Finasteride for Androgenetic Alopecia User Reviews (Page 5)

• Bla...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• December 11, 2019

"Ok, I have been on finasteride for about 5 years. I have not had any side effects. Been with my partner 10 years now. I don't want sex as much as before, but think that would have happened with or without taking the pill. Can't really say if it's kept what I had or grown any more, hard to tell without time travel. Even now, reading the reviews makes me worried even without having any of the symptoms. Anyway, from my point of view, seems to work."

• Rob...
• December 9, 2019

"Took Propecia for 18 years. Worked great. Insignificant sides. Well, it was years afterward that I started getting all the sexual and some cognitive (brain fog, bad sleep) side effects. Went to the doc about semi-hard erections, he gave me Cialis. I decided to go off the drug, and after about 2-3 months, I noticed my erections were completely hard as a rock. So much so, that it hurt when I got an erection (in a good way). It was growing BACK! I went back on the drug after about 1 year. My new hair loss stopped soon after, along with my penis working. This time it also started to get hard crooked. I stopped again. Many of the side effects men speak of on this forum are also dissipating. When I was on and had no big side effects, all was good and I thought the negative experiences were small. I'm done for good with Propecia - had I known before what I know now, I would not have started."

• Jim...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 3, 2019

"I have taken this drug for 3 months and take writing this review very seriously, as I can see some negative feedback which I believe to be inaccurate. The drug does not work immediately, so be wary of any review where the user has taken it for less than 3 months. After becoming anxious about going bald, I bought a 3-month supply. I started noticing hair loss reducing from about 6 weeks on, as my desk was no longer covered. Hard to tell if any regrowth, but as I started early, I still had a reasonably healthy cover. Not being anxious about premature aging has really helped my confidence. Have experienced no tangible side effects, but in the first week believed it may have affected sex drive, but as this has disappeared, I now think it was a mental block. Can't say I have noticed any other issues. For me, it has been very positive, as I no longer worry about looking old for my age."

• Eng...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 3, 2019

"At the age of 23, I started losing my hair. I used Genesis (finasteride) 1 mg for 4 months, as recommended by my physician. I got 80% of my hair back. The side effects of the drug were temporary. Within a few weeks, all the side effects were gone and never came back."

• Sik...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• December 2, 2019

"Destroyed my libido, constant tinnitus and headache, depression, loss of feeling. Destroyed my life since I was 20 years old (now I am 32)."

• Bob...
• November 28, 2019

"I have been taking the drug finasteride for over 10 years for hair loss. First 6 years, hairline recovered well. Gradually fading but still decent. You have to be consistent with the taking of it. As for side effects, still horny but definitely not trying to get hold of the missus every day. Knob shrinks a bit, but after a shake, comes back to life. No depression or lack of energy. I do think going to the gym and working out helps counterbalance things. I'll carry on for another few years and see what happens."

• Nic...
• November 25, 2019

"I took finasteride for about 5 months. One time I was having sex with my girlfriend, and after I came, the condom was basically empty. I quit after that, not having this drug affect my sex drive. Rather have hair loss."

• Tom...
• November 24, 2019

"I was given this drug finasteride by a complete imbecile of a dermatologist at the age of fifteen. I am now 30, and I am only just getting over the side effects after more than ten years of being off the drug. It is highly destructive, far more than the reported 2% of people. I suffered pretty much every symptom in the book: sexual, cognitive, muscular, sleeping, depression, gastrointestinal. Why potentially risk destroying your life? I can assure you from firsthand experience, it is absolutely not worth it! At one stage, I went eight years without any form of sexual activity, and as a former sports enthusiast, I can now no longer run more than a few seconds without horrendous leg pain. I piled on around three stone as part of a monstrous metabolic crash, and my university degree was absolutely ruined. Take this and mess with your hormones at your peril. Do not trust money-grabbing dermatologists or pharmaceutical companies. I was not provided with the facts/risks."

