In this episode of Moral Medicine, Matt shares his experience with Finasteride after taking the drug for several years without issue — and the sudden, life-altering changes that followed.

Matt began taking finasteride in his mid-20s and tolerated the medication for three years with no noticeable side effects. Like many, he believed that if a problem were going to occur, it would happen early.

It didn’t.

One day, everything changed.

What began as a sudden loss of sexual sensation quickly progressed into something far more severe.

Matt describes a rapid and debilitating shift marked by:

• Complete loss of genital sensation and inability to experience orgasm• Severe emotional blunting and anhedonia — a total absence of feeling• Cognitive impairment and disorganized thinking• Chronic physical symptoms including fatigue, pain, and digestive issues• The onset of symptoms worsening after discontinuing the drug

Despite stopping finasteride, these symptoms did not resolve.

Years later, they remain.

Matt opens up about the confusion, isolation, and lack of recognition he faced when trying to understand what had happened — including being reassured that his symptoms were unrelated or psychological.

His experience reflects a pattern reported by others following the use of medications such as Finasteride, Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors, and Isotretinoin, where individuals describe persistent sexual, neurological, and emotional changes after discontinuation.

While many people take these medications without immediate issue, others report long-term symptoms often referred to as Post-Finasteride Syndrome.

The underlying mechanisms remain unclear, and there is currently no reliable way to predict who may be affected.

Matt’s testimony highlights ongoing concerns around informed consent, delayed onset adverse effects, and the difficulty many patients face when their experiences fall outside of what is widely recognized.

If you or someone you know has experienced persistent symptoms after medication use, you are not alone.

🔬 Research into PFS remains largely patient-funded, but awareness is growing.

📢 If you’ve been affected by PFS, PSSD, or similar post-drug syndromes, your story matters. Reach out at [email protected] to share it.

🔔 Subscribe to Moral Medicine for more testimonies and discussions that continue to be overlooked.

🔬 Learn more and support ongoing research:👉 https://www.pfsnetwork.org/science

💡 Donate to PFS research:👉 https://www.pfsnetwork.org/donate

🗣 By speaking up, we break the silence and move closer to recognition, accountability, and hope.

In this episode of Moral Medicine, Tim shares his experience with finasteride after being prescribed the medication for prostate-related issues — and the long-term consequences that followed after years of use without proper warning.

Tim began taking 5 mg daily after being told he may need the medication for the rest of his life. He was not informed of potential sexual, neurological, or psychological side effects.

Within a short period of time, he began experiencing changes.

What followed was a gradual decline marked by persistent sexual dysfunction, neurological complications, and a loss of physical mobility that has not improved even after discontinuing the drug.

Tim opens up about:

• Developing loss of libido and erectile dysfunction shortly after starting the medication.• The breakdown of a 23-year relationship as a result of these changes.• Being diagnosed with neuropathy and experiencing long-term mobility issues.• Taking the medication for nearly 17 years before connecting his symptoms.• Receiving no meaningful support after reporting his condition to medical professionals.

After eventually discovering a warning about finasteride, Tim stopped taking the drug. Nearly a year later, his symptoms have remained unchanged.

His testimony highlights ongoing concerns around informed consent, delayed recognition of adverse effects, and the challenges patients face when seeking answers.

While many individuals take finasteride without immediate issue, others report persistent or long-term symptoms often referred to as Post-Finasteride Syndrome (PFS). The mechanism remains unclear, and there is currently no reliable way to predict who may be affected.

🔬 Research into PFS remains largely patient-funded, but awareness is growing.

📢 If you’ve been affected by PFS, PSSD, or similar post-drug syndromes, your story matters. Reach out at [email protected] to share it.

🔔 Subscribe to Moral Medicine for more testimonies and discussions that continue to be overlooked.

🔬 Learn more and support ongoing research:👉 https://www.pfsnetwork.org/science

💡 Donate to PFS research:👉 https://www.pfsnetwork.org/donate

🗣 By speaking up, we break the silence and move closer to recognition, accountability, and hope.

In this episode of Moral Medicine, Marko shares his personal experience with finasteride — and the life-altering crash that followed after just three pills.

Marko began taking 1 mg per day after following advice from online experts and consulting with a dermatologist. The prescription process was brief and straightforward. Within three days, he noticed side effects and stopped immediately.

