Dangerous drug symptoms and conditions

I started taking Lipitor in April 2009 and my Dr prescribed 10 mg per day. As I usually have negative reactions to medications I compromised & agreed to take it every other day. I am a healthy 56 year old woman and the only medication I take is hormone replacement therapy. I am also in pretty good shape physically. At the end of July I herniated two disc's in my lower back, the L6 & L7, after a day of normal yard work. I could not move for two days and experienced the worst pain of my life. At the time I did not make any connection between Lipitor and this event. The recovery was slow and painful. In Sept I also began to experience sharp pains in my thigh. I read the side effects again regarding Lipitor and determined that this drug is most likely the cause. I decided to stop taking the drug and after three to four weeks the thigh muscle pain disappeared and my back pain significant decreased. Just to make sure I was not imaging the whole thing I took Lipitor twice in the past week and my back pain symptoms returned and I experienced the muscle pain in my thigh again. I was so bad it woke me up. After reading more about Lipitor and the effect it is having on my quality of life I am done with this drug. Although it did reduce my cholesterol I will find another way to control the LDL's & HDL's.

I have been taking 20mg of Simvastatin every night for about 4 years now and after coming across this site I have decided to stop taking it. I have been feeling particularly unwell for a couple of days, decided to do some research and can't believe what I am reading on this site! For the last year I have suffered terrible pain and loss of movement in my neck shoulders and arms and shooting pains in my legs along with muscle tics. More recently dizzy spells and quite severe tinnitus and headpain and fatigue. I have also found that my muscles tire very quickly when doing the smallest of tasks i.e: changing a duvet cover! The night sweats are particularly bad which I have been putting down to my age but may be to do with the statins. I am praying that these symptoms will reverse once I stop taking them but remain skeptical after reading other peoples comments on here!

I am 39 years old and work for an interventional cardiology medical device company in Tokyo, and so know the importance of controling one's cholesterol, keeping the LDL's low and the HDL's high. About two years ago, my doctor put me on 10 mg of Lipitor. Several months later I herniated a disc in my neck between C6&C7. From that point onward, I attributed all of my neck and back pain, and newly acquired total body muscle and joint pain, to the herniated disc, it made the most sense. Over the last seven months, I have really worked on my diet and began to exercise more (even though quite painful) and was able to lower my cholesterol. This resulted in my doctor lowering my Lipitor prescription from 10 mg to 5 mg. I noticed a slight alleviation of the pain I felt in my hip joints and calves. About two weeks ago I took myself off Lipitor completely and found further improvements in my total body muscle and joint pain. It's still there but greatly improved. In retrospect, I now believe the Lipitor may have been the culprit (or at least a contributing factor) to my herniated disc due to muscle degeneration in the neck, and all of the subsequent muscle pain, especially in my hips and calves. I fully understand I am not going to die from calf-pain, but may from heart disease. However, I have found my quality of life has improved tremendously over the last few weeks. Less irritability, better sleep, less pain, clearer head. I feel like I have lost two years of my life on Lipitor via personal suffering and lack of ability to do much of anything with my wife and two young daughters. We all need to take charge of our own health and therefore I encourage anyone who feels completely different after taking Lipitor to engage your physician, and make sure its the right option for you. If damage has been done to my musculature I hope I can reverse it. It is evident to me that some serious clinical studies should be done to investigate Lipitor's effect on muscle degradation and hope others will consider carefully whether or not do go on this drug. If you do, monitor yourself closely.

I'm a 70 year old woman, I have taken this drug for 3 1/2 yrs. I was prescribed Spironolactone 25mg for high blood pressure of 140/80. After researching the side effects I chose to stop taking this drug 2 days ago. First off, it's a potassium sparing diuretic and one isn't supposed to eat foods high in potassium, like fruits and vegetables a contradiction to what is needed for both high cholesterol and high blood pressure, does this makes sense no it doesn't. Also I was taking a potassium supplement, maybe I'm lucky to still be alive?
I don't think Dr.'s read about side effects or what one isn't supposed to eat or take along with the drugs they prescribe. They only look at what the drug is supposed to do, then prescribe it to thousands of patients their, victims. This is probably why they're considered, "Practicing Physicians!"
This drug is known to cancer. This drug is known to cause muscle pains. This drug has caused me to go Bald on the top of my head. This drug plays with ones hormonal balance, it can help make someone grow hair, or lose it. This drug should not be prescribed for simple high blood pressure, it is a very dangerous drug!
I have huge rashes on my ankle and now my hands, they say it's eczema or drug induced atopic dermatitis.
Please do yourself a favor and research the many side effects and cancer causing of this drug. If you're taking simply to lower your blood pressure find a safer drug and try to stop taking this one particular diuretic and use supplements and foods to lower it if you can.
I'm taking this and Lipitor which I stopped one week ago and this one two days ago thank God, I thought I was going to be a cripple for the rest of me life from the toxic side effects, all drug induced.

