No libido.....

Hey guys acidkidsa referred me here as I am having ongoing problems after taking a drug called Finasteride.

I took finasteride a few years ago and it seems the stuff has totally destroyed my libido. I assume its the Finasteride, since it happened around the time I took it and got worse when I stopped taking it.

I have tried TRT with and without Arimidex to no avail. My bloods show that the T is getting into my system (both injections and gel - not at the same time) and that my E is only slightly high if at all.

When I take the testosterone, I feel hot, irritated and ummmmm not horny.

When I very first took TRT, I took a fairly large does and got the same hot feeling but I also got a lot of my libido back. The hot feeling got worse, then the libido disapeared and I seemed to get symptoms of high estrogen such as bloating, fat in the face, still feeling hot etc....

Does anyone have any ideas as to what is going on here? I originally went on TRT because my free T was trashed.

what testosterone exactly did you use ?


was this prescribed by an endocrinologist ?

Sounds like high blood pressure to me! Get it checked out immediately.

I know this dude personally for a long time.

This is nothing as simple as Blood pressure.

He has visited various professionals / Specialists .

He has tried Clomid , Kessar, TRT , ....

But I will let him get back to this in more detail.

This has been carrying on for a few years , and treatment has not fixed it.

Just something I found on the net...its called Cushing's, I've never heard of it but it might be something worth looking into

mr_palmer wrote:

Hey guys acidkidsa referred me here as I am having ongoing problems after taking a drug called Finasteride.

I took finasteride a few years ago and it seems the stuff has totally destroyed my libido. I assume its the Finasteride, since it happened around the time I took it and got worse when I stopped taking it.

I have tried TRT with and without Arimidex to no avail. My bloods show that the T is getting into my system (both injections and gel - not at the same time) and that my E is only slightly high if at all.

When I take the testosterone, I feel hot, irritated and ummmmm not horny.

When I very first took TRT, I took a fairly large does and got the same hot feeling but I also got a lot of my libido back. The hot feeling got worse, then the libido disapeared and I seemed to get symptoms of high estrogen such as bloating, fat in the face, still feeling hot etc....

Does anyone have any ideas as to what is going on here? I originally went on TRT because my free T was trashed.

How long have you been taking finasteride for? Sounds weird that your libido would not come back after years of stopping fina. Just sounds odd to me but there are cases apparently that fina has damaged ppl permanently but that would be after some prolonged use i suppose

Beesting wrote:

Just something I found on the net...its called Cushing's, I've never heard of it but it might be something worth looking into

Cushing's syndrome - Sting I think you hit the nail on the head there. I read through it and it seems a possibility.

Beesting wrote:

Just something I found on the net...its called Cushing's, I've never heard of it but it might be something worth looking into

Good spotting, sounds very possible to me:

Wikipedia:

Symptoms include rapid weight gain, particularly of the trunk and face with sparing of the limbs (central obesity). A common sign is the growth of fat pads along the collar bone and on the back of the neck (buffalo hump) (known as a lipodystrophy) and a round face often referred to as a "moon face". Other symptoms include excess sweating, telangiectasia (dilation of capillaries), thinning of the skin (which causes easy bruising and dryness, particularly the hands) and other mucous membranes, purple or red striae (the weight gain in Cushing's syndrome stretches the skin, which is thin and weakened, causing it to hemorrhage) on the trunk, buttocks, arms, legs or breasts, proximal muscle weakness (hips, shoulders), and hirsutism (facial male-pattern hair growth). In rare cases, Cushing's can cause hypercalcemia, which can lead to skin necrosis. The excess cortisol may also affect other endocrine systems and cause, for example, insomnia, reduced libido, impotence, amenorrhoea and infertility. Patients frequently suffer various psychological disturbances, ranging from euphoria to psychosis. Depression and anxiety are also common.[3]

Cushing's syndrome may present with striking and distressing skin changes including hyperhidrosis, dryness, fragility of the skin, facial acne, susceptibility to superficial dermatophyte and malassezia infections, a plethora over the cheeks, anterior neck, and V of the chest, and the characteristic purplish, atrophic striae on the abdomen.[4]:500

