Zocor and heart

I'am 45 year old female and I have been on simvastatin 40mg for at least 6 months. Here in the past 3 weeks I have had very weak legs and arms,they felt like they were wet noodles. I also was getting these week spells where it felt like I couldn't lift my arms or legs cause they was so weak.I had pain in my ear and big bad headaches that wouldn't leave. My heart feels like it skips a beat and I get very bad anxiety attacks. I have been to the ER several times and they can not find anything wrong. I even got very dizzy. The ER doctor told me that the dizziness and headaches was from a inter ear disturbance,well I think the inter ear disturbance might have come from the simvastatin after running across this web site. I'm going off the simvastatin tomorrow! Oh yeah and forgot to mention the weight gain and the tiredness and how I feel like a couch zombie. I think I'll stick to my salmon oil.

I am a 54 year old healthy woman, and thought I was going nuts! I have been on Simvastatin for about 14 months and on a gradual overall decline...big black pms-like cloud over my head and unable to find anything to feel happy about (I have a GREAT life). Couldn't sleep, gained weight, heart racing (went on 24 hr monitor-nothing!), dizzy and feeling like I could pass out ON A REGULAR BASIS! Tingle down my left arm, heartburn constantly, stiffness in my neck, tingly hot feet at night, zero interest in sex, miserable. I had been taking myself off all the over the counter stuff and estrogen trying to figure out what was going on...then I started the online research on statins. My doctor told me there was no way that a statin could be the cause of my dizziness and problems. WRONG!!! I was having the same side effects as all of you and went off the simvastatin two weeks ago. Bottom line is that I already feel so much better, walked 2 miles with ENERGY today and am happy. Hoping that I will get back to my old self again. I will be taking the herbal approach to lower my cholesterol...never again this crap!

In my previous message I was wondering why the same medication has to have so many different names.

I haven´t had a reply to that, but I found some information on Wikipedia that migth be helpful when looking for more information.

Zocor (=Simvastatin) can have many different names as you can see below.

"Brand names: Zocor, Zocor Heart Pro, marketed by the pharmaceutical company Merck & Co. and Denan (Germany), Liponorm, Sinvacor, Sivastin (Italy), Lipovas (Japan), Lodales (France), Zocord (Austria and Sweden), Zimstat, Simvahexal (Australia), Lipex (Australia and New Zealand), Simvastatin-Teva, Simvacor, Simvaxon, Simovil (Israel), Simvotin (India) and other."

I am 33 years old and after a blood test about 6 months ago showed my cholesterol levels high my doctor prescribed me 40MG Zocor (actually generic Simvastatin). Since then I've started to forget things and just cognitively I'm slower and less capable. I also had more aches and pains and a weird creak in my knee showed up, but I really didn't key in on that stuff. I went back to my doctor and told him about the cognitive issues and he said "that shouldn't be a side effect of this drug".Well I am very glad I found this website because at least now I know I am not crazy. I stopped taking that garbage about 4 weeks ago and ever since that fog has been lifting.
I have also made a new commitment to myself to include more "heart healthy" foods into my diet and to completely eliminate all red meats as well. I realize there may be some validity to the studies done remarking that high cholesterol is an indication of something bad, but I am not convinced the medical community actually has a comprehensive understanding of cholesterol in the body. I will still go into the doctor to get my levels checked, but I will probably not go back to my old doctor. I'll probably find a doctor who is a little more open to other options. I hate to say it, but I have lost my confidence in my doctor. If I tried to pull something like that in my job as a computer network engineer my customers would simply say "it wasn't like this before you started". Jedi mind trick doesn't work buddy. My body wasn't like this before you gave me that stuff.

My doctor & I agreed I should go on Simvastatin 10mgm for a slightly high cholesterol approx March 2nd. My already tenuous sleep problems became more so immediately. Medication for sleep was ineffective.
After 3 weeks of Simvastatin I started dozing off & waking with sort of panic attacks-weird dreams & my heart fluttering.-several times during the night.
During the daytime when checking –occasionally my blood pressure would drop to below 100 systolic over 40 & my pulse dropped to 38-40/per min. The pulse was regular like a ventricular rhythm (when the atria of the heart is no longer the electrical pacer) This drop would persist for approximately a half hour & occur several times during the day. There were no other symptoms associated that I could discern.
I could find no side effects listed online or from the pharmacist like these for Simvastatin. Concerned, I stopped taking the Simvastatin 11 days ago. Three days ago I felt good, found no BP or Pulse problems & have had good sleep. Since this has continued I am feeling certain that I reacted in some way to the Simvastatin

