Cholesteral symptoms and conditions

I have used Lipitor and/or other satins for many years. I had to get off a generic a year ago and went back to Lipitor. I believe it caused my tinnitus and muscle and nerve issues all over my body. I recently stopped taking it and now 4 weeks later I am getting some relief. I did find something that has really lowered my triglycerides and my cholesterol. It is a brand new diet supplement that contains a new source of omega 3 and antioxidants. contact me and I will give more info on this wonderful all natural wellness product. It really helped me.

I was put on Lipitor 10mg 2 weeks ago after my bloodwork from my yearly physical came back that my cholesterol went up again. Levels are HDL 61 LDL 176. After the first week I called my MD to advise that I was having chest pain and muscle pain in my legs and forearm. He said to cut the dose in half which I did last Thursday. Yesterday all of a sudden I had heart flutters the entire day! I am a 43 female who goes to the gym 3 times a week doing 30 minutes of cardio and weights. I eat right and overall I am in great shape except having high cholesterol. My blood pressure is great, had a stress test and echo last year both negative for any problems. I called my doctor today and advise that I was still having fluttering in my chest and that I am stopping the Lipitor. What good is being on a medicine that helps with one problem but then causes others that you may need more medication for???
I have been feeling like crap ever since being put on Lipitor and I believe that it is the medication that is giving me the problems. Last year my MD put me on Zocor and I stopped that after having the muscle pains. I am now hoping that things will get back to normal and I plan on telling my doctor that these "statin' medicines are not for me and there has to be something else.

I had delayed a recent refill of Welchol because of the cost and found that the hip and leg pain of the last 3 years on Welchol disappeared. Tried it again and pain returned. Still suffering horrible low back pain requiring an MRI (which was negative) I also stopped taking Zetia, which I'd taken for 5 years. Am three weeks without either drug, and have absolutely no back pain, some muscle weakness in legs but no pain, am no longer limping, have noticed that the dark circles under my eyes have improved dramatically - and I can now sleep without sleep aids. I am truly enjoying a pain-free life again and am adopting a dedicated cholesterol lowering diet. Hopefully, exercise will follow as the muscle weakness improves.

I posted several months ago on this string and wanted to update. I had bloodwork done for the 1st time since I quit the 20mg of Lipitor in August. LDL went from 123 to 210. Total Chol went from 191 to 285. HOWEVER all shooting pains I had been experiencing in legs, feet, and chst are GONE! Went back to my Dr. today, told her that same result and my serious objection to taking any kind of statin and she prescribed CRESTOR while telling me it was more potent than Lipitor! WTF!!!

I refuse this course, am drinking 30 - 40 ozs. of water each day now like I should have been, doubled my CoQ10 to 200mg/day, finally getting back into the gym to lose weight and get the HDL up from the level of 36 it is now. also started to drink the new yogurt type "shot" of Promise for cholesterol that provides 2 grams of plant sterols per day.

I will not take statins ever. I WILL find a natural way to keep my Chol under control. I've also been convinced that you don't have to be at or under the 200mlg of total chol to be healthy. Look at your C Reactive Protein and Homosiytes (sp?) If they are in range you should be good.

I know Lipitor was the cause of my rupturing each of my Achiller tendons a year apart while playing tennis in my late 40's Muscle pain soon followed.

Went off simvastatin in March, all pain went away within a couple of months, but muscle weakness in legs remained. In October, found out my cholesterol is sky high, over 325. So Dr. wanted to try Crestor 5 mg. Within 1 week, I had overwhelming fatigue, could hardly stay awake during the day and the weakness in my legs was getting worse. So I just went off Crestor. Frustrating!!

