High cholesterol symptoms and conditions

I'm a 70 year old woman, I have taken this drug for 3 1/2 yrs. I was prescribed Spirinolactone 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 diueretic 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 dermititis.
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 diueretic 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 diueretic 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 dermititis) 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 cholesteral 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 Liptior, 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.

Are there any meds that are safe? I was taking 10mg norvasc. I started taking 20/25 mg lisinopril. I was doing ok on the norvasc but the added lisinopril has almost killed me. They had cut my norvasc down to 5 mg then to 2.5 mg when I started the lisinopril. 4 days ago I stopped the lisinopril and added back 2.5 mg norvasc. Back to 5 mg. The side effects seem to be letting up. Now im wondering is all of my meds are killing me. I can't live without them. My BP sores. Im so scared of what I should do. Im afraid of all my meds.

Just had to comment on these side effects I'm reading about Lipitor and other Statin drugs. I don't take anything and I never will after finding this site. Guess what, I have had high cholesterol since I was in my early 20's. When I say high... it ranged from 240 - 260...remember when 250 was OK? Well folks, it's 30 years later, my cholesterol is just about the same range, and Oh My GOD...I'm still here without any drugs.!!! They lowered the range so they could pass out the pills!!! Greed, greed, greed. Do you wonder why our Healthcare system is out of control? Well, when you keep feeding people medications that are presenting the side effects they do, making them sicker, they just keep testing and testing and testing for other things. Let's do blood work, MRI's, CAT Scans, Spect Scans, Pet Scans...Scan away...and guess what...all comes back OK...hmmmm why not look at the drugs you're prescribing. We need to see "all the side effects" listed. Not just some. They're misdiagnosing, Alzheimers, Fibromyalgia, MS, Lupus, Dementia, Arthritis, and on and on when it's been the drugs causing the diseases!
Ween off everything and anything you can...take your chances...when God wants you, he's going to come and get you no matter what you're doing...right or wrong!

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?

I am currently weigh more than ever before. I really do watch what I eat and go to the gym at least 5 days a week and do 45 min of cardio. I recently went to my PCP and was told I now have high blood pressure; high cholesterol; and sky high estrogen levels....anyone else out there??? I am thinking that I need to get the Mirena removed for my health!

4 years ago i was given simvastatin 20mg for high cholesterol when i was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes....last year (November) i stopped taking it after someone commented after hearing me complain about aches and pains and asked if i was taking statins....i checked and found i could relate to several reported side effects...over the last 10 months my aches and pains had slowly disappeared and my cholesterol was recorded at 4.9 in July ....however 4 weeks ago i suffered an optic nerve stroke and my doctor immediately put me back on simvastatin at 40mg despite my complaints is there an alternative i can take as i don't want to risk loosing any more off my vision and as the aches and pains are returning ...i will reluctantly take it but carefully monitor myself....

I have been reading all of your Simvastatin experiences with high interest and would like to share my adventures with all of you as well. My story began seven years ago when I was relatively healthy and enjoying life. My doctor prescribed Lipitor for my elevated cholesterol and two months later I found myself in the emergency room after having a severe bout with vertigo for the first time in my life. I have since spent the last seven years fighting this debilitating illness which continues to haunt me after having seen every top neurologist in my area and having taken every neurological test available. It would be as difficult to convince me that I was not somehow "poisoned" by Lipitor as it was for me to convince my doctor.

I was eventually prescribed Simvastatin 40MG and seemed to stabilize for a few years even though my dizziness problems persisted. Suddenly I began experiencing bouts of upset stomach and severe lower abdominal pain. I allowed my doctor to order basically every nasty test known to man in an effort to discover the cause of this new problem, but all have come up negative so far. Eventually I began to experience total exhaustion in the middle of my work day, not to mention the back, neck, and muscle pain that has been described so vividly in this forum. Basically, I have become a 53 year old man who feels much older, has absolutely no energy, and rarely has a day when I can honestly say I feel alive and well.

