Atorvastatin Issues
Posted , 5 users are following.
I've been reading some of the posts on here and can totally relate to what some people are saying.
?I had a cerebral angiogram at the beginning of September last year and this caused a minor stroke. I was put on Clopidogrel (blood thinner) and Atorvastatin 80mg even though my cholesterol was 3.3 (which is fair).
?Since September my memory has gone and I've been in a complete brain fog and not being able to remember simple things has been quite distressing. My muscles and joints (particularly the ones that I have diagnosed arthritis in) have become so painful I can barely walk from one room to another. These are the most debilitating problems along with breathlessness, increased appetite, dry mouth, headaches and a change in bowel movements (sorry if that is too much information but its relevant).
I spoke to my doctor about these issues and asked if I could have a reduced dose of the Atorvastatin, but was told I need to be on it to keep my cholesterol low to prevent another stroke, but my argument is that maybe a lower dose (or not at all) might be more beneficial to my daily health as I was slowly becoming an emotional zombie.
?So, I have taken myself off them completely. This might be the wrong decision, BUT, my headaches have gone, my brain fog has gone, my muscles still ache, but I feel I can use them again. My joints still hurt, but on a pain threshold level, I would say it is now 5 out of 10 instead of 8 out of 10, so they are improving. My bowel movements are also back to normal. My mouth is not so dry anymore and my normal appetite is returning. I am starting to feel normal again.
?Statins may work for some, but not for others. I, along with others on here, are obviously not suited to Atorvastatin, but may be OK with another type or form of cholesterol lowering drug, whether it is chemical or natural.
?I may be making a big mistake taking myself off the Atorvastatin, but my day to day health has improved in just 5 days since stopping them and I no longer feel like I was slowly being poisoned.
2 likes, 10 replies
BedrockFred jan19230
Posted
I informed him I had not taken any for three months and my cholesterol had reduced to an acceptable level he still wanted me to take then but I refused. I think the medical profession are far to keen to get patients on statins they should try diet and exercise first. Statins may be good for some but for some they are certainly not. A 10 year projection I had 20% chance of a heart attack when I was first put on Atorvastatin well to me that says I have an 80% chance of not having one
TrishaT jan19230
Posted
So much of what you say is very familiar Jan19230, especially the brain fog and memory loss, I felt like a zombie, couldn't think, couldn't speak properly, severe shaking spells and thought life as I knew it was over and done with. Luckily my sister fathomed out what it could be and I stopped the Atoravastatin, within 24 hours the brain fog had almost lifted and everything else eventually returned to normal. The GP tried to get me to take another brand of statins but I would never take one again no matter what my cholesterol was. Like all drugs, some people they suit and some they don't but even the people who can take them with no effects have no idea what they might be doing to their bodies. Very dangerous things.
Hot_Roder jan19230
Posted
You made a good decision to stop taking your statin no matter which brand it is. In the event that you have not seen some of my post on this subject, I would like to let you know that I am a medical biochemist specializing in lipidosis. I was also a co developer of the first commercially available test for HDL. Sharing your side effects helped me with your diagnosis. Regarding statins side effects, you obviously had several of them. Statins have 5 major side effects and they are type 2 diabetes, cognitive disorders, muscular skeletal pain, cancer and early onset of cataracts. Years ago I also took statins before I quit and had a lot of the same side effects that you had. I will give you two references which will make you feel vindicated about your decision. Google the following TV medical documentary expose on statins done in Australia. "catalyst heart of the matter youtube part 1" which is immediately followed by part 2. It is moderated by world renowned cardiologist and exposes the junk science that started this mess in the 1950's. The ABC affiliate in Australia was threatened by the pharmaceutical industry after the expose and subsequently moved it to youtube so that the public and the medical community could view it. It's awesome! For your next and more frightening incident google "Baycol linked deaths" by a German manufactured statin, which I took myself for a week and thought I was having a heart attack!!. Another bit of evidence which is sad in some ways is a recently completed 4 yr study done by Baylor St Luke's Hospital in Houston Texas and in conjunction with other medical institutions. It was what is described as a randomized controlled trial which showed data to date including their own. Which suggested that statin therapy, exercise and a strict diet had no effect on the progress of established plaque formation. FYI, 80% of diabetics develop[e CAD and about 30% of high blood pressure patients (as myself). You can't win an argument with a doctor on this subject so just trash the Rx like I do. My knowledge of the subject in my frequent conversations with most drs leaves them speechless. I have learned that the facts are always annoying to someone's opinion. I can feel Galileo's pain. Good Luck.
