About eight years ago I felt heaviness in my chest along with som...

I stopped Lipitor "cold" turkey . . . . please stop taking this dangerous drug. Unfortunately, all drs. know is to push drugs that have many side effects. If necessary, there are many natural products and alternatives to control your cholesterol.

I would not suggest that you stop "cold turkey".

Taper it out.

If you google "Stopped our statins" you will find a suggestion that I think originally comes from Duane Gravelines site.

Google his name and you you will also find his webb-site and his own story.

By the way when you are visiting "Stopped our statins". There is an interesting article under "print articles" to the left. It`s from the Weston Price Foundation and contains lots of information aabout different statin studies and side effects.

I have never taken statins but has seen side effects in people close to me but it took many years - books and articles - before I realised that.

The pharmaceutical companies run the show - they have the money and the power. The best thing you can do for yourself - and the people around you - is to "educate" yourself

Here are som books:

The Great Cholesterol Con (Anthony Colpo)
The Cholesterol Myths (Uffe Ravnskov)
The truth about the drug companies (Marcia Angell)
Overdosed America (John Abramson)
Malignant Medical Myths (Joel F. Kauffman)

Please also read patient stories about the others statins.

All statins have similar side effects.

They can come at once - those patients are very lucky.

They can come gradually, over many years, and both doctors and patients fail to see the connection. Write it off as ageing or aother disease with more medications/treatmets as a consequence.

I think it`s always important to look for the cause to a new symptom and that means also looking at the medications that you are taking.

I have nothing to do with the health care business, just an ordinary lady who became very angry when I realised what statins - and also other medications - can do to you and how often this is neglected.

It is interesting that a person that never used statins and never had the side effects . . . .to suggest to "taper it out" for this dangerous drug. I suggest you stop taking it IMMEDIATELY until your side effects get worse.

I stopped lipitor immediately five months ago, This after suffering leg pain that came on suddenly and also other pain in the arms and neck area. I still get the pains occasionly after all this time. Your symtoms sound like statin clues to get off now! You have already been through alot. I am now on alternative products to keep the LDL from getting too high. I'm reading that too a low cholerstol is as dangerous as high.

my sons father-in-law has been taken flax seed. you need to take the golden color. you can read about it on the internet. I had a double by-pass last oct almost a year ago. also on all kinds of drugs. not helping LDL is 145 Im not happy so Im going to try the flax seed. cant hurt. try it and see.

pattifischer47519@yahoo.com

also try high quality fish oil. since i've been taking it, mu HDLs have gone to 104! my doctor said he didn't think they could go that high; he had never seen them so high in his career. he said with HDLs that high, my total chiolesterol was irrelevant