. Before I started the treatment in 2006, I was a diffuse thinner, with a mostly-full head of hair (but rapidly thinning) at around a norwood 1.5. Today, I have about 115% of the hair I did at the time of starting treatment. I effectively have maintained a full head of hair using the drug. My hairline hasn't receded at all either.
When I began the treatment in January 2006, I experienced zero observable side effects, so it was an easy decision for me to stay the course. I had a very high and functioning sex drive prior to finasteride, and that didn't change when I began the drug. As the months and years went on, I didn't even think about the drug anymore; each morning, taking a little pill of finasteride alongside my other routines became second nature to me. There were even a few occasions where I almost came back to this forum to write a success story, but I didn't get around to it.
However, over the last 3-or-so years, I've experienced a marked drop in my sex drive and libido. My sex drive, erections, etc. are all still functioning, its just the drive/appetite behind them that is lacking. I recognize part of this is attributed to natural decline due to aging. I also suspect part of this is attributed to my brain being partially acclimated to the excess-novelty of internet p**rn, where constant novely becomes the new baseline for arousal. However, even with these two things, I grow increasingly confident that finasteride is also playing a part. To put it into perspective, my long-time girlfriend has brought up my lack of interest in sex as a relationship issue.
Over 2012 and 2013, I thought to rule out finasteride as a potential cause. I thought to myself, 'why would finasteride produce side effects now, after 6 years on the drug? That doesn't make sense.' So, almost immediately, I put finasteride out of my thoughts. However, as time has passed, with my libido remaining low, I'm now quite confident finasteride is affecting my sex drive, somehow. I know some readers will balk at accepting my observations, and some will think I'm confounding the cause of my issue, but you need to trust my own judgment on this. I'm a fairly self-aware individual, and I'm now confident finasteride is part of the cause.
Here is a timeline of my experience with the treatment. You'll note that sometime in 2012/2013 (I can't recall the exact month), I switched from cutting Proscar into 1/5ths, to buy 1mg tabs of generic finasteride. The reason? I finished school and had more disposable income. From 2002 to 2014, all my blood tests have indicated my testosterone levels are stable, and in a healthy reference range.
Year 01 | Age 22 | 2006 | 1/5th of Proscar tab daily | No observable side effects
Year 02 | Age 23 | 2007 | 1/5th of Proscar tab daily | No observable side effects
Year 03 | Age 24 | 2008 | 1/5th of Proscar tab daily | No observable side effects
Year 04 | Age 25 | 2009 | 1/5th of Proscar tab daily | No observable side effects | Had surgery to remove my gynecomastia in autumn of this year**
Year 05 | Age 26 | 2010 | 1/5th of Proscar tab daily | No observable side effects
Year 06 | Age 27 | 2011 | 1/5th of Proscar tab daily | No observable side effects
Year 07 | Age 28 | 2012 | 1/5th of Proscar tab daily | Low Libido
Year 08 | Age 29 | 2013 | 1 mg Finasteride tab daily | Low Libido
Year 09 | Age 30 | 2014 | 1 mg Finasteride tab daily | Low Libido
Year 10 | Age 31 | 2015 | 1 mg Finasteride tab daily | Low Libido
**NOT at all related to taking finasteride. I developed mild-to-moderate gynecomastia during the onset of puberty at the age of 12. At 26, I opted for surgical removal of my glandular tissue. I included this on the chart, as I sometimes contemplate if removing my glandular tissue could have had an impact on my endocrine system/sex drive.
Has anyone else experienced something similar? I'm baffled why side effects would begin after so many years of being side-effect free. I'm an otherwise above-average healthy person: I eat very clean, run, bicycle, weight lift regularly, and am fit. One hypothesis of mine is that, in my mid-20s, 1mg was an appropriate dose of finasteride to block DHT, and that in my late-20s and early-30s, my bio-chemistry has evolved/aged, and now 1mg is too much finasteride. I don't know if that's a reasonable hypothesis though. My second hypothesis is that by splitting a 5mg Proscar tab in 1/5ths for the first 6 years, with each daily dose being 1mg+/-10%, the minor dose variation kept my body "guessing," and prevented the onset of a new libido-reduced hormonal equilibrium... though I'm not putting too much stock in my 2nd hypothesis.
In 10 years, have there been developments in any other treatments? What happens if I stop taking finasteride? Are there any alternatives? Would anyone recommend me lowering my daily dose to 0.5mg? I've read some accounts online that people have had positive results preventing hairloss and reducing side effects with half doses. I came across some horror stories online of people whom experienced irreversable side effects from the drug. Needless to say, it scared the crap out of me. Though, I doubt that's my case, as I didn't have any side effects for many years, and my sex drive currently functions--just at a lower-than-normal level.
Any help would be very much appreciated. As of today, I'm not making any changes to my regimen. I'll continue taking 1mg of finasteride until I have better information on an appropriate course of action.
