Husband suffering from Vytorin side efects

[izzy007]

My husband has been on Vytorin for almost 3 years. He was on Lipitor before that. The Lipitor caused some problems, with the most noticeable being that he couldn't drink the slightest bit of alcohol without turning into an aggressive, angry lunatic. He was switched to Vytorin in 12/2004.

Since that time, I have seen immense changes in his personality. We have been married for almost 22 years and I have seen behavior in him that I never would have dreamed possible. Mood swings, irrational thoughts and behavior, extreme irritability, and just not his usual happy go lucky self. He has extreme insomnia, extreme fatigue, depression, ringing in the ears, sleep apnea, muscle loss (even though he works out), never feels good, and suffers from memory loss. He must record conference calls to remember what is said. He has no recall of conversations we had 10 minutes earlier. He does remember it later- sometimes.

Also, he has again, been having the reaction to the alcohol. After 2 glasses of wine, he became very aggressive and irritated because I looked at the page he was reading in his book. Completely irrational about "why I would care what page he was on". This behavior is so frightening to me. And so out of character that it shakes me to the core. He cannot be reasoned with in the least.

He stopped the Vytorin 5 days ago. It is too soon to see a difference, of course. But, I am hopeful that he will begin to experience a reduction in symptoms. He has been talking the COQ10 and fish oil for the duration of the Vytorin use.

Can someone please offer any help on what else I can do? I am going to read every post available! I am so worried and desperate to help him.

Thanks

[Darrell]

I hope he is taking a therapeutic dose of Q10 and not the meager dose sold for routine daily supplementation. It should be something more like 600 mg per day (in divided doses) rather than 60 mg per day.

[Darrell]

You might consider some acetyl L-carnitine too. The acetyl form crosses the blood-brain barrier. You might try 500 mg or so per day for a couple of days and then gradually raise it. I take about 1,500 mg per day of the acetyl form and 1,500 mg per day of the propionyl L-carnitine form (in divided doses), but I take those for leg muscle problems.

Once again we see that depriving a body of the cholesterol and the Q10 that are used by every cell is a ticket to disaster. And the statin reduced the man's heart attack risk from what to what? Four percent to three percent? (A 25% reduction of risk. Ha, ha.) Maybe?

[izzy007]

Thanks for your reply, Darrell. I will pick up the acetyl L-carnitine today and add that to his regimen.

I wanted to add that he also takes two 81 mg. aspirin, 1700mg. fish oil with 880mg omega-3, 400 I.U. Vitamin E, Centrum Performance vitamin/mineral , and then the Q10, of which he was taking 300 mg. We will boost the Q10.

He also takes Roserum to help him sleep, as the Ambien was not keeping him asleep. All these things, topped off with a 10/40 Vytorin. Every night before bed.

He was in another sleep lab last evening hooked up to the oxygen mask, but says he doesn't feel as rested as they said he would.

This is day 6 off the Vytorin and he seems in good spirits today. He has also agreed to stop drinking his usual 2 glasses of wine in the evening for a few weeks to see if we get improvement in the mood swings with the Vytorin leaving his system.

I read on the forum about the aspirin/statin causing the ringing in the ears, so he will stop the aspirin use, as well. His excessive use of Advil will hopefully go down, as well, if his aches and pains improve off the Vytorin.

This website and forum has given me so much hope...it's truly a godsend.

[adec]

Hi izzy007 and welcome to the forum. I hope you continue to read, post, and share your statin recovery story with us. Many of your husband's symptoms are indeed recognized, inside and outside this forum, as side effects of statin poisoning. It seems especially men can manifest aggressive behavioral changes and an intolerance to alcohol. In fact, the details of your husband's story are almost identical to one shared earlier this year.