• Dda...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 22, 2019

Finasteride "Took this drug for only two days, and already have sexual side effects. I am not happy."

• Gen...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• November 8, 2019

"Finasteride had no visible effect at halting the progression of hair loss/hair thinning (let alone regrowing), and that is after 7 months of fastidiously taking 1 mg every day. May work for some, but so far, I haven’t responded to it and wondering, this far down the cycle, will it ever work? Some mild to moderate side effects experienced: mild male breast enlargement/tenderness, no effect on libido, moderate fatigue, moderate “brain fog” (general errors of judgment, mistakes, impaired decision-making on my part have gone up noticeably ever since starting on this medication). Planning to take it for another 5 months, if hair loss hasn’t halted, will taper off from this medication, accept fate, and shave off my hair. Already on a regimen of twice daily Minoxidil and once daily washing with Nizoral. Decided to add Finasteride after hair loss began to accelerate in the last two years (was on the two aforementioned products for 8 years prior with slow hair loss progression). 38-year-old male."

• Joh...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• November 6, 2019

"I’ve seen a lot of negative posts, so I figured I’d write my experience. I haven’t really had issues with finasteride. I did have clear semen the first month or so. But it’s returned to normal consistency and volume. I have no issues getting hard and still have the same libido I had. My only issue is that I think I’m still thinning at the corners, or the corners are still not thick enough to my satisfaction. Great drug. I recommend taking it if your hair bothers you! No scientific proof that you’ll get permanent side effects by taking the drug."

• joh...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 5, 2019

"Taking finasteride was the biggest mistake of my life. Finasteride is a type II 5α-reductase inhibitor. 5α-reductase is responsible for so many important bodily functions, and some unlucky individuals, like me, become damaged from it. I suffer physical, sexual, mental, and digestive symptoms every single day. I don't know if I will ever recover from this poison."

• Lif...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 7, 2019

"I took this drug for only 4 days in May 2019. I had mild hair thinning and went to a dermatologist who recommended it. I had done research beforehand and knew about finasteride already, and how for some men the drug could have serious side effects, but decided to listen to a doctor who assured me it was safe. It’s not, and I had to learn the hard way. This poison has completely ruined my life. I’ve completely lost my sleep and have total insomnia, no libido, ED, brain fog, fatigue, anxiety, and depression, penile tissue changes, muscle wastage, and weakness... The list goes on. I’m not making this up, this drug should be avoided. I’m 23 years old, I was healthy before I took this. There is no reason to believe this drug won’t mess your life up. Please avoid it. I don’t even feel like the same person and regret my decision every single day and am having trouble adjusting to this new life. I hate myself for taking this risk."

• Oce...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• October 1, 2019

"Used finasteride for 25 years, but after erectile dysfunction and increased liver enzymes in my 50s, I stopped it 1 year ago. Liver enzymes decreased by 30%, severe hair loss and erectile dysfunction after 1 year."

• Wis...
• September 12, 2019

"Please do NOT use this drug. I took it at a healthy, sexually active 19-year-old because I wanted to stop losing hair. My girlfriend broke up with me six months later...because I could not get an erection. My penis is not the same. I told myself everything would be the same after I stopped. I quit this poison six months later and have not had a girlfriend since. Thought the side effects would go away, but they haven’t. Please don’t."

• Tom...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• August 31, 2019

"Reading the awful experiences other guys have had with finasteride is pretty scary. I've been on it for about 10 months and have honestly noticed no side effects at all and I've been reaping the hair growth benefits. From reading cited studies, I've found the incidence of complications is very low (2% of men or something). If you're unsure, jump on Google Scholar and give a few a read! Definitely helped me :)"

• QC9...
• August 23, 2019

"Don’t get scared off by some of the negative reviews on here. Yeah, there’s a small chance you may get erectile dysfunction, but the vast majority of men who take this drug don’t experience that. I haven’t experienced any kind of depression, ED, brain fog, or any of the other symptoms people mention on here."

