Alternative treatments symptoms and conditions

My mother took lisinopril and she developed the persistent cough many experience. It was so severe that she went to the ER. While she was there, they told her she had fluid retention in both lungs and didn't link this drug to the fluid retention. Instead, they told her to get a biopsy for the possibility of lung cancer. More money in their pockets for tests and biopsies? Definitely!
I definitely see the link between the drug and the cough and the fluids in her lungs. Now,she's not on that medication but she is still dealing with side effects and I feel that all these medications they tell her to take are just making her worse. Has anyone just stopped all the conventional medications of high blood pressure and perused alternative treatments with success? I'm hopeful to find out what options i have that can cure her situation instead of leaving her at the same hopeless stage of dealing with terrible side effects.

I recently back in April of this year received Cyberknife radiation for Adenocarcinoma with metastasis to my brain. After surgery to remove my brain tumor in March of 2009. I went though whole brain radiation and the Cyberknife to my lung. The doctor was very adamant that as the lung heals from radiation you will develop what they call wet lung or neumonesis sp? This will have to be treated separately, or severe coughing would continue. My primary care doctor in the mean time put me on Lisinopril 20 mg for hypertension. I have not gotten a good nights sleep in 2.5 months since, then came the pneumonosis. This cough persist to this day waking me from what little sleep I do get, and amazingly am now suffering from joint pain especial in my hips. It's to the point I can't even cross my legs anymore it hurts. When discussing this with my primary she says its in my head as of today and reading this site and side effects I am taking myself off of Lisinopril and will seek a second opinion, even a third if need be thank you all so much for posting your side effects from this drug.

I'm so glad I found this! I thought I was going mad for a while there. Background: I'm a 34 yr old female. Diagnosed w/ asthma at 12, but they suspect I had it before that. Used only Ventolin for a long time. Five years ago, right around the time I had my second child, my symptoms (and allergies) seemed to get much worse. We moved around that time, to a house with a HUGE Chinese elm in the backyard (which I now know I'm allergic to) and right next to a main freeway. Around this time, Dr. prescribed Advair 250/50 when he realized I was using Ventolin up to 6 & 7 times/ day. The first year, I actually felt so much better (I could BREATHE!!) that I think I wouldn't have noticed any side affects. Year two I had MAJOR hair thinning. Dr said "age and hormones". Following 3 years on it: Almost constant nasal congestion (despite always being on a decongestant), sinus infection, tonsil infections, laryngitis, TWO bouts of pneumonia in 3 years. Around the year mark on it, I did experience the depression and anxiety, however, I had had the "baby blues" with my first child and just thought it was a more severe version of that. Now, I feel CONSTANTLY "run down" and almost always have some low-grade infection (yeast, UTI, sinus, bronchitis...etc.), am always hoarse and am just waiting for another round of pneumonia. I also get dizzy A LOT. I am in the second day of a cold turkey quit and am looking for alternative diet/exercise therapies. Good Luck to everyone!

Wow! I must be the latest in a long line of Lipitor users and apparently pain sufferers. I have been on Lipitor for over a year. I am 56 years old, active and healthy (thank God). Around November 2008, I noticed a "twinge" in my left hip while sleeping. This has gotten progressively worse over the months and I thought it was due to arthritis (which runs in my family). But after reading these blogs, I am not so sure. If anyone has anything definitive regarding this, ie: tests, studies, etc., I would really appreciate a point in the right direction for more information. I was thinking (until today) that I was headed for hip surgery or something equally drastic. Now that I have a clue that it may be the Lipitor, I want to investigate further and then, if necessary, change to another medication that won't break me down like this. My heart goes out to anyone that has suffered through hip pain. It is a miserable, painful condition that saps your energy and your desire to even move sometimes. I appreciate any help you can offer. God bless all of you. - L. B. ******

15 years ago, at the age of 35, I had a major heart attack. After testing, the doctors decided I needed a quadruple bi-pass operation, followed by Lipitor, among other things. I was taking 20mg (the doctor ordered 40mg), but due to financial reasons I took only half. Everything was just great for 15 years. During a routine annual physical this year, my doctor noticed that my liver enzymes were off the chart high. He immediately had me discontinue the Liptor, but stay on all of my other medications. One month later, my liver enzymes were normal, and so was everything else; however, my cholesterol had climbed to 204, and I eat no meat, eggs, or other dairy products. They say my liver damage is permanent. Having had 4 lumbar surgeries and 1 cervical surgery to fuse disks in my spine, I have always attributed my back and other muscle pains to that. Now that I have been of the Lipitor for 3 months, I have not noticed in decrease in pain in these areas.

