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  1. #1
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    Question Propecia side effects?

    Hi everybody,

    First of all, I would like to thank Spencer for creating another informative forum where most people who post seem to be genuine. I have been trying to stop my hair lost for most my adult life and 29 now. Although I still have quite a bit of hair, I have wasted a lot of time and money on useless products. I consider myself to be quite switched on when it comes to buying anything but yet I fell into the snakeoil traps. I have used a product called Nisim, Aminexil by L'oreal and the usual herbal remedies. I was always scarred of using minoxidil and propecia was out of question. Yet they are the only two products that have been documented and proven to work? Two years ago I bought a lasercomb, did nothing for regrowth but then last year I decided to use Rogaine foam. Again I don't think it did much for regrowth although many people told me about my hair looking thicker, but I think it was just because I grew it longer.
    I was tempted to use Revivogen that looked legit but again I think they are a waste of time and money. So two weeks ago, I joined a hair-retention programme by a high street pharmacy (I live in the UK). They prescribe propecia and it cost about £30 (about $45) a month and include review and tracking the progress; which is actually very reasonable. If I were to get prescription for propecia, it would cost me £45 a month. The hair clinics are the biggest scam artists who charge up to £200/month for their minoxidil and propecia combination. I haven't experienced any sides yet, and things seem to be ok.
    I started to freak out when I came onto a forum called propeciahelp.com and people there claimed they experienced permanent sexual side effects, depression, face fattening, bad skin ageing, wrinkles around the eyes, dark eyes circles, lost facial features. Can this be true? If not why do people post such things. Has anyone met someone in real life who experienced such things. In the uk hair loss is never talked about, we suffer in silence. Some people think I'm vain for worrying about my hair. Most people don't know about propecia, I haven't met anyone who uses it, so all my research is based on what people say on the net.
    The reason I'm writing today is to get user experience from propecia users and secondly to re-emphasize to anyone who trying to stop hair loss, to avoid all those other so called 'natural' alternatives. It took me 7 years to realise that none of them work.

    Kind Regards,

    Zack

  2. #2
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    Quote Originally Posted by seraphix View Post
    Hi everybody,

    First of all, I would like to thank Spencer for creating another informative forum where most people who post seem to be genuine. I have been trying to stop my hair lost for most my adult life and 29 now. Although I still have quite a bit of hair, I have wasted a lot of time and money on useless products. I consider myself to be quite switched on when it comes to buying anything but yet I fell into the snakeoil traps. I have used a product called Nisim, Aminexil by L'oreal and the usual herbal remedies. I was always scarred of using minoxidil and propecia was out of question. Yet they are the only two products that have been documented and proven to work? Two years ago I bought a lasercomb, did nothing for regrowth but then last year I decided to use Rogaine foam. Again I don't think it did much for regrowth although many people told me about my hair looking thicker, but I think it was just because I grew it longer.
    I was tempted to use Revivogen that looked legit but again I think they are a waste of time and money. So two weeks ago, I joined a hair-retention programme by a high street pharmacy (I live in the UK). They prescribe propecia and it cost about £30 (about $45) a month and include review and tracking the progress; which is actually very reasonable. If I were to get prescription for propecia, it would cost me £45 a month. The hair clinics are the biggest scam artists who charge up to £200/month for their minoxidil and propecia combination. I haven't experienced any sides yet, and things seem to be ok.
    I started to freak out when I came onto a forum called propeciahelp.com and people there claimed they experienced permanent sexual side effects, depression, face fattening, bad skin ageing, wrinkles around the eyes, dark eyes circles, lost facial features. Can this be true? If not why do people post such things. Has anyone met someone in real life who experienced such things. In the uk hair loss is never talked about, we suffer in silence. Some people think I'm vain for worrying about my hair. Most people don't know about propecia, I haven't met anyone who uses it, so all my research is based on what people say on the net.
    The reason I'm writing today is to get user experience from propecia users and secondly to re-emphasize to anyone who trying to stop hair loss, to avoid all those other so called 'natural' alternatives. It took me 7 years to realise that none of them work.

