Kauffman symptoms and conditions

I've been on Simvastatin 40 mg for about eight months now. Cholesterol levels dropped significantly. But man have I been hating life! Joint pain mainly in the legs. Beginning to walk like an old man and I'm only 62. Also more pain in my back than ever before! I talked to my doctor, who suggested I get off them for 6 weeks. I did, and I feel like a million bucks. I've got to get back hold of him to find out what he recommends? Probably some other pill!!! Just today I was talking with my pharmacist, and I told him my symptoms. He said the muscle deterioration could actually lead to death. I don't think I'll ever go back on them. I'm going to try and watch the old diet and get more exercise. Hope this helped someone? Good Luck!!

Have been on simvastatin on and off for 15 months now. First of all 10mg came off for a while - cholesterol level up to 7.6 again so was put on 40mg. Very nauseous and came off the 40mg. Went back on to 10mg in Nov. and since then no nausea at all. At present I am getting terrible pain when laying down in my right leg from my hip into my buttock right down to my foot. It is similar to cramp in leg but it lasts sometimes for a couple of hours. Cramp usually disappears in a few minutes but it is the same sort of sensation. Also needle-like pains in my hand and foot. Above symptoms only since going onto Simvastatin. Would be interested in any others have these symptoms too. Trouble is damned if you take them and damned if you dont. Current research does show however that there is no benefit to women over 60 taking these wretched pills - everybody reading this should try and get or borrow the book by Dr Malcolm Kendrick entitled The Great Cholesterol Con (Dundee UK GP) written in 2008 who also is of this opinion. I am not advising not to take Simvastatin but please do research and read this book and reach your own decisions.

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. ******

My mother took Zocor and has the similar side effects. But has anyone
had shaking hands or been told they might have ALS (lou Geric's disease)?

Please contact me if this has happend to you. My mother thinks she has less than 3 years to live.

Contact me at ****** Please! Thank you.

My hair kept coming out by the handfuls. I've lost at least 8 inches since I started simvastatin! I mentioned this to the endocrinologist and he said he didn't know, but he prescribed it. I am furious, hair is a woman's crowning glory.

Just started today with 40 mg dose of Sortis (Swiss-branded Lipitor).
60-90 minutes later, I am very dizzy, sweating, funny taste in mouth.

I am done... no more. My cholesterol is normal, but recommended as complementary treatment with Glucophage, as I am very slightly diabetic.

I am still spaced out as I write this note. Called the MD to tell him that I the one dose is all that will enter my body.

I am a 51 year old male. November 2007 jaw pain sent me to the hospital where they found a 99% block in my right coronary artery, yep 4 stent's. Three month late the same this time 2 stent's and two weeks later 2 more. I now have 8 stent's. My DR. put me on several meds including Zocor. The zocor made me very tired and headaches. He change it to Lipitor 10mg. I have been on it for 7 months and a few day's ago I have notice pain in both knee's and hip. I once again find it hard to concentrate, feel sluggish and have headache's. I NEVER have headache's. Stopped taken the Lipitor, hope the pain goes away. It a shame that the medical field is so quick to put us ALL on drug's, how about herb's instead. I'm going to look into a natural way to lower my cholesterol.

I have been on lipitor about 4 yrs. I am a runner and keep tract of my times. I have been losing about 4% of my speed each year and have recently had a large amount of muscle fatigue. Today a ran a 940 pace and thought I was not going to make it home. Three years ago my average pace was 805. Could the 20mg dosage be causing this problem?

I wrote the message below on March 9th, 2008, but I think it might be useful if I repeat it.
_______________________________________________________________

It`s very disturbing to read all these stories. I really feel for you.

My experience comes from seeing what happened to people close to me.

They all took statins.

I started to look for information on statins, and other medications in 2004 and it continues to this day although two of my relatives are dead.

I have nothing to do with the health or pharmaceutical industry.

I saw the suffering and it made me very angry.

I am an ordinary lady in her sixties who live in Sweden.

The situation is almost the same here as in the U.S.

There is very little discussion about risks/benefits with this kind of medicatications - or others.

I think it`s a good idea to turn to the Internet and books to get other views about the cholesterol issue.

