Propecia dosage question.

[johnbath]

Hi everyone, i was thinking that if my hair starts thinning and receding more i might give propecia a try, but this probably won't be for a few years. The one thing putting me off is the potentially permanent side effects. So i just had an idea, lets say that instead of taking 1mg every day to start off with, if i started taking 0.25 every couple of days, gradually increasing the dosage over time and giving my body time to adjust. Would this decrease the chances of getting side effects? Or if i started spotting the side effects at a lower dose it would be a good indication that i should stop as a lower dose is less likely to leave me with permanent damage? Thanks for your time

[hellouser]

Originally Posted by johnbath

Hi everyone, i was thinking that if my hair starts thinning and receding more i might give propecia a try, but this probably won't be for a few years. The one thing putting me off is the potentially permanent side effects. So i just had an idea, lets say that instead of taking 1mg every day to start off with, if i started taking 0.25 every couple of days, gradually increasing the dosage over time and giving my body time to adjust. Would this decrease the chances of getting side effects? Or if i started spotting the side effects at a lower dose it would be a good indication that i should stop as a lower dose is less likely to leave me with permanent damage? Thanks for your time

I was going to ask the same thing.

Also, it'd be interesting to know (via blood test) who would not run the risk of permanent side effects, ie; dht/testosterone levels high enough not to become permanently limp even with finasteride.

[BaldinLikeBaldwin]

Originally Posted by hellouser

I was going to ask the same thing.

Also, it'd be interesting to know (via blood test) who would not run the risk of permanent side effects, ie; dht/testosterone levels high enough not to become permanently limp even with finasteride.

that's not how it works

[AGL]

Hi Johnbath,

I was in your shoes for over about a year contemplating the use of the finastride. I went back and forth with the idea of taking or not taking it and scared off by some of the reported permanent side affects. What good is a head of hair if your dick doesnt work, right? Well in the early part of 2012 I found the bald truth and spencer and started listening and watching all his shows including archived ones. This started to give me more confidence in the drug. There was one show that had a urologist on it and he said something along the lines is that you should get your DHT levels checked because we are all different and the therapy should be different as well. This is what I thought as well and what makes sense. I mean how can a 250 lbs man need the same dose as a 150lbs man or a man who's DHT levels are much higher than another's. So I decided that I would get my DHT levels check to make a more informed decision. As expected for a MPB norwood VA my dht level was high. Double the norm, so I thought to myself I just wanted to get it to normal so I could be more healthy overall. The problem I ran into is that no one does these tests and customizes the therapy so I had to do it on my own. I decided to be conservative and start with 1/4 finastride every Monday, wednesday, Friday. That works out to 3.75 mg/wk and the. Retest my levels. If my levels where still high I would increase to every other day and then retest until I found the optimal amount for me. Now I have to say that overall I'm a relatively healthy individual and am not really sensitive to things or have allergies. I've now been doing this for 3 months and need to recheck my levels. The pill has had no negative impact on me whatsoever (and hope it remains that way). I've actaully had an easier time getting an erection and my libido has improved. I think it has to do with the fact that I'm taking my above normal dht level and bringing it to a more normal state or at least trying to. I would check your levels and be conservative. Just my 2 cents. Everyone is different and i dont believe in a one size fits all approach. I may never evere go to a 1mg/day routine if what im doing now works for me. Another positive note (aside from my improved sex drive) my hair has improved as well.

[johnbath]

Originally Posted by AGL

Hi Johnbath,

I was in your shoes for over about a year contemplating the use of the finastride. I went back and forth with the idea of taking or not taking it and scared off by some of the reported permanent side affects. What good is a head of hair if your dick doesnt work, right? Well in the early part of 2012 I found the bald truth and spencer and started listening and watching all his shows including archived ones. This started to give me more confidence in the drug. There was one show that had a urologist on it and he said something along the lines is that you should get your DHT levels checked because we are all different and the therapy should be different as well. This is what I thought as well and what makes sense. I mean how can a 250 lbs man need the same dose as a 150lbs man or a man who's DHT levels are much higher than another's. So I decided that I would get my DHT levels check to make a more informed decision. As expected for a MPB norwood VA my dht level was high. Double the norm, so I thought to myself I just wanted to get it to normal so I could be more healthy overall. The problem I ran into is that no one does these tests and customizes the therapy so I had to do it on my own. I decided to be conservative and start with 1/4 finastride every Monday, wednesday, Friday. That works out to 3.75 mg/wk and the. Retest my levels. If my levels where still high I would increase to every other day and then retest until I found the optimal amount for me. Now I have to say that overall I'm a relatively healthy individual and am not really sensitive to things or have allergies. I've now been doing this for 3 months and need to recheck my levels. The pill has had no negative impact on me whatsoever (and hope it remains that way). I've actaully had an easier time getting an erection and my libido has improved. I think it has to do with the fact that I'm taking my above normal dht level and bringing it to a more normal state or at least trying to. I would check your levels and be conservative. Just my 2 cents. Everyone is different and i dont believe in a one size fits all approach. I may never evere go to a 1mg/day routine if what im doing now works for me. Another positive note (aside from my improved sex drive) my hair has improved as well.