I am not a doctor and I can't honestly prove that Simvastatin is the cause of all of my problems. However, I do have common sense and after reading all of your thoughtful comments on the subject I would be foolish to at least not suspect that the drug may possibly be making me less healthy and not more healthy. Thank you all for opening my mind to this possibility and I certainly plan on discussing this with my doctor very soon, who may no longer by my doctor should he continue to insist that I take this nasty drug.

August 12, 2009. I have been on Zocor/Simvastatin (40mgs) off and on over 5 years. I do not have any muscle mass left. I am an avid walker and exercise as much as possible in addition to still working in a high pressure position at the age of 72 (thankful for the job). My entire body hurts constantly, hands, fingers, legs, knees, neck, back, head and other parts to numerous to mention. My sex life is the pits. My doctor tells me I have high cholesterol that must be controlled by medication. I had a quad bypass in 1999, a cardiac defibrillator installed in 2003 (Actually 3 of them, first one was defective and went off, got a severe infection on reinstall #2, and 3rd one still is in and working hopefully). I never had a heart attack, no high blood pressure, just clogged up. I take enough medication to kill an elephant. At 72 I am going to trash the Simvastatin because I know it is the basis for my muscle loss and severe pain constantly. Doctor also had me on Lipitor for a long time (5 years). Statins really suck!

I have been on Diovan for 11 years. Most of those years, I believe the dosage was 80 mg. About 2 years ago my doctor increased my dosage to 160 and again up to 320. I am also on medication for Diabetes and High Cholesterol. I believe my doctor was over medicating me because I started to experience many different side effects. As a result, I never ended up taking the full dosage of Diovan until October 2008. He also had me on two other medications for High Blood Pressure. Within two days, I felt like I was so fatigued I couldn't move. And my blood pressure wasn't all that low either. My wife and I looked at the side effects accompanying the medications and we concluded I should stop taking one of the medications. A few months later, my doctor added another med to the list. I didn't mind this one and the dosage was low.

In any case, between the 320 mg of Diovan and 80 mg of Atenol I was feeling constantly tired. Getting up in the morning, I felt like someone had given me a heavy tranquilizer. Now I have complained about that feeling for a few years now but never thought it was medicine related until the effects worsened. Then, once I was up, I used to feel good all day long but now I was feeling drugged all day long. Driving the car, I felt tired and questioned if I should even be driving a car. But I had to drive to work. At work, I had trouble concentrating, I was so tired.

My memory was gone. It was like I had a full blown case of Autheimers which came on in a period of about 3 months. I couldn't think straight or remember anything.

Finally, the effects got really scary. My wife and I both have a tendency to snore at times. Since we are getting older, we are developing allergies which makes us snore at night. For my wife, her problems are when she wakes up in the middle of the night and I am snoring so bad she can not fall back to sleep. For me, her snoring is a problem when I first go to bed. In the past, I would try shaking the bed hoping she would stir just enough to move and stop snoring. I really didn't want to wake her up fully to get her to stop. This routine of shaking the bed would go on for about 20 minutes or so. Well, on this one particular night, after about 2 minutes, I got this urge or desire to put both of my hands on her back push with Superman strength so she would fly out of the bed and on to the floor. This bothered me because I do not normally think this way or get this violent.

The next day, I was in a meeting at work. I am not sure what happened but I could tell my mind was going some where scary. I was convinced that I was becoming psychotic! That night, I layed in bed deciding that I was going to stop the medications since I believed they were causing these psychotic thoughts. But I also made up my mind, if the thoughts continued, I was going to have myself committed rather than wait until I hurt someone. Stopping the medication meant gradually cutting back on the dosage that I was taking. I cut the Atenol in half and only took half and it worked. The next day I felt better. But gradually the fatigue would come back, just not the psychotic thoughts. To make a long story short, I kept reducing my meds until I was only taking about 80 mg of the Diovan.

There has been concern that I am heading for Kidney failure so I was sent to a Urologist. He is concerned over my high blood pressure and decided to put me on Diovan HCT 320/45 mg. I figured he didn't grasp my concern about that being too much medication. Oh, the HCT I was on then taken off and now put on because I have been experiencing significant swelling of the ankles, feet and legs.