I am a 70 year old woman, I have been on 20mg Lipitor for high cholesterol, 200 total and 25mg of Spironolactone for a not so high blood pressure, for 3 1/2 yrs. Oh, my God, the Spironolactone is a potassium sparing diuretic that is very dangerous and has many uses I didn't know about or the terrible side effects, it causes breast cancer. It's also used to treat women who have an over growth of hairiness, or on a higher dose to treat hair loss and I've gone bald on the top of my head! Plus all of the good foods we're supposed to eat for high cholesterol, fruit & veggies one isn't to eat on this drug, because of lot's of potassium, what a huge contradiction. And muscle pains, and rashes, (eczema, atopic dermatitis) that I've suffered from both.
Anyway, Lipitor, had know idea about the side effects until I looked it up on the internet and read these posts on here.
I stopped taking Lipitor last week and Spironolactone 2 days ago.
I had cholesterol test last week too and saw my dr. Wednesday. He said it was okay that I stopped the Lipitor, but not the other one, why not the other one worse then Lipitor and why am I on this strong drug, geez.
The pain and burning started in my hip for no reason, then my ankles with eczema which started soon after Lipitor, then my fingers, numbness, can't pick things up, tingling, burning. Then my feet, yes, just like all of you I have these same problems. This is not just coincidental, this is from the drug Lipitor. I get severe joint cramps in my legs, feet and fingers.
For now on before I take any drug I've prescribed I will thoroughly check for side effects and not take it if they're seriously impairing like Lipitor. I feel like a cripple and older then I should feel, I almost just felt like why live anymore if this is how it's going to be.
Since I've stopped Lipitor I feel a little better, I read that it causes permanent muscle and nerve damage though, oh I hope not, I can barely walk anymore or get up out of my chair. This is all drug induced toxicity of my system. Thanks so much everyone who posted for sharing and enlightening all of us who are suffering from this drug and others.
It should be banned along with Baycol, (a statin) which was banned a few months ago because of these same side effects. With the studies that it only helps maybe to prevent heart attack, well I'd rather be able to walk again and hopefully all this will go away, the rash, etc.

Dizziness, back ache, severe hip and shoulder pain, transient global amnesia, after discontinued taking of Lipitor, speech problems, loss of words.

I was prescribed this medicine for a breast abscess. I have a bad reaction to penicillin and levaquin was given to me as an alternative. I took the first pill at 11:00 pm. I woke up about every 30 minutes drenched in sweat until 2:00 and then could not go back to sleep. I took drinks of water when I woke up in order to keep hydrated. I have a lap band, and I noticed that the water wasn’t going down easily which let me know the medicine had made my stomach swell. I finally fell asleep around 3:30 and had evil nightmares until 5am. I was afraid to go back to sleep so I decided I'd just stay awake until time for me to get up for work. I will be calling my doctor's office as soon as they open to let her know this medicine is not for me. After reading your stories, I refuse to take it another day.

I have been on and off Lipitor for 2 years approx.
After a typical week on LIP I have left arm weakness, can't breathe fully, can't walk far, my pulse slows down to almost nothing, I get chest pains, my left side chest and around my shoulder is in such pain that if I try to gasp for a deeper breath my heart starts jumping missing beats. If I have some cheerios (low bad stuff) with soy milk (cow products are bad for anyone middle age or above) I can push what ever it is through my system to make it through the night; however if I don't have something to eat or an aspirin I'm sure with the worsening shooting chest pain and shooting pain in my neck and left hemisphere of my head area with accompanying foggy feeling, i'm really feeling that i'm having a stroke....
Get off th LIP and you heart muscle will attempt to repair itself somewhat.
There may be long term damage, so this needs to be solved.

On separate notes:The food companies like Zehrs keep adding fats and sugars into our foods, then the drug companies and doctors are scooping wads of cash to treat the symptoms. When they finally forced the food companies to eliminate trans fats from kids snacks, they added twice as much sugar so now along with obesity they can get diabetes. They rarely work on a cure or fixing the problems because they won't make money on it....
I find it strange that a lot of ladies getting cancer are working hard to raise money for treatments (the pink ribbon effort) but no-one will speak up against all these companies dumping tigger chemicals into our environment (water, air, landfills, products etc) as long as we all have cool hair dyes and appliances and stuff that is on the market making dollars before properly tested. We are the guinea pigs especially now that we are eating cr_p from China.... Guys, get off the drugs if you can;;; Too bad also, my kids are getting bombarded by tv commercials pushing sugar cereals and drugs for every little problem which cause worse side effects. I would like to invent a new good pill so I can become rich!!! ...Thanks, I have enjoyed reading that a lot of people are having similar side effects that I have had.
A higher power (not Al Gore) has given us internet technology to help solve a lot of problems, and protect innocent people from the huge worldwide companies. They have the money, we have the internet hopefully to use for the common good.
P.S. Nothing against Al, He is a great leader trying to do good things for mankind.