Brilliant post, i was doing some research as well and you post fits perfectly into what i was thinking. Since i was 16 i've always had a lot of facial hair and body hair. So im thinking i have higher levels of dht as this would fit in with the hair loss too. Im just thinking that maybe the people who do get serious sides have a normal level of dht to begin with and the drug drastically lowers it. So if mine is already high and i lower it to the normal range i should be safe from sides. I know it's not as simple as that, but it sounds plausible

[vinnytr]

Originally Posted by AGL

Hi Johnbath,

I was in your shoes for over about a year contemplating the use of the finastride. I went back and forth with the idea of taking or not taking it and scared off by some of the reported permanent side affects. What good is a head of hair if your dick doesnt work, right? Well in the early part of 2012 I found the bald truth and spencer and started listening and watching all his shows including archived ones. This started to give me more confidence in the drug. There was one show that had a urologist on it and he said something along the lines is that you should get your DHT levels checked because we are all different and the therapy should be different as well. This is what I thought as well and what makes sense. I mean how can a 250 lbs man need the same dose as a 150lbs man or a man who's DHT levels are much higher than another's. So I decided that I would get my DHT levels check to make a more informed decision. As expected for a MPB norwood VA my dht level was high. Double the norm, so I thought to myself I just wanted to get it to normal so I could be more healthy overall. The problem I ran into is that no one does these tests and customizes the therapy so I had to do it on my own. I decided to be conservative and start with 1/4 finastride every Monday, wednesday, Friday. That works out to 3.75 mg/wk and the. Retest my levels. If my levels where still high I would increase to every other day and then retest until I found the optimal amount for me. Now I have to say that overall I'm a relatively healthy individual and am not really sensitive to things or have allergies. I've now been doing this for 3 months and need to recheck my levels. The pill has had no negative impact on me whatsoever (and hope it remains that way). I've actaully had an easier time getting an erection and my libido has improved. I think it has to do with the fact that I'm taking my above normal dht level and bringing it to a more normal state or at least trying to. I would check your levels and be conservative. Just my 2 cents. Everyone is different and i dont believe in a one size fits all approach. I may never evere go to a 1mg/day routine if what im doing now works for me. Another positive note (aside from my improved sex drive) my hair has improved as well.

Thanks for this post ^^

Can you tell a bit more about the DHT level checking process ?

Is it done through a blood test ? Is DHT the only thing they are looking for ?
And how do they know how much DHT an individual should have ?

How did you know that was the amount of FIN you should take based on the DHT levels found ?

[AGL]

Yes the DHT level testing is done through a blood test. When I was getting my required blood test for my upcoming HT I asked them to also test my DHT. I'm from Ontario, Canada and most blood test are covered, but not DHT. So you can just get your DHT levels checked. In Ontario when you get a blood test report it shows the normal range and your result. Anything out of the range is flagged and you can easy know and compare to the baseline. I didn't and don't know how much fin to take but I figured I would try doing approx half the recommend. You can try less to be conservative. You have to play with the levels. Hope this helps.

[hellouser]

Originally Posted by AGL

Yes the DHT level testing is done through a blood test. When I was getting my required blood test for my upcoming HT I asked them to also test my DHT. I'm from Ontario, Canada and most blood test are covered, but not DHT. So you can just get your DHT levels checked. In Ontario when you get a blood test report it shows the normal range and your result. Anything out of the range is flagged and you can easy know and compare to the baseline. I didn't and don't know how much fin to take but I figured I would try doing approx half the recommend. You can try less to be conservative. You have to play with the levels. Hope this helps.

I'm from Ontario as well. If a blood test is covered, why would results for DHT from the blood test not be covered? Couldnt we just request to see the results?

[AGL]

Not all blood tests are covered in Ontario, unless you have insurance. Only routine type test are covered by OHIP. Other examples of tests not covered are PSA, vitiamin D and many, many more.