finasteride experience

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Hey guys, like most young men on this forum, I came here because I began losing my hair rapidly at 22. Over the last 8 months I tried pretty well everything herbal and natural to washing my hair less or more all the way to starting Rogaine and Nizoral. Over the Summer I took the plunge and shaved my head. At first it seemed fine, but as my hair grew back I realized i was running out of time. I became obsessed with how bad my hair looked and wore a hat all summer. I had friends comment on the hair line and my best friend actually take me aside out of courtesy to let me know that he is sure I was going bald and that he was worried for me. The top of my head from the crown to my receding hair line was thinning rapidly to the point where I decided to go see a dermatologist. I had done research on Finasteride and I knew very well the horror stories before I received the scribe.

The Dermatologist gave me the regular speech. The pill is effective in most young men, if you have side effects stop, many of my patients have experience good things etc etc.

Since I discovered this site, I have been reading it daily trying to gather as much info as I could on independent finasteride experiences along with reading the 'propeciahelp.com' site and reviewing the work done by dr.s at george washington university. I opted for the other meds about 6 months ago but the results were minor at best and unnoticable at worst. It came down to risk versus reward and i decided to take the plunge.

I came across a thread started by an "Aston" who seemed to be in a similar circumstance as myself. I took his advice and noted his concerns but I decided I would try it on my own at a very low dose and see how it affected me.

Like Aston, I began taking fin at 1/4 pill per week on August 23 (Aston took 1/4 per 1 mg every 5 days). I know, ridiculously low dose, what could happen with that? I figured I would see how I felt. I knew I was extremely sensitive to many drugs before I started fin. I went on accutane in my late teens to get rid of my acne and the results were amazing but I did experience all the 'minor side effects' of the drug.

Finasteride was no exception, and after I started the drug I have seen a remarkable result with my rapidly improved hair. Within 3 weeks my hair had thickened up to such a point my girlfriend and roommates began to notice. Just about 2 months later (it is October 22) and my hair has not been this thick in years and I have seen re-growth in my temple region and hairline. It came to the point where 3 weeks into taking fin, I stopped reading this site everyday as I thought I had it figured out. Low dose, low risk, high reward.

Here is the thing, after my first dose I did feel different. I realized i did have side effects, they were minimal though. I noticed my sex drive was not what it was normally in the days after taking the drug. I went from being aroused walking through campus to not getting morning wood and receiving virtually no spontaneous erections throughout the two or so days after I took the fin.

The day I take fin at the low dose, I sort of feel hazy all day and some nights I have terrible sleeps to the point where it feels like i receive no rest. I am in University and I have pretty good idea of how I am feeling and I can say my cognitive function is affected by this drug. I have had mild chest pain at times, I am not sure if that is in my head but I have even started to check myself out in the mirror to make sure my nipples are not growing out of whack. I have noticed my testicle twinge more often than they did before but this along with the chest, might be in my head...

I can say this, I know the drug has affected my hormone levels to the extent where for the first time in years since my accutane use, I am getting acne again. These pimples don't go away and come as blemishes like I used to get 'when' my skin was bad. This began happening this last month and the only thing i can attribute it to is Finasteride.

I guess why I am posting here is to ask if anyone else has experienced acne while on the drug. I couldn't imagine mixing accutane with finasteride and the thoughts of going through face washes and topical creams makes me cringe as none of them worked. The acne does go away after I take the fin again for a few days (the ones I receive the most side effects), but It has started to re occur earlier and earlier, to the point within the last week i have been consistently getting new pimples.

I would say I am at the point of seriously considering stopping with finasteride despite the amazing results. The drug is obviously affecting my body in ways that i would consider to be negative and I can only see things becoming worse the more dependent I become on the drug to maintain my hair (which I pretty well am already). The long term effects of this drug on men is also something that worries me. I began to take the drug for cosmetic reasons and ironically it is acne as a side effect that could turn me off of it. Should I go bald and have nice skin again or Should i have hair and be 'pizza face' again.

This is just my experience on the drug. I am a firm believer that this drug effects men differently. I have experienced no shedding and amazing results with my hair, but even at a 1/4 per 1mg dose per week (give or take a day), the drug is messing with my endocrine system and my psychological state.

So here is where I ask for advice. Anybody have a similar experience as myself to this drug. I think in total I have only taken 3 1mg pills of Fin, but it has changed the way my body is working.