Other signs include polyuria (and accompanying polydipsia), persistent hypertension (due to cortisol's enhancement of epinephrine's vasoconstrictive effect) and insulin resistance (especially common in ectopic ACTH production), leading to hyperglycemia (high blood sugar) which can lead to diabetes mellitus. Untreated Cushing's syndrome can lead to heart disease and increased mortality. Cushing's syndrome due to excess ACTH may also result in hyperpigmentation, such as acanthosis nigricans in the axilla. This is due to Melanocyte-Stimulating Hormone production as a byproduct of ACTH synthesis from Pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC). Cortisol can also exhibit mineralcorticoid activity in high concentrations, worsening the hypertension and leading to hypokalemia (common in ectopic ACTH secretion). Furthermore, gastrointestinal disturbances, opportunistic infections and impaired wound healing (cortisol is a stress hormone, so it depresses the immune and inflammatory responses). Osteoporosis is also an issue in Cushing's syndrome since, as mentioned before, cortisol evokes a stress-like response. Consequently, the body's maintenance of bone (and other tissues) becomes secondary to maintenance of the false stress response. Cushing's syndrome may also elicit hirsutism (male-pattern hair growth in a female, and/or cause hair to become extremely dry and brittle) and oligomenorrhea (decreased frequency of menstruation) due to elevations in androgens (male sex hormones), normally at low levels in women. Additionally, Cushing's may cause sore and aching joints, particularly in the hip, shoulders, and lower back.

Dr John Crisler (allthingsmale.com) hates Fina and has many patients with Libido problems after using the stuff. There are also forums where many complain of this. It is also listed as a side on the package insert.

I recon you should start there.

Thanks for your replies everyone....

The Cushings is interesting, though I have my doubts. Theres such a long list with Cushings that it could be anything. It sounds like it manifests in the skin and my skin is pretty good. I also have low blood pressure.

I have often wondered if it's an adrenal issue, or possibly thyroid.

The thyroid does also play a role in cushing's but it could be anything causing your symptoms. So the docs never tested your thyroid I assume, that's no good. Go get it checked out, its important that you do

Is it just a libido problem or is it complete impotence?

If it's impotence have you tried viagra or cialis? If this works you can eliminate a physical problem, and it will likely be hormonal. If viagra doesn't work, then the problem could be physical, but since you say the trt did help initially, I would tend towards hormonal.

Were you using steroids while on the fina or were you using it alone for hairloss etc?

I was using it on its own for hear loss....

This has got to be a hormonal issue. I can still get it up (though not as hard) but its just an erection.....there is no good feeling anymore.

@ Mr Palmer, seems as though you have tried every avenue...dude, do yoursels a favour and go see a SCIO consultant. Google SCIO and there are quite a few in JHB...I swear they will pick up what is wrong with you and treat it...SCIO is really really cutting edge stuff, been around for years now but only making entrance in SA the last while now.

Check it out bud...there is one at The Campus in Bryanston.

or if you keen, mail me EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED

The bottom line no libido take Bromo trust me it works......

Bromelain??

mr_palmer wrote:

Bromelain??

Bromocriptine

North_Boy1 wrote:

mr_palmer wrote:

Bromelain??

Bromocriptine

yup... it's the shit!

Test prop and masteron cycle. The dog next door wouldn't come outside.

Proviron also does the job.

you still havent answered my question how long were you using fina for?

I used it for about a year....

Did the loss of libido start showing right at the beginning of that year or is it after you stopped that you started feeling loss of libido? Did you do any cycles in that year and what PCT protocol did you use (For the cycles)? Did you do any bloodwork yourself ?. What kind of treatments have you tried besides TRT?Who put you on the TRT was it a specialist or did you just diagnose that you need TRT or was it your GP?

As Jack Rabbit said this is a problem that is becoming more frequent in men that use finasteride alone as a hairloss product... In conjunction with a steroid cycle to limit excess androgen there are no problems but men using this drug as a stand alone for hairloss can have terrible problems with libido and only come right several years later...

Im still on Fina i extended my cycle for another 4 weeks its gonna be almost 12 weeks now but this guy is making me worried now. But i have to admit my libido is insane right now.