......."He was given Vytorin. Well,.................. This past weekend I watched in total horror as something VERY STRANGE happen to him. My husband is a very calm, easy going type of man. I watched this past weekend as my husband became SOMEONE ELSE.... THAT WAS NOT MY HUSBAND!! I am totally blaming the Vytorin now that I have been to this website and have read the comments. I watched in horror as this man sadly turned on me for no apparent reason in a fit of rage while driving!! He said horrible things to me and has NO MEMORY of it when we FINALLY were able to TALK!!!!! I have noticed other memory loss issues in him when he used to have the BEST memory for a human being. This man could remember things, people and conversations that happened 15 years ago before we were married as friends. Now.... Now he suddenly forgets conversations, names of people he has worked with for 26 years mid sentence. Has no energy, complains of being tired all the time but CANNOT sleep like he used to. He lately gets slightly aggressive to me and he NEVER used to do that. He seems depressed and almost like he is someone else or somewhere else at times. He has mentioned that he cannot remember to do simple tasks suddenly at work and then "boom"... It returns! He has complained of sore muscles and tendons. He appears to be loosing muscle mass to me in his arms. He never used to have these issues before Vytorin 10/40. We are very close as a newly married couple and practically still newlyweds. However, there are some mentioned other issues I won't talk about too. My husband is an intelligent man with outstanding training in his career field. I fear for his well being now....."

Perhaps you reading Degirl's account -- unfolding eventually toward a happy resolution -- might help somewhat. It was titled "Vytorin 10/40 - Is it taking my husband away from me???"

http://www.spacedoc.net/board/viewtopic ... highlight=


I would definitely second the recommendation of CoQ10 and acetyl L-carnitine as the foundation of your husband's recovery. CoQ10 is a naturally-occurring enzyme found in every cell of the human body, and is responsible for mitochondrial energy formation. Statins such as Vytorin have been well-established to rapidly deplete CoQ10. As well, alpha lipoic acid would help mop up free radicals caused by such a regimen. You can find a complete formula at Vitacost for a very reasonable price. If you decide to make this purchase be sure to administer the supplement with an oil (olive, canola, peanut, vegetable, fish etc.) to assist with its full bioavailability and absorption.

*http://www.vitacost.com/NSI-CoQ10-Alpha-Lipoic-Acid-Acetyl-L-Carnitine-HCl

As a sleeping aid, I would recommend a natural remedy that is so much more beneficial, safe, and effective. Melatonin is a naturally occurring sleep hormone produced in the pineal gland. 5-HTP is produced by our bodies from the amino-acid L-tryptophan, and is a precursor to serotonin. Serotonin is responsible for helping to regulate deep sleep states, and pain levels. I would suggest 3mg daily of melatonin before bedtime, preferably a slow release formula. And 25-100mg of 5-HTP taken sometime during the day, depending on your husband's tolerance. What a travesty that a doctor wouldn't at least suggest these two over prescription medications.

Otherwise, probably the best compendium of statin side-effect information on the Internet can be found at this very site.
http://spacedoc.net/

Any further questions, feel free to ask. And good luck.

[Linda W]

Oh My God! I just found this forum after trying to research bad reactions to Vytorin. In the first post I read I see my same story. My husband is 54 and was first put on Vytorin about 3 years ago. Shortly after that when visiting his mother he flew into a rage when she (after a few drinks) criticized him for something. She was totally out of line but he yelled and screamed and ranted on and on for a couple hours then was threatening suicide. I started looking into Vytorin side effects and expressed some concerns. After that and he stopped taking it. A year ago he was suffering from heart palpitations during a stressful time at work. After a trip to the emergency room revealed very high blood pressure and subsequent testing showed elevated cholesterol levels he started back on Vytorin and was put on an additional BP med. He also went to a Wellness program and started a healthy diet and serious exercise program. He has lost 40 lbs in the past 9 months and now weighs 185. His cholesterol dropped dramatically and he was able to quit the additional BP med. After the first 15 to 20 lb loss he began being affected by alcohol much more than in all the years I have known him. He also started showing extreme possessiveness and jealousy about that time which was two months into the weight loss, cholesterol reduction program. In the past couple of months things have gotten worse. In August he ended up in jail for assaulting me after a really nice evening out while on vacation. He seemed fine when we left the restaurant but on the way back he couldn't figure out where he was and became enraged when I offered to drive. It was only about a mile drive. It was like a panic attack over missing a turn. When we got back to where we were staying he started throwing me around and hitting me. I called the police and they hauled him off. He was horrified by his behavior and has tried to cut back on drinking since. He seems very depressed now and has trouble sleeping and weird recurrent nightmares. He also seems to have extreme anxiety. He has also had the short memory blackout I have read about. I started looking into the effects of the meds he is on again and it comes back to the Vytorin just like I suspected 3 years ago. If you combine the cholesterol lowering effects of increased exercise, reduced fatty foods, significant weight loss and statins it seems like there is some point where too little cholesterol is as bad, or worse than too much. Similarly if you combine weight loss with a drug that harms the liver it would explain the change in alcohol tolerance. I shared my concerns with him yesterday and he skipped the Vytorin yesterday. He actually slept well last night for the first time in weeks. Thank you for sharing your stories. It gives me hope he will turn back into himself soon. I will look into some of the supplements you suggested to izzy007.