    Kind Regards,

    Zack
    Hey Zack,

    Thanks for the kind words and welcome to the forum!
    I recently addressed the exact same issue in another thread.
    Here's the link:

    http://www.baldtruthtalk.com/showthread.php?t=257

    Hope this helps!
    Spencer Kobren
    Founder, American Hair Loss Association
    Host, The Bald Truth Radio Show

    I am not a physician. My opinions and knowledge concerning hair loss and its treatment are based on extensive research and reporting on the subject as a consumer advocate and hair loss educator. My views and comments on the subject should not be taken as medical advice. Always seek the advice of a medical professional when considering medical and surgical treatment.

  3. #3
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    Post Thanks

    Thanks Spencer,

    I read your response and that has already reassured me about me using propecia. Not sure what the goals of these people off these forum are? Anyway none of them seem to have facts to relate to their side-effects and of course if the condition was there, it could have been triggered by something else.

    Regards,

    Zack

  4. #4
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    JH82,

    Thanks for your reply. The stats look favourable for propecia, and I have just started using it from the Boots programme as you correctly guessed, so it's nice to get some reassurance that the product works and the side-effects have been greatly exaggerated on propeciahelp.com.
    I read what I posted initially and it was wrong of me to brand all hair-loss clinics as scam artists. I formed my opinion based on media reports and users on the web who shared their negative experiences with some of the UK hair clinics. The same could be said about hair transplantation, where most UK hair transplantation are known to consistently produce poor result; doesn't mean all HT doctors are bad. Again most of my opinion have been from researching on the web.

    Regards,

    Zack

  5. #5
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    What exactly are booster products anyway?

    Thanks!

  6. #6
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    Default Propecia killed my erection

    Seraphix I read your letter and wanted to add my own account with Propecia.

    I'm 44 and I've had two hair transplants, in a ritzy clinic in Beverly Hills, mainly on the vertex and the frontal hairline. My doctor strongly suggested that I start taking Propecia so I wouldn't lose any more existing hair. I agreed and began my once a day pill of Propecia in the morning. For the next 2 1/2 years I took Propecia everyday and my hair responded wonderfully to it. My hair looked great once the implants started growing. I was overjoyed! It was as if someone had turned back the clock on my hair. I no longer needed a hat everywhere I went. Women where checking me out and my confidence rose. Having the 2 hair transplants (that cost over 12 grand) was the best money I've ever spent and worth every penny.

    Now the bad news. My sex drive was slowly diminishing with each passing day. I really didn't notice it at first but about 6 months into taking Propecia I realized I couldn't last as long as I used to in the bedroom. I just chalked it up to being tired or getting older (not a kid anymore). Sometimes everything was fine and dandy. Things started getting bad in the second year on Propecia. My erections weren't nearly as strong as before. I was flying a half mast. Sometimes I could barely maintain enough wood to get a condom on. Once I had the condom on I couldn't feel anything. My penis was numb. Condoms always dull the sensation no matter how thin they are but I couldn't feel anything at all. Sensitivity zero. This was scary. Even without the condom it was hard to get things going. When a woman gave me head it was like watching it on TV because I just barely felt it. On a good day I could get a few good strokes and that was it, it was just go soft. I can't begin to tell you about the embarassment I felt. I told my doctor and he said he could write me a perscription for Viagra. I didn't want to start taking the magic blues besides I was a superman in the sack before my surgery and Propecia. I knew in my mind I had one thing to do.

    I had to stop taking Propecia. I knew that about 2% of the men that take Propecia experience erectile problems and I guess I was in that small margin. After a few weeks off Propecia my desire and rockhard erections came roaring back. I was burning women down to the ground and I got my sexual confidence back. That was 11 months ago and I haven't taken a single dose of propecia since.

    The downside is: I have some major shedding going on with the hair surrounding the transplanted hair. I read that if you stop Propecia, then any benefit you gain while on it will be lost within a year. I also read when you start up a new treatment you can expect shedding for the first few months. I believe I'm getting a double whammy of shedding right now from the stoppage of Propecia and starting the Minox about 6 months ago. I'm trying not to panic as my hair gets thinner with each washing. I'm just trying to weather the storm and hope that the minox will soon take effect.

    I didn't want to stop Propecia but I was caught between a rock and a hard place. What good is having hair and being attractive to women if you can't perform sexually. I'd rather be bald or thinning and have my dick work than to have a full head of hair and be impotent. If there is anything worst than hairloss it's not having your pecker work. That's one of the worst.