Three years ago, my Doctor said he wanted my cholesterol lowered. He prescribed Lipitor 10 m every other day.. Last year Cat Scan revealed a clogged minor artery so doctor increased to 20m PER day.. Test results proved Cholesterol down to " perfect" said the doctors BUT the rest of me was falling apart.. Severe muscle cramps in both legs, fatigue, muscles all over had no strength, weakness, nausea, headaches etc.. My cousin who is a doctor had been taking Lipitor herself but stopped because of the above symptoms.. Both my Cardiologist and internist have told me to stop taking Lipitor for a period of time to see if these symptoms dissipate.. After three days I already feel better. I have begun to eat 100% healthy: taking vitamins: vitamin C, Omega 3,6,9. lecithin & exercise, etc. And praying a lot..

recently was prescribed simvastatin. Pharmacist advised that 50% of people will experience severe muscle & joint pain and burning in the muscles. I can see by reading the site that this is true. Must try since cholesteral and bp are high and dr thinks at 51 I had two mini strokes (tia's). If I experience the severe pain that is discussed i will stop taking. Thank you for all the info! This site is awesome.

I was given 40mg Lipitor for elevated cholesterol. I took it until I started having muscle weakness .I am a retired nurse of twenty five years, and knew this symptom was not correct. So I stopped taking the medication and told my doctor of this.He did not protest in any way.My symptoms now include;two torn ligaments, sob,mental deficits, muscle wasting, night sweats, weakness,h/a's, and more. I have not taken Lipitor for two years now. Damage is done.My doctor said it should be out of my system by now. Is this a cover up?

I have an update...........Before all the news broke on singulair,my son was placed in a asthma study for adolescents,i got some very disturbing news today from the study.....his insulin level at fasting was 11....his insulin level at 2 hours after eating sugar was 238 but his glucose was within normal range...they have suggested we see an endocrine doctor......i will call his primary Monday and see if we can repeat these tests....I am hoping it was a temp effect of the singulair and not permhis hdl level was abnormal to but his cholesterol was 170....

I started on 40mg of simvistatin 3 and a half months ago,after being on them for a week i started to get bad headaches and felt really fatigued,so when i told my gp she said its just a matter of your body getting used to them,so i continued taking the pills i seemed ok for a while but 5 weeks ago i started with palpitations,then i got indigestion, and general discomfort in my chest,weakness in my arms and legs, headaches and the fatigue came back worse than ever,i haven't been back to see the doctor,i stopped the pills yesterday,the indigestion has gone already,i want to lose about a stone and try to lower my cholesterol myself ,but how can you exercise when you feel so weak and tired,my cholesterol level is 5 but because i suffer high blood pressure the doc said it needs to be 4.3,does anyone else suffer from the same and is on this medication?

I am almost 54, a female. Twice since October I have tried to take Lipitor, but couldn't make it past the fifth dose. By day five (both times) I developed flu-like symptoms, the worst of which was severe nausea and vomiting every ten minutes, muscle aches and pain (including lower back), extreme weakness, dizziness, shakiness, feverish feeling, and "fuzzy" head. The last episode - just two days ago - made me realize it was more than likely the Lipitor. The first episode happened while I also had a staff infection in my eye, and although I quit taking the Lipitor just in case, I attributed my ailments to the eye infection, and totally forgot about the possible Lipitor connection after that. At that time I also had extreme head pain, and now I'm not sure which was the cause, the infection or the Lipitor. I was bed ridden for five days that time.

This time I was away on a business trip and had to spend two extra days in bed at a hotel because I could hardly walk. As soon as I got sick I quit taking the drug. I had to take prescribed suppositories to stop the vomiting because I couldn't even keep water down. The nausea was so severe I had to keep a trash can next to the bed. I drove three excruciating hours to get home tonight, and still feel very sick with the flue symptoms and aching legs. I promised myself that the first thing I would do when I got home was check the internet for Lipitor side effects, and I'm sure glad I did. I had no idea what the drug is capable of doing.

I will try to see my doctor tomorrow and discuss an alternative way to lower my cholesterol, which is only marginally elevated - in fact, if it weren't for my type-2 diabetes (which I keep under control through diet), my cholesterol would be normal.

Good luck to all of you who have more serious, long-term effects of this drug. I consider myself lucky to have gotten ill at the onset of taking Lipitor so hopefully I will avoid more dire consequences later. I will now go to bed before I fall over.

