PFS anxiety and depression: what helps

Has anxiety or low mood stayed with you since finasteride? For many men, anxiety and depression are part of post-finasteride syndrome (PFS), often lasting after the last tablet. Real help exists: talking to people who understand, a GP who takes it seriously, and talking therapy you can often ask for yourself.

Low mood isn’t a side issue. The 2022 criteria for PFS say depression, suicidal thoughts and cognitive problems can come with the sexual changes, or without them. It’s often the hardest part.

If low mood has turned into thoughts of not wanting to be here, call Samaritans free on 116 123 (UK and Ireland), day or night. Our page on suicidal thoughts with PFS has more lines and what to expect.

So why does PFS affect mood, and what actually helps?

Why does PFS cause anxiety and depression?

Nobody knows for sure. Two things seem to happen, and often at once.

First, the medicine itself. The UK leaflet says depressed mood, depression and, less often, suicidal thoughts “have been reported” in men taking it. It also lists anxiety. The leaflet says sexual problems “may contribute to mood alterations”, and have also been reported without them.

Second, what PFS does to a life. Losing feeling, sleep, focus or a relationship would weigh on anyone. Many men also spend years being told it’s all in their head.

Marko took finasteride for three days. Watch this short extract for how fast it happened, and how his doctors read it.

Play video: Marko on three days of finasteride (Moral Medicine, extract)

It took a “deep psychological toll”, he says. “My physical symptoms were written off as purely psychological.”

Depression seems common with PFS, though the studies are small. One study of men with lasting sexual problems after finasteride chose men with no history of mental illness. About 3 in 4 had signs of depression, against 1 in 10 men with hair loss who’d never taken it.

That study was small, and the men weren’t picked at random, so it can’t tell you your own odds. It does show you’re far from alone. Our page on PFS or depression explains how to tell the two apart.

Where can I find support?

Start with people who get it. Talking to someone who has lived with PFS can make the first months feel less lonely. Our WhatsApp peer support groups are run by people affected, and you can read without posting. Our guide to peer support for PFS lists other places.

Tell one person close to you too. They don’t need to understand the biology. Our page on talking to family and friends about PFS has words you can borrow.

Can therapy help with PFS anxiety?

It can help with the anxiety and low mood, even though it doesn’t treat PFS itself. In England you can refer yourself to NHS Talking Therapies without seeing a GP. The NHS says it helps with anxiety, panic and depression.

A good therapist won’t argue about whether PFS is real. They’ll work on what you’re living with now: sleep, panic, grief for what you’ve lost. If one doesn’t fit, it’s fine to ask for another.

Small daily things can steady you too. Keep a regular sleep time, get outside, and move a little if your body allows. Breathing exercises can take the edge off a panic attack. None of this cures PFS. It can make a bad day easier to get through.

What should I tell my GP?

Tell them when the low mood started, and what else changed with it. A clear timeline helps more than anything else you can bring.

1. Your medicine: “Finasteride 1 mg from March 2024, last tablet June 2025.”
2. What changed: “Low mood and panic from August 2025. Less feeling in my penis from May.”
3. How it was before: “No anxiety or depression before 2024.”
4. What’s still there now: “Still low most days in October 2026.”

Many men say it took time to be taken seriously. Bring the leaflet line. You can report it without a doctor agreeing.

Finasteride helps many men keep their hair. Whether it’s right for you is a decision for you and your prescriber. If you’re still taking the 1 mg tablet, the UK leaflet says: “If you experience any of these symptoms stop taking Propecia and contact your doctor for further medical advice as soon as possible.”

Antidepressants are one option some GPs offer. Many men with PFS worry about them, because they can cause lasting sexual side effects too. Ask your GP about that openly before you decide.

Report it: it helps everyone

A doctor’s note helps you. A report to the medicines regulator helps everyone else: it is how patterns get noticed.

• No proof needed. A suspicion is enough, even years after stopping. Low mood counts too.
• Where: the Yellow Card scheme in the UK, MedWatch in the US.
• Use the right words. If symptoms continued after stopping, write Post 5-alpha-reductase inhibitor syndrome (MedDRA 10082430).

Our reporting guide walks you through it

What else do people ask?

Does the anxiety from PFS go away? For some men it eases with time and support, and for some it has lasted years. Nobody knows yet who will improve. Help with your mood is worth having now, whatever happens with the other symptoms.

Can I have PFS and depression at the same time? Yes. The PFS criteria list depression among the effects finasteride can have, with sexual problems or on their own. Having depression doesn’t rule out PFS.

Is it worth joining a registry? Your experience adds to the record. Our patient registry collects symptoms, including mood, so researchers can see the pattern.

Marko’s symptoms were put down to his mind. If your low mood began with finasteride, write the dates down this week and report it.

Sources

1. Propecia 1 mg film-coated tablets: patient information leaflet, Organon, electronic medicines compendium (emc), last revised May 2026. Section 2, “Mood alterations and depression”: depressed mood, depression and, less frequently, suicidal thoughts “have been reported”. “If you experience any of these symptoms stop taking Propecia and contact your doctor for further medical advice as soon as possible.” Impaired sexual function “may contribute to mood alterations” and has also been reported without them. Section 4: depression; anxiety under “Frequency unknown”; persistent erection, sex drive and ejaculation problems “after discontinuation of treatment”.
2. MHRA, Finasteride and dutasteride: updated safety warnings for psychiatric side effects and sexual dysfunction, Drug Safety Update, 11 May 2026: finasteride “is associated with depression, suicidal ideation and sexual dysfunction which may persist after treatment is stopped”.
3. Healy D, Bahrick A, Bak M and colleagues. Diagnostic criteria for enduring sexual dysfunction after treatment with antidepressants, finasteride and isotretinoin. Int J Risk Saf Med 2022;33(1):65-76. Proposed criteria developed through expert agreement. Section 5 (PFS): cognitive impairment, depression and suicidality can occur independently of, or accompany, sexual difficulties.
4. Irwig MS. Depressive symptoms and suicidal thoughts among former users of finasteride with persistent sexual side effects. J Clin Psychiatry 2012;73(9):1220-3. 61 former users with no past psychiatric conditions against 29 controls with hair loss; depressive symptoms (BDI-II 14 or more) in 46 of 61 (75%) against 3 of 29 (10%).
5. NHS, NHS Talking Therapies: “you can refer yourself to NHS talking therapies without speaking to a GP”; for adults registered with a GP in England; helps with anxiety, panic disorder and depression.
6. Moral Medicine, I Took Finasteride for 3 Days. It Changed My Life for 5 Years., Marko’s film, 9 March 2026. “Deep psychological toll” at 1:54; “My physical symptoms were written off as purely psychological” at 2:28. Extract played: 0:58 to 1:48.
7. Samaritans, Contact a Samaritan: 116 123, free, day or night, UK and Ireland.
8. MedDRA lowest level term Post 5-alpha-reductase inhibitor syndrome, code 10082430.

Sources checked on 22 October 2026. AI-assisted writing and review, not clinical review.