I've been taking 1mg of finasteride daily since January 30th, 2006, which is 9 years + 2 months on the treatment. I was 22 years old when I started, and I'm now 31. In terms of hairloss, I've been an excellent responder. Before I started the treatment in 2006, I was a diffuse thinner, with a mostly-full head of hair (but rapidly thinning) at around a norwood 1.5. Today, I have about 115% of the hair I did at the time of starting treatment. I effectively have maintained a full head of hair using the drug. My hairline hasn't receded at all either.
When I began the treatment in January 2006, I experienced zero observable side effects, so it was an easy decision for me to stay the course. I had a very high and functioning sex drive prior to finasteride, and that didn't change when I began the drug. As the months and years went on, I didn't even think about the drug anymore; each morning, taking a little pill of finasteride alongside my other routines became second nature to me. There were even a few occasions where I almost came back to this forum to write a success story, but I didn't get around to it.
However, over the last 3-or-so years, I've experienced a marked drop in my sex drive and libido. My sex drive, erections, etc. are all still functioning, its just the drive/appetite behind them that is lacking. I recognize part of this is attributed to natural decline due to aging. I also suspect part of this is attributed to my brain being partially acclimated to the excess-novelty of internet p**rn, where constant novely becomes the new baseline for arousal. However, even with these two things, I grow increasingly confident that finasteride is also playing a part. To put it into perspective, my long-time girlfriend has brought up my lack of interest in sex as a relationship issue.
Over 2012 and 2013, I thought to rule out finasteride as a potential cause. I thought to myself, 'why would finasteride produce side effects now, after 6 years on the drug? That doesn't make sense.' So, almost immediately, I put finasteride out of my thoughts. However, as time has passed, with my libido remaining low, I'm now quite confident finasteride is affecting my sex drive, somehow. I know some readers will balk at accepting my observations, and some will think I'm confounding the cause of my issue, but you need to trust my own judgment on this. I'm a fairly self-aware individual, and I'm now confident finasteride is part of the cause.
Here is a timeline of my experience with the treatment. You'll note that sometime in 2012/2013 (I can't recall the exact month), I switched from cutting Proscar into 1/5ths, to buy 1mg tabs of generic finasteride. The reason? I finished school and had more disposable income. From 2002 to 2014, all my blood tests have indicated my testosterone levels are stable, and in a healthy reference range.
Year 01 | Age 22 | 2006 | 1/5th of Proscar tab daily | No observable side effects
Year 02 | Age 23 | 2007 | 1/5th of Proscar tab daily | No observable side effects
Year 03 | Age 24 | 2008 | 1/5th of Proscar tab daily | No observable side effects
Year 04 | Age 25 | 2009 | 1/5th of Proscar tab daily | No observable side effects | Had surgery to remove my gynecomastia in autumn of this year**
Year 05 | Age 26 | 2010 | 1/5th of Proscar tab daily | No observable side effects
Year 06 | Age 27 | 2011 | 1/5th of Proscar tab daily | No observable side effects
Year 07 | Age 28 | 2012 | 1/5th of Proscar tab daily | Low Libido
Year 08 | Age 29 | 2013 | 1 mg Finasteride tab daily | Low Libido
Year 09 | Age 30 | 2014 | 1 mg Finasteride tab daily | Low Libido
Year 10 | Age 31 | 2015 | 1 mg Finasteride tab daily | Low Libido
**NOT at all related to taking finasteride. I developed mild-to-moderate gynecomastia during the onset of puberty at the age of 12. At 26, I opted for surgical removal of my glandular tissue. I included this on the chart, as I sometimes contemplate if removing my glandular tissue could have had an impact on my endocrine system/sex drive.
Has anyone else experienced something similar? I'm baffled why side effects would begin after so many years of being side-effect free. I'm an otherwise above-average healthy person: I eat very clean, run, bicycle, weight lift regularly, and am fit. One hypothesis of mine is that, in my mid-20s, 1mg was an appropriate dose of finasteride to block DHT, and that in my late-20s and early-30s, my bio-chemistry has evolved/aged, and now 1mg is too much finasteride. I don't know if that's a reasonable hypothesis though. My second hypothesis is that by splitting a 5mg Proscar tab in 1/5ths for the first 6 years, with each daily dose being 1mg+/-10%, the minor dose variation kept my body "guessing," and prevented the onset of a new libido-reduced hormonal equilibrium... though I'm not putting too much stock in my 2nd hypothesis.
In 10 years, have there been developments in any other treatments? What happens if I stop taking finasteride? Are there any alternatives? Would anyone recommend me lowering my daily dose to 0.5mg? I've read some accounts online that people have had positive results preventing hairloss and reducing side effects with half doses. I came across some horror stories online of people whom experienced irreversable side effects from the drug. Needless to say, it scared the crap out of me. Though, I doubt that's my case, as I didn't have any side effects for many years, and my sex drive currently functions--just at a lower-than-normal level.
Any help would be very much appreciated. As of today, I'm not making any changes to my regimen. I'll continue taking 1mg of finasteride until I have better information on an appropriate course of action.