RBS

I am a 51 year old healthy male. Was on Vytorin for nine months, but finally noticed I was getting really lethargic, was weak ( I used to be able to run on a treadmill for 30 minutes at 6 mi/hr, but finally could barely muster 10 minutes), had bouts of blurred vision, and a nasty tingling and pain that developed in my right foot causing me to limp. I had developed night sweats and cramping in my foot and legs. I was feeling like a 70 year old man in a 51 year old body, neglecting many of the things I normally like to do. I was just too tired. All this slowly developed and I did not put 2 and 2 together until I finally decided it had to be the Vytorin. I quit for a week, told the doc all my symtoms except the foot tingling were better. He said, lets try pravachol, 80mg instead since cholesterol of 180, 40 for HDL was still too high! One week on Pravachol was all I could take. All the symptoms came back and even worse. Now he wants to put me on Zocor. Says this is all "trial and error" to find the right combo. I am afraid I have nerve damage from this drug in my foot and I don't think the side effects are worth the decreased cholesteral count. I'd rather have a heart attack and die quick than suffer a long slow fall to become a total invalid by continuing to take these statin drugs. They are poisons, plain and simple.

62 yo female. I have been on 20mg Lipitor for a few years and the doctor ignored my complaints of thigh pain when I wake up in the mornings. When last tested my cholesteral level was still higher than she thought acceptable so the dose was increased to 40mg. I lasted on that for about 3 weeks. Unbearable pain all day rather than just in the mornings. I am back on 20mg but only taking one every second day. I am feeling so much better - less pain and much more energy (which I never associated with the meds). I am wondering if anyone else has experienced a problem with urine output. I have had this problem for a few years and after reading doing some internet research last night I am now wondering if that is also a result of taking Lipitor. I am very close to ceasing the Lipitor altogether as I think the cure may be worse than the disease!!

I am totally shocked at what I have learned about Lipitor. My physician prescribed 10mg for me over 4 years ago. No major problems until recently. Severe neck/shoulder pain for about 3 months. Dr said it was a pulled muscle. Gave me Skelaxin. No help. Went to Chiropractor--yanked, cracked, beat, etc--no help. In the past 2 weeks or so I have developed pain in my hips, back and legs. Blamed it on being 52 years old. As I read some of the experiences on here I could relate to each one. I also have gained about 30 pounds in the past 4 years, short term memory is terrible. NO ENERGY> 3 years ago-Dr started me on Wellbutrin for depression, then added Zoloft. I am to the point now I want to get off of all this and see how I could really feel. Not sure about withdrawals. Any comments on stopping the meds?

After by-pass heart surgery in 2002, my cardilogist put me on 40mg of zocor.
I was in good health with no physical limitations. I had no heart damage. The restriction of heart arteries were found due to my stress test that was performed each year as a part of my annual Physical. After surgery I was on zocor for three years, during that time I experienced a little tiredness, little weakness, a little muscle aches. some tingling in my right arm and shoulder. I went to my heart doctor Jan. 2006 and he changed me to vytorin (10mg zetia and 40mg zocor). about 6 months all of the about symptoms got worse.
By Jan. 2007, my muscles became so stiff, I could not walk, had balance problems, severe muscle aches and cramps, numbness and tingling in both arms and hands, also stifness and pain in my hands, stiffness and pain in both feet, stifness and pain in my back and weird nerve sensations over my entire body. During Jan. and Feb 2007, I was seen by my family doctor, a neurologist, and a muscle doctor. Thanks to the internet, I found info on zocor and zetia, which is the drug vytorin. Warnings described the same symptoms I am experiencing. I stopped vytorin, I am not taking any statins drugs now. My doctor order a blood test to check for muscle damage, It indicated severe damage, a Creatine level of 770. This level should not be over 200. After being off the drugs for 30 days the creatine level dropped to 645. My condition has improved by 25%. I am walking a little better, but I still having muscle problems, there is improvement. I think there will be a very long recovery. There seems to be some evidence that these Statins affect people of age much more than the young. I am 70 years old. PLEASE PEOPLE, IF YOU ARE TAKING STATINS DRUGS, STOPPED NOW! SLOVE YOUR CHOLESTROL PROBLEMS BY OTHER MEANS. Since I stopped my cholestrol has gone from 157 to 280, but I am not going back taking these drugs. I am trying the natural way now. I have read post after post on many web-sites of people with the same symptoms that were using these drugs. The drug companies and the FDA are responsible for the the degradation of people's health taking these statin drugs.

