HPTA restart to overcome Finasteride side effects

I am currently in the midst of an HPTA restart to overcome the side effects of taking Finasteride. I was hoping that someone could please offer some insights or suggestions to help me out please.

I have suffered from severe sexual side effects for more than 4 years now after discontinuing use of Finasteride. I went to 6 doctors and none would do anything for me as they all said my Test levels were in the low end of normal range.

6 months ago I did a straight Test cycle for 10 weeks (2 amps of Sust250 per week) followed by a PCT of HCG leading up to the 21st day after last injection and then began clomid and nolvadex. After completing this, I started to obtain some sexual ability again, but nowhere near what I once had.

I am now on a restart program of 2500iu HCG eod for days 1-16.
Days 1-30 is 100mg of climid and 20mg of nolvadex
Days 30-45 is 20mg of nolvadex

I am now about 10 days in and have seen noticeable improvements... as in after going 4 years of not being able to get an erection that lasted longer than 5 seconds, I can actually have great sex with a chick. My questions relate to the size of my penis and testicles...

My nuts are still probably only half the size they once were and my penis is much smaller. Penis shrinkage is a commonly reported side effect after taking Fin. I used to have a full, long and lose penis in the flaccid state, and it is now always shriveled, skinny and firm. I do not understand why this is happening? Some guys report taking HCG and their stuff goes back to regular size, but this has not happened for me. Even my erection size is much smaller, and thinner in girth. I would say I am shorter by close to 1.5 inches when hard.

Can anyone please offer some suggestions as to why this might be happening? Is it an issue with estrogen levels? In all of the Fin recovery stories, I've never seen anyone report getting this area fixed.

Thank you for any help.

*I don't have any recent blood work from after my last cycle, but if it means anything... I am 30 years old, 6 feet, 230lbs and 8% bf. I will get blood work after I've completed the restart.

You're basically doing a version of the Scally Power PCT Protocol. Did a doc put you on this or doing it yourself?

What dosage of finasteride were you on and for how long?

What age you started taking finasteride?

I would advise on blood work checking a full hormone panel, most important would be to include test, free test, DHT and SHBG

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Originally Posted by kelkel

You're basically doing a version of the Scally Power PCT Protocol. Did a doc put you on this or doing it yourself?

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I am doing this on my own. I have been incapable of any sexual function for 4 years now until going about this on my own. I've been to a number of endos and they all have said that I've made up these side effects even tho there are lawsuits against the drug company specifically naming these side effects. I live in Canada and for some reason I haven't been able to find a doctor that uses clomid or hcg at all. I also haven't even been able to find a doctor that has patients with these side effects. Everything I read about this comes from the US so I've just gone off of what I've read. I was just fed up with knowing something was wrong and not getting any help.

And yes... it's the Power PCT. It's what I ran after my Test cycle. For the 10 weeks that I ran straight Test, I didn't notice any sexual bump. It wasn't until I got to the PCT that I managed to obtain some normalcy. So I figured I might as well try again to see if I could do better.

I took Propecia, one tab a day and generic finasteride cut up to equal the 1mg dosage. I was on it for nearly a year and a half without any side effects whatsoever. When my prescription ran out, I was off the drug for about 2 weeks before it was refilled. The moment I popped that first tab to get back into it, within about one hour it felt as tho someone cut my genitals off. Dick shriveled, turned white and nuts turned into raisins. I never took another pill after that and the side effects got worse: mood, lack of sleep, puffy nipples etc. All out nightmare.

I was 24 when I started.

When I get off the restart, I will get the blood work.
Will the following be sufficient to get some answers?
Total T
Free T
SHGB
LH/FSH
DHT
Estridol
Prolactin
TSH

Thanks for the replies.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by g40

I took Propecia, one tab a day and generic finasteride cut up to equal the 1mg dosage. I was on it for nearly a year and a half without any side effects whatsoever. When my prescription ran out, I was off the drug for about 2 weeks before it was refilled. The moment I popped that first tab to get back into it, within about one hour it felt as tho someone cut my genitals off. Dick shriveled, turned white and nuts turned into raisins. I never took another pill after that and the side effects got worse: mood, lack of sleep, puffy nipples etc. All out nightmare.

I was 24 when I started.

When I get off the restart, I will get the blood work.
Will the following be sufficient to get some answers?
Total T
Free T
SHGB
LH/FSH
DHT
Estridol
Prolactin
TSH

Thanks for the replies.

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Find it strange that you took it for 1,5 years without issues and then from one pill you got those effects, not saying that your problem is not there, just arguing that it can have other origin than finasteride.

Finasteride prevents the 5α-Reductase enzyme to convert testosterone in DHT. If you have low test DHT conversion will be lower, but also if you have low 5α-Reductase enzyme you will also have low DHT. It is important to see how are your DHT levels.

