UK Man Experiences Devastating Propecia Side Effects

Kingston upon Hull, UKResearch originating from the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Services discovered that a vast majority of Propecia finasteride study participants experienced Propecia sexual dysfunction. And yet Paul Innes, who hails from Kingston upon Hull in the UK, was told by his family doctor that he had just a two percent chance of experiencing low libido or other sexual problems in association with Propecia finasteride use.

What’s more, Innes was told that any problems he might encounter would disappear once Propecia was stopped.

But that hasn’t been the case.



Innes, a father of three and a typical guy’s guy who likes football and hanging with his buddies, was unhappy about his thinning hair. In his 30’s, he felt it was happening too early, and he sought treatment. Propecia was recommended.

However, after taking finasteride for six weeks, Innes told interviewers at ITV This Morning (6/24/14) that he began experiencing “strange thoughts,” he said. “'I started to feel quite withdrawn from my usual social activities such as playing football, watching my local team play, going out with friends. I tended to spend more time indoors and I just felt low in mood generally.”

He went off finasteride at this juncture, and although his relationship ended at about the same time, Innes did not report any experience with Propecia sexual dysfunction stemming from his initial use of the drug.

That all changed in 2013, when he began to obsess about his thinning hair once more and decided to resume his use of Propecia. This time, the Propecia side effects were much more dramatic for a healthy male in his 30’s - Propecia impotence. “I hadn’t noticed any changes, sexually, the first time around, but this time it was horrific,” he said. “It started with the onset of insomnia, where I didn’t sleep for a week. I had to go to my family GP to get medication to treat my insomnia.

“When I was trying to be intimate with [new girlfriend Hayley Waudby] I was practically impotent and I remember more or less waking up one morning and I had no connection between my brain and my genitals - it was unbelievable.”

Innes noted in the interview that his penis is shorter and thinner than normal, and now functions about 10 percent of the time and only in association with Viagra, a drug used to allow men with erectile dysfunction to perform sexually.

He had been on Propecia finasteride for about three weeks during his subsequent treatment when he started to experience the Propecia sexual dysfunction that hadn’t been an issue the first time, when he had sought Propecia help for six weeks. The depression, however, also returned. “A crisis team was called to my home and they decided it was a good idea to go into a psychiatric unit voluntarily, which I felt I needed because I couldn’t keep myself safe.

“I couldn’t function, I couldn’t look after myself. I just didn’t know why I was feeling so abnormal.”



Innes’ sexual dysfunction has turned into Propecia long-term side effects, since Innes no longer uses Propecia.

The manufacturer of Propecia and Proscar, Merck & Co., noted in a 10-Q filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in August that there were 1,280 finasteride lawsuits representing some 1,500 plaintiffs as of June 30 of this year.