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Old 09-12-2014, 11:08 AM
 
Location: Colorado
277 posts, read 516,589 times
Reputation: 460

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Quote:
Originally Posted by 13levine View Post
I never dreamed such excruciating pain existed as when I was for no reason except it being a doctor favorite I was taken off Gemfibrozil and put on Simvastatin. I was on double doses of Oxycodone (I think it was called) just so I could get 3 hours sleep a night and ended up on a walker from being perfectly healthy. I accidentally found out about Simvastatin's reputation. Pain started to go away the day I got off it. If you have joint pain, back pain or pain from neck down your toes and you are on Simvastatin check it out. Conversely I know people that have been on it for years and are okay.
Just found this 'topic' and am curious - I have been on statins since 1996/97 - started with Lipitor 20mg (for about ten years) then Simvastatin 40mg for a short time then finally Pravastatin 40mg ...(have also been taking Lisinopril/HCTZ 20-25mg during the same period) ... always got muscle spasms - but my doctor didn't think it was important ... was diagnosed with spinal stenosis and degenerative disc disease back in the 1990's and osteoarthritis at about the same time ... those conditions didn't seem important enough for my doctor to treat them so here I am ... can barely walk ... the neuropathy in both feet (mainly the toes) is almost complete now ... at the time (in the 1990's) I believed that the doctor knew what he was doing but lately have realized that his 'treatments' have made my life hell .. can't find any doctor that will accept Medicare now so am out of luck trying to find one. (have been with this same doctor for over 30 years) .. the joint pain is unbearable at times - but I can't really take the pain meds the doctor prescribed (tramadol, vallium, vicodin) because they knock me out ... I think I've been on all the 'abc's' of pain meds thru the years and all had the same effect - pain wasn't reduced but I felt like I was in a fog ... had to work during those years (and drive 25 miles one way to get to work) so was always in pain ... now am too old to work (66) and nothing to look forward to. Wish I had been 'smarter' back then and read more on all the drugs I've taken ...
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Old 09-13-2014, 04:40 AM
 
Location: near bears but at least no snakes
26,634 posts, read 28,419,191 times
Reputation: 50424
Diet does absolutely no good for me in lowering cholesterol but a few years ago when I lowered it with red yeast rice I think I also too CoEnzyme10 along with it. It worked and no pain at all. I think the reason I had to top was due to the expense as they are both over the counter.

I've just started the red yeast rice again and am taking CQ10 with and probably should do so for life. I plan to experiment sometime by not taking the CQ10 to see if I get the muscle pain

I have a cousin who's been taken a statin for around 5 years now since she had a tiny stroke. I told her at the time to take the CQ10 and she's fine. Maybe everyone could take statins if they also took the CQ10. I'm sticking with the red yeast rice for now.
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Old 11-29-2014, 06:31 PM
 
2,126 posts, read 3,549,186 times
Reputation: 3386
Quote:
Originally Posted by wit-nit View Post
In the past I tried various statins and was constantly having muscle spasm so 2 months ago my doc put me on a new one called Lovalo and what a difference it made. My lipids test came back better than ever and I've had no problems with the muscles or other symptoms since taking this Lovalo. It's a newer improved statin recently approved by the FDA.
My cholesterol went from 252 to 176.
My HDL went from 137 to 63
Did you maybe state this backwards? A big drop in HDL would not usually be considered good.

Don in Austin

Quote:
Originally Posted by wit-nit View Post
My LDL went from 153 to 80
My triglycerides from 294 to 165
All my other stats were in the middle normal goodl ranges.
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Old 04-30-2015, 05:07 PM
 
Location: Gilbert, AZ
308 posts, read 363,113 times
Reputation: 579
Quote:
Originally Posted by in_newengland View Post
Diet does absolutely no good for me in lowering cholesterol but a few years ago when I lowered it with red yeast rice I think I also too CoEnzyme10 along with it. It worked and no pain at all. I think the reason I had to top was due to the expense as they are both over the counter.

