Depressed after Endo visit

[Jeanie.F]

Hi, I am a 31 year old type 1 diabetic. At 26years old my endo put me on Lipitor 10mg, my total cholesterol was around 5.5 (US 213) which he considered too high for a diabetic and told me I should be on a statin for its antiiflamatory effect anyway as im at high risk of stroke and other diabetic complications. He increased it to 20mg about two years ago. I have had problems with neck/rib/back pain which i thought was due to physical activity as I have always been very active, but in hindsight I realise that this pain started around 2006 and I thought it was too much of a coincidence that i started lipitor at this time. I began to read up about lipitor side effects and was horrified I had not been informed. I had mentioned my pain etc to my endo and he never highlighted the side effects of lipitor. In June of last year after reading this site and others I started to wean myself off the lipitor over 2 weeks and started to take all the supplements i have read about. I still have cracking and pain in the joints but mentally i feel a lot better and less stressed not taking it.

I attended a new doctor yesterday, my Total cholesterol was 290/LDL 162/ HDL 82/ Trigs 97. I told him i had stopped the lipitor and he went mad and said my levels were disgraceful and i was taking my life in my own hands if i didnt take his advise and go back on. I explained my concerns about side effects and what i had read and was made to feel like an absolute fool. The muscle pain has not gone away completely since stopping which means it wasnt the statin which caused this problem aparently according to the doc.

I have never smoked, exercise everyday and try to eat as low carb as possible. My diet is mainly made up of meat, fish, flax, nuts, nut butter, blueberries and eggs. My HBAIC ws also higher then expected so this added to the drama at the doctors. I walked out with a prescription for 20mg lipitor to be started straight away. I am adament in my mind that my cholesterol is not the problem, yes i am at higher risk of heart disease becuase of diabetes but the antiinflamatory effect of diet and supplements might have just as good an effect as lipitor without the side effects.

Im exhausted thinking about it and in limbo as to whether or not I should start these tablets again. I have to see a doc every six months for the rest of my life and have lipids tested for these appointments, if i could avoid going to the docs i would but I need to have regular visits to deal with diabetes for ever. I feel like i am being bullied and belittled when i try to voice my concerns. I need to reduce my LDL cholesterol just to shut the docs up but Id rather do it without lipitor.

Is there any advise on diet, supplements, exercise specifics other then what i am already doing that can help lower LDL? Also has anyone had the same experience with doctors and being made to feel about 2 inches tall when trying to ask questions about this medication? Also if the worst comes to the worst and I do start to take them again if I increased my Co Q 10 (100mg ubiquinol at the moment) could i avoid the side effects..or is this just wishful thinking :?

Thanks in advance

[Allen1]

Hi there Jeanie,

I am not a diabetic so I can't say much about diet other than to say that things like porridge oats do lower cholesterol slightly if you really need to lower it at all. Your new doctor sounds like a quack to me, fancy talking to someone in that manner especially when statins can also increase the risk of becoming a diabetic. You were wise enough to have found the cause of many of the problems that presented themselves since starting statins, don't let a quack force you into making yourself suffer even more by going back on to statins, as you will have read in your research, a lot of the problems can become permanent for many of us, it simply isn't worth the suffering.

A couple of points that may be applicable here, its not unusual for cholesterol levels to go high after stopping statins, they will settle down after a few months and side effects that you have experienced such as muscle pain could take anywhere from a few months to several years if you are unfortunate to go away or to be more tolerable.

These problems will often go away and come back sometimes worse than before, the problems are also often replaced by other symptoms along the way. I have been of statins for 5 years now and my memory is still not what it should be by any means and my physical strength and endurance is pathetic and this is what statins can do in the real world so be careful.

I think that most of us have been made to feel like hypochondriacs or stupid by doctors, its those very doctors who are actually the stupid ones for not taking notice of their patients concerns or reading up on any new information that they can access regarding such problems.

I truly hope you don't get persuaded to start taking this poison again, life as a medical experiment is not all its cracked up to be and its not any kind of life that I would recommend to anyone.

All the best,

Allen.