[izzy007]

Hi Linda,

You have to wonder how many stories of these similar circumstances are out there! It's a truly horrible, life altering effect that these statins are having on the human body. I feel so terrible that you, too, have to deal with the same issues I am...the frustration and pain is beyond words. I was beginning to fear that my husband had schizophrenia or was in the early stages of Alzheimer's. It's so incredibly frightening to look into their eyes and not see them anymore. You start to question your own sanity!

My husband had no recollection of the conversation we had in which he promised to stop drinking until the Vytorin was out of his system. None! He is still very argumentative and very easily provoked after a week off the Vytorin. I have to be very cautious with my words and feel like I am walking on eggshells most of the time. This is no way to live. For either of us. It is a complete travesty that these drugs are still being prescribed to people who trust that their doctors are doing what is right for their health.

I hope you will continue to post your husband's progress. I will. People need to know! I am so full of gratitude for the men and women who have posted their stories on this board. Without finding this, I don't know what I would have done. Probably would have been headed to divorce court. Seriously. I couldn't take it anymore. I know now that he was not himself because of the drug. He was/ is broken. Hopefully, he can regain his former self. I'm not giving up on him.

Does anyone know how long it takes to purge the Vytorin from your system? I would imagine it might vary, but ballpark anyone??? My husband has also lost about 15 lbs. in the last few months and the problems have gotten much worse since the weight loss.

Keep the faith...we'll get our husbands back.

[izzy007]

Thanks for all the valuable info, adec. I so appreciate the time you put into your post! We had tried melatonin in the past, but will give the 5-HTP a try. Will have to see if there is any interaction with the Rozerem. I'd really love to get him sleeping regularly again and off ALL the meds.

[bucho]

By all means STOP the STATIN. His behavioral problems are due to the statin. The amplification of these problems by alcohol is very common. All these statin problems are compounded by exercise. I can vouch for this by personal experience, as well as many similar stories found on this site.

I too continued to work out during my statin years, and I too experienced muscle loss and countless muscle injuries despite a careful exercise regimen. I cannot emphasize enough that exercise seems to compound all the aspects of statin damage. I experienced horrific physical, mental, and psychological problems while on Zocor, with severe episodes triggered by exercise sessions. Also insomnia to this day.

It will take months for his personality to recover. But you should see improvement within one month. It appears that personality recovery is faster than recovery of other aspects (such as memory, chronic pain / neuropathy, etc.).

Wishing you the best -- hang in there.

[Linda W]

Izzy007,

It is interesting that you thought about dementia or schizophrenia because I remember staring at his blank expression when he thought he was lost before the tirade began and thinking this could be the beginning of Alzheimers too. Your husband's weight loss is another interesting factor. The more my hubby has lost the worse the symptoms have been, particularly the alcohol reaction and the wierd vivid dreams that keep him awake. He has had sore muscles but I thought that was just the workout routine with a personal trainer. One night last week when he went out to use the hot tub in the back yard he didn't come back inside for a while so I went to check on him and found him asleep in a lounge chair which he has never done before. The next morning I mentioned it and he didn't remember falling asleep outside or my waking him up. He has had other small memory lapses too. It seems doctors should monitor patients for overdoses of meds after weight loss, ecercise and eating habit changes.

[izzy007]

It is very interesting about the weight loss...my husband was increased to the 10/40 in May. The weight loss has occurred in the last few months and he has been so much worse!

He still doesn't feel any better, but is stressed with end of quarter business right now, so hard to tell. We are getting results from our endocrinologist today, so it will be interesting to see what he found.

He started the additional supplements last evening.

