I have been searching the internet for side-effects of Cholesterol medications. I have changed several times, but still get swollen watery eyes, my face seems to have gotten puffy, and I have aches and pains, and lethargy.

My doctor seems sympathetic, but also getting a bit tired of me complaining all the time - he just throws his hands in the air and looks frustrated - and scares me by saying if I don`t take the meds I could have a stroke/heart attack and THEN I`ll have a bigger problem.

Anyone here on these types of meds? And do you also have side-effects that are unpleasant?

Is this worth it? I used to feel 100% healthy. All I went to him for was a swollen finger .... and got diagnosed with High Blood pressure and Cholesterol .... and now I`m no longer feeling healthy!

I have read that it is perfectly normal for one to develop more cholesterol as one ages, that it is a normal progression of life, to protect against other failings of the body .... And WHO says EVERYONE must have the same Blood Pressure readings?

Yes yes ... I am going to consult him again in a few days, I just would like some general opinions on this subject.

Thanks.

Firstly, if you are this dissatisfied with your doctor, seek a second opinion. I often find that if you don't have trust in what you're being told, or even just feel comfortable with your primary care giver, it affects how healthy you feel and how you heal.

Secondly, how high is your bad cholesterol? Have you sought out alternative methods to try and bring it down? A complete diet overhaul is not always necessary depending on your levels, but adding certain foods, and taking some others away can have a big impact on your numbers. Also, omega 3&6 have been shown to help balance out good/bad cholesterol levels. (Think pecans, walnuts, almonds or fish oil supplements if you don't like nuts.)

What I would NOT recommend is to just go and take yourself off of the medication. Some prescription medications need to be gradually reduced to avoid bad reactions in the body.

Good luck, and feel better.

appears not to be routinely recommended unless you fall into certain subgroups........

Use with statins

• Administration of HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors ('statins') has been associated with a reduction in CoQ10 levels (due to inhibition of mevalonate synthesis).5,6
• The myopathy associated with statins is poorly understood.7,8,9 There has been speculation that this reduction in CoQ10 may be associated with statin-induced myopathy.10 However, the reduction may just reflect reduction in the lipoprotein carriers of CoQ10 and may not be statin specific.11
• There are mixed reports on the benefits of CoQ10 in helping statin-associated myalgia.12,13
• The reduction of CoQ10 is corrected by supplementation and does not affect the cholesterol-lowering effect of simvastatin.14
• There are studies to support supplementation with CoQ10 in patients on statins.15,16 However, supplementation if used should not divert from routine monitoring and use of lowest effective dose of statin.17,18
• A recent review of the literature did not recommend routine CoQ10 supplementation but suggested that certain subpopulations might benefit:
  • Patients with familial hypercholesterolaemia
  • Patients with heart failure
  • Patients over 65 years19
• Other reviews highlight the lack of evidence to support routine CoQ10 supplementation even though there are few safety concerns with such supplementation.20 More research is needed to support such a recommendation.
• One of the limitations with some studies is that they measure plasma CoQ10 rather than tissue levels.21
• There are lots of studies indicating that the clinical benefits of statins outweigh the low rates of adverse effects.22

are you sure your symptoms are related to your cholesterol lowering medication and not your blood pressure medication as these too can have some weird and wonderful side effects

I've been on statins for some time and so has my OH - we do not have high cholesterol, but just borderline, and it is best to keep as low as poss due to other conditions. Not suffered any side effects that we are aware off- but even if I did, I would still take them for the reasons given by your doctor. One of our good friends in the UK had a stroke and the other a massive and fatal heart attack - both slim and with good diet/lifestyles- as they refused statins due to reading about side effect on the Internet. Both wives are now riddled with guilt that they had discouraged them from taking them due to Internet info.

Gosh, what a tragic example of paying too much attention to the internet.

It's true what they say about a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.

Smoky, I take statins as although I have a low cholesterol reading I have had angioplasty due to blocked arteries so it is important that I continue.
However it might be the medication that you are on. I was taking one and felt really not myself but of course continued as I was told to do. I mentioned at a check up how rough I was feeling and they changed my statin to another one and I felt like a new person.
Have you changed yours at all?

I stopped smoking 12 months ago and my cholesterol dropped from 6.4 (borderline needing statins) to 5.2 (still a bit high but so much better). Hadn't appreciated the negative impact nicotine was having on my cholesterol as well as everything else....

Smokey, may I suggest that you consult a cardiologist in order that your problem - if indeed there is one - can be correctly diagnosed and treated.

Aah wow ..... thank you all SO much for taking the time to reply to my voice in the wildnerness. You have each given me some good advice.

Yes, I have changed them a few times ... both the B/P and the Cholesterol ........ hence Herr Doctor throwing his arms in the air! I get the feeling he wants to cry when he sees me walk in.

Ja, I will go have a good chat with him - and ask about seeing a Cardiologist.

Yes, I did try some alternative "natural" type remedies ..... didn`t make any difference to the readings.

