Finasteride for Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia User Reviews (Page 2)

• Woo...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 1, 2019

"I'm eighty, been battling my enlarged prostate for thirty years. I've been on finasteride for two months. Not aware of any side effects, though my sex drive is somewhere back down the highway anyhow. On a scale of one to ten, pain on urination, which was a screaming fifteen, is now a mild one. I'm very happy with the results so far."

• rum...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 25, 2016

"I was previously on Tamsulosin, and this worked well, but I had side effects: dizziness, fatigue, red-faced when doing anything physical, also palpitations. Changed to Finasteride, it has not helped with urine flow, and I am getting up 2 to 3 times a night, becoming very depressed, short-tempered, and fatigued. Also, tingling in fingers. I know it takes time to build in your system, I've been on this about 4 months. The Tamsulosin made a difference after a month. Need to go back to the doctor..."

• roc...
• June 13, 2018

"I tried taking this at two different times, 5 mg, once at 51 years old and again at 53. Both times I took it due to a perceived thought I had an enlarged prostate, and was sold, by a doctor, it could help my serious thinning of hair. Well, the first time I took it for about a month and was on a cruise ship. I am in decent shape, and one morning I ran up a couple of flights of deck stairs which I had done a million times in the past and wow, could not get my heart to slow down. Normally, I recover pretty fast but it took about a minute for my heart to slow down, which is a LONG time. I felt like I was having a heart attack. Had another incident while on an excursion snorkeling which scared the .... out of me. I stopped the drug and when I got home, began working out. I did a yearly physical, and my sugar was a little high, began treadmill 3 times a week. 1 year later, I decided to give it another try for hair loss and perceived BPH, the same thing happened."

• Ric...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• March 30, 2022

"Prescribed in 2019 for prostate. I took it without researching out of desperation. Fast forward to 2022. I have been on a downward trend, self-admitted to the hospital for a week on the beach, depression, anxiety off the charts, every day was a push. Hard to smile, could barely get hard at all, didn't care about caring. Hair has been growing in thick. Off this stuff for a month, keep the hair, give me back my life and joy, and undo all the damage to me. DO NOT TAKE THIS MEDICATION. More than likely, the people pushing it aren't taking it. No different from corner drug dealers! OUR SYSTEM IS BROKEN."

• Bik...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 1, 2017

"I am 54 years old. I've been taking finasteride...along with Flomax for almost 4 months...after being diagnosed with BPH a few months earlier. It has helped tremendously with urination issues. 3-month checkup went well. I will go back in Sept. of 2018 (one year from the start of meds). I have had no side effects until recently. Sexual desire is still very high...no problem getting and maintaining an erection. But about 3 months in, I was noticing less and less ejaculate to where now it's almost nothing. The feeling is still intense...but the well is going dry, per se. I also seem to get fatigued a little more than normal. I will be consulting my urologist about this in the very near future as instructed by him."

• con...
• May 9, 2017

"Suffering badly from sleep deprivation due to being woken to pee 6 times a night, prescribed Tamsulosin Hydrochloride, minimal reduction, doctor then prescribed Finasteride to assist Tamsulosin, which after 3 months was not achieving a result. Finasteride made me very ill within days of taking it: dizziness, nausea, some loss of feeling in fingertips, buildup of calcium in tendons on hand. Made an appointment to discuss with doctor (two weeks, 3 days earliest that could be booked), week and two days before doctor appointment, sudden loss of sight in left eye due to a blood clot behind the retina."

• far...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 11, 2024

"I have been on 5 mg finasteride for 3 weeks. I am 61 years old. I have had most of the side effects. Started with terrible brain fog for a few days. My testicles ache every day. My penis shrinks more every day, but the meds make me horny. I masturbate. I don't get hard, but started with brown cum, watery. Now I'm almost dry cum. See how it goes. Only 3 weeks on meds, no testicle shrinkage yet. I read a lot of bad things. My marriage is sexless, so keep going. See if it improves."

• jus...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• June 23, 2023

"Mixed results. I took 2.5 mg every other day, plus an herbal prostate formulation (saw palmetto, pygeum, stinging nettle, beta sitosterol). Good: slowed growth in prostate, improved symptoms of interstitial cystitis (burning, spasming), improved hair on head. Bad: reduced penis size, difficult erections, greatly reduced semen volume (retrograde ejaculation). Also had bad experiences with the side effects of tamsulosin and alfuzosin. Contemplating switching to Cialis, possible 2.5 mg every other day + the herbal prostate supplement on the other days. As best I can tell, not too many options for BPH sufferers: bad drugs or bad surgeries. And no understanding by the medical profession of the causes of enlarged prostate. Pretty pitiful, really. As is the case with so much of our medical system."