jan19230 Hot_Roder
Posted
That is a very interesting reply Hot Roder. It is a scary thought that by continuing to take statins that it could lead to cancer and Type II diabetes and it seems to me that in order to reduce something that occurs naturally within our bodies, our bodies are subjected to other debilitating diseases. The breathing difficulties I am having were, after a spirometry test diagnosed as COPD - this wouldn't surprise me as I was a smoker for 43 years but am now a non smoker (2, nearly 3 years). However my severe breathing difficulties came after I started the statins. I do feel that my result from the spirometry would be skewed because of the statins effect. I am also being monitored for diabetes and recent blood tests show a result of 5.6, pre statin was 2.8. A recent trip to my doctor saw me recommended to our mental health team for CBT for low mood and a score of 8 on the depression test which is apparently abnormal. However, since stopping the statins, my mood has improved greatly because I can think more clearly. After my minor stroke which was occipital, I had an eye test that indicated I was forming cataracts - I am unsure whether this is statin related or the fact that I am heading towards 62 and its one of those things that comes with age. You already know about my muscular skeletal and joint problems, but they are improving day by day after only a few days off the statins.
I find it shocking that studies are sometimes economical with the truth and results scare people into thinking the worse, when in fact there is nothing to worry about, but drug companies are making huge amounts of money out of peddling their drugs to people who don't need them and charging health authorities absurd amounts of money for them but handouts to those who prescribe them.
Everyone is different in their chemical make up and whilst some drugs suit some it won't suit others. I felt like I was being poisoned only to be told that I would have to take yet another drug to sort out the COPD, no doubt another if future diabetes tests showed I had Type II.
I don't know what it is like in other countries but in the UK, it seems, they have a campaign on certain issues at certain times. One year it might be cholesterol, this year its dementia (although I do believe that this is an awareness campaign, but it makes you wonder why so many people are being diagnosed and question what drugs they are taking. We have been through diabetes and more people being diagnosed with bi-polar, high blood pressure, and other issues, but are these diagnoses correct. Reducing salt in your diet was another campaign We currently have a sugar tax just put in place in an attempt to reduce obesity by charging people more money for a smaller product.
The only people who truly benefit are the drugs companies.
All my problems came about because of the cerebral angiogram I had to check the viability of the coils I have in my head after a sub arachnoid brain haemorrhage in 2001. I was warned there was a 1 in 10 chance of a stroke, and later that evening, I had one, a minor one and was prescribed the two drugs to prevent further strokes. However, both leaflets that come with the meds state they are not suitable for people who have had a bleed on the brain, but when I questioned this I was told that I was on the right medication for my current condition. Not only do I not understand their thinking on this, but I do not understand their thinking on prescribing such a high daily dose (80mg) of statins to someone who has suffered a brain injury and already has a reasonable cholesterol level and then ignoring my requests for a review when I am showing signs of several side effects but sending me for further tests only to find something else I need drugs for.