I've just started the red yeast rice again and am taking CQ10 with and probably should do so for life. I plan to experiment sometime by not taking the CQ10 to see if I get the muscle pain

I have a cousin who's been taken a statin for around 5 years now since she had a tiny stroke. I told her at the time to take the CQ10 and she's fine. Maybe everyone could take statins if they also took the CQ10. I'm sticking with the red yeast rice for now.
No need to do a dangerous experiment... It has been documented that taking statins blocks your liver's ability to make CoQ10, a very important antioxidant. If I was on a statin (whether prescription or natural like red yeast rice), I would supplement with CoQ10 to avoid liver issues and muscle problems.
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Old 05-01-2015, 05:37 PM
 
Location: near bears but at least no snakes
26,634 posts, read 28,419,191 times
Reputation: 50424
Quote:
Originally Posted by go09 View Post
No need to do a dangerous experiment... It has been documented that taking statins blocks your liver's ability to make CoQ10, a very important antioxidant. If I was on a statin (whether prescription or natural like red yeast rice), I would supplement with CoQ10 to avoid liver issues and muscle problems.
I'm glad it's been documented. I wish that ten or fifteen years ago doctors had told people. But no, they didn't and if you mentioned CoQ10 they would have thought you were crazy. Back then I talked to several people who had their lives ruined by statins--no one told them to take CoQ10 along with the statins. My cousin thanks me all the time for telling her. I wonder if doctors even tell people today.
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Old 05-01-2015, 07:44 PM
 
Location: Dalton Gardens
2,855 posts, read 6,455,016 times
Reputation: 1699
Some doctors tell people to take CoQ10, but apparently new studies are showing even CoQ10 to be mostly ineffective. What we need are for doctors to finally just stop denying the facts and admit that these statin drugs are dangerous.

Forget having the deep muscle biopsy to determine damage as evidence because the majority of people damaged get back all kinds of "results" that refuse to point the finger at statins. After nearly 3 years of fighting for one I FINALLY got a muscle biopsy done on April 2nd. I was promised that TWO labs would be doing the testing and that TWO specialists would be reading the results. Only one lab and one specialist were actually used and the results given were ambiguous. Basically stating that there is "minor" fiber damage, but it is "consistent" with the treatment given and is not anything to be concerned about, and it is not caused by statin drugs. Well, if it is CONSISTENT with the treatment I was given then the only culprit can be STATIN drugs!

Other people I have become acquainted with who are suffering the exact same symptoms and problems from statin drug use are being told they have everything from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome to ALS, MS or MD! Not ONE has been told that statins are causing their problems.
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Old 05-03-2015, 10:28 PM
 
Location: near bears but at least no snakes
26,634 posts, read 28,419,191 times
Reputation: 50424
I knew a man who was supposed to be on statins but he refused after statins ruined his brother's health. I also remember a visiting nurse looking at me horrified that a dr had wanted to put me on statins. She said they were dangerous. People have been harmed by statins and yet my cousin who had a stroke and went on statins is still taking them with no problem--but she is also taking CoQ10.

In my case, the muscle pain was severe--and they tried to tell me it was just my fibromyalgia acting up--but I could tell the difference. With fibromyalgia, the pain comes after exercise. If you could stay perfectly still all the time, you wouldn't have any pain. (Ironically proper exercise can cure it.)

Right after stopping the statins the constant, deep pain went away. It was pretty obvious even though the doctor tried to deny it. BTW, I finally did get rid of the fibro too. I did take a course of red yeast rice along with CoQ10 and was fine. The red yeast rice is supposed to be a statin and I'll never know if I would have had that horrible muscle pain because I took the Coq10 along with it. Too bad it's so expensive! Now I'm taking another prescription medicine that lowers cholesterol and--no muscle pain. The blood tests were so far, so good. It's called Welchol.
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Old 05-04-2015, 08:21 AM
 
10,179 posts, read 6,223,702 times
Reputation: 11255
Quote:
Originally Posted by Laura707 View Post
There is a thread somewhere on here so far back on this topic, that I started.. I was one of the first to speak out against Statins and what they had done to me and you would have thought I had just told the biggest lie ever told by a human! Nobody wanted to hear it or believe there was a possibility of that I said had a ounce of truth in it. Since then, the things I said back then have been proven to be true. When I was first put on statins, high cholesterol was the only medical problem I had. Over the years that I was on it I ended up having a mountain of medications I was on to off set the side effects.. I finally got in such bad shape that I knew if I didn't do something, I would be on disability within the year so I quit them and have never taken another one since. Overnight the changes in me were so noticeable that everyone wanted to know what I was on, they wanted some of whatever I was on! My brain came out of the fog in had been in for so long, my energy came back like you wouldn't believe, I was a totally different person.