My doctor visit was June 2, 2009 and today is July17, 2009. I have been experiencing many moments of extreme dizziness. My wife and I were in a store when I bent over to pick something up and near fell. I stood up and a few minutes later, I was conscious of myself staggering from dizziness. Last weekend, we went to a store and I didn't feel right as we head inside. We got in and the store got very bright, colors seemed to lighten and it felt like I was passing out. It was like I was standing on a cliff waiting to fall off. The brightness did not go away but I also never passed out. Also, I had been having lots of headaches since going back to this heavy amount of Diovan. Currently, the last couple of days, I am having trouble focusing. It is as if my eyes are good but my head is somehow effecting my eyesight. Yesterday, I kept having these moments where it was like I was being hit in the head. I kept seeing stars. Oh, did I mention I am only 52 years old? Too young in my opinion to be chalking this up to old age.

My next appointment is August 24th. I am hoping I can make it to that appointment. I think this is too much medication and I am afraid if I don't get it cut back soon, it will kill me.

I am not against Diovan but I do think there is a point where one can be prescribed too high a dosage. And I am at that point. Oh and my blood pressure in my opinion isn't that great for all of this medication. I am concerned that something is causing the high blood pressure and rather than OD'ing me on medications, the doctors should be helping me determine why my blood pressure is so high. Also, I am now on this kick to see whether I can lower my blood pressure through certain foods and diet. Where is doctor Oz when you need him?

I started feeling much better very quickly after being off Lipitor now 7 months. However, the symptoms I had using the RX has cause significant problems. I fell so many times with my weak joints and muscles, that I had severe problems. I now need to have knee replacement surgery after falling so many times injuring my knees and weakened muscles to support myself. I am getting cortisone shots in that knee, as well as physical therapy. My MRI shows a torn meniscus, stretch PCL very thin, cartlidge loss and debris, still swollen with csyt after all these months. With no meds, and lack of being able to exercise, I now have hig-chol back. On and on it goes.... a real catch 22. Take care of yourself, watch out for symptoms. I ignored sx's thinking it was stress but after reading adverse reactions, it fit me to the T.
My original posting re: Lipitor is Forestseaski on Jan. 2, 2009

C.

severe GERD, respiratory problems, blurred vision,tingling sensation, abdominal pain, abdominal spasms, nerve and muscle damage,chest pain,headache,

I have been on Lipitor for almost 5 years. I started with a low dose of 10mg for 3 years but my cholesterol did not come down significantly enough so the dose was increased to 20mgs two years ago. I have noticed my hair thinning almost immediately after being put on Lipitor but when the dose was increased the hair started falling out where now it is noticeable, at the front along the hairline, on top and at temples. It has become another problem, at this point, like having high cholesterol. It seems to be happening now at an accelerated rate and my scalp is visible from my hairline 3 inches back. Styling is now impossible without coming the hair all the way forward from the crown, what's left of it. I had no idea hair loss was a symptom of Lipitor until I thought about when it started and the fact I take no other medications. There is no history of this type of hair loss in my family. The Lipitor brought my cholesterol level down to preferred levels but if I stay on it much longer I will be bald on the top and sides of my head. I'm worried it won't grow back.

I am a 48 year old woman, 5'1" (now 145 pounds). I had Mirena inserted almost exactly 5 years ago, and am scheduled to have it removed in 2 weeks. I gained 25 pounds over the course of the last three years; prior to that, my maximum weight for my whole (non pregnant) life was 123 (I was at 120 when Mirena was inserted, four years after the birth of my second child). I have always been very healthy, never abnormal blood tests except during my two pregnancies was tested as pre-gestational diabetic and had to watch my carbs.