The next day, he crashed.

What followed was a year marked by neurological dysfunction, psychological distress, and physical symptoms that left him unable to work and struggling to function. He describes being dismissed by doctors, having his symptoms minimized, and being told his condition was psychological.

Marko opens up about:

• How easily finasteride is prescribed after minimal evaluation.• The unpredictability of who develops persistent symptoms.• The experience of medical gaslighting and lack of recognition.• Losing five of the most important years of his life.• Gradually rebuilding and reaching partial recovery.

Five years later, Marko is significantly improved compared to where he was at his worst — but he is not the same person he was before.

His testimony underscores a difficult reality: while many individuals take finasteride without immediate issue, a subset report persistent or long-term symptoms often referred to as Post-Finasteride Syndrome (PFS). The mechanism remains unclear, and there is currently no reliable way to predict who may be affected.

🔬 Research into PFS remains largely patient-funded, but awareness is growing.

📢 If you’ve been affected by PFS, PSSD, or similar post-drug syndromes, your story matters. Reach out at [email protected] to share it.

🔔 Subscribe to Moral Medicine for more testimonies and discussions that continue to be overlooked.

🔬 Learn more and support ongoing research:👉 https://www.pfsnetwork.org/science

💡 Donate to PFS research:👉 https://www.pfsnetwork.org/donate

🗣 By speaking up, we break the silence and move closer to recognition, accountability, and hope.

Max was prescribed sertraline in 2018 and took it for approximately one month. What followed was a profound and life-altering change. He began experiencing emotional numbness, loss of pleasure, insomnia, chronic fatigue, sexual dysfunction, and a deep sense that his personality had vanished. Even years later, after multiple medications and repeated attempts to recover, his symptoms have persisted.

Today, Max lives with Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction (PSSD) — a devastating and often unrecognized condition marked not only by sexual dysfunction, but by emotional blunting, anhedonia, cognitive changes, and loss of identity. His experience reflects the reality many patients describe: symptoms that continue long after stopping the medication, and a lack of clear warning about the possibility of permanence.

This is his story.

🧠 Hosted by Mark Millich

🎙️ Interview conducted by Grant Slowik

📺 Moral Medicine is a platform for those harmed by medications — and for those fighting to be heard.

👇 Watch, share, and help us break the silence.

PSSD can have a catastrophic impact on patients, families, and communities.It often leads to disability, isolation, and profound psychological suffering. Every person is valuable, and everyone deserves the right to make a fully informed decision about their health.

🔬 More research into Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction is urgently needed.Learn more and support ongoing scientific initiatives at:

👉 pssdnetwork.org/literature

💡 Donate to PSSD Research:

👉 pssdnetwork.org/donate/research🗣️ Your story matters.

If you are suffering from PFS, PSSD, or PAS — following SSRIs, Finasteride, Isotretinoin (Accutane), antidepressants, or certain supplements (saw palmetto, lion’s mane, ashwagandha, etc.) — and would like to share your experience, we want to hear from you.

📩 Email: [email protected]

In this powerful episode of Moral Medicine, Mark sits down with Kim Witczak, one of the nation’s leading drug-safety advocates. Kim’s husband, Woody, was prescribed Zoloft for mild insomnia and stress in 2003. Just a few weeks later, he died by suicide. He had no history of depression or suicidal thoughts, and at the time, there were no warnings on the label about the risk of suicidality.

Searching for answers, Kim uncovered a system that wasn’t being honest about the risks associated with antidepressants. She filed a lawsuit against Pfizer to hold them accountable. Although the case was dismissed, her fight for transparency didn’t end there—it became her life’s work.

Today, Kim serves as the Consumer Representative on the FDA’s Psychopharmacologic Drugs Advisory Committee, where she has spent years pushing for stronger warnings, real informed consent, and an FDA that puts patients before pharmaceutical interests.

This conversation explores:

• The truth about Woody’s story

• What Kim discovered about hidden drug risks

• Her lawsuit against Pfizer and what it revealed

• How the FDA really works behind closed doors

• The fight for accurate warnings and informed consent

• Why moral courage is essential in modern medicine

Kim’s story is one of purpose, conviction, and accountability—and it represents exactly what Moral Medicine stands for.

🗣 Your story matters.

