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help!

Posted , 5 users are following.

Guest
Guest

I started on Simvastatin 3 days ago & I am now in agony!! I cant sleep, cant move & painkillers don't help. My Cholesterol was 8 so I need some help & advice, but GPs are always too busy to sit & talk.

I don't think I'll be taking anymore, I just can't tolerate the pain!

Whats the alternative?

0 likes, 6 replies

6 Replies

  • jude65855
    jude65855 Guest

    Posted

    I tried to reply earlier but I think it vanished to wherever lost emails go .......

    Three days is very soon to get such severe side effects - I feel for you!   I'm trying Omacor (prescribed fish oil) but too soon for a test to see if it works for me.  Some people can get heir cholesterol levels down with exercise and changes in diet:  I tried but it wasn't successful enough.    

    If your GP won't listen to you, can you find one who will?   Some people (not me unfortunately) have side effects from only some statins and not others, so worth discussing trying another type if you don't want to go off them completely.

    Some people have told me the side effects go away after a while, but they never have for me.

    Good luck, and if you do find an alternative please post it on here and I will do the same

  • margaretx
    margaretx Guest

    Posted

    I was in the same position as you with pain in the tops of my legs,at times I had to crawl up the stairs so after two years of taking the tablets I decided to come of them.Im still getting mucsle tightness in my thighs but hoping that will go in time.

    i am now taking Plant Sterol tablets which I buy online, I take two in the morning and two at night .Will go and get checked in a few motnths time to see if colestrol has gone down.

    Good luck

     

  • loxie
    loxie Guest

    Posted

    Those are the very same side effects I experienced, both on Simvatatin and then when my doc changed me to Atorvastatin.  However, three days is very fast for the effects to start.  My cholesterol is familial and was at 9 so I felt I had no option but to take my docs advice and take them but after a couple of months the muscle problems and liver problems were so severe I had to stop.  There is no drug based alternative to statins (in various forms) but there are plenty of other ways to help bring your cholesterol down.  Plant sterols, oily fish, avocado, benecol, more physical activity (ie exercise), some people however have hereditary high cholesterol and a good diet alone is not always successful - I'm in that category and eat very healthily, get exercise and don't have contributory factors like high blood pressure or high blood sugar but my cholesterol unfortunately is still high.  I will not however take statins again as they caused several muscle damage and on balance I didn't want to harm myself by continuing to take them.  As your GP whether taking low dose aspirin (75mg) daily would help you also. 
    • margaretx
      margaretx loxie

      Posted

      My colestrol is familial too it was 8 but went down to 5 taking the same tablets as you. Had to weigh up weather I wanted to end up being disabled with so much pain and being depressed.I decided to take the plant sterol tablets and my doctor advised me to eat a handful of walnuts aday too.

      I still get mucsle pain in one of my thighs bit it's getting better as time goes on,I took someone's advice and take Q10 tablets to help the muscle pain too.

    • loxie
      loxie margaretx

      Posted

      I heard briefly about Q10 tablets but forgot to explore the option.  Now you've mentioned them too I'll look into their benefits. Thanks for the info about walnuts too, my doc didnt mention those and I love them so I'll try adding more of those to my diet also.  My GP just got frustrated with me that I refused to continue taking statins and wouldnt really offer any alternative advice.
    • margaretx
      margaretx loxie

      Posted

      I was really surprised with reaction of my doctor when I said that I'm not taking them I thought she would give me a hard time.

      there are some doctors that agree that there can be serious side effects from taking statins but there are also some who think it's all in the mind.

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