I have fairly aggressive hair loss in my frontal hair line. Been on 5% minoxidil for 6 months and 1mg/day oral finasteride for 4 months. So far it hasn't stopped the hair loss or caused regrowth but it definitely helps to slow it down. Unfortunately I do get the typical side effects from finasteride. Severe loss of libido, reduced ejaculatory volume, no more morning wood (I still get nocturnal erections sometimes but they are weak) and overall ED. With the possibility of these effects becoming permanent I don't think I can keep taking oral finasteride.
So now I'm considering alternatives (topical finasteride, topical dutasteride, RU etc) but while I'm sorting through the options, trying to get a prescription, waiting for shipments etc I want to try to reduce my finasteride intake. Quitting immediately without an alternative seems unwise, because my hairline recedes really fast so I would lose a lot if I went without treatment for a few weeks.
I've tried taking finasteride every other day but after 24 hours I get a crazy itching/burning feeling in the hair loss areas, even worse than I did before I started taking finasteride, and also increased shedding. I think it would be better if I could step down to 0.5mg/day and then 0.25mg/day.
The problem: my finasteride was made by a local pharmacy from the base material (because they only sell 5mg where I live). It came in the form of capsules, so it's not like I can just cut a tablet in half. I can cut open the capsule and get the powder out of course, but I'm not sure how best to ingest it. Should I just dissolve it in water and drink it?
Any advice on alternative solutions is also welcome of course.
So now I'm considering alternatives (topical finasteride, topical dutasteride, RU etc) but while I'm sorting through the options, trying to get a prescription, waiting for shipments etc I want to try to reduce my finasteride intake. Quitting immediately without an alternative seems unwise, because my hairline recedes really fast so I would lose a lot if I went without treatment for a few weeks.
I've tried taking finasteride every other day but after 24 hours I get a crazy itching/burning feeling in the hair loss areas, even worse than I did before I started taking finasteride, and also increased shedding. I think it would be better if I could step down to 0.5mg/day and then 0.25mg/day.
The problem: my finasteride was made by a local pharmacy from the base material (because they only sell 5mg where I live). It came in the form of capsules, so it's not like I can just cut a tablet in half. I can cut open the capsule and get the powder out of course, but I'm not sure how best to ingest it. Should I just dissolve it in water and drink it?
Any advice on alternative solutions is also welcome of course.