I took Lipitor for about 2 years- 5 mg. Leg cramps-soreness thro...

Maxine, I'm similar. 54 yr male, strong swimmer, cyclist etc. Been off them since mid Dec 07. Spams & nightmares seem to have stopped. Emotions are stronger, but still tremor and get sore joints legs etc to the point of bed rest and pain killer - but I am far better off the 3 months ago. COQ10 is certainly helping a lot, check them out. I don't believe the medical brick wall I've run into. Good luck it has to come right for all of us.

HI, I just read your posting of your side effects of taking lipitor. I am just going thru the same thing. My doctor put me on lipitor last August. In December I had a liver function test which came back elevated, so he took me off of the lipitor and checked me again in one month, and then again in two months. Both times the liver test was still elevated. I have muscle weakness in my arms and legs and torso, when I had always been a very strong person. I had an ultrasound of my liver last week which came back normal, and now they want to do a biopsy. I don't think they will find anything. I'm sure this is from the lipitor because my doctor tried to put me on it a couple of years ago and the same thing happened, but the symptoms went away in a few months. I am sure hoping that things get back to normal very soon! Adele @motheradele@yahoo.com

I also have experienced joint pain and muscle weakness after just 9 months of Lipitor 10mg. I have since stopped and the weakness and pain have gotten better but still there. I hope all will return to normal soon.
Sandy shillskh@yahoo.com

I was amazed to see your side effects from Lipitor as I have the excat same
ones. Sore legs and buttocks. I would like to know how this was corrected.. I have not told my Dr. because I thought the lab reports would have shown any ill effects on my body. Evidently this is not true and I will now check with My Dr. and see what he has to say.
Ironic that this would catch my eye since my name is also Maxine.
Thanks

I took Zocor for 5 years during which everything tested well but I got increasing muscle pain and weakness of the sort described in this Thread.
I have been included in the Statin Study at the Univ. of California at San Jose, directed by Dr Beatrice Golomb, About a year ago her staff suggested I try the following products:
1) CoQ10 enzyme (I took 300 mg of it 2x a day for a few months and felt considerably better! Have reduced the CoQ10 to only 1x a day) This enzyme is destroyed by most statin medications and it is essential for muscle health.
2) wheat germ oil (I use Vioben, which is what the Study recommended as being of high quality). I added it 3 months after I began the CoQ10 and I got still better! I took a tsp with breakfast and another with supper, and now I have reduced it to 1x per day.
3) cod liver oil, which I added 3 months after that, and it has brought further improvement. I initially took 1 tsp in morning and 1 at supper, now I'm down to 1x per day.

After a year on this 3-step program, most of the symptoms have gone away, even a "buzzing" big toe (surely neuropathy of the nerve) in the leg that first gave me trouble and that therefore was "sick" the longest. The CoQ10 isn't cheap, but I hesitate to stop it!

PS from Patricia Ranum, who clicked the "send" button by mistake!

Perhaps, if your budget is tight, you can delay the use of the CoQ10, which is pretty pricy. (Still, it was the principal thing recommended to me by the Statin Study!). For example, you might start with the cod liver oil? And if it helps, add the wheat germ oil for a few months... and then as a last resort try to CoQ10. The Statin Study did suggest that I ask my physician before I began the CoQ10, which I did --- before I left him for someone more attuned to the situation.

Maxine: I took 10mg of Lipitor for approximately 6 months. On a routine liver exam, my CPK reading was extremely elevated. The doctor immediately took me off Lipitor at which time I had severe muscle aches even to the point I could not sleep at night. I went to a arthritis specialist and after review of my history, he concluded the muscle aches were the result of the Lipitor. I have not take any statin drugs since that time. It took me almost three years for the muscle ache to go away. I hope you have better luck than me but It takes a long time for a statin drug to leave your system. Just hang on because it will get better with time.
JMull

Have you tried CoQ10 supplements? They have helped me a lot - they dramatically reduced my leg shakiness and feelings of overall weakness. I also reduced the amount of Lipitor that I take daily, to 5mg/day. I think I'll reduce it more.