Have a read of some of the articles in :-
http://www.spacedoc.com/board/viewforum.php?f=1

[lars999]

Hi Jeanie,

I logged on just now to write a reply and found that Allen has already covered all points I would have. Allen's experience is similar to but more extreme than mine. I too have experienced adverse side effects go away, at least greatly diminish, and then return at lesser intensity -- this was most obvious in months after I quit Lipitor. After 2 years I have only much weaker adverse side effects, mostly residual muscle pains, neuropathy and resulting decrease of muscle control, including much poorer balance in one leg. I also have reduced lung capacity, which I associate with Lipitor because it was among adverse side effects that caused me to quit Lipitor.

I too had a doctor I call "cholesterol quack" -- he is one that prescribed Lipitor, saying it had only weak side effects, at most -- a win-win situation. I no longer visit that doctor or any of the many other "cholesterol quacks" I have visited in past decade plus. At this point, I am my own medical coordinator, using GPs only to provide signatures so that my insurance will pay, and necessary specialists.

Best wishes,
Lars

[Jeanie.F]

Thanks Allen and Lars for your replies. A medical experiment is a very good description of how I feel at the moment.

Unfortunately I live in Ireland and there doesnt seem to be a single doctor or professional who will let me out of their office as a type 1 diabetic without agreeing to take this poison! I feel so trapped, the only option I seem to have is to take lipitor for afew months before my next appointment, up my CoQ10 for this time, hope for the best and get my LDL down just to shut them up.

Its pathetic..but im already so stressed out about my appointment in 6 months time! I feel like im trying to escape from a cult or something. I do my best with exercise and low carb organic eating and then professionals who get paid a fortune and are supposedly trying to keep me healthy go and undo my work by concentrating on irrelavent LDL cholesterol lowering, when I mentioned to the doc last week that my HDL was very good and trigs low he said dont be rediculous..your LDL levels are ruining your arteries!. My head is so sore with frustration, anger and sadness at all this :cry:

[uncle2blade]

HI Jeanie, When I go to any health care provider, I always list statins as a drug I'm allergic to. If they ask questions about this allergy I tell them what happened to me when I was on statins. I have plenty of documentation if they choose to see it. I've had Dr's say to me I didn't know this. I never let Doctors intimidate me.

[cjbrooksjc]

Jeanie:

I posted a cogent discussion by Stephanie Senet on the mechanisms of cholesterol and Statin drugs titled WHY STATINS DON'T WORK under the **Statins and other cholesterol reducing drugs** category. It is an easy-to-read warning label for all statin drugs users; you should read it. Don 't bother taking it to your current physician, he sounds like a club-toting neanderthal. I suggest you find another, less regimental medical practitioner to monitor your health.

Best,

Brooks

[Jeanie.F]

uncle2blade Il definately have to try the allergic answer when asked why I wont take them.. but I think I already know the reaction Il get going by past experiences trying to have a rational discussion in this country with docs re statins :roll:

Thanks so much for the article cjbrooksjc..very informative and easy to understand, I will definately be printing it off even if its just to have as extra support on my next battle with with the endo.

[antoin]

Jeanie,
i was on lipitor 80mg for a couple of years and experienced many problems physical and cognitive(memory). In relation to pains I had a shoulder blade pain (left side) that I initially thought was RSI from sitting and typing too much. The pain was fairly constant(niggling like a mild burn) but got worse with activity. Also had pain under rib cage that was in the form of a sudden stabbing under the rib cage that brought me to my knees and was gone almost instantly. I eventually stopped taking statins and the physical pains went soon after. My total cholesterol level is 9.6 and I don't care as I believe cholesterol is essential for mind and body. You might want to note that the Irish Medicines board issued an update on safety concerns for statins in 2010 stating that they may cause depression. l also found that Docs in Ireland very reluctant to entertain criticism of statins. I have been claiming for about 6 years that statins damaged my memory. In 2010 IMB issued update in relation to statins and memory damage and just recently the FDA have mandated warning on statin labels for memory loss. (Vindicated at last.) So the message is you have to make your own choices.
kind regards