# Anybody on statins?



## TeddieG (Sep 9, 2015)

Hi all. A couple of years ago I had a bad reaction to something I ate and ended up in the ER. A scan was done and I didn't even look at the results until about a year ago, when I realized the ER had an online patient portal. It said my heart was on the large end of normal to very slightly enlarged. There's a history of cardiac issues on my father's side of the family, but I just attributed it to stress and a doctor agreed. 

So I decided it was time to do my bloodwork, it's been a while, and I was having some stomach distress (anxiety - new University President, possible layoffs of staff, etc.). My appointment to see the doctor to follow up is August 7, but today her office called and wanted to talk about the results of the labs from the blood work. A1C is fine, thyroid is fine, but my cholesterol levels are up. 230 overall, 143 LDL (she wants 200/100 on those), and the person I talked to said my doctor had called in a prescription of Atorvastatin. I got the generics because of my insurance, but it is basically Lipitor. From what I've researched so far, it is one of the most potent. And the side effects include muscle and joint pain. Great. Plus a few other possibilities like memory loss, which I'm already struggling with, again from stress. Today I opened the package and the dosage is 10mg, which seems small, but I haven't checked on the available dosages to confirm. 

So I know there are supplements and plant sterols and other options to reduce cholesterol, including diet. And I also read on the internet that you can't stop taking these cold turkey. One website article said that generally people who go on steroids are on them for life UNLESS they get their cholesterol down and keep it down. Reading the leaflet of instructions and information in the package, it says that this prescription is to prevent heart attack and stroke. My dad died of a heart attack, really a blood clot, at 47. His brother died a few years back at 63 of a heart attack, and I have another uncle, my dad's sibling as well, who had a heart attack at 73 but is fit as a fiddle. My brother says that when people have a heart attack, if they survive it and have a good doctor, they're healthy as a horse because every thing connected to their cardiac and circulatory system is checked and remedied, or managed with medication. 

So I can see why the statin is a good idea, and I found articles about the fact that some people DO eventually get off the statins. I'm just not sure I want to take a pill every night for the rest of my life that might give me headaches or give me any more challenges than I already have with memory loss (my maternal grandmother had dementia and my paternal grandfather did in the very last stages, the last few weeks, of his life. The weird thing (the great irony) about the statin is that while it creates memory loss, like where I put my keys or why I went to Walmart in the first place (I already make lists), the improved blood flow tends to stem the possibility of dementia and Alzheimers. 

Any advice? Suggestions?


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## Marc878 (Aug 26, 2015)

I take a statin. No side effects.

Take it before you go to bed.


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## TeddieG (Sep 9, 2015)

Marc878 said:


> I take a statin. No side effects.
> 
> Take it before you go to bed.


Good to hear. Thanks. The person I talked to at my doctor's office said if I have muscle or joint pain, to let them know and they can switch to a different type.


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## Marc878 (Aug 26, 2015)

Yeah there are a lot of different ones out there. There were a couple I couldn't take. I use zocor


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## giddiot (Jun 28, 2015)

I take Crestor but I am extremely sensitive to them. They cause symptoms like Lyme disease, pain in muscles and fatigue. I take half the lowest dose. It still works however. Watch for the symptoms. I have taken most all of them and Crestor is the one I tolerate best. I even take them one week on and one week off.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro


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## Laurentium (May 21, 2017)

I take simvastatin. No side effects. The good thing is that the side effects are ones where you'll *know *if you're suffering from them.


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## Diana7 (Apr 19, 2016)

I also take simvastatin, never had any issues. In 6 week my cholesterol level was reduced by half. 
My husband tried 4 or 5 before he got one that didn't make him feel really tired all the time.


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## Tasorundo (Apr 1, 2012)

I would recommend you take one that has coq10 or start taking coq10 separately. https://www.healthline.com/health/coq10-and-statins#statins


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## Laurentium (May 21, 2017)

Tasorundo said:


> I would recommend you take one that has coq10 or start taking coq10 separately.


Oh yeah, I do that too.


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## TeddieG (Sep 9, 2015)

Laurentium said:


> I take simvastatin. No side effects. The good thing is that the side effects are ones where you'll *know *if you're suffering from them.


Thank you. That's my concern. I took a week off for vacation last week, but didn't travel (I've learned if I do, I get interrupted by work and it is frustrating, and of course, for three days out of five I put in four hours a day on work), and also took that time off because I'm on another medication that has a slight sedative affect. It's supposed to wear off after a week so I wanted to adjust on my own time frame and schedule. The current medication also affects my appetite. It's not like I don't eat at all but my eating has leveled off and I'm eating smaller portions more often, so maybe I'll lose some weight, which might help with the cholesterol.