I never put it together with Mirena until just recently, when I started doing research on hypothyroidism after a friend told me that my symptoms could be due to that problem. Depression, hair loss, acne on my back, and the terrible weight gain. I went to see my G.P. who referred me for blood work. I hoped to see evidence of low thyroid function (actual TSH value, 3.12 -- I was told this is normal on a range of .4 to 4.5). I also discovered that I now have high cholesterol (269 triglycerides, 251 total cholesterol, 46 HDL, and 151 LDL). My fasting (14 hours) glucose # is 99 (I was told this is normal on a range of 65-99 mg/dL), and my vitamin D, 25-OH is 21 (also was told this is still normal but low on a range of 20-100 ng/mL). I tried to give blood six months ago, and was turned down because of anemia, so I've been eating a lot of spinach, greens, and more red meat than I normally would, so I was interested to see if I am still anemic -- the red blood cell count is 3.8 (told it was normal on a range of 3.8-5.1 mill/uL). I mention these specific results because although I was told they were normal (except for cholesterol), when I physically went to the doctor's office and requested a copy of the results and did some research online I see that my thyroid IS actually low-functioning -- according to guidelines revised six years ago, anything over 3.0 is considered hypothyroid and should be treated. Plus, isn't a fasting glucose of 99 pretty high? Yet my doctor's only suggestion: diet and exercise. Good grief, I've been on a diet since I had my first child, 13 years ago. True, I don't exercise regularly (I'm a teacher and mom of 2; I never seem to have the me time.) I guess I have an excuse to get a gym membership now.

Also, for the last year I've had increasing pain in my shoulder (I couldn't lay on my side, for example, and lately I can't reach behind me or over my head). An x-ray turned up mild bone degeneration, but not enough to cause the pain I've been having. I was referred to an orthopedist, who today diagnosed a shoulder rotator cuff injury (I've had no injury; he says it is a common degenerative complaint in the over-40 crowd). He gave me a cortisone injection and I'll be on PT for a while to see if the pain goes away. If not, I'll have to have an MRI and surgery to correct the tear.

I'm posting all of this in case it might be useful to someone out there who might be going through the same thing. I had a thyroid test done about six years ago at my OB/GYN, and it was normal then (though I don't have the number; I'll get it in 2 weeks at the OB/GYN). It will be interesting to learn whether my thyroid level has gone up since Mirena. Also, although my research suggests that the effects of these synthetic hormones do not wear off for some time, possibly even years, I will finally feel like there may be hope if my symptoms improve over the next few months when Mirena is gone. If so, I will share it with you.

If you are reading this, perhaps you have a similar story. I wish I had been more aggressive about checking out the possible causes of my many symptoms, but I let them go for years because, I guess, I just figured I'm a healthy woman who is no longer young. (Oh, one more thing: for the first year or even two years that I had Mirena, I had incredibly heavy periods. The blood flow was similar to that during the day or two after the vaginal births of my daughters. Don't know if that's significant, but it took a couple of years for my periods to get fairly normal on Mirena.)

Except for having high cholesterol (310), I'm a 29 yr old healthy active female, very petite and weigh 98lbs. My mother has had a quadruple bypass and 4 stents at the age of 54, high cholesterol is just hereditary in my family. My doctor put me on 40 mg of zocor. The first week taking zocor I started feeling strange, a little soar here and there and very tired at times, also I have become very forgetful. It's been almost 2 months now and I have severe pain in my legs. First it was the right leg and now both legs, the pain starts at my lower back all the way down to my cav. I have a burning painful feeling sometimes numbing feeling, its driving me crazy!!!! I can't stand for too long cause I feel tons of pressure on my lower back pushing down my legs, It feels like my sciatic nerve. I went to my doctor and he said he is 95% sure that this is from the zocor medication, he told me to stop it right away. This is my first day without it, I know I need to do something to prevent what happen to my mother, I'm on a strict healthy diet, staying away from all fatty cholesterol filled foods, but there has to be a better way then taking statin drugs! If anyone has some ideas of what kind of alternative meds I can take, please help.

