Ranger63

I went on lipitor and a week into the meds I felt like I'd hit the wall cycling.(Litterly as well as figuratively)
Now entering month 3 the condition hasn't lessened. Joint pain, muscle weakness,extreem fatigue.
The docs suggested CoQ10 supplement but-even with a double daily dosage- cycling with lipitor is a losing battle.
Was wondering if this is a long term (ie: does the body adjust)situation.
It's taken me years to get back to the cycling form I enjoyed in my 30s and I'm simply not willing to wind up at the back of the pack all over again.

Don in Austin

Statins are a liver poison. By the time you find out your body does NOT adjust to the statins you will have done permanent damage. Google Dr. Mercola for a different take on cholesterol and all the hype surrounding it.

ironwood

Muscle weakness is a known side effect of statins in some people, it should say so on the instructions.

Berg417448

That's the last guy I'd take medical advice from. There is a reason he appears on the Quackwatch website.

Sirrus Rider

You might want to get a thyroid panel done. High cholesterol often goes hand in glove with hypothyroidism and diabetes. HypoT often expresses itself as flu-like symptoms along with hairloss, hair brittleness, wieght gain and all round puffyness.

Giacomo 1 

I'm glad I stumbled on to this thread.

I've been taking Lipitor for just over a year, and have just recently, the last month or two, been feeling very fatigued. I'm a 52 year old construction worker, and I have been dreading work because my back, my hips, and sometimes my knees are very sore, weak and tired. It makes for a very tough day on the job, not to mention cycling has become a real chore to. Even household things have become annoyingly tough to do without being fatigued. My tinnitus (ringing of the ears) has gotten extremly bad over the past year to, which is another side effect. I thought all of this was old age catching up with me, but looking at the side effects, and how quickly it has all come on, it seems Lipitor could very well be the culprit.

I really fought my doctor on this for a long time, but finally caved in when everyone told me it was OK, but now I'm pretty upset looking sat what this stuff could be doing to me. I think I'm going to get off of this stuff. I'm going to my doctor on Monday.

Don in Austin

The sooner you get off it the better. Cholesterol readings are somewhat an indicator of cardiovascular health, but it doesn't follow that suppressing cholesterol by taking a liver poison is good for you. Look into who funds the American
Heart Association, ask your doctor who provided his last continuing education session -- there's huge money in statins. Now they want to start giving them to children! The attempt to control obesity, diabetes and heart disease through reduction in animal fat consumption and suppressing LDL cholesterol has been an abject failure. So what's the answer from the mainstream medical profession? Make the standards re' cholesterol even stricter! Money talks.

Ironically the heavily hyped cholesterol reducing medication Zetia has a disclaimer that is has not been found to reduce heart disease! Lowers cholesterol, doesn't reduce heart disease -- look it up.

Don in Austin

hueyhoolihan

a few years ago i had quadruple bypass surgery. then a small stroke. now i'm on max lipitor for cholesterol, and hydrochlorothiazide, amlopodine, lisinopril and propanolol for my hypertension. all of this makes me feel like a zombie from time to time, but i've learned to live with it... i have little trouble with people passing me on my daily 20-30 mile rides... i just mark my zombiness up to old age.

ironwood

I do not have high chloresterol, but a few years ago I was asked if I wanted to participate in a study on the effects of a statin on people with good chloresterol readings and a slightly higher C reactive protien level. Before I answered, I read up on statins, and decided no way. To be a guinea pig for Big Pharma was out of the question. At the time there were doctors who thought more people should be on statins; maybe there still are.

I remember that Lewis Thomas a few years ago wrote that up until about 1900, medical tratment was more likely to hurt you, or make you worse, than it was to cure you. Even nowadays Dr. Jerome Groopman estimates that there is still a 30 percent chance that medical treatment can cause more harm than good.

Even though I have low LDL and good HDL, I realize that I'm not immune since a large number of heart attacks and strokes happen to people with no obvious risk factors.

Giacomo 1 

Thats the part I don't really understand - what do they mean by "risk factors"?

I have low blood pressure, an excellent EKG, good lung capacity and no heart disease in my family. Yes, I have high cholesterol, which Lipitor did bring down to the doctors magic numbers, but thats it. So, because of that, am I "at risk" for a heart attack?

Closed Office

Lipitor had so much of an impact on me that I stopped taking it and went to the doc again for the next best alternative. He gave me Chrestor (I think, it's been a few years). That was much better for side effects.

But since then have switched to a vegetarian diet, and my numbers came down enough that I was on the approved side of the borderline.

rogerstg

My cholesterol was considered a bit high, but after the doc considered my risk factors (much like yours) and did some calculating, he said I have about a 95 percent probability of not having a heart attack in the next 10 years (I'm 52). Thus, he concluded that I did not need Lipitor.

I was glad that my doc considered all the factors before sentencing me to, I mean prescribing, Lipitor.

Giacomo 1 

Yeah, I wish my doctor had done that. He was to quick to presribe this stuff to me and now I'm sorry. I should have stuck to my guns and refused it, but in the end I caved because everyone said it was OK and they got me so worked-up over having a heart attack.

Live and learn....

apclassic9

There are a LOT of risks associated with statin drugs; if you have negative reactions to them, as described in these articles:

http://www.reducecholesteroldiet.com/statins-side-effects-risks-versus-success%E2%80%8B/

https://healthread.net/statindrugs.htm

you might want to just change your diet so your body can reduce cholesterol levels naturally. Since triglyceride levels and cholesterol levels seem to hand in hand, check this out: https://www.reducetriglycerides.com/t...ering_diet.htm (oh, just ignore whatever supplement they're selling).