• JPW...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• June 24, 2016

"This did reduce the size of my prostate. I didn't have any urinary problems, but the doctor felt one lobe enlarged. Has reduced semen production quite a lot. Erections not as hard but still functional. Sex drive normal. I do have testosterone supplements, so that may have helped retain sex drive and erection ability. Penis does seem to have shrunk over the years on this drug."

• ano...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 22, 2021

"This stuff is horrible. Stopped using it after 3 weeks. Had no more sexual desire of any kind. Just as bad was the overwhelming feeling of doom and negative thoughts! Did not use it long enough to get the breast enlargement or extreme body hair growth! I think urologists prescribe this as an easy out when they know nothing much about the prostate gland and related problems!"

• Dou...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 21, 2020

"Prior to being on Finasteride, I was up all night, every night. Seriously, some nights I was up 7 times. It took quite some time (three months?), and I now sleep through the night. A bad night's sleep is when I have to get up once. Reading some of the negative reviews, these meds do not have a single side effect for me. Sleep like a baby again at 61 years of age. Saved me from surgery."

• Fed...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• November 17, 2022

"My father currently has prostate cancer and colorectal cancer stage 2B because of this drug and his doctor. My dad had no prostate problems but had a high PSA score, which could mean cancer. He was given scans, he had no cancer. Still, the doc decided to put him on finasteride to get the score down. One of the side effects is cancer. So my father got cancer. Then they decided to give him a 16-point, not 12-point biopsy of the prostate. On the way out, they nicked his rectum with the probe that had the tissue on it, and now my dad has rectal cancer as well. The doctors should be thrown in jail for life, and this medicine should never be used ever to fiddle with a perfectly healthy man's PSA score."

• Mid...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 31, 2016

"Was given finasteride as a trial as Contiflo (Flomax) did not solve the issue completely. I stopped after 5 days as finasteride was giving me frequent palpitations. Very unsettling. I think the other well-known effect was slowly starting to take effect as well. Enough reason for me to stop and rely on Contiflo for the time being."

• far...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 27, 2024

"I started it 6 days ago. I immediately felt discomfort in my testicles. I'm on 5 mg finasteride. I did orgasm yesterday, but was soft. The color was brownish for semen. I have major brain fog. I do feel it in my left testicle. My nipples are very sensitive. My fingers are tingly. My wife and I have not been sexually active for 5 years. So if I develop impotence, I'm okay with it. I did tell my urologist, I might as well take my testicles out. But he said no. So, I do have most side effects. As far as results, too short of time to know. There are many reviews of impotence from this drug, as long as you're okay with that."

• wha...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• April 18, 2020

"My dad just turned 87 in March and has been taking 5 mg of finasteride since 1998 for enlarged prostate. We have discussed the side effects, he has had NONE over the past 22 years. Great sex drive, with no Cialis. He told me his hair has gotten thicker, from my standpoint, his hair is so thick it is unbelievable. He stated he has more hair now than he did in his 60s. He had no idea that finasteride produced hair growth until I told him last week. As for myself, at age 56 and with a little receding hairline, I am going to start it today and see how it works for me. Since I am a clone of my dad, I hope it works just as good for me as it has for him."

• Mon...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 23, 2021

"If you're taking this poison for hair growth, I urge you to stop! Bald is better than the side effects. I took it for enlarged prostate but decided it wasn't a good option. I'm 71, so ED isn't an issue for me, but after two months, I started getting headaches that wouldn't go away. Then, four days into the headaches, I woke up feeling dizzy. I'm not talking a little dizzy, I'm talking big-time spinning room dizzy that felt like the worst drunk of my life dizzy. I was 24 hours before I could walk to the bathroom without falling. I'm reading that only 2% experience the side effects. I'm betting it is a lot higher than that. Stop NOW and hope you get better. It has been a month since I took any, and I am still having light-headed days and minor headaches. Hopefully, this isn't permanent."