Less than 2 months after taking Lipitor I have been experiencing intense weakness of the legs, especially the hip area. A normally avid walker, last week really woke me up when I was unable to walk over 40 feet without having to stop from sheer leg exhaustion. I'd have to actually lean on my partner until I could manage to shuffle again- a shuffling gait is what I had to resort to just to make it back to the car.
This is bullshit because even though I've had some angina symptoms, right up until I went to the hospital I was able to hike; was still relatively strong.
So today I have spent hours researching side effects and have seen on this site alone many mentions of intense leg weakness and pain with Lipitor.
This, along with simultaneously educating myself on the truth about high cholesterol has convinced me to gradually cease taking this medication.

Instead I will replace with sufficient quantities of VitC, buckwheat combined with gingko, and of course I can never stop with the garlic because it is delicious.

I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid arthritis at the end of 2007 and have been on prednisone since then. I started on about 105mg a week and am currently trying to reduce it but it is really hard as the moment the dosage goes down I lose all mobility and cannot even get out of bed. I am only 23 years old and really feeling the disease to the extent that I cannot even cope with my life. The prednisone has really taken its toll on me and the side effects are crazy! I just want to go back to my old self as I am finding it sooo hard to get through a single day. My side effects include:

Insomnia, tooth sensitivity, depression, anxiety, mood swings, moon face (my face is so swollen that I cant stand looking in the mirror anymore, dizziness, temper, feelings of uselessness, nightmares, night sweats, water retention, and to top it all off the arthritis is getting worse and I am in constant pain. Is there anything anyone can suggest then please help me!

Hi and please feel free to email me. I was on Lipitor for quite a while (20mg)without any issues. Due to insurance etc I was switched to 40mg of simvastatin-(Zocor-generic)--with in a short time i noticed i was waking nearly every morning with a mouth full of junk requiring a deep throat clearing. Then a low level sore throat that persisted for more than two weeks. I went to my doctor who agreed that it may be related (though I think she doubted it) and had me stop. Now i have been off for 5 days and still my throat is sore (though not sore to swallow) and mouth generally feels "messed up".

If any of you have had any sore throat experiences etc please let me know. Also how long did your side effects last once you came off the drug?

I have been on Lipitor for five weeks. I can't believe how awful I feel. I ache all over. I my arms and elbows are sore; I have had pins and needles in my hands; charley horse like spasms in my calves (mostly at night); sharp knife like pains in my upper thighs; even my teeth hurt. I am a 46 year old female – I can’t believe this. I have made an appointment with my doctor as I have to get off this drug. I have experienced some blurred vision and hearing impairment too. If I hadn’t of found this website – I truly would have thought I was a bit crazy….
I have never had any symptoms like this before and never thought of myself as an old lady - but that is what I feel like. It is unbelievable.
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I am 20 year old female and have a bad family history of high cholesterol, iv been taking 40mg/day of lipitor for nearly 2 months.