My husband has had great success reducing both cholesterol & triglyceride levels by following the guidelines in that diet.... he couldn't handle the statin side effects.

shelbyfv

I take a different statin, generic Zocor. It has lowered my cholesterol and I've noticed no side effects. Regular blood tests have shown no liver damage. That said, my triglycerides were elevated last checkup. Dr said try fish oil, don't know yet if it works. She made it clear that levels normally go up with age (I'm 62) and aren't necessarily going to increase one's risk of heart trouble. I ride 40-60 miles several times a week, plus several centuries a year. I like to think that keeps the arteries open

PomPilot

Another statin reaction case here. In my case it was Simvastatin. Within two weeks, I was feeling a touch weaker than normal. Think the weariness one has with the flu. Having read the information sheet I was given with the prescription, and looking up on the web, I called my physician, who told me to stop taking the drug. I was then placed on Red Yeast Rice, with a follow up in six weeks. There was some improvement in the total cholesterol, so an increase in Niacin (using over the counter supplements) was recommended. A year further on, things are progressing less dramatically than with prescription medication, but in the right direction, and without all the side effects.

christ0ph

Have you tried Cholestyramine or welchol instead?

Cholesyramine is great because it also pulls all kinds of toxins out of your body, so its really good for some kinds of toxic situations. Its seems to help a lot of people who are getting sick from mold.

Also, you might want to try taking OQ10 with some fatty food (chicken soup is the best) it dramatically increases absorbtion.

Also a lot of polyphenols are good for the arteries.. things like resveratrol and quercetin. But you definitely should ask your doctor because statins are pretty complicated and often they might interact with other things.

Ask your doctor!

BlazingPedals

Eight years ago, the doc told me I was going to die unless I went on something. He put me on Lipitor and it worked, with only some muscle soreness, for about 6 months. Then cycling season started up again. The side effects started with tingly fingers at night, and some more muscle soreness. Before long both arms were going 'to sleep' and I'd wake up 6-8 times per night unable to move them. I'd be so sore after even an easy ride that I could barely walk for 4 days, and as the summer wore on I kept getting weaker, not stronger, as I biked more. My skin went from normal to extremely dry, and my brain started feeling 'fuzzy.' Finally, I was complaining about all that to the doc as he was reading my results, and his first question, as if he hadn't heard a word I'd said, was "what do you think about upping your dose?" At that point I told him I'd rather die next week than continue taking it at all. I let him experiment on me a few times after that, but the best I seem to get out of any non-statin is about 10 points of reduction. Niacin: no reduction, but hot flashes from He11 that never decreased. Tricor: about 10-12 points, but muscle soreness. Cinnamon: not enough results to be sure it did anything.

More recently, I've started seeing a specialist. Crestor lasted about 4 weeks before I started getting the same old symptoms. Plus I got a huge otherwise-unexplained sore on the bottom of one foot that's still not healed a month later. Now he's trying me on Zetia. That may be his last chance. At this point they're treating my numbers; my only complaints are about what the drugs have done to me.

apclassic9

Blazing, I would suggest you check out the web sites I posted above - my husabnd had cholesterol levels over 475, and triglycerides off the chart - after a year on the diet, both levels are in acceptable ranges - at no risk to his liver, either!

christ0ph

What did the biopsy of that sore indicate?

Are he and you 100% sure you don't have cancer?

Ranger63

Unsure if the last post ever will arrive but..
The cholesterol thing is heriditary. My one sister has been a vegetarian for years and still has high cholesterol.
Over the weekend(sence posting) I simply had to make some choices.
I'm going to give it a go altering my diet even further than I have already.
Going to do all I can to stay off prepared foods (with the high fat contents and salt levels)
Already on the CoQ10 (twice daily)
But...
The lipitor and statin drugs had to go.
I love to cycle
I love to snowshoe (and that encompases backcountry and ridge running)
I simply refuse to stop because of the pain and joint swelling these meds cause.
Thanks for the input gang 8>)
Rich

chandltp

After watching Fat Head, I'd never take cholesterol drugs. Based on some of the research I've read, cholesterol is in indicator, and not a contributing factor. Cholesterol lowering drugs have a ton of side affects with no compelling evidence they do anything but lower cholesterol.

I've done a bit of research since watching, and I've come to believe that high carbohydrate, low fat diets are causing many of our health issues. As an anecdote, my co-worker went on a high fat, low carbohydrate diet and lowered his cholesterol levels in 6 weeks. His doctor was alarmed by his initial triglycerides (which I've found out in most tests is a calculated and not a measured value) and amazed at the change in his blood chemistry.

chandltp

Just remember, your doctor is your medical adviser. You don't have to do everything he/she tells you. You can fire your doctor and get a new one.

Giacomo 1 

Exactly what my wife told me!

I just got back from the doctors. I told him I went off the Lipitor for 5 days because of the pain I was feeling and that I feel great now, almost 100%. Well, he sounded totally unconvinced that my pain was being caused by Lipitor. He said he has only taken 2 patients off Lipitor in the last year, and he said there symptons were mild. He believes in statins, there is no doubt about it when you hear him talk. We went over the risk factors, and to me, I seem to be a low risk. - non-smoker, great BP, great EKG, great stress test, arteries clean, no heart disease in family, yada, yada, yet he still thinks because I am male with high cholesteral, I'm at risk. Well, yeah, but how high a risk is my question! No definitive answer.

So he wants me to stay off of any statin for 3-4 weeks, then he presribed Zocor in the lowest dose. I knew he would prescribe something, so I am going to weigh all the factors and see. It could be time for another doctor...

Don in Austin

Ask your doctor what his continuing education for the last five years has consisted of. Chance are excellent it was 3 day vacations hosted by pharma companies pushing drugs.

Don in Austin