Is it really true that it`s the cholesterol that is causing heart disease?

Are you sure?

Please visit:
******

******

******

Also search articles etc on "Stopped our statins" and on the names of the different authors below.

Also read:

The Cholesterol Myths (Uffe Ravnskov)

The Great Cholesterol Con (Antony Colpo)

Book with the same title (Malcolm Kendrick)

Overdosed America (John Abramson)

The Truth about the Drug Companies (Marcia Agnell)

Malignant Medical Myths (Joel M. Kauffman)

There are many more.

Please look on the Internet for more information about each book.

It´s good to have some other information than the one given by doctors because most of them have been "educated" by the pharmaceutical companies themselves - and why should they talk about risks, side effects etc. They are interested in profits.

Finally - here are some side effects that I have seen:

pains in legs, hands, elbows, shoulders, knees, hips, cracking noise in ribs, muscle weakness, loss of hair, head ache, burning, tingling sensations in hands and feet, numbness, difficulties to swallow, loss of taste, ringing noise in ears, cramps, insomnia, irritation, depression, difficulty with short-term memory and then advancing into more serious problems.

These side effects - for 3 different people - all over 65 - did not come at once.

All of them had taken statins for years (Zocor)

It doesn´t matter which product -all statins have similar side effects.

Search for "Stopped our statins" on Google. It´s a very informative site and under "print articles" there are some articles that you can take along to your doctor for discussion.

I particularly like the one from Weston Price Foundation
and explains the different statin studies and side effects. .

My relatives also had some other medications which makes it even easier for doctors (and patients) to say that it`s just old age.

I am happy for those who get problems right away because then there maybe a chance for the patient and the doctor to see that there is a connection.

You really have to look out for yourself and the people around you!

Good Luck.

I wrote the message below on March 9th, 2008, but I think it might be useful if I repeat it.

Please educate yourself.

Are you really sure that it`s high cholesterol that is causing heart disease?

All statins have similar side effects!!
_________________________

It`s very disturbing to read all these stories. I really feel for you.

My experience comes from seeing what happened to people close to me.

They all took statins.

I started to look for information on statins, and other medications in 2004 and it continues to this day although two of my relatives are dead.

I have nothing to do with the health or pharmaceutical industry.

I saw the suffering and it made me very angry.

I am an ordinary lady in her sixties who live in Sweden.

The situation is almost the same here as in the U.S.

There is very little discussion about risks/benefits with this kind of medicatications - or others.

I think it`s a good idea to turn to the Internet and books to get other views about the cholesterol issue.

Is it really true that it`s the cholesterol that is causing heart disease?

Are you sure?

Please visit:

*******

******

*****

Also search articles etc on "Stopped our statins" and on the names of the different authors below.

Also read:

The Cholesterol Myths (Uffe Ravnskov)

The Great Cholesterol Con (Antony Colpo)

Book with the same title (Malcolm Kendrick)

Overdosed America (John Abramson)

The Truth about the Drug Companies (Marcia Agnell)

Malignant Medical Myths (Joel M. Kauffman)

There are many more.

Please look on the Internet for more information about each book.

It´s good to have some other information than the one given by doctors because most of them have been "educated" by the pharmaceutical companies themselves - and why should they talk about risks, side effects etc. They are interested in profits.

Finally - here are some side effects that I have seen:

pains in legs, hands, elbows, shoulders, knees, hips, cracking noise in ribs, muscle weakness, loss of hair, head ache, burning, tingling sensations in hands and feet, numbness, difficulties to swallow, loss of taste, ringing noise in ears, cramps, insomnia, irritation, depression, difficulty with short-term memory and then advancing into more serious problems.

These side effects - for 3 different people - all over 65 - did not come at once.

All of them had taken statins for years (Zocor)

It doesn´t matter which product -all statins have similar side effects.

Search for "Stopped our statins" on Google. It´s a very informative site and under "print articles" there are som articles that you can take along to your doctor for discussion.

I particularly like the one from Weston Price Foundation
and explains the different statin studies and side effects. .

My relatives also had some other medications which makes it even easier for doctors (and patients) to say that it`s just old age.