Joint pain in fingers, joint pain in knuckles, wrist weakness after a week on 10 mg daily dose of Zetia. Amazing reduction in bad cholesterol and triglycerides when used with daily maximum 80 mg dose. Zetia was discontinued because of these painful side effects. 68 year old male.

This is not a new side effect, but the same day I started taking Levaquin for sinusitis, I suspected something was wrong. Within hours, ears were roaring. First night, NO sleep, and that's WITH Ambien CR. Day 2.....depression! Immediate. This is in spite of having a severe depression under control for over a year. Sudden. I really started suspecting Levaquin then, but thought it was a coincidence. Took it this morning. Deep, dark depression. After reading these posts, I knew my suspicions were correct. The depression is getting better after 10-12 hours after the dose. This is really scary stuff. Really scary. Oh, yes, and I had the stomach pains, also. Told my husband it was just hurting like a bruise, not like indigestion or gas. I will report it to my doctor so they will no it's a "no-no" for me....in spite of all the websites that said how safe it was. Glad I found this website. Thank God.

i ave a friend who has just had a bad case of the flu which has turned into pneumonia. her doctor out her on levaquin! i almost had a heart attack, called her and begged her to stop it. i sent her a bunch of info about it. why not put her on augment, something with less chance of adverse effects.
now i find she had a stroke over the weekend and is in the hospital! has anyone heard of anything like this on levaquin?

In addition to all I mentioned in my posting before, I am now having burning skin feeling and my shirt can't touch my skin sometimes without it burning, hurting.

Has anyone heard if this drug leaves your system or not???

I'm only on 10mg Simvastatin and 10mg Lisinopril. I have type 1 diabetes and a minor TBI from a heat stroke. If I stop taking these then after a day or two I will start feeling barely controllable fits of rage. Sometimes I still get angry but for some reason the lisinopril and Simvastatin seem to ease it. I also have hypogonadism. I like my combo of simvastatin and lisinopril in the morning with my 20mg adderall. Little bit of redness on face but the benefits seem to outweigh.

Today the FDAapproved gardasil for its use in boys,it is a mans world so maybe as men start to suffer the consequences of this shot somebody will start to listen

My total cholesterol was 220 and LDL was 157; I started taking 40mg last week and within 2 days I just felt horrible. I felt weird and yuck in my stomach. There was a fog in my head and 2 days ago I was so dizzy I was almost falling over; I had to catch myself with the walls and doors. The next day, yesterday, I started having higher blood pressure and racing pulse with heart palpitations every 45 seconds or so, which makes me breathe deep often. I have felt pain in the back, arms, neck, and hips. I have also had weight gain and stomach irritability. Last night was the first night I did not take my medicine and even though I don't feel all that better I will see how it goes. I fought taking this medicine for over a year now and since my cholesterol went up I figured I'd try it in hopes my level would drop, but I can't handle this, I'm only 38!

I am a 52 year old female and my bad cholesterol is fine but my good cholesterol is low. I have been taking Lipitor now for a few years and have numb hands and feet to the elbows and knees. My feet are extremely sensitive, worse at night and now I'm getting sharp pains that feel like a bug just bit me. My tongue is also always numb and I do get migraines.I have insane stomach issues and food intolerance. I also take medication for high blood pressure, acid reflux, & thyroid. I have now been diagnosed with type 2 Diabetes but control that with diet so far. Until four years ago I had nothing wrong with me. I am slim and healthy. I had a lump in my thyroid which was removed and there was a trace of cancer. Then like dominos all the other conditions lined up. I have had MRIs and all the tests and doctors insist that I am not a severe enough diabetic to have neuropathy. I can hardly wear shoes now and it hurts when I wear runners while I walk and exercise. Does any of this sound familiar to anyone? I hate that my health has become so much a part of my daily life. Does anyone have neuropathy as a result of Lipitor and am I even taking the the right medication since I don't have high cholesterol?

short and unsweet, was put on it for osteoarthritis by a bone doctor ,took it for 1 week and had to get off it because the side effects were horrible. panic attacks, severe mood swings, dizziness, disorientation and more. The worst was yet to come 2 days after I told my doctor I couldn"t take it anymore. I was getting ready for work and thought I was having a heart attack. I drove myself to my doctor (praying the whole way, cuz God is in charge). He took my blood pressure which was 200/187. I was rushed to the hospital where I was admitted and put in the cardiac unit overnight for observation. Thank God I was released the next day with no APPARENT side effects. I have not been right since. I still have panic attacks, severe mood swings and fluctuating blood pressure. Do yourself a favor and when anyone mentions Prednisone RUN! Oh, I forgot to mention my doctor said had I waited another 20 minutes I could have been a goner. My osteoarthitis is worse(now I have to see another specialist) and I have medical bills out the wazoo. Prednisone is a very very dangerous drug nd the doctors are still prescribing it. What is wrong with this picture.

so far, no side effects for me. I've been taking Levaquin for 8 days, 2 more to go. Scary stuff you're all experiencing. That's awful!!!