I had my first MI at age 57 on Oct. 29th 2004. I was given Zocor 40 meg. and my problems started in the hospital. I had terrible leg aches and they even looked for clots. Finding nothing I was sent home after 5 days with two stents and told if I got tired just rest. I had to take two months off work. In January I returned back to work but the leg aches continued at night. In January I returned to the hospital with another episode and received three more stents. My cholesterol was at 110. The Dr. continued me with the Zocor 40 mg. twice a day now. I continued to have problems with clogging arteries and in the next four months I had another 4 stents. In the summer I walked a lot and still continued to have leg aches at night. After a year of complaining I was put on Vytorin and things really got worse. In six months I couldn’t walk right, kept falling, couldn’t sleep with the cramping, my joints all felt like they no longer supported my frame. I was put on Crestor, then Lipitor, then Zetia, and then I took matters in my own hands. I stopped the statin drugs. My cholesterol skyrocketed of course to 289. It was only 189 at the time of the first MI. I have slowly regained my ability to walk and joined Curves. This is about all I can do and am slowly getting better. I tell everyone I can about my horror story with statin drugs. I’ve been to an arthritis specialist, negative on all forms of arthritis causing this. I went to a gastric specialist and no stomach problems. I was sent to a neurologist who told my muscles were very weak and not to take statin drugs, but like all the Dr.’s I’ve been referred to none would touch the statin drug issue. My last referral was to an orthopedic surgeon because of my walking problems, and at first I was told that if my hips didn’t stop degenerating I would need them replaced to be able to walk. Last month after 9 months off statin drugs he retook x-rays and said my hips are looking fine. There is hope. I have been on a strict diet and exercise program and am ready to start stationary bicycling to try to rebuild muscle mass lost during the 2 years on different statin drugs. I also took C10 150 megs. after getting off statins to see if that would help and I don’t know, but I am told to keep doing what I’m doing. I hope the cholesterol will come down as I eat more oat bran or oatmeal. I hope my story helps some of you because I do believe I am getting well.

I cannot believe I am reading all of this. Almost every sympton I have had. I am only 50 (Ha!) but had a heart-by-pass 5 years ago. I was put on 20 mg of Zocor since. In the last year I have had dizziness, memory loss and of course the muscle aches I have had since taking the Zocor five years ago. I could put up with the muscle aches as I thought "well the Zocor is saving me in other areas". Not anymmore- I can't take the dizzines, lapse of memory and fatigue all day long- I have been to several Neurologists, Blood Samples, Brain MRI's etc-etc- all with the same results- "there is nothing wrong with you"! Well there is- and I believe it is the Zocor- no, I'm convinced. This is my first day off the Zocor- I'm staying off it- hope I get better.

I have read sveral testimonies on this drug zocor. I to have been considering that my simptoms are the same, I thought it ws just my age finally catching up, but now consider that it my all be the meds..! The thing that is most bothring me is the ringing in the ears and the heart pallpatations, this is scary sometimes when it happens of course the ringing never seems to stop.. but do not notice any lose of hearing.? I had my gall bladder removed about 2 yrs. now. But only have been on this medication for 4 months but seems that the pain i feel from the area where my gall bladder was is like i never removed it. I'm a 44 yr. old white male with a slight rise in my cholesterol according to my dr. ( I am also taking lisinopril.) seems with these to meds in my system i feel worse, but my dr. said its part of the program.. Is it??????

I am a 61 year old female. I have been on Zocor eight years. after a heart attackat age 53. At first it was 10 Mg, then when I changed Doctors,about 2 years ago, my Zocor changed to 20 Mg, then about a year ago she moved me up to 40 Mg. She does't know I am splitting the pill and taking half of 40 Mg each day. After reading all these other patients problems, I am going to stop for a while to see if I feel any better. I have just about every side effect that I have read about today.The most noticeable is severe fatigue, weakness, ears ringing, fuzzy headed, trouble sleeping,headahes,vivid dreams,mostly bad dreams and irritability. I also take celebrex, klonopin.doxipin and an aspirin a day. I am so glad I found this Web site. I feel sure that I have been taking Zocor toooo long. Bye Bye Zocor.