A few days ago I would not have been able to write this because talking about or writing about it would have me in floods of tears, but now I am feeling better, I am feeling bloody minded about the whole fiasco and am ready to fight back. As they say in the UK, there is life left in this old girl and I refuse to let a drug company screw that up so that they can make money.
jan19230
Posted
https://www.spectator.co.uk/2014/05/magic-bullet-or-massive-missfire/
An interesting article. It may be 4 years old, but I don't think much has changed since then although statins are still being pushed.
jan19230
Posted
Hot_Roder jan19230
Posted
Hi Jan, I just read your recent post and you brought up the type 2 diabetes issue. I didn't go into more depth on the details about the 5 side effects because viewers of this site might start falling asleep. I have 2 recent examples (last 18 months) of a close male friend of mine and my wife's female friend who both developed type 2 diabetes within 8 months of being put on a statin therapy. In both cases I advised them to stop taking their statin . They we concerned at first, but I related to them that I would never tell anyone to quit taking insulin or high blood pressure medication because that could be lethal. In both friends cases their diabetes disappeared on their next office visit. This is not to say that everyone might be cured due to some patients complicating factors, pancreatitis,etc. However, drs like to give people the feeling that cholesterol is like cyanide or strychnine!!! The human body does not product chemicals which will kill the host. Cholesterol is found in every cell in the human body as well as all mammals and 60% is located in the brain which explains some of the cognitive issues related to statin intake. The Framingham study on cholesterol which has been going on since 1948 shows that the people in the study who lived into their 90's had the highest cholesterol levels!?!? Patients with abnormally low chol died at very young ages (under 50) Go figure? The Pharmas will never bring that up or try to change the subject if you try to bring it up as I attempted to do some years ago. I will be visiting the UK to see family in 2 weeks and I will be able to use the term "BLOODY NONSENCE" when referring to GPs which is not understood in the USA. My mother was a ww 2 bride who went across the pond, but I still have family in the UK. I hope that I have helped you in some way. Keep your chin up.
jan19230 Hot_Roder
Posted
My husband is on a plethora of pills for high BP, heart arythmia, and more recently the doctor put him on statins too because he had a high cholesterol reading. He has noticed recently that he is suffering more back pain and breathing difficulties. I think though he is considering coming off them having seen how my health and mood have improved since I stopped them. I understand from reading various articles that cholesterol is produced naturally in the body and that some people will have higher cholesterol than others, but that doesn't mean that its a bad thing. Just looking back at my blood tests my serum total level was 3.3 and my HDL 1.1 - that was back in September. My last bloods tests, last month, just say my cholesterol levels are normal but gives no figures. I think after my experience I would not believe another doctor who would liken cholesterol to cyanide or strychnine, but I would liken statins to either of those after the way I have been feeling. I am not a huge fan of pills of any sort, but I do accept that I have to take the Clopidogrel to keep my blood from clotting where its not supposed to, and paracetomol for pain control (I still get headaches after my brain haemorrhage). I feel I will be having an interesting conversation with my doctor when I fail to renew my statin prescription next week - but I will stand firm and she WILL listen to me this time.
I hope you have a good trip over to the UK - where are you headed for - north, south, middle. Wherever it is, I hope you have a good time catching up with family and that weather is good for you.
Your comments have helped me enormously and I thank you for that. I now feel I am back to my normal self and can see a way forward including tackling any negative comments my doctor may make when I next see her.
Take care and thank you.
phil61459 jan19230
Posted
I recently had my meds doubled to 80 mg and I felt the same way, muscle fatigue mostly in my legs , strange pooping ,two weeks ago i stopped taking them , but what you said about feeling like I was slowly poisoning myself really hit a nerve . It's great know someone has the same feelings as I do . Thanks
jan19230 phil61459
Posted
It may take a little time for some of the side effects to rectify themselves. I still have some muscle pain, but my joints don't feel as bad now, my headaches gone, my brain fog lifted, my low mood lifted, toilet stuff is improving too. I am no longer waking in the night gasping for breath and my breathing is easier. Yesterday I joined a group on Facebook called Stopped Our Statins and there is some great information from others on there. Today I googled the company that supplies the drug I have been taking and they had a clinical report on it that makes interesting reading including the advice that if particular side effects are experienced to discontinue use. I am so glad I have taken myself off them now. It also recommended that when starting out on the drug you should only be on 10mg and that to be increased only if there is no improvement (which there won't be, because I don't truly believe the drug is beneficial in any way), but I was straight in on 80mg with no review in 7 months, so yes, felt like I was slowly being poisoned.
I hope you continue to improve phil61459 and can get back to normal soon.