Anyone have peripheral neuropathy on Zocor? I had shooting pains down both arms for a few days one month into taking Zocor. This stopped but is replaced with intense muscle pain in arms, hands, shoulders and back - and recently hot flashes. I stopped taking the Zocor 3 days ago AMA (against medical advice) as my doc said the neuropathy is not a side effect of Zocor.

Has anyone ever had tons of weight gain while taking Singulair? I have been on this drug for about four years now and my weight has increased to more than 50 pounds of weight gain! I have a lot of aches and pains, leg cramps at night, insomnia, but the asthma has improved. I still get my once a year very bad attack with bronchitis, etc, but the improvement was great.

I have had everything else checked out for my weird continued weight gain and everything is normal. So I am checking out this drug and one other I am on for thyroid. (No, it's not my thyroid, my thyroid tests are normal now). It doesn't matter what I do I gain weight. Just wondering if this drug is causing it. My doc told me it was the cause of my insomnia and suggested moving it to the A.M..

I am tired of this weight gain, and it is starting more physical problems, like my bad knees. I ahve always been active and my eating habits haven't changed. Dieting is not working either. Any suggestions? Anyone else gaining unexplained weight?

Thanks!

45 year old male active all my life in soccer and hockey. Realized that my recoup time after events, while on Lipitor was taking longer. I attibuted the joint pain and musle soreness to dehydration, past injuries and getting older. Went to PCP last week for blood work. Enzymes were very high, good cholesteral, not enough, bad cholesterol, to much. Luck of the genetic draw! I Mentioned some nagging aches and pains while getting the work done. Got a call from the doctor telling me to stop taking the Lipitor. So I did. Two weeks ago I played some hockey, very low keyed. The next day I felt like I was hit by a truck. Have not taken the Lipitor since the call. Played hockey at a quick pace yesterday and today I feel great. Yes I'm sore, but I do not feel like I was hit by a truck like I did while taking Lipitor. I know my body. I've been athletic all my life. The recoup time was increasing. I did not a first consider Lipitor. Lipitor does have side effects that we are just learning about. I'm living proof. I'll be eating more "Oatmeal." Helps to alleviate the gas caused by Lipitor! And the body aches............

I am a 55 yo caucasian male caucasian. Profession: Dentist. Was placed on Lipitor 20mg/day. After 2-3 months noticed that I bruised very easily; began feeling weak, tired; would develop severe muscle & joint pains after Karate & Weight training. Because of my genetics, lab values did not improve enough. The dose was increased to 40mg/day. Leg cramps, weakness, and muscle pains became totally incapacitating. Has to go to bed. Sleeping was difficult becasue of constant pain. Discontinued Lipitor: all symptoms abated.

Was then placed on Vitorin 10/20 one per day. After 4 to 6 weeks noticed severe muscle & joint pain. But there is no bruising like I had while taking the Lipitor. I altered the dose to one every other day, i.e., 1/2 the perscribed dosage, and symptoms have lessened. However, when I perform and intense Karate & weight work out session, 48 hour later I have severe muscle & joint pains which necessitate bed & rest for 24 to 36 hours.

My Cardiologist is skeptical of these effect being related to these cholesteral statins...but as a clinician of 30 years i KNOW there is a direct relationship.

