My Statin Story

[jd0811]

Following is an e-mail that I sent to Dr. Graveline in July 05 after taking Lipitor for 12 months. I stopped on August 1, 2005. and feel 1000% better. I will add a short postscript after the message.

Doctor:

I discovered your site while doing some research on Lipitor. My experience with Lipitor began 12 months ago. I woke up in the middle of the night with my heart racing and fluttering. After an hour of this, I headed to the emergency room. When they checked me in my pulse was 160 and my heart beat irregular. They very quickly gave me some medication which almost immediately got my heart back in rhythm and my pulse back to 60 (about my normal range). Over the next two days, they did numerous tests and concluded that everything was fine. They sent me home with a prescription for Lipitor (10mg) and instructions to take it at bedtime along with a St. Joseph’s aspirin.

I am a healthy and active 55 year old non-smoker with no history of medical problems other than athletic injuries: meniscus tears, hamstring tears, bone spurs, etc. I played basketball in college and continue to play golf and tennis and until recently ran 15 to 20 miles per week. My blood pressure is usually in the 115/75 range and my pulse rate between 58 and 62. My cholesterol level prior to Lipitor ranged from 220 to 250 and diet and exercise seemed to have little impact. Since beginning Lipitor, it now ranges from 180 to 190 but I am concerned with some side effects that I have experienced. Until I started doing more research, I could not find any of these listed on any of the materials available with the drug but have found most of them listed on sites like yours or message boards about the drug. My physician has had me on a quarterly schedule for blood work since I began the Lipitor and it always comes back fine.

Specifically, the side effects or concerns that I have are listed in order of importance to me:

I am always tired. I don’t know if I would call it Chronic Fatigue. It’s not like I am falling asleep but I have no energy and my children tell me that I look tired all the time. It doesn’t seem to matter how much sleep I get, 5 hours or 10 hours, nap or no nap, I pretty much feel the same – no spark, no energy.
I can’t seem to increase my level of fitness. I mentioned that I was a runner. I tore a meniscus shortly before my heart episode and had surgery two months after the heart episode and I have been trying to get back in shape ever since. I have started a regimen of walking building up to a walk/run and can’t get past this stage. My endurance does not seem to increase and at a point that I push it, I experience pain in my knees and leg muscles that force me to start all over.
I wake up regularly about four hours after I go to sleep, which coincides with when I take the Lipitor. Often in a sweat. Sometimes with leg cramps and I have difficulty getting back to sleep.
My stool is softer than it has been historically. Color is okay and it’s not loose but soft.
During sexual activity, my penis does not get as erect as it used to. While this may be a function of age or fatigue, the timing does coincide with the start of Lipitor but since I listed this last, who knows.
I would appreciate any feedback that you could provide. Thanks in advance for your help.

PS:As I mentioned, I stopped taking Lipitor August 1 and I am happy to report that I am almost back to normal. My energy level is almost there and my fitness level is improving daily. I am sleeping through the night again. No more night sweats, leg cramps, or muscle soreness. Sex and stool are okay also. I followed Dr. Graveline's suggestions and added COQ 10, Omega 3, Folic Acid, B 6 & 12 to my daily regimen. The only downsides for me were that it took a dose of Day Pro to finally get rid of the soreness in my knees and my cholesterol is back up to 240. Guess I am going to have to work harder on my diet but that is a small price to pay for feeling normal again.
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[kimsuoil]

When I was on Vytorin I also had terrible night sweats, neck pain, back pain and ankle pain. I also quit taking statins on August 1st and guess what? All of these pains and conditions that I lived with for the past 2 years are gone. My cholesterol is back up to 250-260 and I feel great!
Low cholesterol is not worth it if you have to take these dangerous drugs!

[bunnylady]

My knees are in horrible condition- there is so much pain that several times a day I almost fall- I need Day Pro- is it OTC or prescription?

[thib]

Other than the fact that I am female I have had a similiar experience to you. I took Lipitor for about 2 years and I felt tired, I gave up running and had difficulty sleeping (waking in the middle of the night unable to get back to sleep until early am) and fitness level declined (gained about 15 lbs). I stopped the Lipitor about 2 months ago and I am sleeping, and getting back on track with exercise and weight. I can't believe the difference. My cholestrol was aroung 230 without the Lipitor. I do have a family history, but I didn't have a history. I passed a nuclear stress test with flying colors (ran the whole time without a problem before I started the Lipitor). IF the medical advice is correct about the Lipitor I am thinking I would rather have quality of life rather than quanity.

[Darrell]

At one point I checked my odds and found that I had about a 5% chance of a heart attack in the coming year (51 years old, non-smoker, slightly overweight, borderling cholesterol). With statins I could theoretically get it down to 3%. But with a statin I had severe fatigue, leg muscle pain, and leg weakness to the point of not being able to walk. And the inactivity due to exercise intolerance would probably cause obesity. I'll risk the heart attack.

[thib]

I don't know exactly what my risk is but other than the "numbers" and a family history I wouldn't have a problem. I am focusing on real food, such as butter rather than margarine, and just living healthy. I'll risk the heart attack too. Living on low fat food and watching every mouthful is not living. Don't get me wrong, my diet is loaded with fruit and veggies, whole grains, lean meat and fish, etc... I stay away from processed stuff.
I haven't felt this good in a couple of years. This is not the first time the medical establishment has sent me in, what feels like, the wrong direction!