I'm 27 years old at a crossroad in my life in terms of taking finasteride?

[coderz]

So I just don't know what to do. I'm 27 my hairline isn't horrible "yet" but it's just starting to become obvious that I'm starting to go bald and receeding on the sides.

If I'm going to try and save my hair then now would be the time to maintain what I have and maybe facilitate regrowth with finasteride.

I talked to my doctor about it, and he prescribed PROSCAR which I could cut into 4ths. I got my prescription for a cheap 9 dollars and zero cents for 30 pills a couple days ago.

I'm single, and worried that my receeding hairline if it gets worse will make it harder to find a woman. Then again I've read forums everywhere online researching the drug and constantly I see guys complaining of these persist sexual side effects.

It's frightening enough thst I brought this up to my doctor. He said he had multiple patients taking it and none of them have complained of any side effects at all to speak of. I don'think he was lying to me as he suggested I seriously think about taking it at my age.

Are these horror stories something that only occur online? Are they rare in real life? Still in the prescription packet I received with the PROSCAR contains a pamphlet.

The pamphlet reads "This drug may cause a change in sex ability in men or lowered interest in sex and this could go on after you stop taking the drug". It says it was released by the Clinical Drug Information LLC. and it's worded just as I described.

This is all very scary. It's to the point where I don't know what to do. I'd love to take it an keep my hair maintained into my 30s, but is it worth the risk? What should I think about with my crazy situation?

Also something to consider in this. I was going to talk to my doctor because oddly enough lately my semen has been watery "like it's low quality" and I've had a lower sex drive and trouble with erections to a minor extent but mostly just watery semen.

Oddly enough this is something people on finasteride seem to complain about constantly on forums however I'VE NEVER TAKEN IT Ever! The crazy thing is if I had been taking it I'm sure I'd attribute these symptoms to being caused by the drug even though the drug would likely have nothing to do with it.

In any case my sex drive is still high and I'd like to keep it that way. This is all very confusing and scary at this confusing point in my life..... I really appreciate th e help guys. What should I do?

[BaldingEagle]

So I just don't know what to do. I'm 27 my hairline isn't horrible "yet" but it's just starting to become obvious that I'm starting to go bald and receeding on the sides.

If I'm going to try and save my hair then now would be the time to maintain what I have and maybe facilitate regrowth with finasteride.

I talked to my doctor about it, and he prescribed PROSCAR which I could cut into 4ths. I got my prescription for a cheap 9 dollars and zero cents for 30 pills a couple days ago.

I'm single, and worried that my receeding hairline if it gets worse will make it harder to find a woman. Then again I've read forums everywhere online researching the drug and constantly I see guys complaining of these persist sexual side effects.

It's frightening enough thst I brought this up to my doctor. He said he had multiple patients taking it and none of them have complained of any side effects at all to speak of. I don'think he was lying to me as he suggested I seriously think about taking it at my age.

Are these horror stories something that only occur online? Are they rare in real life? Still in the prescription packet I received with the PROSCAR contains a pamphlet.

The pamphlet reads "This drug may cause a change in sex ability in men or lowered interest in sex and this could go on after you stop taking the drug". It says it was released by the Clinical Drug Information LLC. and it's worded just as I described.

This is all very scary. It's to the point where I don't know what to do. I'd love to take it an keep my hair maintained into my 30s, but is it worth the risk? What should I think about with my crazy situation?

Also something to consider in this. I was going to talk to my doctor because oddly enough lately my semen has been watery "like it's low quality" and I've had a lower sex drive and trouble with erections to a minor extent but mostly just watery semen.

Oddly enough this is something people on finasteride seem to complain about constantly on forums however I'VE NEVER TAKEN IT Ever! The crazy thing is if I had been taking it I'm sure I'd attribute these symptoms to being caused by the drug even though the drug would likely have nothing to do with it.

In any case my sex drive is still high and I'd like to keep it that way. This is all very confusing and scary at this confusing point in my life..... I really appreciate th e help guys. What should I do?

I'd like to comment as I've been in your shoes.

2 years ago I was prescribed Proscar to cut into 4ths. I started taking it before I ever looked online about it and had no issues aside from watery semen (not surprising since it shrinks the prostate).