I am a 43 year old male in good health that decided to get off lipitor about 3 days ago due to the advice of my physician. I have been on it for 3 years at 20 mg daily. I am an avid runner completing 3 marathons in the last 4years, but lately haven't been able to run more than a mile or so without feeling tightness in my abs, legs, hips, and most recently my hands and elbows have mild to moderate pain. I've been noticing this over the past few months or so. I always thought it was due to over training, but I am convinced these are not normal muscle soreness/strain and I am eager to share my results as to how I feel in a few weeks/months. Today, which is day 3 without the drug, I have INCREASED pain in my hand, and an overall fatigue feeling. Has anyone else noticed this upon stopping the drug? God help all of us. This can't be doing mankind any good other than making the drug companies rich, and unfortunately, most physicians believe that these statins are wonder drugs, and prescribe them like candy.

I am a 51 y/o white female that has been on Lipitor for 2 years. I am 5' 1" and when I had to go on it my cholesterol was 267 I weighed 112 lbs. I was shocked.... my doctor told me weight had nothing to do with cholesterol. She kept a close watch on me and my cholesterol came down...... and then my ex-husband of 17 years and I re-connected and got back together and I moved so I had to get another primary care physician. I took all my meds to her, she also kept a close watch on everything. At this time my cholesterol is down to 109 and I asked if I could stop taking it, as I take quite a lot of meds, due to different things and if I could stop anything it would be great, but she said it I stopped it, my cholesterol would go right back up. So since I am not experiencing any side effects I'm okay with continuing it.

I surely hate to hear what you all are experiencing with your Lipitor..... could your doc try another cholesterol medication?

The only one of my meds that is giving me any problem is TOPAMAX........ that we are using as a Migraine preventative! HORRORS!!! Today is pretty good day. But my cognitive abilities are in the trash... I say the wrong word when I mean something else...... I search my mind looking for a memory...... I am also on disability since 2002 because of the Migraines....... I have has them since 1978, but they got progressively worse over the years until I was sick more days per week, sometimes more than 7-10 days at the time, having to be in the hospital being rehydrated and on IV pain meds.......... and as awful as the TOPAMAX is.....it has been reduced the migraines to approx 2 per month and they do not last nearly as long.

So sorry, I got waaay off topic, but I know that it is not the Lipitor that is giving me the side effects as it the last med I had to go on and I had no new side effects....... but that TOPAMAX is kicking my behind.

I have had asthma for about 12 years. It has progressed fast but don't believe it is emphysema yet. Stupidly I still smoke...or try to. I have used mostly salbutamol regularily and every now and again my doctor will try other types. I too have gained weight, lots of it, have leg pains and restless leg syndrome, blurred vision and fatigue. Many days I barely make to and from work. And all of these in just since taking Advair. I trust the doctors too much. Reading all of these are scary. It seems many doctors don't really have our best interest at heart. It begins and ends with money doesn't it? Another problem I have is because I am so sensitive to different thing, how can I know what is causing what??? I went for allergy tests last month and I could have told them more than what their tests showed and then some. I have since tried not to smoke and seriously looking into alternative treatments...stop the smoking for sure withpatches if I have to.

Hello To All,

I too am on this med, I have been on it for 1 year as of July 2008-

35 pounds, brain fog, headaches, eye sight for reading, chest pain and fluttering heart beat. My doctor who is my friend has told me that he will up my dose... "Dear God" any more and I will go nuts. Does anyone know of any study done in a medical journal that theu could forward to me so I can show my doctor.

