• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

STATIN USERS - QUESTIONS and ANSWERS

Hi all.
Know this is an old thread I have dug out, but relevant to my issues.
Have suffered extreme hairloss last 6months, this week my GP has taken me off ezetrol
and simvastatin statins.
He has replaced these with Bezafibrate to get my lipids down, as results came in as way
too high 8.6% clearly the statins were'nt doing the job! :thumbdown:
Only found out about extreme hair loss caused by statins on this thread!!!!
Will raise this point up with 'doc' next time I see him.
My hair is now HALF the thickness it used to be! So fine and cut into a short bob :evil:
He never warned nor explained this hair loss to me despite me taking the statins.
Anna.
 
I may as well join in this thread too as I was gonna make a separate post. Two GPs at my practice have been trying to get me to take Crestor (Simvastatin) for a few years now and I always go away with the 'script and get them but don't take them. I just can't stand the thought of having to take another damned tablet plus I watched the Horizon docu on bbc2 in 2009 I think Pillpoppers. Basically this put me off further!

A consultant I saw at the hospital told me about a few months before in 09 my cholesterol level was 5.2 she said my good cholesterol was high which was good and the bad was a tad high which wasn't so good but she didnt see the need to prescribe anything. it has since crept up to 5.4 and most recently 5.8 and I know if I could stop eating chcocolate and crisps and cut down the carbs a lot it'd likely reduce naturally on its own. Just can't stick with lower carb for more than a day or two. i keep on giving in to my cravings but at the same time I know if i persevered they'd eventually disappear altogether. :roll:
 
I experienced severe memory loss while taking Simvastatin and was convinced it was due to the Statins. My GP assured me that Simvastatin didn't cause memory loss and arranged for a head CT ..... and as I was insistent also prescribed Rosuvastatin instead.

Needless to say the head CT showed nothing abnormal and my memory returned after a few weeks.

After taking the Rosuvastatin for a couple of years I was nearly crippled with pain until I saw the light and threw it in the bin but that's another story !
 
Re: cholesterol lowering statins



Julie ... I haven't read the book, but my GP prescribed statins for me along with Metformin when I was diagnosed, I asked about side effects because I have had several episodes of anaphylactic shock due to other medications ... she mentioned the possibility of joint pains and that was enough for me. I'm not here to be a pharmaceutical guinea pig thanks.

I haven't taken them and I'm not going to. Today I picked up a repeat prescription for 2 medications that I requested last week, when I picked up the prescription, she'd put statins on it too. I'm still not going to take them. If I feel bullied next time I see my DN or GP I will tell them I'll sign a disclaimer stating that doctor has recommended them but I do not wish to take them.

It really annoys me the way doctors hand these pills out along with the attitude that we should just try them out, put up with the side effects or keep trying other meds - otherwise we risk death by cardiac arrest. Who needs the scare tactics? I certainly don't. By all means offer them - but do not apply pressure, is my motto.
 
Hi. I agree with you GraceK. Those who prescribe medications that lower bad cholesterol should not force their patients to take those drugs rather give them as many options and let the patients decide. It helps to know the benefits and disadvantages of treatment plan before we can make a good and responsible decision. My father was diagnosed with Type II DM and he's taking simvastatin for 4 years. I'm certain that this medication has helped him prevent heart attack and stroke since he is also overweight and a smoker. The side effects he felt were difficulty sleeping and muscle aches but they were tolerable to him. Sometimes, I just think of the risk versus benefit ratio because practically all medications have side effects. We just have to know the variety of drugs that we can take and the side effects that come along with it. If we cannot tolerate the side effects, we can always choose other options. We don't have to take the negative effects against the prescribers because our body respond differently or uniquely. What works for one person may not work for another.
 

Thanks Chalcedony ... what scares me about the mention of 'muscle aches' is that it sounds fairly inocuous but I had that kind of reaction to a drug about 10 years ago and believe me it was no joke. I started waking up with my hands all twisted like claws and my thumbs in particular were extremely stiff. During the day it would improve but my hands were very weak and I couldn't turn taps on, take tops of bottles etc. I just thought it was another symptom of my age and the menopause as usual so i didn't do anything about it. Then I began with pain in my hips, elbows, and all my muscles really and the soles of my feet felt like they were filled with shards of glass. My GP told me it was arthritis and prescribed painkillers. I went to see an acupuncturist who took one look at me and said 'toxic drug reaction'. He didn't tell me to stop taking the medication I was on but I did agree with his diagnosis and I stopped it myself. I began to improve almost immediately but it took 3 months of weekly acupuncture to alleviate the symptoms and another 6 months of chelation therapy to drag the toxic waste out of my joints and muscles. Never again. The more I look back at my health experience the more I feel like I've been nothing more than a bl***y pharmaceutical guinea pig and I'm not going there any more. 'Muscle aches' is just two words on a piece of paper until you experience it and how it impacts your life. I also understand that women find it harder to eliminate toxins from their body whereas men are a bit more efficient in that department.
 
I was placed on Statins long before I was diagnosed as a T2 Diabetic. Iwas taken off them when I started to become Jaundiced, I then moved to a different area,where they automatically prescribed statins. hmmm I explained to them my previous problems with statins but they insisted and that the Dr would do tests etc once I started taking them. Oddly enough it was then that I was diagnosed as T2 and then became very ill, I was orange not yellow. The Drs backed down very quickly and no one mentions statins to me any more. Statins now have an immediate effect on my liver. Come to think of it,I had my mini stroke whilst on the first lot of statins...hmmmm trust me to be awkward lol. Oh and from what I can surmise it would appear that Women are more prone to the side effects than Men...food for thought perhaps?
 
Not advocating this for everyone but I stopped taking Simvastatin in Feb/March. Firstly because it made me feel awful with terrible muscular pains in my legs, and secondly I read everything I could get my hands on about Statins and decided I could find no clinical or rational reason for me personally to take them. Since stopping them my levels have gone down! I was totally upfront with the docs explaining why I was refusing them. Had a hard time from the GP, but interestingly the diabetic consultant agreed with me and said as long as I continue with a healthy diet it was OK by them. Guess it just depends on which doctor you happen to speak to???? Sue x
 
I'm presently going through that dilemma, as my GP has said I should take them as I'm considered diabetic.
He didn't say which and the wife is on astoravastatin(?) I don't want to take simavastatin because from what I've read, the horror stories of this cheap drug.
Ill get my prescription tomorrow, so we shall see which one.
But I'm a really fit low carber, and my cholesterol levels are very good.
I need to work and I don't want the side effects.
 
Hi, I have been taking Atorvastatin since 2002 - started on 10mg at that time, I have NEVER suffered any side effects from this drug. I am on 40mg now daily and my last Cholesterol blood check it was 3.2 on 30/06/2015. I have known other people who started off on Simvatstatin and suffered badly - and they were changed onto Atorvastatin and have no problems on this drug.
 

Quick update, my doctor has taken me off atoravastatin. Due to the simple fact I didn't need them!
My energy levels have returned to normal. My achy legs have gone as well!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn More.…