Finasteride (Propecia) anxiety: can it last?

Feeling anxious since you started finasteride, or since you stopped? Finasteride (Propecia) can cause anxiety: the UK leaflet lists it as a side effect. For some men it can last after stopping, as part of post-finasteride syndrome (PFS).

Anxiety is easy to miss because most talk about finasteride is about sex.

If you’re struggling right now, the Samaritans are on 116 123, free, at any hour.

So what does the evidence say, what can it feel like, and can it last?

Does finasteride cause anxiety?

It can. The UK leaflet lists anxiety as a side effect, with its frequency “not known”. That means nobody has worked out how often it happens. It doesn’t mean it’s rare.

The same leaflet says “depressed mood, depression and, less frequently, suicidal thoughts have been reported”. If you notice any of these, it says to “stop taking Propecia and contact your doctor”. A patient card in the pack repeats the warning.

In May 2026 the MHRA, the UK medicines regulator, reminded doctors that finasteride “is associated with depression, suicidal ideation and sexual dysfunction”. That alert doesn’t mention anxiety by name.

The largest study so far looked at depression, not anxiety. It followed over two million Swedish men aged 50 to 90. Those who started finasteride were more likely to be diagnosed with depression, and the link didn’t fade over time.

What does finasteride anxiety feel like?

Men describe it in different ways. For some it’s a constant edge, a racing mind or poor sleep. Others have sudden panic, or a dread they can’t explain.

It often comes with other changes. People describe low mood, brain fog, trouble remembering things, and sexual changes such as a lower sex drive or less feeling. Losing any of those would make most people anxious, so it can be hard to tell which came first.

Marko took finasteride for three days. Watch this short extract for how fast things changed, 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.”

Can anxiety last after stopping finasteride?

For some men it has. In 2025 the FDA, the US medicines regulator, warned about topical finasteride mixed by pharmacies. The side effects reported to it included anxiety, depression, brain fog and insomnia.

The FDA added: “Most of the reports FDA has received state the adverse events continued to persist after product discontinuation.”

These were spontaneous reports, so they can’t tell you how often it happens. For some people it has lasted years after stopping. Nobody knows yet who will be affected, or whether it will ease.

When symptoms like these continue after the last tablet, patients and researchers call it PFS. Our page on anxiety and depression after PFS covers living with it.

PFS is more than sexual problems: the 2022 criteria say problems with cognition, depression and suicidal thoughts can come with the sexual changes, or without them.

What can I do?

These medicines help many men with hair loss. If you have side effects, that’s a decision for you and your prescriber. The Propecia leaflet says to stop and contact your doctor if your mood changes.

Talking therapy can help with anxiety, even though it doesn’t treat PFS itself. Talking to others who’ve been through it helps too: our community is run by people affected.

Is it finasteride or ordinary anxiety? You can’t tell from the symptoms alone, and nor can a doctor at first. What helps is the timeline. Did the anxiety start, or get much worse, after you began finasteride? Did it arrive together with other changes, such as brain fog or sexual changes?

Write it down before your appointment. For example: “Finasteride 1 mg from March 2024, last tablet August 2024. Panic attacks from May 2024. No anxiety problems before.”

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

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.
• 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?

Can finasteride cause panic attacks? The leaflet lists anxiety, not panic attacks by name. Some men describe panic attacks after starting or stopping it. If you have them, tell your GP when they began and what you were taking.

Does finasteride cause depression and suicidal thoughts too? The UK leaflet says both have been reported. Our article on Propecia, depression and suicide covers it. If you’re having those thoughts, call the Samaritans on 116 123.

Why might finasteride affect mood? Nobody knows for sure. Finasteride blocks an enzyme called 5-alpha reductase, which lowers DHT, the hormone behind male hair loss. The same enzyme helps the brain make neurosteroids, which help steady mood and stress. Researchers think blocking it may disturb them, but that hasn’t been proven in PFS.

Does topical finasteride avoid it? Not necessarily. The FDA’s reports of anxiety came from topical finasteride.

Marko’s doctors first saw his symptoms as all in his mind. If anxiety came with finasteride for you, write down your timeline and report it. Our PFS page is a good place to start.

Sources

1. Propecia 1 mg film-coated tablets: patient information leaflet, Organon, electronic medicines compendium (emc), last revised May 2026. Section 2: “Mood alterations such as 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”. A patient card comes in the pack. Section 4, frequency unknown: anxiety; “persistent decrease in sex drive after discontinuation of treatment” and similar lines for erection and ejaculation.
2. FDA, FDA alerts health care providers, compounders and consumers of potential risks associated with compounded topical finasteride products, 22 April 2025. 32 cases in the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System, 2019 to 2024, listing among others “anxiety, suicidal ideation, brain fog, depression, fatigue, insomnia”. “Most of the reports FDA has received state the adverse events continued to persist after product discontinuation.” Spontaneous reports; they cannot give a rate. US.
3. 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”. Anxiety is not named. UK.
4. 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. Section 5: cognitive impairment, depression and suicidality can occur independently of sexual difficulties, or accompany them. Proposed criteria from expert agreement.
5. Garcia-Argibay M, Hiyoshi A, Fall K, Montgomery S. Association of 5α-reductase inhibitors with dementia, depression, and suicide. JAMA Netw Open 2022;5(12):e2248135. Swedish register cohort of 2,236,876 men aged 50 to 90, 2005 to 2018; 70,645 started finasteride. Depression hazard ratio 1.61 for finasteride, constant over time; no association with completed suicide. Anxiety was not studied.
6. Moral Medicine, I Took Finasteride for 3 Days. It Changed My Life for 5 Years., March 2026.
7. GOV.UK, Report a problem with a medicine or medical device.
8. Samaritans, Contact a Samaritan: 116 123, free, day or night, UK and Ireland.

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