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Pains in feet and legs could simvastatin be the cause

Posted , 6 users are following.

Janey1965
Janey1965

I have been bothered by horrible pains in my feet now for months at night especially when I have been on them all day ,  they are so painful that I have trouble walking and getting up the stairs  I could cry  does any one suffer from the same 😒

2 likes, 12 replies

12 Replies

  • alzheimer
    alzheimer Janey1965

    Posted

    Indeed Janey ...you are suffering from the side effects of the statins that you are on and I strongly advise that you stop them immediately and take Coenzyme Q10 capsules - in the hope that they help to undo the damage being done. It is called peripheral neuropathy and is reversable - IF you stop the statins.

    Several of my consultants have spoken about this serious side effect...so please if nothing else - talk to your doctor about it  -he may well not believe you - but do not be put off - and I'm sure that you will know an immediate difference if you stop the statins  now...try without them and see.

    All the best Janey.... I will be very interested to hear how you get on as I have several friends who have this dreadful debilitating and painful complaint - directly due to statins.

    • Janey1965
      Janey1965 alzheimer

      Posted

      Thanx for your advise been to see my go today and he has said to stop it for a month to see if there are any changes😊
  • loxie
    loxie Janey1965

    Posted

    In one word Janey, YES.  These types of pains are typical of the effects that statins have on muscles, which can cause long term damage.  They frequently cause something called myositis, which is an inflammation of the muscles, resulting in pain.  In rare cases they can also cause elevated levels of creatine kinase (CPK) which gives the same symptoms, including muscle weakness.  The level at which damage is caused and whether it is reversible or not does vary from person to person, so whilst I personally wouldn't go near statins ever again because of the very severe issues they caused to me, my best advice would be to seek guidance from your doctor very soon.  As with the other reply from Alzheimer, doctors are loathe to accept that statins cause these problems, but tests are readily available to determine if the statins are causing damage to your muscles so do not be intimidated into ignoring these symptoms.  The most damaging is Simvastatin, but Atorvastatin also causes these problems.  There may well be statins out there that dont but at present, theyre either too expensive or not available in the UK.  I have a hatred of these drugs, which I believe are toxic but I will be pragmatic enough to say that each case has to be looked at on its own merits, at the very minimum, urgently speak with your doctor and INSIST they listen.  good luck
    • Janey1965
      Janey1965 loxie

      Posted

      I have.been to my go today and he has advised me to stop taking for a month to see if there is an improvement I hope so as I can't cope with this pain and there is  no swelling to my feet so there doesn't appear to be any thing wrong but believe me the pain is here does 😒
  • usch
    usch Janey1965

    Posted

    Statins are the 'devil's drug.

    My side effects appeared gradually, hence I did n ot make the connection for quite a while.

  • jude65855
    jude65855 Janey1965

    Posted

    Janey, this could well be from the statins as one of the places I had a lot of pain was in my feet at night.  The only way you can check it out is to stop the statins for a couple of weeks and see if the pain goes away.  Then you have to make a decision about whether to take statins and be in pain or not take statins and try not to worry about your cholesterol levels.

    Have you tried diet to get yr cholesterol down?  I have but so far it hasn't worked.  I've increased my daily dose of psyllium husk powder to 3 tsps a day because apparently that works for some people but I haven't had my cholesterol tested so don't know if it's working or not.

    If you look back through this site you'll see the other non-statin things I tried, none of which worked, but they might work for you, good luck!

    • Janey1965
      Janey1965 jude65855

      Posted

      Thanx for the reply I am going to take my self off them for a while and see if this helps diet doesn't work my father has real high cholesterol and they say this is why I have and need to be on th forever I don't think so with pains like I am getting 👍
    • loxie
      loxie Janey1965

      Posted

      Hi Janey, I too have 'familial' high cholesterol, ie hereditary (my father's family all had heart disease) and was told that diet alone wouldn't help as I already have a very healthy vegetarian diet, am not overweight and don't have either high blood pressure or high blood sugar.   However, high cholesterol alone has not been proven to cause heart attack and stroke unless there are contributory factors.  Whilst my cholesterol was off the Richter scale (I had a reading of 9), the damage the statins were doing would have been permanent and on balance, I decided to find other ways to maintain my heart health rather than risk irreversible disability.  If you research online, there are hundreds of articles and blogs about maintaining good vascular and general heart health, from diet to supplements to lowering stress and so on.  My view is, if I'm generally healthy and get enough exercise, the high cholesterol on its own is a risk worth taking.  The one dietary thing that has the most effect on cholesterol is probably plant sterols but even they only reduce it by a minimal amount and for a very brief time. I realised I could spent a fortune on all the various supplements recommended and still not make much of a difference in the end.  Research good eating practice and stick with a balanced diet and you'll get anything you need from food that you could get from expensive pills and potions.  Good luck hon.xx
  • diane98246
    diane98246 Janey1965

    Posted

    That would be a definite yes Janey for myself.  That kind of pain you describe was not only in my feet but in my back, shoulders and neck.  These are the trouble spots on my body and I have bone damage with fancy names I cant remember.  However, after recently jettisoning the statins out of my life, the pain from said problems is practically nonexistant and what's left can be dealt with by stretching.  I wont tell you what to do except keep reading this thread and it will lead you to a sensible decision, like, for instance, experimenting with stopping the statin in order to see how your feet feel without it.  
  • PaWiSu
    PaWiSu Janey1965

    Posted

    Hi. I have been on several different statins to lower cholesterol and all gave me severe pain in my left hip (felt like it was coming out of the joint) and left shoulder.

    I agreed to try simvastatin again and ignored the advice to take last thing at night and, instead, took it with my evening meal. Result - no side effects. Cholesterol now 'normal'.

     

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