One night while looking up Propecia results I stumbled on the fear mongering Propeciahelp site. After reading the horror stories I suddenly developed symptoms the next day and they wouldn't go away after 2 weeks remaining on the drug. I then quit the drug and they were gone the next day. Which makes no sense because it takes 10-14 days for your DHT levels to return to baseline. I didn't know this at the time.

I hopped on rogaine twice a day for the next year and it did regrow a bit and slow my loss but the hairline is stubborn and I knew I had no chance against it without Propecia.

Fast forward until two months ago when I decided I'd start taking it again after talking to my dermatologist. This time I would stop reading horror stories and take it like it was a vitamin.

I thought to myself and basically concluded: Yes this is a fairly powerful drug, but hairloss is devastating to me. Yes it could extremely rarely cause persistent ED in a subset of men. If it did this to all 1 million plus men on the drug it would be an epidemic. It clearly doesn't.

Since starting it 65 days ago I've noticed slightly watery semen on only some days, maybe a slight libido drop and zero problems getting or maintaining an erection.

The libido drop and watery semen are also fading. I think my body was adjusting.

I'm really glad I got back on it and stayed away from the fear mongering. My hair is already looking a but thicker in combination with the rogaine, which it seems to have boosted. And I have the peace of mind to stop worrying about my hair.

Basically this is the reality:

You may experience ED if you take it. But it's a rare chance and I trust multiple studies over online anecdotes. You probably won't and you'll probably keep and thicken your hair.

Option 2:

Don't take it, you're hair will fall out 100%.

I like the odds of option 1.

Cheers

[BaldingEagle]

Also, the persistent sexual sides have still never been scientifically proven. Not even one case. The FDA put that warning because it was anecdotally reported.

I do believe it's possible but extremely rare.

For the vast majority sides diminish with continued therapy or upon cessation.

Hope this helps clarify.

[rockman]

I had a similar fear to you from reading horror stories of taking finasteride back in 2012, which is why I’m sharing my experience with you, so you hear from someone that has used it no problems. Perhaps If everyone like me wrote on post like this about their lack of problems with this drug, and its benefits it would make the posts from people with problems much less noticeable....

I actually procrastinated for about a year because of this, and kind of wish I started back in 2012 instead of 2013.

I've been taking 1MG of finasteride for about 2 years now with no problems (touch wood). Before that I was using saw palmetto for about 3 years based on anecdotal stories that it may help, but fin & minox is much better.

Whilst there is a lot of publicity about possible side effects, the most common ones happen in 1 out of every 50 people, so there is a 98% chance that you won't even experience any of them at all. The horror stories of people with persistent side effects after stopping are very rare and possibly closer to 1 in a million, so statistically speaking taking this could be safer than crossing the road or driving a car, because those 2 activities are potentially life threatening.

When I first started taking fin I also experienced watery semen, and some discomfort in balls after ejaculating, slightly less libido plus some fatigue, but it is possible that stress probably played a bigger part than this being drug side effect. To er on the side of caution I cut down to 1/4 dose for first week and then gradually increased dose each week until I was on 1mg, and have been taking 1mg of fin everyday since early 2014 no problems.

With regards to libido, this is something that gradually drops as you get older as you approach you 30's, whether you take finasteride or not. Actually I have heared that because of the slight rise in testosterone due to reduction of 5 aloha redutose DHT you are more likely to experience a slight increase in sex drive if there is any change to it.

I have found the best defence against problems with sexual performance which do become more common for men as they approach their 30's & 40's is to cut down on alcohol, and stress, eat good diet get enough sleep and exercise regularly. In my experience these things will probably affect your sex drive/performance more than Finasteride can. You can't burn the candle at both ends and get away with it like you could in early 20's. If you do ever want to boost your sex drive, a good zinc supplement can help. I have tried supplements such as horny goat-weed or macca, for those days when I am expecting a lot of passion from GF but I personally think a good zinc supplement of about 20mg per day for several days is much better.


I personally think of taking fin to block certain hormones as not that different to a woman taking a contraceptive pill, which also works by changing certain hormone levels (I don’t know the percentage of women that take the pill but probably a lot....just about every woman i have been romantically involved with has been on some sort of birth control pill). In fact it may be worth doing google search on other common drugs such as contraceptive pill or asperine to see what side effects horror stories come up, just to put things into perspective. Whilst they are very rare, there are a very small number of people that react badly to these drugs, whilst most people are fine on them.

