Do I really have to take Statins?

[MillieT]

Hi all, I have now moved and changed my practice and met the specialist diabetic gp once, however, after seeing the chest specialist today at the same surgery she had said there is a note ont he screen to say I must without fail take Statins. Now, I have had Simvistatin and Atorvastatin in the past and to be completely honest, my legs, groin and all seems to grind to a halt, I end up holding my rib cage because my chest is so tight I feel like I am having a stroke or something, I find it incredibly difficult to sleep when taking them and yet when I stop, all the symptoms disappear and hence why I keep refusing to take them.

I am now really anxious about the next meeting with this specialist only I know for a fact he is going to try and in my opinion bully me into taking them, I have sat here tonight and bitten all my nails only i no longer smoke so something has to go.

I just had my HBA1C back, 74 as usual and my cholesterol is supposedly through the roof at 6 instead of 4. I was told both those readings are likely to be up due to I am still fairly fresh post Radiotherapy, I am also having to take kidney tablets because of I believe it is called Proteinurea? where the kidneys let out protein in the urine anyway.
Also they are now saying they think it is a possibility I may have a kidney stone and have to have a scan shortly.

I honestly have no idea why my HBA1C is still high, I am still arguing with the diabetic nutritionists with regards them saying I really should be having porridge and / or bread every day and it makes me ill, i go jittery and light headed and some times something like 45 minutes after say- if I ate a roll I pass out- badly, now what on earth is that. Also, I have changed from taking 180 units of Insulin per day to a new tablet where you wee out the excess sugars and I am having readings of 6mmol and 7mmol pretty much all the time and they are the lowest readings I have had in a year, no insulin whatsoever, just the Empagliflozen 10mg once per day, if they put me on 15 mg a day I am certain it would take me to 5mmol but they have not yet and said they would after the review in December.

Please excuse my mini rants on this forum but I am literally aside myself with all of this, I just wish to get on with my life now that I am supposedly in 100% remission after the Radiotherapy and Lymphoma.. But I really would like to get my diabetes under control but I just think all this, eat bread nonesense and statin stuff has to stop else they shall end up killing me. I would sincerely appreciate anyone's advice or if you have been through similar and what can I do about it all.

 

[NoCrbs4Me]

Q: Do I really have to take Statins?

A: Hell no!!!!

 

[Tophat1900]

Out of curiosity, when you were tested for T2, did they run a full GAD antibodies panel?

IMO - any diabetic nutritionist saying you should eat like that for strictly T2 is nuts, however it is all to common.

A total cholesterol number doesn't tell anyone anything. A complete break down of a full lipid profile is needed.

Do you test when you feel shaky? And post recovery from passing out?

Whether or not you take statins is up to you. You can't be forced.

 

[Indy51]

I never cease to be surprised by these kinds of posts - doctors cannot force anyone to do anything against their will. Just say no, you've had them before and they gave you bad side effects and that you won't take them again. Full stop, end of story. It's infuriating when medical personnel try to bully people.

 

[Member496333]

If anyone ever tries to pressure me into taking a statin and won’t take a polite no for an answer, my response is going to be swift, starting with one F and ending with two.

As for someone with uncontrolled blood glucose being advised to eat bread and porridge. Well...no surprise there either.

 

[Guzzler]

It took me two years to finally convince my HCPs that I will not take a statin of any kind. I felt bullied and told my GP that I couldn't understand why he was trying to coerce me into taking a drug that I have no faith in and that caused side effects for me. The anxiety this caused was one of the reasons I missed a Diabetes Review and in my opinion this caused me harm.

Any and all treatment should be with your consent, HCPs are there to advise not to dictate.

 

[Squire Fulwood]

You cannot be forced to take medicine although it is much better if you can stop taking it with the agreement of your DN or whoever. In my case I took statins, had the side effects, tried another one, had side effects etc. until I was finally classed as intolerant of them and this was entered on my notes. I no longer have the problem with HCP's

DN's philosophy is that she isn't here to make my health worse.

What with the dietary advice you are getting it sounds like you have gone back in time to 10 years ago.

 

[SimonCrox]

As above, your doctors cannot dictate that you should take something.
You have given the simva and atorva a trial and had side effects both times - that is clear - ie you have a totally valid reason not to take the statin,
Have your doctors considered ezetimibe which is not a statin and has far lower risk of side effects than statin yet does work in diabetic people to stop heart attack etc? Better that they explore why you don't want a statin and exdplore other options than just be confrontational.
Good luck
Best wishes

 

[JohnEGreen]

You do not have to take any medication you do not wish to, you do not have to give a justification for your decision if you do not wish to. Though you do have ample cause if you so wish to give a reason why you do not wish to take them.

 

[kitedoc]

Hi @miffli, Statins can have some very unpleasant side-effects. You sound like you may have copped some of them.
The magic words to keep the specialist off your back about statins are: I get muscle pain when on statins, and just think what all that muscle breaking down would do to my kidneys.

 

[Member496333]

Statins can have some very unpleasant side-effects.