Would also include thyroid function blood work as it can lead to ED.

A cheap test to see if its the lack of DHT that is making you have ED, would be to take proviron, as proviron is an oral form of DHT. Havent you or your doctors tried this?
If taking proviron as an exogenous form of DHT does not improve your condition I would advocate that it is not finasteride to blame. Further evidence can be argued from you saying that you had a 10 week 500mgs of sust and your condition only improved when you took clomid and nova in the PCT. If it was a lack DHT the tremendous amount of test available would have converted to DHT helping with the problem.

Sorry for my english as its not my mother language.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Mr.BB

Find it strange that you took it for 1,5 years without issues and then from one pill you got those effects, not saying that your problem is not there, just arguing that it can have other origin than finasteride.

Finasteride prevents the 5α-Reductase enzyme to convert testosterone in DHT. If you have low test DHT conversion will be lower, but also if you have low 5α-Reductase enzyme you will also have low DHT. It is important to see how are your DHT levels.

Would also include thyroid function blood work as it can lead to ED.

A cheap test to see if its the lack of DHT that is making you have ED, would be to take proviron, as proviron is an oral form of DHT. Havent you or your doctors tried this?
If taking proviron as an exogenous form of DHT does not improve your condition I would advocate that it is not finasteride to blame. Further evidence can be argued from you saying that you had a 10 week 500mgs of sust and your condition only improved when you took clomid and nova in the PCT. If it was a lack DHT the tremendous amount of test available would have converted to DHT helping with the problem.

Sorry for my english as its not my mother language.

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I know that it sounds strange, but that is the mystery of the drug. For some reason, the most severe and prolonged sexual side effects as a result of the drug occur after people discontinue its usage. Some guys take it for 5-10 years without issue and in a matter of days of getting off it, they are hit with the side effects. For guys that take it and notice an immediate drop in libido and get ed, they usually have no troubles recovering in a short period of time.

I mentioned Proviron to my doctor a couple years ago as I read some people used it with success, but he refused to give it to me. He initially agreed to give me Test in the form of gel, but by the time I returned to him, he said he wouldn't give it to me. Because I was/am so young, my doctor and even the endos I went to only cared about my T levels and didn't pay any attention to anything else really.

I agree with what you say about the DHT and 5ar as being accurate. When I mentioned this to my doctors that a dip in the 5ar was suspected for a lot of the problems, they told me it was extremely difficult to track 5ar levels as they can change within hours. They would not pursue this area any further.

John Crysler is probably the go to doctor in the US to deal with post Fin side effects, and he notes that most guys get hypogonadism symptoms (shrinking of penis and testicles), but that it does not show up on a blood test. When I brought this info to my doctors, all they kept referencing was my T levels and saying that if the blood test said that I didn't have hypogonadism, there was nothing they'd do for me. As I mentioned in my initial post, because my T level was in the normal range, they said there was nothing they could do for me without them having to jeopardize losing their license.

The only reason I never started going down this path on my own is because I didn't have a good line on legit gear until recently. I now can get anything and have access to Proviron. I feel as tho my libido and erections are back to where they should be now. I just know that the size of my penis and testicles is nowhere near where it was. I know DHT plays a role in this so I agree with your logic and think this could be a missing piece. Would you recommend trying it right now? How much would I need to take do you think before I would know if it was a factor?

Thanks so much for your reply. I have experienced nothing but frustration for 4 years and now that I am seeing some changes, I am eager to finally solve this for good.

Great advice by Mr. BB. I'd recommend full BW as discussed. In the Finding A Doc Sticky thread at the top of the HRT Forum is a good list for you.

Look into triptorelin never done much research but read an artical about how a bodybuilder using gear for 8 years couldn't get back until doctors gave him this and started him back up again. Read up on it

Quote:

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Originally Posted by kelkel

Great advice by Mr. BB. I'd recommend full BW as discussed. In the Finding A Doc Sticky thread at the top of the HRT Forum is a good list for you.

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Kelkel, thanks for the redirect to the sticky. Unfortunately, I live in Canada so the sources that are listed did not apply to me.

I agree BW is required, but my question is when? Right now or when I'm done this restart? I remember reading sometime back that some guys saw an instant bump and noticeable changes just 20 mins after taking 25-50mg of proviron. Others said they saw similar results in a couple of days. Can I incorporate that into my restart protocol being that it's such a small amount?

Thanks for your reply

Quote:

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Originally Posted by djs2224

Look into triptorelin never done much research but read an artical about how a bodybuilder using gear for 8 years couldn't get back until doctors gave him this and started him back up again. Read up on it

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I'll look into this. Thanks for the suggestion

Hey g40,

How did all your treatments go? I wanted to try the exact same thing as you and I was really looking for some advice/ guidance.

Thanks man

Mike