Please email me at ****** I would be so very thankful.

Thanks to all and be healthy.

My son is 5 years old. He was put on Singulair in August following a case of pnemonia. He has asthma. I found it worked well since I was barely using inhalers anymore. His eczema was even getting better. So I was happy with the medication. He also seemed to be getting more agitated with us. At least three times a day he would have an outburst towards his brother or us, like he was going to punch or hit us. Then I would say "why are you mad at me" and he would say "I'm not mad, I'm frustrated" and then burst in tears. He was getting a lot of time outs. Then two months ago he started saying "this is not a good day" or "this is a sad day". I was wondering if singulair was to blame, but it wasn't until I heard concerns from other moms. I took him off it as an experiment and noticed the next day was without his outbursts. Then I just never gave him anymore...and I am relieved to say he is as "normal" as I remember him before Singulair!!! He also was unable to get to sleep easily on Singulair, sometimes 1, 2 and even three hours to get to sleep. Now he is out in 20 minutes if not less. I haven't talked to the Doctor yet. I have noticed his eczema is flaring up again and he has used his inhaler this week (although he has a cold). I think I can deal with that without Singulair and the problems I am suspicious come from it's use.

I am repeating one of my post regarding the Swedish study of the side effects of Singulair. When I read that parents have complained to their doctors about side effects and been dismissed, and told to continue the medication, I truly questions whether these doctors are giving their patients the right to INFORMED CONSENT.

I have been told by doctors before something like this "That is my professional opinion - I stand by it ." And I have said right back-- I understand that is your opinion. But if you don't have the time to tell me what I need to know then I am not giving you my informed consent. I get an entirely different attitude after that point. Because, that is how doctors get sued. Parents/patients didn't understand.

1. Have parents been told the complete reasons why it would be absolutely necessary, just necessary, or desirable to take Singulair and why?
2. Have parents been told what the alternative treatments are and the possible side effects of those treatments?
3. Have parents been given an option of another treatment when they complaint about the side effects of Singulair?
4. Do parents know that headache is a side effect that occurs in 18% of patients? These headache have indicated some serious events in European hospital reports. They are not just sinus headaches.
5. Do parents know that Singulair can cause serious events that require hospitalization as referenced in European hospital reports? These reports have described the event and provided laboratory test results that prove that Singulair was the cause.
6. Singulair in NOT an anti-histamine. Can your doctor fully explain to you how Singulair interacts with the receptors on the mast cell (cell part of the immune system)? Can your doctor fully explain how the mast cell will be changed by this? The mast cell has a number of receptors that interact with each other to tell the mast cell how to function normally; when it's time to die; when it's time to be replaced; and when to tell the bone marrow to send a replacement mast cell. Singular CHANGES the immune system---- good or bad???

So here is the report from Sweden to take to your doctors. Would your doctor give consent for his/her children after reading this? Maybe he/she would BUT at the very least that doctor would be looking for side effects that could mean trouble.

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Update: I have spent hours searching scientific data bases for articles on Singulair. So far this is the most direct reference to adverse drug reactions and Singular.

For anyone who wanted to print the article from the Swedish researchers that stated that their study suggested that montelukast (singulair) should be investigated for adverse psychiatric drug reactions, I was able to find a link with open access to the public. So far, this is the only article that I have found. I am still searching through databases. This link should work if you cut and past. I am sure that all doctors would appreciate the opportunity to read it for themselves to see what they think.

PRINT REPORT.

http://www.biomedcentral.com/1472-6904/8/1

Individual case safety reports in children in commonly used drug groups – signal detection Gertrud Brunlöf , Carina Tukukino and Susanna M Wallerstedt Department of Clinical Pharmacology and Regional Pharmacovigilance Centre, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, SE-413 45 Göteborg, Sweden author email corresponding author email BMC Clinical Pharmacology 2008, 8:1doi:10.1186/1472-6904-8-1 Conclusion In conclusion, the present study indicates that ADRs are reported for commonly used drugs in children. The number of ICSRs varies in different groups of drugs. A possible signal for montelukast and psychiatric adverse drug reactions was found, which should be further explored.