    When I stopped Propecia I decided to try topicals. I started with Spectral DNC, an orange solution that it contains 5% minoxidil, and various herbal ingredients. I used this for 6 months and stopped because it turned my hair orange where ever I applied it. I didn't see any shedding while I used it. I switched to a clear solution 10% Minoxidil with 5% Azelaic Acid (twice a day), added Procerin (a supposed herbal dht blocker), saw palmetto pill 160mg (to give the Procerin a boost), Nizoral shampoo (twice a week). That's my regiment.

    Once I switched to the Minox I started to shed within a 2 months. It's been 5 months on my new regiment and hard to tell if the shedding has stopped or not. I really don't see any hairs falling out but after I wash it always looks thinner. I see some small hairs sprouting but I don't know if they are miniaturizing from the lack of Propecia or are they new hairs growing from the super strength Minox. It hard to tell what I'm actually seeing. I'm going to keep at my regiment for another 6 months and if no improvement then I'll have to do something else but without Propecia I don't see many options.

  7. #7
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    Optic Eye,

    Thanks for your response. I guess it was unfortunate that you fell into that 2% but you confirmed that the effects were reversible. I was concerned about irreversible ones. I hope you acheive success with your current regiment. I did come across this procerin, hope I don't sound too cynical but it looks like a scam product. I'm not sure how well saw palmetto works but I saw a similar product in a health store (FSC Mens Multinutrient Formula) which is at a fraction of the cost and from a more reputable . We have to be wary that natural doesn't automatically mean it is good for us, there are many natural herbal poison for instance.

    Regards,

    Zack

  8. #8

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    Quote Originally Posted by JH82 View Post
    Booster products are products that are not so effective if used on their own like Propecia or minoxidil are, but help to maximise results if used alongside the medically proven treatments. Examples are the HairMax LaserComb, Hair Vitalics (a similar product to Procerin / Provillus and some others), which contains vitamins and nutrients thought to help improve and maintain the condition of the hair and prevent hair loss, and MPG / Azelaic Acid, which are commonly added to minoxidil and help to reduce the amount of DHT reaching the hair follicles.
    The "booster" products seem like a scam to me and it is my opinion that they are used as a way to obtain more money from vulnerable men and women desperate to save their hair. I have never heard of Hair Vitalics but I have certainly have heard of Provillus and Procerin. For more of my thoughts on Provillus you can see this thread here:

    http://www.baldtruthtalk.com/showthread.php?t=221

    There are 2 FDA approved products for hair loss, period. I think most everything else is a waste of people's money.

    Just my opinion.
    I am not a doctor. I am just another 34 year old girl who has been dealing with hair loss for 13 years. Everything I say is only my opinion and should be taken with a grain of salt.

  9. #9
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    WomensHairLossProject,

    I also agree with you about those booster products, I think they can help (maybe) but if they do then, the local health stores sell those similar herbal complex very cheaply, so procerin/provillus are definitely scam. Particularly they run loads of website apparently reviewing all hair loss products, including rogaine and propecia, and rate them. Of course provillus is always on top, (Snakeoil alarm bells rings).

    I think JH82 made a good point that they are not useful on their own but can enhance propecia/rogaine.

    I have been using the lasercomb for two years or so. I cannot say it has made a great difference in terms of regrowth, but I kind of got used to using it while I'm watching tv. Maybe it helped me retain the hair I have, I cannot tell for sure.

    JH82, from your experience of your clients, how long do I need to use propecia to know that it causes side effects? Have you seen evidence that lasercomb works?

  10. #10
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    Hi Seraphix,

    I appreciate your post. I just started taking Propecia a couple months ago. I have noticed some consistancy changes in my 'stuff' and it really worries me. I am just going to take it day by day and when the time comes to have children, which is hopefuly soon, I'll make a decision on continuing Propecia then and hopefuly it won't be too late.

    I can't help but think when I read your post that it could me a mental thing. Regardless of whether it is or isn't I think you made the right decision and you were good to go. I was just wondering if you considered that. I'm not a doctor but the function of an erection is such a psychological thing it seems like it might be a possibility. I'm not questioning you but just thought you should consider it, if you hadn't already. I feel for you having to make that decision and wish you the best.

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