Bucho- I am wondering what your "severe episodes" are after the exercise. I'll read all your posts to learn more. My husband injured his hamstring while just walking on the treadmill...it was black and blue all the way from his butt to past his knee. It was bizarre. He treadmills 4 miles everyday. There have been times when he's had to stop due to extreme muscle pain and just plain being too tired, but the hamstring incident was something we never could explain until now.

[izzy007]

We heard from our endocrinologist today. All tests normal, except he was was severely deficient in Vit. D.

Ruled out adrenal problems, thyroid problems, testosterone deficiency, other hormone imbalances, etc., etc., etc. Liver enzymes fine.

So, now at least those have been ruled out. We had these tests run before the Vytorin lightbulb went on, as I just knew something was horribly wrong with him. I asked our doc if all his symptoms could be from the Vytorin while we were in his office. He wanted to see all the test results before he commented. We see him next week and will see where or if he wants to proceed with any further testing.

I have seen this time and time again on this board.....all test results show nothing wrong, but EVERYTHING IS TERRIBLY WRONG.

Day 8 and he says he feels good today. : ) Haven't heard that in awhile. : )

[bucho]

izzy007,
My most severe post exercise episodes landed me in the ER twice. In both cases, about 1 week apart, I awoke at around 4 AM with bradychardia, which means an unnaturally low heart rate. In both cases I had engaged in a strenuous early-afternoon workout. I awoke in bed with my heart missing every-other beat, which would put it at around 35 bpm. The slow heartbeats were also violently strong. My vision was blacking out and I could barely stay conscious. My wife and I thought it was a heart attack. The struggle for consciousness continued for about 30 minutes in each case, after which I ended up with racing heart, very high blood pressure lasting for hours, severe body tremors and legs jerking for about an hour.

In the weeks leading up to this I continually felt like I had an overload of adrenaline. I would lie awake each night until about 3 AM, mind racing on trivia, plagued by "ear-worms" (silly tunes going incessantly in the mind). I too had a low flash-point, depression (felt "trapped in a bell-jar"), chronic ringing ears, and newly developed sleep apnea.

18 months after quitting the statin the low flash point is pretty much gone (as my wife will attest), and generally life feels good again. But even 10 months after stopping I would still experience extreme fatigue for 2 days after a workout, as well as post-exercise nocturia (frequent, unproductive urination at night, depriving sleep). Those problems seem to have ended in the last 6 months as well.

I have coined a "tree ring theory" that postulates that a large increment of recovery occurs when you achieve a full year off the statin. Perhaps the body has a seasonal cell replacement process, similar to trees producing a new tree-ring of growth each year. But just when I had about given up on recovering from some of the long-term statin damage symptoms, things started to get remarkably better at my one-year anniversary.

You made one of the most eloquent statements I've ever heard regarding statins, when you said, "all test results show nothing wrong, but EVERYTHING IS TERRIBLY WRONG." Very well said. Not everybody experiences complete recovery, but one of the healers is TIME.

[Linda W]

I went to the Dr today with my husband to tell Doc of problems. Of course he had never heard of such side effects as I have seen but thought in light of the 40 lb weight loss and new exercise& eating habits my husband should quit both the Vytorin and the BP meds for a while to check his levels without help. I am quite relieved. Hubby does not seem to fully grasp the whole thing which is probably why these really bad reactions are not reported fully. I have suffered from depression years ago and when your mind isn't fully functioning you don't realize what is happening to you to properly report it. I have seen many posts by spouses and children of affected patients and posts from affected patients only after some level of recovery. We are now 3 days without Vytorin and he is sleeping better without bizarro dreams. Depression seems to be lifting a little. He doesn't want me to tell anyone about the problem with side effects. While in the Dr office I had to repeat some things to hubby 3 times because he kept forgetting what I had just told him. Don't know if Doc picked up on it. I figure the doc will file my concerns about Vytorin in the back of his mind until the next patient expresses concern some day and eventually a few years from now he will connect the dots.

I will let you know how it is going. Based on DEGirl's posts I am figuring 2 months for recovery from mind effects.