Please don't forget to PRINT the Tables which open on a separate page. Table 2 lists the specific side effects that they found which include anxiety, aggression, night mares, pain, and several others.

My six year old son has been taking Singulair for almost three years for asthma and allergies. We have had such a hard time with him and it all started around the time he was prescribed this drug. He became very irritable, angry, hard to satisfy and generally unhappy. Now that he is six, the last two years have been the absolute worst with him saying he hates himself and just wants to die. He has stomach pain all the time and has had alternating daily diarrhea for over a year. Our pediatrician has done all sorts of tests and has referred us to a specialist. He has bad dreams every night and also complains of leg pain. He has been so depressed lately that he does not even want to go out and play after school and on weekends (not like him at all) and the teacher calls me several times a week to pick him up early because of stomach pain. I am so upset to think all this has been caused by this drug and he has suffered because of it! He also takes Zyrtec, as do all three of my sons, but the older two do not have asthma, just allergies. I gave him his last dose night before last because I just found out about the Singulair investigation. If anyone has any advice it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for all these posts! My 4 year old daughter has a history of allergies which have in the past led to sinus infections and bronchitis. We used Xopenex and Pulmicort with the nebulizer along with Vazobid and Delsym and cleared up the bronchitis during Christmas 2007, but her pediatrician suggested her taking Singulair as a preventive medication for her allergies. This medication has turned our household upside down. She has taken it every night for 3 weeks and the side effects are the same as others have posted.......aggressive behavior, severe defiance to simple tasks, nightmares, stomach cramps, wetting accident at school (first time ever), weight gain, bruising, and vomiting. When told "no" she replies with wanting to kick me and tells me she doesn't want me as a mom anymore. The devilish behavior is intolerable. She was never like this before she started taking Singulair, and I am so thankful that I found this website quickly enough to put 2 and 2 together, and I am taking her off of it TODAY!!!

My 6 1/2 year old son has been taking Singulair for 6 weeks, and while it has helped with his asthma, the side affects with this medication are too much to handle. He isn't able to sleep through the night, getting up 4-5 times, sometimes more. He's complained of severe stomach pain and leg pain. He's experienced loss of appetite, and has no concentration. Often we get nothing more than a blank stare from him. His teacher has expressed concern over the drastic change in him since going on Singulair. He is not able to pay attention, cannot complete his work and has become disruptive and aggressive. He's fatigued, and has been more emotional than ever. I stopped this medication 2 days ago and he is already sleeping better,and is more relaxed. I am researching alternative treatments for his asthma, and would warn against using Singulair for children.

My 82 year old brother was put on 40 mg of Lisinopril to lower his blood pressure. He was already taking Atenolol (50 mg) and also taking Simvastatin (40 mg) for cholesterol. With in two (2) days his fingers started going numb and hurting. It took us about 5 weeks to realize the systems started right after he started on Lisinopril. By that time all his fingers were numb and tingling, with lots of pain. He also had, nausea, shortness of breath, & upset stomach with diarrhea. After reading the same side effects on the website, he immediately stopped the Lisinopril. Most of the systems stopped fairly soon after stopping the Lisinopril except the numbness, pain & tingling in the hands. It has been over 2 months and with some alternative treatments he is finally seeing some relief from the hand problems.

Finally, I found a blog that I can relate to. I've tried all types of alternative treatments and nothing seemed to work. Finally after much dismay, I decided to take Lisinopril and HCTZ to control my BP. In May of this year the doctor went up on my meds from 10.2 to 30mg of Lisinopril. I've had struggles with depression and ED. I also have itches and had an allergic reaction with my throat almost closing and later vomited. I've had enough of this trickery by the pharmaceutical industry. I strongly recommend a book by Gwen Olsen called Confessions Of An RX Drug Pusher. That book has changed my perception completely on the drug industry.