So I am going to wait until Friday night to take the first statin in case I have issues and then have the weekend to deal with them. I can't look weak or soft at work. Fortunately my boss is out this week and into part of next week, not back until Wednesday, so perhaps I'll have a clue how I'll respond to this statin by the time he gets back. 

Thanks for that bit of info. That definitely addresses one of my concerns.


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## TeddieG (Sep 9, 2015)

Diana7 said:


> I also take simvastatin, never had any issues. In 6 week my cholesterol level was reduced by half.
> My husband tried 4 or 5 before he got one that didn't make him feel really tired all the time.


Thanks, that's helpful. I am already on a medication for anxiety that has a slight sedative effect, although it has leveled off somewhat.

I hope I get the same quick results you did. That's encouraging, thanks.


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## ButtPunch (Sep 17, 2014)

Yes been on a statin for years....no side effects I'm aware of


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## TeddieG (Sep 9, 2015)

Tasorundo said:


> I would recommend you take one that has coq10 or start taking coq10 separately. https://www.healthline.com/health/coq10-and-statins#statins


I will do that. I already have a bottle of it that but I'm not really good at keeping up with my supplements. For a while I was taking quite a few (like omega-3's) and got tired of swallowing a handful of gel caps with breakfast and lunch. 

But that reminds me. The doctor also said my Vitamin D is low and wants me to take a D5000 supplement. 

God, aging sux. !!


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## TeddieG (Sep 9, 2015)

ButtPunch said:


> Yes been on a statin for years....no side effects I'm aware of


Thanks. Better statins than stents, I guess, huh? My ex's uncle had a heart attack at a fairly young age and had to have stents. And THEN the statins . . .


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## Tron (Jan 31, 2013)

A couple of years back I had some blood work done and the doc prescribed me statins too. 

Generic simvastatin was the first one I tried. Did it for several months and it really screwed with my short term memory. I couldn't remember the names of foods, friends, business acquaintances etc. Couldn't do a crossword if I tried. Some minor joint pain too.

I asked to change it to something else. Now I get Rosuvastatin (Crestor) and I haven't had any real side effects. I am not really good about taking it though.

I would just recommend that you pay real close attention to the changes in your body after you start. Don't be afraid to try something else if your body isn't handling it well.


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## TeddieG (Sep 9, 2015)

Tron said:


> A couple of years back I had some blood work done and the doc prescribed me statins too.
> 
> Generic simvastatin was the first one I tried. Did it for several months and it really screwed with my short term memory. I couldn't remember the names of foods, friends, business acquaintances etc. Couldn't do a crossword if I tried. Some minor joint pain too.
> 
> ...


Thanks, Tron. I have some joint pain already, so hopefully that won't worsen. It's the short term memory things that you describe that worry me the most. I am teaching for a colleague this fall, on a subject i care a lot about, and the prospect of teaching with short term memory is terrifying.


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## TeddieG (Sep 9, 2015)

giddiot said:


> I take Crestor but I am extremely sensitive to them. They cause symptoms like Lyme disease, pain in muscles and fatigue. I take half the lowest dose. It still works however. Watch for the symptoms. I have taken most all of them and Crestor is the one I tolerate best. I even take them one week on and one week off.
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro


Thank you! I was wondering if I might be able to lower the dosage if I have problems, and make up for it by watching my diet. Looks like oatmeal is going to be on my dance card for breakfast for a while. :laugh:


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## TBT (Dec 20, 2011)

I've been taking 40mg of rosuvastatin for a couple of years. My understanding is that it has a longer 1/2 life than most other statins. 1/2 life of 24 hours or so means I can take it at anytime during the day. Most other statins that metabolize faster are suggested to be taken at night as that is when the liver produces the most cholesterol. Haven't noticed any muscle pain with it and I've read that whether or not a statin is lipophilic or hydrophilic may have some bearing on this particular side effect.


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## TeddieG (Sep 9, 2015)

TBT said:


> I've been taking 40mg of rosuvastatin for a couple of years. My understanding is that it has a longer 1/2 life than most other statins. 1/2 life of 24 hours or so means I can take it at anytime during the day. Most other statins that metabolize faster are suggested to be taken at night as that is when the liver produces the most cholesterol. Haven't noticed any muscle pain with it and I've read that whether or not a statin is lipophilic or hydrophilic may have some bearing on this particular side effect.


Thank you!


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## Hope Shimmers (Jul 10, 2015)

I have prescribed statins for literally thousands of people over the years, and can practically count on one hand how many have had adverse effects other than elevated liver enzymes (your doc will check that in 3 months or so after starting, then regularly but less frequently after that).