Since taking lipitor my cholesteral has gone down below 200. But I am experiencing joint and muscle weakness in my right arm. And I believe some ED.For the first time in my life I couldn't get aroused. Any one else have these symptoms?

I started taking Lipitor last May when my cholesteral was only 220. Starting in January my knee starting getting very sore. It got so bad I couldn't walk and I went to teh doctor. He said I had tendonitis in my knee and didn't mention the Lipitor. I had to ice my knee and take Alleve. After two months it still was a problem and I'm finnally stopped taking Lipitor. My knee has made a tremendous improvement after not taking the Lipitor for two days.

I am 34 years old, white, male, american. I am 6 foot 2 inches and weigh appx 215 pounds. My blood pressure had been creeping up a few years ago so I was put on a small dose of Benicar. No problems, BP went down. During a regular check-up with blood tests it was discovered that my cholesteral and triglicerides(have no idea if I'm spelling these corectly) were up. Cholesteral was 215 and trig. were through the roof. He put me on 10 mg per day and said we'll do blood tests in six weeks. About three weeks in I started cramping in my abdominal region. It got worse with alocohol intake but didn't seem to change much other than that. I complained to my doc's nurses and they said, "Zocor doesn't usually have ANY side effect." My blood test showed a drop in my numbers and no liver or kidney problems (according to my doctor). I stopped taking Zocor for about four days and felt better. I started again and now my cramping is worse than ever. My doctor hooked me up with another doctor and I have a colonoscopy scheduled for next week. I might stick it out until then to see if anything shows up but this website and these posts really worry me. Doctors I think listen to drug salespersons and not their patients too much. Wish me luck.

Same with ticklish throat and hacking cough two or three times daily, drainage of sinuses--worse at night. Turned into bronchiatis with low fever. Cough stopped when discontinued all blood pressure medicine. Also tried beta blocker and added this ace again. Same thing happened. Drs think I am making it up because cough is suppose to be dry. Now on web dry cough means no yellow or brown, or green mucous, clear mucuous is still considered dry cough. Unbelievable. Drs. think dry cough means dry- like clearing throat. Norvasc is only thing with least effects. Even better with water pill especially if you have sinus drainage and allergy. It actually drys sinuses while you sleep. Acts like antihistamine. No doctor figured that one out. Going to neuprologist now. He is at least checking out all kidney and adrenal functions. Suspects genetically passed down chronic High blood pressure since young age. I am not overweight and I am very active, walking, yoga,hiking and aerobics all year long. More active at 60 than 30. Blood pressure was always since I can remember in 130's over 85 range. Never 120 over 70 range even as child. At that time 130's over 80's was normal. They are dropping the standards on everything, including weight and cholesteral. None of the medicines brings my bp to the standard. When it gets to low, body automatically forces it back up. My energy is only high when the bp is over 135. I would be happy if it would stay in the 140's/ 80's or 90's. Ace will not drop it that low. Only beta blocker drops the bottom below to 70, but top stays 150. Pulse goes to 40. Really tired.

I took Lipitor for one week beginning 11/11/2005, during which time I experienced gas, stomach upset, nausea, insomnia, black stool, and after 3 to 4 days, ringing in my ears. Since stopping the drug, I have continued to experience severe insomnia, and ringing in the ears. I will never again take a cholesteral lowering drug. I eat right and excercise. If that is not enough, so be it.

I have had pain in my left chest area that started shortly after I started taking Lipitor. I went to the doctor 2 months after I started taking Lipitor for blood work. While at the doctor I mentioned pain that to me felt muscular. He right away did an EKG that showed I had possible blockage. I then went for a stress test and heart scan. The response I got about the test was that everything was completely normal. The EKG reading was probably just normal for me or due to stress. Anyway now two months later I am reading about the side effects of Lipitor and still have this pain in my left chest area that is sore to the touch now. I am stopping taking this medicine now. My cholesteral was low now anyway. I am angry that my doctor just ingnored the symptoms I was giving him. I will update in a couple of weeks about the pain. I am controlling the cholestral by diet and lots of exercise now anyway.