• Dan...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• August 17, 2019

"I took finasteride for 6 months. It works for making your hair thicker (after 3 months) and it does regrow a lot. I mean it, it works and it is amazing! The trade-off... you lose your sex life and an unbelievable depression comes with it. They say 4%ish of men have these side effects. Don't believe it. It is a lot more than that. Some never recover. I recovered after 2 weeks of stopping. It sucks losing your hair. I wear a hat everywhere, my self-image and confidence are shot, it's depressing. I feel ugly, embarrassed, and ashamed of myself. But that is nothing compared to the horror you will feel being sexually broken, lack of interest in sex, shrinkage on your testicles and penis, and dry orgasm. If the only thing you have to look forward to is going as Capt Picard on Halloween, at least you are still a functioning man. Hopefully, this drug and its dosage can be better refined one day as to not produce the side effects. Until then, stay away from this."

• Owe...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 14, 2019

"Please listen, I would honestly avoid this drug. I took it for hair growth as my hair was thinning (runs in the family). It wasn’t for a month or two in that I started feeling super depressed (never previously had any form of depression) and had such horrible sad thoughts! This drug plays around with your hormones and testosterone in order to grow your hair, which it did well. However, no amount of hair can ever make me take this drug again. I would happily shave my head for the rest of my life rather than feeling the way I felt on this drug. After all, it’s a drug. Do you really want to be taking drugs every day for the rest of your life? Highly recommend avoiding."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• July 24, 2019

"I’ve been on this medication for 3-4 years now, and I’ve had great responses from my family about the recovery and slowdown of hair loss. I have also had many people warn me about the drug, showing my news articles, etc., however, I haven’t had any side effects at all from what I’ve noticed. I really would be skeptical about people saying they had poor experiences, as I think symptoms like anxiety/depression can be linked to all cosmetic-related treatments. For testicular issues, it would most definitely be in the minority few, only those who suffer from those types of symptoms would most want to express their experiences. I’d completely recommend this drug."

• Cba...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 23, 2019

"I took this product for 3 months. I can't say whether it worked or it didn't. All I know is that at the three-month mark, my boys started aching bad. And E.D. kicked in. The other posts on this website are on the money. If you care about your sexual health and sex life, then do not take this drug! I was in the 'it won't happen to me' group of men that try something anyway. The side effects are horrible. I immediately stopped the drug and, for me, thankfully, within two weeks, everything is back to normal. I'm not sure about the results if I had stayed on it longer. Bottom line: stay away."

• rin...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• July 21, 2019

"Got only maintenance. Side effects: - Gynecomastia bilateral - Dry orgasm - Testicular ache - Poor ejaculatory volume and semi-transparent sperm - Testicular shrinkage."

• hlj...
• July 12, 2019

Finasteride "I took 5 pills from April 2-6. Over the course of those 5 days, I had worsening symptoms of brain fog, headaches, sleeplessness, suicidal ideation, ED/impotence, loss of libido, increased fat mass, and muscle weakness that didn't dissipate for a month and a half. Even now (July), I still have increased fat mass, increased tissue on the breast, peripheral edema (mild), and difficulty (mild) with erections. I'm not as focused or driven due to ongoing sleep difficulties (mild/moderate) and the intensity of these effects. Every day, I regret taking this drug. I took this drug without researching any side effects, I really regret not looking into possible side effects. Please be aware that the consequences could be extremely negative and persistent."

• dub...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 10, 2019

"Took the drug for a week and experienced severe headaches all week long, 'hangover' like. Still have them after stopping the drug. Not saying that this drug is poison or whatever, but honestly watch out, guys... I decided to stop because there are a bit too many testimonies against this drug to simply be 'in guys' head' in my opinion."

• Mak...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• July 10, 2019

"As you guys can see from other people rating, this medication is not effective for most people, including me. Poisoning yourself for months or even a year is not something I recommend."