[Linda W]

I saw an example today of the statin hangover, day 6 off Vytorin. We are going out of town this weekend and hubby asked if I had reserved a car. I gave him the printout of the reservation with confirmation number a few weeks ago so he must have forgotten or lost it. While looking it up to reprint he was standing over my shoulder and was upset that I had booked a "Sports Utility Vehicle" because he didn't know what that was. He got mad and said I should have let his travel agent reserve the car. I explained we would probably get a car like his friend Tom drives. After a few minutes he said is that like an "SUV"? He initially wasn't making the connection that SUV is short for Sports Utility Vehicle. To me it seems like he is traveling backwards in the stages he was in during the summer, short fuse and saying I wasn't making sense. It is apparent that for someone not to connect Sports Utility Vehicle to SUV there are probably many things every day that don't make sense to him. He asked yesterday how long feeling depressed might last. He said he was feeling better one minute then felt really depressed for 30 minutes then better again. This is a big improvement over the depression level last week. What suppliments might help the brain function better and the mood improve?

[izzy007]

Linda,

I don't know how to advise you on the supplements, but I wanted to encourage you to hang in there with this. Around day 6, my husband was still depressed and anxious and the memory problems were still bizarre.

We are now at day 12 and things are improving. His fatigue has improved dramatically and the mood swings and aggressive behavior are much improved as well. He drank over the weekend with no outbursts or mean behavior at all. It was amazing.

He's changing right before my eyes and I am so relieved. Everyday is better. He 's more animated and bright eyed than I have seen in a long time. I am so hopeful.

He has some severe muscle pain, but did exercise more strenuously this weekend due to having more energy.

Tell your husband to hang in there...it will get better! You are only a week behind us.

[cjbrooksjc]

Linda: Ck with your Dr. & see if he would recommend a 're-uptake inhibitor'. When a person is depressed the synapses don't fire as they should because the chemical elements required to carry impulses between nerve endings are being "vacuumed" up too completely or are too sparse to carry the impulses across the span. Inhibitors prevent or lessen this vacuuming so there is more chemical available to carry the messages.

Regards,

Brooks

[Brian C.]

May I recommend L-tryptophan, which replaced the Prozac my wife was on for several years? 500mg per 50lbs body weight at suppertime. The purest comes from Lidtke Technologies Corp of Phoenix, AZ, which they sell direct through

*www.lidtke.com

It is a natural amino acid with no downside.

Brian

[adec]

I'm all about finding a single therapeutic solution at the source to address a multitude of issues. Certainly either amino acid: L-tryptophan or 5-HTP in concert with melatonin fits this bill perfectly for depression and sleep disorders.

Melatonin is produced in the pineal gland from tryptophan. Large amounts of tryptophan are further broken down into 5-HTP in the human body. Some people respond better to 5-HTP due to its immediate ability to cross the blood-brain barrier. Either one will help elevate serotonin levels in the brain, which in turn influences mood and sleep states. For best effectiveness, they should be taken on an empty stomach.

For increased cognitive function, both phosphatidyl serine and phosphatidyl choline or lecithin -- or even better yet Alpha-GPC -- have the greatest potential to make a dramatic difference. These substances should form the core of any cognitive statin recovery program.

With its ability to activate Protein kinase C, phosphatidylserine can greatly improve memory and neural function as well as protect against cell deterioration. Phosphatidyl serine is found naturally in leafy vegetables and soybeans.

Phosphatidyl choline, also found in soybeans and leafy green vegetables, is a precursor to acetylcholine. Acetylcholine is an important chemical transmitter in the both the peripheral and central nervous system. In fact, a shortage of acetylcholine has been very strongly associated with Alzheimer's disease. While alpha-glycerylphosphorylcholine or Alpha-GPC is a more expensive, but far more bioavailable form of acetyl choline, and has the enhanced ability to increase HGH levels... well worth the expense.

Administered in the proper doses, all of these supplements are not only extremely safe, but profound in their effectiveness. I would recommend them to anyone over forty, even those not suffering statin damage.

[izzy007]

We met with my husband's doctor today to get the results of the sleep lab and let him know that he had discontinued the Vytorin. To my complete surprise, the doctor was completely in agreement as to stopping it! I was geared up for a fight and was really relieved that he was so agreeable. He started listing the side effects before we even had a chance to. He even suggested all the supplements that my husband is already taking.

He wants to take levels in 6 months and see where we are.

We are one of the lucky ones who have a doctor who seems to be in the know about the side effects and other options available.