Your LDL should be well under 100. The statin will get you there. Diet does not always work to get you to target, no matter how much you are dedicated to it. Sometimes it takes the medication to get it down where it should be. With the family history you have, it's really important that you get rid of the risk factors like high cholesterol. It might not seem like it, but leaving that untreated is much riskier than not taking the med because you are worried about muscle pain or short-term memory loss.


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## MEM2020 (Aug 23, 2009)

If you take statins make sure you also take COQ10. 




TeddieG said:


> Hi all. A couple of years ago I had a bad reaction to something I ate and ended up in the ER. A scan was done and I didn't even look at the results until about a year ago, when I realized the ER had an online patient portal. It said my heart was on the large end of normal to very slightly enlarged. There's a history of cardiac issues on my father's side of the family, but I just attributed it to stress and a doctor agreed.
> 
> So I decided it was time to do my bloodwork, it's been a while, and I was having some stomach distress (anxiety - new University President, possible layoffs of staff, etc.). My appointment to see the doctor to follow up is August 7, but today her office called and wanted to talk about the results of the labs from the blood work. A1C is fine, thyroid is fine, but my cholesterol levels are up. 230 overall, 143 LDL (she wants 200/100 on those), and the person I talked to said my doctor had called in a prescription of Atorvastatin. I got the generics because of my insurance, but it is basically Lipitor. From what I've researched so far, it is one of the most potent. And the side effects include muscle and joint pain. Great. Plus a few other possibilities like memory loss, which I'm already struggling with, again from stress. Today I opened the package and the dosage is 10mg, which seems small, but I haven't checked on the available dosages to confirm.
> 
> ...


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## Cynthia (Jan 31, 2014)

I haven't read any of the comments, only your OP. 

I would never take statins and I made my husband go off them. The reason is that every cell in your body is made from cholesterol. Statins reduce cholesterol, which is why people have side effects. The brain is mostly cholesterol. Reducing cholesterol doesn't seem like a good idea to me - at all. 

The problem isn't even cholesterol. It's inflammation. The reason why blood cholesterol is high is because the body produces cholesterol and introduces it into the blood stream to reduce inflammation. Cholesterol is like that fire hydrant in a fire. You don't shut off the fire hydrant when your house gets flooded. You turn it off when the fire is out. Rather than taking statins, learn how to reduce inflammation. Statins are dangerous. GTS


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## Hope Shimmers (Jul 10, 2015)

CynthiaDe said:


> I haven't read any of the comments, only your OP.
> 
> I would never take statins and I made my husband go off them. The reason is that every cell in your body is made from cholesterol. Statins reduce cholesterol, which is why people have side effects. The brain is mostly cholesterol. Reducing cholesterol doesn't seem like a good idea to me - at all.
> 
> The problem isn't even cholesterol. It's inflammation. The reason why blood cholesterol is high is because the body produces cholesterol and introduces it into the blood stream to reduce inflammation. Cholesterol is like that fire hydrant in a fire. You don't shut off the fire hydrant when your house gets flooded. You turn it off when the fire is out. Rather than taking statins, learn how to reduce inflammation. Statins are dangerous. GTS


Curious where you obtained your medical degree.

Every cell in your body is made from cholesterol? What you said about adverse effects has absolutely no physiological basis whatsoever.

I agree with you that inflammation is the problem. In almost all issues. Can be reduced a great deal by diet. But do not tell people that "statins are dangerous". It isn't true. What is dangerous is having an LDL of almost 150. THAT is dangerous.


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## arbitrator (Feb 13, 2012)

*Had a quad coronary bypass surgery back in 1998. Was put on simvostatin from 1998 to 2004, then my cardiologist discontinued it, and ever since, I've been taking only one 5 gr. Aspirin per day!*


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## MattMatt (May 19, 2012)

I love my little Lipitor tablet! So much that I got to bed with one every night!

I also occasionally take plant-based yoghurt things, because... why not?


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## TeddieG (Sep 9, 2015)

MEM2020 said:


> If you take statins make sure you also take COQ10.


Thanks, MEM.


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## TeddieG (Sep 9, 2015)

CynthiaDe said:


> I haven't read any of the comments, only your OP.
> 
> I would never take statins and I made my husband go off them. The reason is that every cell in your body is made from cholesterol. Statins reduce cholesterol, which is why people have side effects. The brain is mostly cholesterol. Reducing cholesterol doesn't seem like a good idea to me - at all.
> 
> The problem isn't even cholesterol. It's inflammation. The reason why blood cholesterol is high is because the body produces cholesterol and introduces it into the blood stream to reduce inflammation. Cholesterol is like that fire hydrant in a fire. You don't shut off the fire hydrant when your house gets flooded. You turn it off when the fire is out. Rather than taking statins, learn how to reduce inflammation. Statins are dangerous. GTS


Thanks, Cynthia. I would actually prefer to manage whatever is going on with diet and supplements, rather than be on a prescription. Andrew Lessman makes a product called cholestacare, that many people swear by. My doctor just called in the prescription and before her office had a chance to tell me, the pharmacy called to say I had something ready to pick up. I thought it was a refill of my allergy meds. So I haven't started the statin yet.