I am happy for those who get problems right away because then there maybe a chance for the patient and the doctor to see that there is a connection.

You really have to look out for yourself and the people around you!

Good Luck.

It`s very disturbing to read all these stories.

I really feel for you.

My experience comes from seeing what happened to people close to me. They all took statins.

I started to look for information on statins, and other medications, in 2004 and it continues to this day although two of my relatives are dead.

I have nothing to do with the health or pharmaceutical industry.

I saw the suffering and it made me very angry.

I am an ordinary lady in her sixties who live in Sweden.

The situation is almost the same here as in the U.S.

There is very little discussion about risks/benefits with this kind of medicatications - or others.

I think it`s a good idea to turn to the Internet and books to get other views about the cholesterol issue.

Is it really true that it`s the cholesterol that is causing heart disease?

Are you sure?

Please visit:

www.thincs.org, www.ravnskov.nu, www.spacedoc.net, www.statinalert.org

Also search for "stopped our statins" on Google. You will find some interesting articles under "print articles". I particularly like the one from The Weston Price Foundation. It deals with both side effects and the different statin studies.

Also search for information about the different authors below.

Here some interesting books:

The Cholesterol Myths (Uffe Ravnskov)

The Great Cholesterol Con (Antony Colpo)

Book with the same title (Malcolm Kendrick)

Overdosed America (John Abramson)

The Truth about the Drug Companies (Marcia Agnell)

Malignant Medical Myths (Joel M. Kauffman)

There are many more.

It´s good to have some other information than the one given by doctors because most of them have been "educated" by the pharmaceutical companies themselves - and why should they talk about risks, side effects etc. They are interested in profits.

Finally - here are some side effects that I have seen:

pains in legs, hands, elbows, shoulders, knees, hips, cracking noise in ribs, muscle weakness, loss of hair, head ache, burning, tingling sensations in hands and feet, numbness, difficulties to swallow, loss of taste, ringing noise in ears, cramps, insomnia, irritation, depression, difficulty with short-term memory and then advancing into more serious problems.

These side effects - for 3 different people - all over 65 - did not come at once.

All of them had taken statins for years (Zocor)

It doesn´t matter which product -all statins have similar side effects.

My relatives also had some other medications which made it even easier for doctors (and patients) to say that it was just old age.

I am happy for those who get problems right away because then there maybe a chance for the patient and the doctor to see that there is a connection.

You really have to look out for yourself and the people around you!

Good Luck.

I wrote the message below on March 9th, 2008, but I think it might be useful if I repeat it.
_________________________

It`s very disturbing to read all these stories. I really feel for you.

My experience comes from seeing what happened to people close to me.

They all took statins.

I started to look for information on statins, and other medications in 2004 and it continues to this day although two of my relatives are dead.

I have nothing to do with the health or pharmaceutical industry.

I saw the suffering and it made me very angry.

I am an ordinary lady in her sixties who live in Sweden.

The situation is almost the same here as in the U.S.

There is very little discussion about risks/benefits with this kind of medicatications - or others.

I think it`s a good idea to turn to the Internet and books to get other views about the cholesterol issue.

Is it really true that it`s the cholesterol that is causing heart disease?

Are you sure?

Please visit:

www.thincs.org,

www.ravnskov.nu,

www.spacedoc.net, www.statinalert.org

Also search articles etc on "Stopped our statins" and on the names of the different authors below.

Also read:

The Cholesterol Myths (Uffe Ravnskov)

The Great Cholesterol Con (Antony Colpo)

Book with the same title (Malcolm Kendrick)

Overdosed America (John Abramson)

The Truth about the Drug Companies (Marcia Agnell)

Malignant Medical Myths (Joel M. Kauffman)

There are many more.

Please look on the Inernet for more information about each book.

It´s good to have some other information than the one given by doctors because most of them have been "educated" by the pharmaceutical companies themselves - and why should they talk about risks, side effects etc. They are interested in profits.