I am a generally active and fairly healthy 77 yr old who had been taking 10 mg of Lipitor for over 12 years with no obvious adverse effects. Recently I started having pain in my right leg, severe enough to wake me at night. This was followed by a significant weakness in both legs, and for a while, accompanied by a lightheartedness. The doctor had me take a series of lumbar and leg x-rays which didn't show much of significance. He wrote a prescription for physical therapy, which I did not follow.
I did internet research on my own which made me aware that Lipitor could be the cause, in spite of the fact that I had tolerating the drug for so many years. I told the Doctor of my suspicions and we agree to stop the Lipitor for at least 6 weeks to see. A few days later, all my symptoms were gone. So be cautious, adverse effects from Lipitor can occur anytime.

Not a new, but seemingly common side effect, i just recently noted could be from Lipitor.......all over achey dead weight feeling, difficult to motivate and move without great fatigue an achiness....totally out of character & even herbal energy, once helpful was completely non effective. Also have arthritis and a knee replacement...knee ok but rest of body next to completely seized up, including hands, hip, sacro iliac, foot, and extreme neck stiffness and pain. Being a retired nurse i should have noted side effects, but attributed to another BP pill which was stopped... Of course absolutely no change and now tripping to chiropractor and acupuncture hoping to get this body going again, especially with much needed walking, post knee replacement. Also i had gained wt, maybe 10-15lbs in 6 months, but when lipitor ws recently doubled, i gained even more in a 3 wk period, and my midrift is cellulite lumpy looking, unlike ever b4, with my normally preferred very active lifestyle, that is now difficult with probs occurring. The chiropractor alerted me to the potential Lipitor side effects, but i know my cardiologist would not agree with this theory.....so afraid to mention, unless there is some conclusive test to be done. Otherwise they say everybody always wants to complain or blame probs on meds, if nothing else suits the situation. I have discontinued the Lipitor, just for 2 days so far and pray i will feel back to myself asap. Now of course i am torn with the lack of prevention of atherochlorosis and future bypass surgery as in father's family.... Feel like damned if i do and damned if i don't.....so definitely empathize with most. Thanks for commoradery and hoping i am not just becoming a cuckoo hypochondriac.

Make you feel like your on crack.... then again i broke the pills up and tossed em in me pipe. Feeling so high X . X

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WOW! My Mom is 65 and having a lot of these same issues, rash, swelling of the hands and feet, itching, tired ALL the time, depression and she is really "foggy". Her feet are so swollen she cant walk! Her Dr acts like she is just seeking attention and just orders more blood work! After reading all of your comments I am sure its the Lisinopril! Her doctor told her she should NOT stop taking the meds because she could have a stroke! I am angry he is using this scare tactic. I live 2000 miles away but I ready to make a road trip to get this madness to end! She really needs to find a new Dr and stop using this dangerous drug!
Thank you all for posting these issues!

Loss of appetite and change in taste. I haven't eaten a meal since about 26th March 2009. I have a sweet, sickly taste and I can only eat cornflakes or crisps. Cups of tea don't taste like tea and I try and taste different foods each day but still can't eat anything other than cornflakes and crisps.

They have ruined my life and I have been told it could take 12/18 months so I have another 12 months to go. I don't think I can do it!!.

I would love to hear from people who have had this problem.

Well I have been on Lipitor 80mg for years (family history of high cholesterol) although no hearts attacks/strokes ever been attributed to the h/chol....without sounding like I'm a hypo I have 3 disk out in my lower back & years ago suffered intense back as a result...the pain which seems to be now all over is horrid ...I have been thinking that it was perhaps arthritis & old age (59yrs).....several months ago I mentioned it to doctor he said Lipitor could cause side effects but he'd keep an eye on it....well this morning after googling "Lipitor" iv'e made a decision & that is to get rid of this medication...everything I'm reading sounds just like what I have been experiencing...thanks for the input I think I have come to realize that it is the medication that is causing all my problems.

I have been "sick" and in pain since taking Levaquin - first prescription before my sinus surgery in Jan. '09 and then again after the sinus surgery. I thought it was just taking me a along time to recover from the surgery for some reason but now as I read all the posts, I believe it was the levaquin. The joint pain, muscle pain, extreme fatigue continue to this date. I see the only lawsuits are for torn tendons but what about all of the other problems people are experiencing. Are we to live with this?