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## TeddieG (Sep 9, 2015)

Hope Shimmers said:


> I have prescribed statins for literally thousands of people over the years, and can practically count on one hand how many have had adverse effects other than elevated liver enzymes (your doc will check that in 3 months or so after starting, then regularly but less frequently after that).
> 
> Your LDL should be well under 100. The statin will get you there. Diet does not always work to get you to target, no matter how much you are dedicated to it. Sometimes it takes the medication to get it down where it should be. With the family history you have, it's really important that you get rid of the risk factors like high cholesterol. It might not seem like it, but leaving that untreated is much riskier than not taking the med because you are worried about muscle pain or short-term memory loss.


Thank you, @Hope Shimmers. I didn't see this before. When I was in graduate school in the mid-1990s, the school clinic told me my cholesterol was high. But in the last two years I've noticed fatigue, shortness of breath, and when I had that scan with the large/starting to enlarge heart, I knew the chickens were coming home to roost. I just fear the side effects but I guess I won't know if there are any until I start taking them. I put it off until tonight in case I do have side effects and can assess over the weekend. 

Thanks for your input. The reality of the LDL and how high it is feels like a second opinion, and I'm grateful for your time and expertise.


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## MEM2020 (Aug 23, 2009)

M2 takes the product below. Prevents any side effects from the statin. 

Qunol ultra coq10




TeddieG said:


> Thank you, @Hope Shimmers. I didn't see this before. When I was in graduate school in the mid-1990s, the school clinic told me my cholesterol was high. But in the last two years I've noticed fatigue, shortness of breath, and when I had that scan with the large/starting to enlarge heart, I knew the chickens were coming home to roost. I just fear the side effects but I guess I won't know if there are any until I start taking them. I put it off until tonight in case I do have side effects and can assess over the weekend.
> 
> Thanks for your input. The reality of the LDL and how high it is feels like a second opinion, and I'm grateful for your time and expertise.


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## TeddieG (Sep 9, 2015)

MEM2020 said:


> M2 takes the product below. Prevents any side effects from the statin.
> 
> Qunol ultra coq10


Thanks, MEM!


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## Married but Happy (Aug 13, 2013)

I've been on statins for nearly 30 years. I started with red rice yeast extract for several years (which is a natural statin), before statins came into wide use, because I knew my cholesterol was high. That worked fine, but the amount wasn't standardized, so my results varied. My doctor switched me over to a prescription version once he found out, and that has worked well for me, with no side effects. The research continues to suggest that most people would benefit from statins as a preventative measure. In recent years I've been able to reduce from taking it daily (minimum dose) to 3x per week (also minimum dosage).


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## TeddieG (Sep 9, 2015)

Married but Happy said:


> I've been on statins for nearly 30 years. I started with red rice yeast extract for several years (which is a natural statin), before statins came into wide use, because I knew my cholesterol was high. That worked fine, but the amount wasn't standardized, so my results varied. My doctor switched me over to a prescription version once he found out, and that has worked well for me, with no side effects. The research continues to suggest that most people would benefit from statins as a preventative measure. In recent years I've been able to reduce from taking it daily (minimum dose) to 3x per week (also minimum dosage).


That's GREAT news, and very encouraging. Thanks!


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## cc48kel (Apr 5, 2017)

My husband takes that same one on 40mg.. Its free because it's generic I guess. But he hasn't mentioned any side effects. He is forgetful but so am I and I don't take statins. It could be an age thing. His doctor told him to take 2 fish oil tablets which he does.


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## chillymorn69 (Jun 27, 2016)

Check out niacin for cholesterol control.


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## OnTheFly (Mar 12, 2015)

Check out Dave Feldman on youtube or podcasts, he's been biohacking his cholesterol levels for a few years. Taking a pill should be the last resort. Did your doctor say anything about dietary changes that positively affect cholesterol? I'm guessing not.


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## Tron (Jan 31, 2013)

MEM2020 said:


> M2 takes the product below. Prevents any side effects from the statin.
> 
> Qunol ultra coq10


Just curious, what exactly is that supplement supposed to do when you take the statin?


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