I've only been on 10 mg of Lisinopril for 30 days and have been experiencing a severe dry cough. To the point I missed work today because I was up all night coughing. I didn't attribute the cough to this drug until reading about it on the net this morning. I have a Dr.'s appt tomorrow and plan on getting off of it. I have very mild high blood pressure. When i went to another site a cough was NOT listed as a side effect. I wish I had dug deeper. Glad I'm not crazy too!

I was proscribed Yasmin for acne problems but straight away, I experienced nausea. I didn't take a liking to it at all because it constantly made me want to vomit all the time. But still, I was willing to trial it to treat my acne. After about a month of using it, the vomiting sensation didn't go away. Does anyone else experience the same problem? Finally, I gave it up altogether and switched to Diane35. I found Diane35 a much better treatment for acne without the vomiting side affects.

I'm not the only one, great. I knew about the side effects that some drugs can cause, but I've been seriously thinking of alternative treatments. taking lisinopril and before 'zestril' for about 5 years. I also take bendrofluorazide. extremely painful joints, cough, dry mouth, dry eyes, insomnia., can have bouts of fast heartbeats, and I'm tired all the time.. there must be something better out there... need to detox!

I started taking Yasmin 2 and a half weeks ago as treatment for PCOS. I tried to find an obgyn who would offer alternative treatment besides birthcontrol, but one does not seem to exist. Ive been om Metformin since July to help with the insulin resistence, but who knows if that even works too. My first week on Yasmin i was nausous all time time, now on the second weel, the nausous seemed to fade away, but my breasts are so sore. Ive always been on the small side, and in a matter of days they have seemed to grow. Other than the bigger breasts and occasional nausea, i havent seen any other effects, but perhaps this is due to the fact that im only 2 1/2 weeks into treatment. Does anyone else have severe PCOS who is taking a different birth control, or has anyone else found a different treatment option? I tried just taking Provera to bring on my periods 10 days prior, but the mood swings were too much to handle and interfered with my life.
Also, has anyone found any alternative treatments, such as minerals or herbs? I'm only 20 and its kindda hard to have doctors take you seriously, even if you have done the research. thanks

I was diagnosed with Polymyalgia 6 months ago. Started out with 10mg of prednisone and increased to 20mg. After 6 months I am down to 5mg more a result of fear of predisone effects than relief from pain and stiffness. My negatives have been 35 lb weight gain, difficulty sleeping for long periods of time, fatigue and just recently an unsatisfactory elevation in blood pressure. I am willing to "put-up" with discomfort and pain rather than take predisone. Anyone with PMR that has found alternative treatments to predisone please contact me. Would also like to interact with others who have PMR. thanks,

I was perscribed 500 mg. Levaquin after Amoxoxillin didn't end an ear infection. I only took one pill. Within a couple hours I had diarhea that stopped after two hours only to return the next morning after eating breakfast. The diarhea persisted throughout the day while I only drank clear pops and water. I had terrible cramping as well. I called my clinic and was told these are normal side effects and to take some Immodium for diarhea and Tums to calm my stomach. Then 24 hours after taking one dose of Levaquin, I began vomiting violently. After several hours of this, I began to have bloody stool and my husband called the on-call doctor. He perscribed Phenergan for nausea and vomiting and lots of liquid. I dosed on an off all night interupted by trips to the bathroom. The vomiting finally stopped the next evening and the diarhea the next morning.
I was not warned of the side effects or given alternative treatments. This was three days of living hell!!!
AJ

Facial rashes, lowered sex drive, mild muscle pain, shortness of breath......is it really worth it. Will be looking into alternative treatments. Any suggestions?

I just went on the website: www.zocor.com and most if not all of the side effects mentioned here are listed there. They also state that only your physician can determine whether the side effects outweigh the benefits. I think that is crap. YOU are your best advocate for releiving pain,knowing what is best for you, etc. Who would want to live in constant pain, for example? I was looking around for info because my husband has been on Zocor several months now and is always fatigued. We are looking into alternative treatments. I recently found out that Red Rice Extract (from my chiropractor) can be used. If I were in the same situation, I would look into alternative treatments. Try a holistic approach. These symptoms sound very scary to me! That's my 2 cents.