Most notably lowering the production of a critical substance that the body is attempting to manufacture in order to build and repair itself

 

[Tophat1900]

Statins have been shown to decrease coQ10 levels in what is called statin-induced myopathy, which is where you get muscle pain and weakness. Being CoQ10 is very important in cardiac muscle function and statins interfere with coq10 synthesis, I just have to wonder where is the value in a statin? Coq10 levels decrease with age, why would you want something that decreases them even further?

Plenty of reading here..

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3096178/

https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/full/10.1161/JAHA.118.009835

 

[Ponchu]

My relative -doc takes them but fears she will die of a heart attack if she stops.

She said she can barely walk w the muscle pain side effect. She’s 62

She’s now on some form of prescription coQ10 after burning through various supplement types.

I didn’t know it was rx strength

She said statin manufacturers adding coQ10

 

[Krystyna23040]

IMO - any diabetic nutritionist saying you should eat like that for strictly T2 is nuts, however it is all to common.

I think it is beyond nuts.

 

[Member496333]

I just have to wonder where is the value in a statin?

That very much depends on whether you’re taking them or making them

 

[Krystyna23040]

If anyone ever tries to pressure me into taking a statin and won’t take a polite no for an answer, my response is going to be swift, starting with one F and ending with two.

I got thrown out by a consultant when I refused to go back on statins after severe muscle damage - and I didn't even use the 'f' word.
A much more enlightened consultant told me that they wouldn't even lengthen my life by more than a few days - if at all. He also put a note on my records about my problems with the statins and I have not been pressured into taking them since.

 

[Tophat1900]

My relative -doc takes them but fears she will die of a heart attack if she stops.

She said she can barely walk w the muscle pain side effect. She’s 62

She’s now on some form of prescription coQ10 after burning through various supplement types.

I didn’t know it was rx strength

She said statin manufacturers adding coQ10

Coq10 is poorly absorbed in people 40 yrs or older. Ubiquinol is a far more potent form. So I doubt coq10 will make any difference really. However, it will probably be used a marketing "Healthy" strategy.

I think over time, putting up with that pain could be causing damage.

 

[Tophat1900]

I got thrown out by a consultant when I refused to go back on statins after severe muscle damage - and I didn't even use the 'f' word.
A much more enlightened consultant told me that they wouldn't even lengthen my life by more than a few days - if at all. He also put a note on my records about my problems with the statins and I have not been pressured into taking them since.

World can do without pushers like that consultant.

 

[mariavontrapp]

I have high cholesterol but I don't care. If it kills me you can put that on my gravestone. But seriously, I refuse statins because 1)everyone I know who has taken them has had side effects (2) they have never tested my LDL cholesterol properly to see what type it is (3) I believe it is inflammation that is dangerous, not the cholesterol on its own. High insulin can lead to inflammation so I follow a low carb diet to reduce insulin levels. If the doctors tested for inflammatory markers and insulin levels that would be more useful to me. Cholesterol testing is a red-herring and it causes people with "good" cholesterol levels to believe that everything is ok with their health.

 

[DavidGrahamJones]

there is a note on the screen to say I must without fail take Statins.

The decision is yours, nobody else.

I have had Simvistatin and Atorvastatin in the past and to be completely honest, my legs, groin and all seems to grind to a halt, I end up holding my rib cage because my chest is so tight I feel like I am having a stroke or something, I find it incredibly difficult to sleep when taking them and yet when I stop, all the symptoms disappear and hence why I keep refusing to take them.

Very similar to my experience with statins. I bet no GP has been able to tell you how to avoid these well documented side effects. I bet they're not even aware that it's the prevention of the uptake of CoQ10 that is causing the muscle problems. Even Merck Pharmaceutical knew what caused the side effects as far back as 1990. They can't even refer you to any empirical evidence because Sir Rory Collins has got all the raw data from the original test results locked away, never to be revealed.

I know for a fact he is going to try and in my opinion bully me into taking them.

It is quite clear that taking statins is making you more ill and possibly become dependent on financial help from the state. A polite "NO" is all that's required. Don't accept any rubbish about "internet conspiracy theory", your pain is very real despite anything a so called expert says.

I am still arguing with the diabetic nutritionists with regards them saying I really should be having porridge and / or bread every day and it makes me ill

For a type II, porridge for breakfast is something of a no no, maybe some can tolerate it. Are they trying to prescribe you more medication?

I just had my HBA1C back, 74 as usual . . . . . . . . I am having readings of 6mmol and 7mmol pretty much all the time and they are the lowest readings I have had in a year

Should that be 7.4? If the regular readings of 6 and 7 have been for more than 3 months I would have thought the HbA1c would be closer to 7 rather than 70.

The statin is a very difficult decision and has to be a very personal thing. I stopped taking them because I was fed up with the pain, the brain fog and poor sleep. I spent years not being believed and it sometimes just makes me angry that some GPs wear blinkers. There was a BMJ (possibly Lancet) straw poll of GPs to see who prescribe them for themselves or a family member, 60% said no. I asked my GP and she said "one", I got the impression she meant one she didn't like.