I am a 44 yr old female. I have been on Zocor for 2 yrs. I have never had high cholesterol. I have a family history of heart disease and after my 44 yr old brother had a heart attack and the transplant, my doctor put me on Zocor as a precaution. I have had problems over the 2 yrs and have been to the doctor many times only to be dismissed as Oh, I need to lose weight, I need to get out of the house more, I need to exercise, It must be my depression....and on and on. I have never had a kidney or liver test in 2 years. I never knew I needed on and my doctor never tested me. I have over 30 symptoms/side effects of Zocor. I only looked into the side effects after my mother-in-law had muscle break down, an intestinal blockage and a ruptured bowel and almost died a few weeks ago. I couldn't believe what I found on this site. I immediately stopped the Zocor. I started to feel better right away but it was short lived. i felt great for 1 week and then it all crept back in on me for a week and then this last week I am back in bed with dibilitating fatigue and muscle weakness. I will now list my symptoms/side effects.
Shortness of breath; heart palpitations; droopy eye lid (left eye); eye lid twitch (right eye); optical migraines; numbness & tingling of my arms (from the elbows down) and my hands; My hands "fall asleep"; Itching all over; severe muscle weakness ( I have dropped things); muscle pain; joint pain (even the little ones in my toes); leg cramps; critically anemic (on 3 iron pills per day); ruptured ankle tendon (left ankle, currently being treated with a brace trying to avoid surgery); hot flashes/flushing; cold hands and feet; dizziness;, loss of balance; headaches; blurred vision; mental fog; confusion; loss of memory; loss of concentration; extreme and debilitating fatigue; insomnia; trouble staying asleep (wake every hour); huge weight gain; swelling of calves, ankles and feet; dark colored urine; gas; upset stomach; diarrhea; stomach pain; depression; anxiety; hair loss; bruises; mouth ulcers; back pain; tingling on top of head; heaviness in my thighs; EXHAUSTION! I feel like I am 100 yrs old. I have had nights that I thought I was dying and had panic attacks that I would not survive the night. I have 3 young children to take care of. I can not even put conditioner on my hair or shave my legs in the shower because I have to get out so quickly due to exhaustion. I have to lean on one elbow at the sink to brush my teeth. When I get out of the shower I can barely breath, I am wheezing, my heart is pounding and I feel like I will collapse so I have to get out and rush to my bed. I home school my 3 children and most days we do school in my bed. Everything is an effort. I can never plan anything because most days I am incapacitated. I may have a good day and can actually go out to dinner or Walmart once or twice a month and then I can't wait to get back home and get in bed because I am so worn out. I don't see how this drug can actually remain on the market. I am so angry and upset that my doctor never told me this could happen. When I asked about side effects I was told "oh no there aren't any really". My doctor never ran tests on me. I just can't believe this. I go tomorrow for blood work and I go to the doctor on Mon to discuss the results and all of my problems. I am so afraid that I have permanent damage to my muscles and possibly my heart. I went tot he doc months ago with shortness of breath and swelling and she did an EKG and said my heart was fine and I was not having congestive heart failure. I fear I was and still am! It is not normal to be out of breath just brushing your teeth and combing your hair. I hope we all get the answers we are looking for and that we all recover from this horrible drug. God bless you all!

I'm a 6'4 230 pound healthy male minus my high cholesterol. Doctor put me on 40mg of simvastatin and it has been horrible for 3 months dizziness,anxiety,weird muscle tremors, blurred vision its crazy that this stuff is legal I told my doctor to keep his meds I would rather have a heart attack then deal with that b.s everyday. I'm off of it now for 3 days and am feeling a lot better already its crazy. I'll just start eating better and take my chances thanks Simva evil.

My mother, who is in her early 70's, is diabetic and had high cholesterol. She had been taking Lipitor and the doctor increased her dosage. She was experiencing muscle pain for some time, especially when she woke in the morning. The muscle pain worsened and her muscles became very weak. She had been complaining to her doctor for some time. It took a chiropractor to suggest it was the Lipitor. Her doctor finally ordered blood work and her enzyme levels were at 9500. She was immediately hospitalized, tests run and IV's given to flush the Lipitor from her system. She was expected to slowly recover. After weeks, her levels dropped to 6500 then began to rise. Her doctor now says her muscle damage is permanent and plans to give her prednisone to stop the inflammation. This muscle damage is a terrible "side effect" for a drug that was supposed to help her. She can hardly get up or down from a sitting or lying position, can hardly walk and her lifestyle has been severely curtailed. She is also exhausted all the time.

Prescribed 40mg SIMVApoison
stomach doing somersaults....feels like a couple of pygmies inside me clubbing each other to death.
Tiredness/Lethargy chest pains Oh yes this is a wonderful drug!!
Take at your own risk
I certainly wont be taking anymore

I started simvastatin 20mg mid-October 2008. The middle of November I started getting stomach cramps, then in January I had a sinus infection that wouldn't leave and dizziness to the point of passing out. Also having all over body pains. Now I have diarrhea and foul smelling stool and stomach pains and gurgling,also headaches. I have been taking bonine pills which gets rid of the vertigo temporarily. I just found this site today and will not be taking those pills again EVER. I thought I was going crazy.
I am starting to take prevacid morning and night and zantac150 morning and night to solve my indigestion issues. I hope all the problems will go away soon. We should be suing the drug companies for giving us these drugs. I will just live with my high cholesterol, at least I'll be living normally!