If you're suffering from damage triggered by Finasteride, Accutane (Isotretinoin), antidepressants, or other similar compounds, please consider sharing your story with us.

📩 Reach out: [email protected]

By speaking up, we break the silence and move one step closer to recognition, accountability, and hope.

In this testimony, Amanda, a registered nurse from the United States, shares her six-year journey on Lexapro after being prescribed the medication at 22 for situational anxiety during a difficult period of her life. She explains how the drug initially seemed harmless, but over time she began experiencing significant changes in her emotions, personality, physical health, and ability to cope with stress. Years into treatment, she developed symptoms she never connected to the medication: emotional numbing, memory loss, cognitive difficulties, impulsivity, severe fatigue, derealization, and a growing sense that she was becoming someone she didn’t recognize.

When Amanda tried to taper off Lexapro, she encountered a wave of symptoms far more intense than anything she had been warned about. She describes protracted withdrawal marked by sleep disturbances, nervous system hypersensitivity, dysautonomia, histamine reactivity, visual issues, and periods of overwhelming physical and emotional instability. Her story highlights how these symptoms affected her work as a nurse, strained her relationships, and left her struggling to understand why her body was reacting this way while medical professionals dismissed the connection.

Amanda shares the emotional turning point when, during tapering, her senses and positive emotions began returning for the first time in years. She also discusses what has helped her along the way, including functional medicine approaches, dietary changes, sobriety, and a slow, patient-led tapering process. Although her recovery is ongoing, she speaks openly about the progress she has made, the challenges that remain, and why she is now working with the Antidepressant Coalition to advocate for better warnings and informed consent around SSRI withdrawal.

Her testimony reflects the difficult reality many people face when long-term antidepressant effects or withdrawal symptoms are not acknowledged, leaving them to navigate these experiences alone. Her story is honest, emotional, and important, and we are grateful she chose to share it.

This testimony reflects one individual’s personal experience. It is not medical advice. Always consult a licensed medical professional for any health concerns or treatment decisions.

🗣 Your story matters. If you're suffering from damage triggered by Finasteride, Accutane (Isotretinoin), antidepressants, or other similar compounds, please consider sharing your story with us.

📩 Reach out: [email protected]

By speaking up, we break the silence and move one step closer to recognition, accountability, and hope.

In this testimony, Joseph, a 26-year-old from France, shares what happened after taking isotretinoin at the age of 13. He describes how the medication initially helped his acne, but months after completing the treatment he began experiencing severe anxiety, panic attacks, derealization, and a dramatic change in how his body and mind responded to stress. He explains how these symptoms affected his ability to concentrate, caused a loss of joy and emotional stability, and led to years of searching for answers while being told by doctors that the medication could not be responsible.

Joseph speaks openly about the hardest periods of his life, the support he received from family, and how discovering online communities helped him realize he was not alone. He also shares approaches that have helped him personally, including dietary changes he believes reduced his symptoms. Although not a cure, he explains that he has experienced meaningful improvements with time, patience, and support.

This story reflects the challenges many patients face when their symptoms appear long after treatment, when medical professionals dismiss their concerns, and when they are left to navigate the effects on their own. His testimony is honest, emotional, and important. Moral Medicine is committed to giving people a place to be heard, regardless of their native language, and we are grateful he chose to share his experience.

This testimony reflects one individual’s personal experience. It is not medical advice. Always consult a licensed medical professional for any health concerns or treatment decisions.

🗣 Your story matters. If you're suffering from damage triggered by Finasteride, Accutane (Isotretinoin), antidepressants, or other similar compounds, please consider sharing your story with us.

📩 Reach out: [email protected]

By speaking up, we break the silence and move one step closer to recognition, accountability, and hope.

Dr. Mayer Brezis — Professor of Medicine and Public Health at Hadassah–Hebrew University in Jerusalem — joins Moral Medicine to discuss his landmark 2025 study concluding that Finasteride can cause depression, anxiety, and suicidality, and that regulators and manufacturers failed to act for more than two decades.

In this interview, Dr. Brezis explains:

• Why the evidence linking Finasteride to psychiatric harm now meets causal criteria

• How a 20-year delay in regulatory response reveals systemic failures

• Why “deny and defend” culture prevents correction in modern medicine

• The moral imperative to place patient safety above profit

This is one of the most comprehensive public discussions ever held on the ethical, scientific, and regulatory breakdown surrounding Finasteride and similar drugs.