• Tex...
• October 5, 2020

"I have been taking finasteride for several years. About a year ago, I noticed shrinkage of my unit and testicles, no energy, depression, and low libido. I thought it was my age. Brain fog all around, lack of excitement for life. I couldn't figure it out until a few weeks ago. I hope it goes away. I can't get into my doc for 3 months. Be careful. Was on the med for 6 years for BPH. It helped with that but screwed everything else up. I am so mad at my doctor."

• Vic...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 14, 2020

"I took this medication for 8 days when my side effect symptoms started. It put me into a 3-day panic attack that wouldn't stop, and my entire body was numb. I felt disassociated from everything mental, and I'm starting to come back to my old self, still have mental fog, though. Luckily, my penis still works, unlike many of the other men I've read about. Don't listen to these people saying that it's lots safe and to give it a try, all to keep your hair. One dose could be all it takes to ruin your life. Just keeping my fingers crossed mine isn't as severe as the other accounts I've read."

• Sma...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• June 14, 2017

"Please see my earlier post for my concerns. I stated that I would be talking to my doctor about the side effects, and he now has taken me off this medication and just has me on just the Flomax medication. He insisted that it might take a couple of months for my side effects to completely go away. I hope they go away sooner than that! I'll keep you posted."

• Nea...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• March 16, 2022

"I’m 76 years old with an enlarged prostate. As urination became more difficult, my doctor prescribed finasteride. He gave me no verbal warning, but I read the “side effects” on the prescription instructions. It did say, “may affect sexual desire.” I trusted my doctor and thought it was just one of those extreme warnings we see all the time. I took the medication for six months on a daily basis. After six months, I came to realize my erection was difficult to achieve. I continued to take the medication, thinking the problem was age-related, not the medication. After 6 more months, I was unable to achieve an erection at all and unable to have an orgasm! My prostate did shrink, but so did my penis and testicles! At the gym, I was embarrassed by my small penis, which shrank to half the size it was before taking the medication! My first alarm was when I was unable to achieve orgasm by oral sex, regardless of how long I tried!"

• Pat...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• August 19, 2021

"I've been taking finasteride for 11 months to reduce my enlarged prostate. I was terrified at first to take it due to the side effects I read about. At first, I tried several supplement pills, but they all didn't work. Then I tried Flomax, but it made my nose stuffy. Then I tried Cialis, but it gave me flu-type symptoms. Unfortunately, after 11 months, I see little improvement. However, it seems my stream is a little stronger when I urinate, but I still get up multiple times to urinate. But having insomnia doesn't help either. Fortunately, I have had zero side effects using finasteride, which I'm happy about. Absolutely no effect on my sex life. I'll continue taking it for the next several months to see if I needed a year to see any improvement, but I'm doubtful. I'll have to go back to the doctor and try something else."

• Spi...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 11, 2020

"Took finasteride 5 months after being diagnosed with BPH, had to give up after never having erection issues, found myself limp with no interest in sex. On the rare occasion I did manage to have sex, there was no semen at all. Have now given up as I feel the cure is worse than the initial diagnosis."

• Don...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• October 27, 2020

"Instead of an erection, I achieved a down-erection. My erection began to point towards the ground. I had the erection, but it pointed downward instead of upward. Had never before experienced that problem. I was in my late 50s at that time. However, I will admit it did begin to bring my PSI down."

• Ben...
• July 2, 2022

"I've been taking Tamsulosin 0.4 mg for 4+ years. Urine is from okay to not much, drip, stop, start, etc. After reading these reviews, I'm glad I didn't start taking finasteride 5 mg yet, my doctor prescribed it to me last month, because I got home, looked it up, and saw it was off-label for prostate, meant for hair growth. I'm 60, would love the hair, but I told my doctor I'm not taking it. He didn't tell me it was for hair. He said with surgery, the main risk is blood clots. How it works, he said finasteride will start working in a few months, 3-4 months, and once you start, if you stop taking it, it will reverse and stop working. Not for me. Glad I read reviews, I was looking for good to outweigh bad so I could take. Never!"

• Mar...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 12, 2021

"I have had typical symptoms of BPH, very weak stream, up 2 or 3 times a night, not getting a full discharge. I started taking Finasteride 5 mg 3 days ago, and I'm astonished at how quickly it has worked. I now have a fairly normal stream, and last night I got a full night's sleep with no interruptions for the first time in months. I did not expect this kind of result this fast, but I'm super pleased, and no bad side effects."