Hope this post has been helpful to you in some way. Whatever you decide is up to you though, and best of luck with this.

[allTheGoodNamesAreTaken]

"So I just don't know what to do. I'm 27 my hairline isn't horrible "yet" but it's just starting to become obvious that I'm starting to go bald and receeding on the sides."

Take finasteride/dutasteride or accept your fate. If there's one treatment worth bothering with, it's that.

[coderz]

Excellent post and I'm not saying I disagree but with all these stories it seems higher than one in a million in terms of permanent sexual side effects unless the is just in the heads of a lot guys thinking it's the drug causing issue

[jamesst11]

Excellent post and I'm not saying I disagree but with all these stories it seems higher than one in a million in terms of permanent sexual side effects unless the is just in the heads of a lot guys thinking it's the drug causing issue

Hey man, it is a hard decision and the only way to know is to thoroughly research it and come to a conclusion. Then you can always start really gradually. The truth is, for some people finasteride has markedly improved their lives and well being. For others, it has not. Do I personally believe there can be severe sexual sides? Well, I could tell that within my body quite a few things have changed since being on it. The first two months, my erections were much softer. Then, I had an overwhelmngly high libido for 2 months. Then I lost probably 30% of my hair in the crown and throughout the hair line. Now, at 8.5 months, I THINK my hair loss is starting to slow down. For anyone to say that sides are extremely rare - I don't think that's an appropriate answer or a good one. I think our physiology has a never ending complexity and I think finasteride is a strong drug. By drastically lowering a hormone that has multiple functions in the body, some of which are not entirely understood, you can EXPECT changes to occur while on it, in one way or another. Once again, it may definitely be worth it. If you find it's not for you, you can always quit and should have good confidence that your body will recalibrate again to normal levels.

[Mpbman]

Coderz, don't make the mistake that I (and probably many) did waiting too long to start on propecia.

I wish I started at your age. Now I have to put on caboki every other day or so so my hair looks halfway decent.

[CaliD]

Coderz, don't make the mistake that I (and probably many) did waiting too long to start on propecia.

I wish I started at your age. Now I have to put on caboki every other day or so so my hair looks halfway decent.

I was gonna say the exact same thing. I started Finasteride 6 months ago at age 40 (after getting a hair transplant). If I had started 10 years earlier at age 30 (when my hair wasn't horrible yet) I would have saved myself a lot of stress, money, heartache, depression, etc. I really regret not starting fin 10 years ago.

You can also take 1.25mg/3x a week (like every monday, wednesday and friday). Try that for 1 month, then move up to 1.25mg/4x a week and go another month. Then 1.25mg/5x a week and go another month. Just giving you an option.

[pkipling]

I love the amount of support in this thread.

I will echo what most everyone else said. First off, I could've been reading my very own story with everything you said... The beginning stages of hair loss, the fear of losing it, afraid that it would make me undesirable, unattractive, that nobody would want to date me if I was bald, etc. Super insecure and freaked out and afraid. Eventually, I started seeking answers and ended up getting a hair transplant a little over a year ago at age 30.

Regarding the medication, I started taking Propecia a little over a year ago prior to my hair transplant with no problems. There were times over the course of the 14 months I was taking it that I thought maybe my libido was lower, maybe my erections weren't as strong, etc. I do think the amount of semen I had was less, but who knows for sure. However, I never experienced any serious concrete issues, and I do believe that most of what I "thought I might have been experiencing" was mostly in my head. Our minds are very powerful and can really do a number on us if we're not careful.

Fast forward to now: I actually stopped taking Propecia about 2 months ago after having been on it for around 14 months. I didn't stop because of any known side effects, but mostly because I want to postpone taking it as long as possible. I talked it over with my surgeon and we're going to monitor my miniaturization levels every 6 months and keep track of how my hair is/is not continuing to thin. My primary area of hair loss was in the hairline, which we fixed with the HT. As of now, I'm not experiencing hair loss further back nor in the crown. If I can get by without a medication right now, I would love that. I'm an old fashioned hippy kinda guy and try to avoid as much medication as possible. However, the first time I go in for an evaluation and the doctor tells me that my miniaturization levels have increased, I will be back on Propecia before nightfall.

I am a patient advocate for Dr. Parsa Mohebi in Los Angeles, CA. My opinions/comments are my own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Dr. Mohebi and his staff.