So after hesitating over finasteride for so long ...

[ukmale24]

I took the plunge a few weeks ago. & I am pleased to announce that I have had no sides whatsoever! I've been really hesitant for almost a year now, & there was times where I thought "No way am I ever gonna take the chance, I think i'd rather go bald." But I'm happy I have, even though I've got no results from it yet.

I guess this is just a word of encouragement for those who are too scared to try it. Before I started on it, I did take an 85%-95% extract of Saw Palmetto and did get sides from that; could it be that SP adjusted by body to the finasteride? Anyhow, when i did decide to take finasteride, i started off on once every other day. Then went to once a day after a week.

A question for the more experience finasteride users ... would you recommend going onto a higher dose this soon? Was thinking about getting Fincar and adding an extra .25mg. I just don't wanna get to 6 months and realise nothing is changing. I think i'm a high-testosterone producer, surely that would have a knock-on effect on how much DHT is produced, and therefore there'd be a limit to how much DHT is stopped via 5ar with my finasteride.

 

[Agahi]

You take 1.0 or 1.25mg a day currently? If yes, no stick with that. If no then yes increase to that.

 

[ukmale24]

yeah i take 1mg currently. it's only been 3 weeks but i'm not getting any sides so wondering whether to go up to 1.25mg

 

[Agahi]

May as well, easier to cut a proscar into 1/4 (cheaper than the 1mg pills). No sides is a good sign

 

[Lloyd Braun]

If one would rather go bald then have a reduction in sex drive, why would one be seeking treatment for hair loss in the first place. I mean, at that point, isn't it almost a non-issue? I think guys like this should be thankful that their hair loss has such a little effect on them. But if you can get the best of both worlds (good hair and sex drive) then all the power to you. Good luck OP and congrats on taking the plunge. Keep us updated.

 

[anxious1]

http://www.physics.upenn.edu/facultyinfo/frankel/papers/propeciafda2/

please read the whole thing. it relates directly to u and others that think raising lowering dosage yeilds better/worse results or less/more side effects.!!!

but because i know noones gonna read it (although they absolutely should)
here is main point!!

As seen in Fig. 1, reproduced from the FDA material, the percent change of DHT for placebo and .01 mg finasteride were identical and essentially zero within a reasonable statistical estimate. The change dropped by 60 % for a .05 mg dose and stayed that way for all dosages up to 5 mg. Thus a 20 times smaller dose than PROPECIA had the same effect on the DHT.

 

[Bryan]

I wish people would stop quoting from Frankel's paper. As I've pointed out in Merck's early dose-ranging study with finasteride, larger doses had slightly better haircount increases than smaller doses, and a slightly greater reduction of serum DHT. This all goes to show that while the dose-response curve of finasteride is fairly flat, it's not PERFECTLY flat.

 

[anxious1]

and if ppl would bother to read the link. they would see that in the graphs.
i only used that one because its wat i could find in a hurry.

do u have a bryan approved study?

 

[Bryan]

and if ppl would bother to read the link. they would see that in the graphs.

Then I don't understand the point of your previous post, when you said: "Please read the whole thing. it relates directly to u and others that think raising lowering dosage yeilds better/worse results or less/more side effects.!!!", when you seemed to be saying that it doesn't make a difference how much you take, over a very wide range! Will you PLEASE explain once and for all what it is you believe, whether it does or it doesn't make a difference how much you take?? :dunno:

 

[anxious1]

hes saying he might go from 1 mg to 1.25 mgs

the graphs in that study show that the difference in scalp skin dht between 1mg and 1.25 is negligable.

scalp skin DHT median percent change is approx 58% for .2 mg, 64% for 1mg, and 68% for 5 mg. So id have to assume 1.25mg only gives a further ~ 0.25 % reduction in scalp skin DHT, and im sry but i dont consider that worthwhile

As for side effects, well that relates to serum DHT, so lets look at that. 68% median percent change from baseline for .2mg, 70% for 1mg, and looks like 70% also for 5mg ( hard graphs to get right, no grids) So reducing the 1mg dose by half to .5mg actually only reduces serum DHT by less than 1%.

1%, out of 70%.... 1/70th reduction in serum DHT. dont think thats really enough to change any side effects ppl may be getting.

Sure its not a perfectly flat dose -response curve, but the dosage changes are not going to make or break success or side effects.


In my opinion the only way to significantly reduce side effects is to find the halfway point where the steep incline is (on the dose response curve) and use that dose. but really i dont see how that could be done with precision and accuracy.

But i get the feeling the only reason u want me to explain myself is so u can disagree no matter what explanation i give.

 

[Rawtashk]

STICK WITH WHAT WORKS! You need to stick with one thing before you start experimenting...otherwise how will you know what works?

Also, if you stay at 1mg then you have a small step-up to 1.25 in a few years if you feel like it's starting to lose some effectiveness down the road.

 

[Bryan]

But i get the feeling the only reason u want me to explain myself is so u can disagree no matter what explanation i give.

The reason I wanted you to explain yourself was so that I COULD UNDERSTAND WHAT THE HELL YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT. I've been straight and honest with you in BOTH of my previous replies to you in this thread.

 

[Agahi]

I recommended 1.25 because cutting a proscar into 1/4 is easier than 1/5ths and cheaper than buying the 1mg finasteride pills.

 

[anxious1]

yes its easier cutting into quarters, but just sounded like he expected it to be more effective.



my apologies then bryan, thought u were taking a stab. been a long week.

 

[ukmale24]

ahh right, okay, yeah i was asking as to whether 1.25mg would be more effective than the 1mg. like rawtashk has said though, maybe i should stick to this for a while and bump up to 1.25 in a year and a half or 2 years when it's effectiveness starts to decrease.

 

[Agahi]

May want to consider dutasteride when effectiveness starts to wane. Risk of side effects increase when increasing finasteride, but the effectiveness does not go up by much. dutasteride on the other hand is much more effective even in lower doses.

My plan is to be on finasteride until I think it is losing effectiveness then get on the big gun (dutasteride). Hopefully by the time dutasteride starts to lose ground something else will be available as an option.

 

[Rawtashk]

If you do dutasteride, get it in a solid tablet form. You can cut it into quarters that way and be taking .125mg...which is still more effective than 5mg finasteride.

 

[Agahi]

Yeah do that, and then you have another means of increasing effectiveness when you feel you need more, just in case nothing new is out by then.

 

[multispeed27]

I took the plunge a few weeks ago. & I am pleased to announce that I have had no sides whatsoever! I've been really hesitant for almost a year now, & there was times where I thought "No way am I ever gonna take the chance, I think i'd rather go bald." But I'm happy I have, even though I've got no results from it yet.
/quote]

finasteride has a very different effect on everyone - some get side effects after a few days, some after weeks, months, or even over a year. Sometimes they come gradually, sometimes very suddenly. Don't party just yet... people on finasteride have reported persistent erectile dysfunction after being om for 5 years!

 

[Agahi]

To add to the above. Sometimes side effects never come.