📢 If you’ve been affected by PFS, PSSD, or similar post-drug syndromes, your story matters.Reach out at [email protected] to share it.

🔔 Subscribe to Moral Medicine for more testimonies and discussions that mainstream medicine continues to overlook.

🔬 More research is urgently needed.Learn more and support the latest scientific initiative here:

👉 https://www.pfsnetwork.org/science

💡 Donate to PFS research:

👉 https://www.pfsnetwork.org/donate

🗣 Your story matters.If you're suffering from damage triggered by Finasteride, Accutane (Isotretinoin), antidepressants, or other similar compounds, please consider sharing your story with us.

📩 Reach out: [email protected]

By speaking up, we break the silence and move one step closer to recognition, accountability, and hope.

Anthony was a healthy, outgoing husband and father of three who loved concerts, hiking, and coaching Special Olympics. After struggling with mild insomnia, he was prescribed 25 mg of sertraline (Zoloft) — just 11 pills in total. Within days, he experienced emotional numbness, suicidal thoughts, and genital anesthesia that never went away after stopping the drug.Today, Anthony lives with Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction (PSSD) — a devastating and often permanent condition marked by emotional blunting, loss of pleasure, and physical desensitization. His story reflects how quickly lives can be upended by medications prescribed without full informed consent.This is his story.🧠 Hosted by Mark Millich📺 Moral Medicine is a platform for those harmed by medications — and for those fighting to be heard.👇 Watch, share, and help us break the silence.PSSD has a disastrous impact on patients, their families, and their communities.It often leads to disability, isolation, and even suicide. Every person is valuable, and everyone deserves the right to make a fully informed choice about their health.🔬 More research into Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction is desperately needed.Learn more and support the newest scientific initiative at:👉 pssdnetwork.org/literature💡 Donate to PSSD Research:👉 pssdnetwork.org/donate/research🗣️ Your story matters.If you’re a patient suffering from PFS, PSSD, or PAS — triggered by SSRIs, Finasteride, Accutane (Isotretinoin), antidepressants, or certain supplements (saw palmetto, lion’s mane, ashwagandha, etc.) — please consider sharing your story with us.📩 Email: [email protected]

In this episode of Moral Medicine, I sit down with Miriam — President of the Isotretinoin Victims Association in Spain — to share her story of life-altering harm after taking Accutane (Isotretinoin).

Miriam’s story is powerful, not only because it exposes the devastating systemic damage this acne drug can cause, but also because it highlights a broader pattern seen across medications like Accutane, Finasteride, SSRIs, and others — drugs that alter fundamental biological systems under the guise of cosmetic or mental health improvement.She opens up about her life before the drug — vibrant, active, and full of energy — and how everything changed after two rounds of isotretinoin. From irreversible dry eye disease, joint and back pain, and osteopenia to ovarian reserve loss, digestive issues, and mucous membrane dryness, Miriam’s testimony reveals how deeply Accutane can affect every part of the body and mind.

We also discuss:

The lack of true informed consent and how patients are not warned about the potential for permanent side effects.

How isotretinoin can cause systemic, long-term damage far beyond the skin.

The stigma, disbelief, and emotional toll that victims face when doctors dismiss their symptoms.

The importance of advocacy, international collaboration, and speaking up for recognition of Post-Accutane Syndrome.

Miriam’s courage in sharing her story gives a voice to countless people who have been harmed and silenced — reminding us that iatrogenic harm is not rare, it’s just rarely acknowledged.

📢 If you’ve been affected by Accutane, Finasteride, SSRIs, or similar post-drug syndromes, your story matters. Reach out at [email protected] to share it.

🔔 Subscribe to Moral Medicine for more testimonies and discussions that mainstream medicine continues to overlook.

🔬 More research is urgently needed.Learn more and support the latest scientific initiatives here:👉 https://www.pfsnetwork.org/science

💡 Donate to research and awareness:

👉 https://www.pfsnetwork.org/donate

🗣 Your story matters.If you're suffering from post-drug damage — whether triggered by Finasteride, Accutane (Isotretinoin), antidepressants, or other similar compounds — please consider sharing your story with us.

📩 Reach out: [email protected]

By speaking up, we break the silence and move one step closer to recognition, accountability, and hope.