I had been invited to Atlanta to talk with a man who had amnesia while on them. In talking to him I kept seeing the light go off in his eyes as I told him of what I have been through and he also had experienced everything I had.... the only difference was I hadn't had the amnesia. He too, was wondering what was happening to him as all that started stealing his life bit by bit. They steal you life so slow that you don't realize it until one day you try to do something and you no longer can do it. This man said he was going to keep taking them unless he had another bout of amnesia.... he quit taking them shortly after that.

The most unbelievable thing I had happen was... I took them for FIVE years. Started on them right after I had had my colonoscopy where nothing was found. Five years on them I had my next colonoscopy where FIVE precancerous ones were found.. Had another 3 years after that and only 1 small one with no sign of cancer was found.

My doctor KNOWS don't even mention statin drugs to me. I got my cholesterol down with diet and while I don't keep it as low as they want me to, I have kept it down to where I feel it's the best for me. To low, I have NO energy (120 to 150 is where I feel the best). I was cheated out of making a informed decision when I was put on them. There wasn't hardly any information out there about the bad side of statins. Now, the information is there, all you have to do is find it and that is easier now than then when I was looking for answers.

My husband has been taking statins for over 30 years. The attitude seems to be that once on the medication you will be on it forever. Why? Only medication works? Your diet is irrelevant?

After my husband's heart attack last year, he decided to get serious about losing weight. Doctor did not say anything about dieting, but I said that we would now eat the way I eat. Semi-vegetarian. No fried foods, junk food, snacking, etc. Lunches used to be a big problem for him, but he started eating fresh fruits, veggies, home made smoothies for lunch. Sometimes a small portion of dinner leftovers.

He lost 25 lbs and his cholesterol (still taking statins) went down to 60. Have you ever heard of anyone with that low cholesterol? His doctor said it was now "too low" and his meds would have to be tweaked. How about stopping them entirely? Apparently, that DIET was lowering his cholesterol. Once you have high cholesterol you will ALWAYS have it, unless you take statins for the rest of your life?

Decades ago doctor pushed DIETS for high cholesterol, not medications. Easier to just pop a pill so you can continue to not eat right?
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Old 05-04-2015, 12:47 PM
 
Location: Gilbert, AZ
308 posts, read 363,113 times
Reputation: 579
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jo48 View Post
...

He lost 25 lbs and his cholesterol (still taking statins) went down to 60. Have you ever heard of anyone with that low cholesterol? His doctor said it was now "too low" and his meds would have to be tweaked. How about stopping them entirely? Apparently, that DIET was lowering his cholesterol. Once you have high cholesterol you will ALWAYS have it, unless you take statins for the rest of your life?

Decades ago doctor pushed DIETS for high cholesterol, not medications. Easier to just pop a pill so you can continue to not eat right?
This is where you need to know the breakdown figures of good and bad cholesterol: HDL and LDL. Look into foods that help raise healthy cholesterol (HDL), e.g. almonds, avocados, Omega3s (fish, flax or chia).

Congrats to him on the healthier lifestyle!
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Old 02-21-2016, 12:49 PM
 
566 posts, read 1,101,666 times
Reputation: 709
Can the lowering go TOO far? Can your cholesterol be too low? Is there a certain number where it SHOULD be at and if with meds it goes dangerously low, is medication reduced? Isn't some cholesterol NECESSARY for brain health? Wasn't that cholesterol level test with rabbits severely FLAWED and later rejected as viable? Isnt sugar consumption more damaging to arteries and inflammation making those clumps stick to walls an issue too?

Has anyone gone thru the laborious steps to really change dietary habits? Live healthier? Or is the medication a type of way to continue smoking, drinking, eating anything and just throw caution to the wind by throwing the responsibility on the doctor and med du jour?

I was once handed a Lipitor script by an EXTREMELY respected cardio big wig in Chicago. The reason? "You're almost close to 50 years of age." Hmmm, almost close? WHAT AM I BEING PUNISHED?

SHE Never saw my lipid panel numbers. I have NO high blood pressure issue/concern. Ever. I had the appt with her to discuss an over read scan of lungs that found some type of ground glass something or other. She never reported on THAT concern...Here's lawsuit information for that pesky lipitor and women getting diabetes issue:

http://www.lipitorlawsuitforwomen.com/
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