Finally - here are some side effects that I have seen:

pains in legs, hands, elbows, shoulders, knees, hips, cracking noise in ribs, muscle weakness, loss of hair, head ache, burning, tingling sensations in hands and feet, numbness, difficulties to swallow, loss of taste, ringing noise in ears, cramps, insomnia, irritation, depression, difficulty with short-term memory and then advancing into more serious problems.

These side effects - for 3 different people - all over 65 - did not come at once.

All of them had taken statins for years (Zocor)

It doesn´t matter which product -all statins have similar side effects.

Search for "Stopped our statins" on Google. It´s a very informative site and under "print articles" there are som articles that you can take along to your doctor for discussion.

I particularly like the one from Weston Price Foundation
and explains the different statin studies and side effects. .

My relatives also had some other medications which makes it even easier for doctors (and patients) to say that it`s just old age.

I am happy for those who get problems right away because then there maybe a chance for the patient and the doctor to see that there is a connection.

You really have to look out for yourself and the people around you!

Good Luck.

RE: Neurontin and "anger problem".

The only FDA-approved use for Neurontin is for epileptic seizures, as the major effect is for involuntary muscle spasms. Describing something as an anger-problem is too vague to give a specific answer. Do you hurt people or yourself? Do you break things or do actions over which you have no control? Do you have insomnia that makes the anger-problem worse?

I have read of very bad side-effects from trying to get off of Paxil, and it's possible that the Neurontin is just an effort to try to deal with being on Paxil too long -- which sometimes happens, and the effectiveness of the drug goes down, something like heroin or cocaine.

Who told you the Neurontin was for an anger-problem, and do you have a choice of who you see or what you take? If it was me I would get off of both these drugs, and find out more about their physical effects on personal biology. Jan S. Kauffman, Neurontin userid, Master's degree in ounselling, alcohol and drug-abuse rehab professional.

To the mother of the child for whom Neurontin acts like speed:

Neurontin takes away irritability (or nerve-firing threshold) of the involuntary muscular system, and it sounds like the physical phenomenae is just another manifestation of the seizures for which she had the drug prescribed.

Poor kid, those side-effects sound TERRIBLE, and as her mother I would immediately talk to her doctor about change of dosage, or something else -- anything else -- the effect N has on her shows it's either not the right thing for her problem, not enough dosage, or another not-yet-understood indication of inappropriate treatment. The fact that she has headaches indicates it's not just her Mom's unwillingness to deal with a hyperactive kid. Having-headaches means it's poisoning her system. Please act as her advocate and protector in this matter.

And it's NOT the last-ditch treatment for seizures: ask her medical team about surgeries. If they won't do that, then either find new doctors who will give you access to everything possible that modern medicine can provide to help seizures, or explain the trade-offs of living with medicinal side-effects and the risks of surgery.

Jan S. Kauffman, Neurontin userid, parent and grandparent, Masters in Counselling, certificate in elementary education, survivor of decades of fighting the American medical system

Reading all these posts, I have to add my bit. The side effects of Neurontin are very similar to any sedating drug. Memory, problem solving, dry mouth, and some weight gain are to be expected. Neurontin is prescribed for seizure and pain that is connected to the nervous system, such as phantom limb pain and MS.
All patients should have their blood terted every 6 months if they are taking a seizure med or any tylonel daily. All meds have side effects, you have to decide if it is helping your medical condition more than another drug could, if you are better off with it or without it.
I have been taking 800 mg Neurontin for several years. I used to take 1200, but was feeling overly tired and lethargic and we (dr and myself) discussed it, and changed the dose. I am better off taking it, my seizures are under control with it, and it has less side effects than other seizure meds. And with my seizures under control, my migraine have been kept under control. (A lucky side effect for me!)My dr explained many persons with epilepsy do suffer migraines.
As far as Jan S. Kauffman wondering about taking it for anger control, certain types of epilepsy can and do cause anger outbursts, and that is most likely why this person is taking this.
Good luck to everyone taking the Neurontin, it has been great for me.

PS: Question for "Guest" ref testing: What are we having blood tested FOR every six months "if taking seizure medicine or tylenol"? Personally I stay away frpm Tylenol because it seems to ruins the kidneys? (I want to know what to tell my doctor she is looking for --) Jan S. Kauffman