Finasteride and mental side effects. AKA Brain Fog.

[El Nino]

http://www.pfsfoundation.org/news/ab...sion-in-italy/

Here you are... a deeper understanding is coming sooner than you think

Yeah I have seen that link before but thanks for posting it here.

No doubt the ignorant members will ignore it but it may make some think twice.

Have you suffered from the mental sides soothsayer?

[Bacon]

Though this isn't directly relevant to the topic, I've suffered from anxiety and depression on and off since my teens, yet I haven't had any issues since I started taking finasteride 3 months ago. I value my mental health though so I will keep an eye on it in the coming months and will stop the treatment if need be. However I would assume (perhaps wrongly?) that any negative psychological effects would have presented themselves by now.

[El Nino]

Though this isn't directly relevant to the topic, I've suffered from anxiety and depression on and off since my teens, yet I haven't had any issues since I started taking finasteride 3 months ago. I value my mental health though so I will keep an eye on it in the coming months and will stop the treatment if need be. However I would assume (perhaps wrongly?) that any negative psychological effects would have presented themselves by now.

That's a good attitude mate.

I think 3 months is still very early to evaluate it. I started taking it in July 2007 and it wasn't until sometime in 2010 that I noticed something was going on. But looking back I am sure it started earlier, the thing is the mental sides creep up on you so slowly that you can forget what you felt like before you started.

I didn't suffer from anxiety either, it was more brain fog like I couldn't think clearly.

However, everyone reacts differently to this drug and I wish you all the best.

[BigThinker]

Though this isn't directly relevant to the topic, I've suffered from anxiety and depression on and off since my teens, yet I haven't had any issues since I started taking finasteride 3 months ago. I value my mental health though so I will keep an eye on it in the coming months and will stop the treatment if need be. However I would assume (perhaps wrongly?) that any negative psychological effects would have presented themselves by now.

This is an interesting point. I've had episodes of anxiety/depression throughout my life. I occasionally get a little shook up about my hair, so it would be difficult for me to discern me being bummed about hair loss (which hasn't improved since started fin) versus finasteride induced depression.

Getting serious about my nutrition and physical activity has boosted my mental state quite a bit. This hair loss shit is just such an unneeded barrier to happiness.

[SoothSayer]

However I would assume (perhaps wrongly?) that any negative psychological effects would have presented themselves by now.

This isn't necessarily true and given it isn't a fully research topic (or even close) nobody can say for sure how quickly they are likely to onset. I think its smart you are being cautious, but just remember that it isn't a foolproof plan to just monitor your health closely. I would strongly urge you to make a fully rational decision as to whether you think it is the worth the risk (uncertainty) or something that can end up being quite tragic, even if the outcome is rare.

[El Nino]

I will list the mental sides which I suffered from so people know what to look out for.

Brain Fog (ability to think clearly, feeling just woken up all of the time).
Poor short term memory.
Fatigue and loss of motivation.
Loss of feelings and emotion (Anhodenia).
Slurring words.

Also, like I said before, these symptoms crept up on me so slowly, I had forgotten what I felt like before I started. And there is no way I imagined them because I was not aware of them until 2012, I started in 2007.

[El Nino]

Whilst taking Finasteride I experienced incessant muscle twitching, imagine a fly trapped under your skin trying to get out. I could physically see it moving.

Now maybe muscle twitching is a physical symptom but there is a theory that it is linked to a chemical imbalance of the Brain.

I am still suffering from them now (10 months off) but they are nowhere near as bad.

[BigThinker]

Brain Fog (ability to think clearly, feeling just woken up all of the time).
Poor short term memory.
Fatigue and loss of motivation.
Loss of feelings and emotion (Anhodenia).
Slurring words.

And there is no way I imagined them because I was not aware of them until 2012, I started in 2007.

What????

[drybone]

Big Thinker

Why bother man? The guy is NW6 and pissed off that Fin can help others. He wants to drag everyone else down.

Dont let the clown drag you down. Hes going to lie and spin the negative and do whatever he has to because he can hide behind the internet. Ignore him

[BigThinker]

Big Thinker

Why bother man? The guy is NW6 and pissed off that Fin can help others. He wants to drag everyone else down.

Dont let the clown drag you down. Hes going to lie and spin the negative and do whatever he has to because he can hide behind the internet. Ignore him

I'm actually genuinely interested. The sides he's claiming are totally new to me, so it'd be interesting to learn a bit more -- not trying to be smarmy either.