Funny thing is, I always was told it is dangerous to go off these meds, yet a couple months ago doctor advised staying off for a month and then checking again ...... I felt FINE (back to my normal self)... but all the readings were sky high!

Thanks again for taking the time to reply.

If you are a bit open to looking at other "alternatives" other than drugs you might want to read the book "The Divided Mind, The Epidemic of Mindbody Disorders" by John E. Sarno, M.D.

It is a bit of a slog at the beginning but you might just see yourself in the pages. Cost of the book delivered is only CHF 15.

Link: http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/Divi.../9780061174308

I take a very low dose of statin. I also take fish oil. My cholesterol is quite good on the statin, and I've not had any side effects. One of the drugs that I take to prevent a recurrence of breast cancer can cause an increase of cholesterol, so that's why I'm on it. Since I'm wiping out as much estrogen as I can in my body, cardiovascular stuff could be an issue. I also eat fairly low carbohydrate and lots of omega 3 oils, which I think helps. But that's for me.

I'm very careful to monitor statin use though because my father had one of those rare reactions to statins where he had some acute and serious muscle weakness.

But so far so good.


The other thing is, that if you feel like crap on the meds, you won't stay on them. They really need to address your side effects. High blood pressure is serious stuff, but you shouldn't feel like crp on the meds.

Personally, I'd go consult another Dr...

My mother had high cholesterol 5years before she passed away. 4 years later, she became ill, with the flu, and the doctor picked up a murmur, which was later discovered that her arteries were clogged.
I know that she DID NOT watch her diet, DID NOT exercise alot, MOST IMPORTANTLY DID NOT TAKE HER MEDS REGULARLY.
Especially the meds she received the last year of her life, because they made her feel ill. And without them she felt fine, healthy.
All I can say is that she was fine and healthy right until the day of her passing away. But then again, what is more important, one's quality of life or how long can you live. For my Mom it was the quality, she hated being ill. I hate the fact that she is no longer a part of our lives

Well, Pather, that is exactly my issue. I would rather enjoy good quality of life for a shorter time, than feel, and look, up to kwap until I`m slobbering in a wheelchair in some old age home!

This doctor guy - family doctor - I would feel realy bad to go consult another doctor, as we only have 2 in our village .... if you don`t go to the one, you go to the other. But he does seem to confuse himself with my history .... mistakes the in-law allergy prone family as my own blood line, and because most of my own family is dead - well their hearts DID stop beating ...... this is cause to make sure my heart does not stop

I realy need to go see him ...... but can`t get up the courage to go eyeball him! Unfortunately I seem to be one of those awful people whom the doctor begins adressing as "doctor" because I question everything.

Edot .... thank you for your input. (Gee it is realy nice to have some "conversation" here ...... I`ve no-one else to talk to about this touchy subject, so I appreciate all the various thoughtful inputs).

What you say, yes, I do realise that every medical pill one puts in one`s body for one thing, affects something else.

I have had muscle aches, pains , cramps,and weakness since this medication, and have turned into a lethargic person. Every week I get a new pain in another area! I absolutely hate the thought of messing up my system with these chemicals, and on the other hand hearing the scare-stories of a stroke. Dead is okay, half dead is scary stuff!

Has been going on for 3 years. I need to convince myself of something ...... I just don`t know quite what - yet! Guess I just need to get up enough courage to go battle it out with Herr Doktor.

OK. In that case go and see a cardiologist. Your family doctor is a GP - if he feels upset tough luck. Would you go to a fishmonger buy beef*?

*Sorry, I realise that this is CH an nobody can afford to buy beef, but you know what I mean...

Yeah, I know what you mean. Believe me, I've had absolute sh1tloads of crap pumped into me, but I've been lucky...no really awful side effects.

You can feel tired, etc...for example, some people experience tiredness when their heart rate drops on certain blood pressure, cardiac meds.

Also, if going from a perception of healthy to unhealthy upsets you, then could you be a little depressed? Make sure you get enough exercise, vitamin d, light, omega 3 (obvious non pharma options). Are you anemic? This can happen as we age too.

I think medicine is half art, half science. If you can't work with your doctor, then you need a new one. You're not going to comply with the treatment anyway if it makes you so unhappy. And there is nothing wrong with complaining till it gets right, but also pay attention to your mood state since that impacts everything. Side effects are real, but if you're worn down by them, then they make you miserable and can make you depressed - a vicious cycle.

I agree with Carlos, too. Maybe your GP doesn't have the breadth of knowledge required. Also, women have every bit as much cardiac disease as men, it manifests differently though and a specialist might need to work out a plan for you and maybe explain the risks, etc better.

Eta:
I missed your post about the dude screwing up family histories, etc. You totally need a new doc. See a cardio or an internal medicine doc, preferably with cardio interests. Do you have a good Frauenarzt? He/she might be able to refer you on, too.

I was first diagnosed with high cholesterol at the age of 14. FOURTEEN!!!! And this was back in the 80s when it was cool to do the low-chol diet with the oat bran and the low-fat, low-chol, no-butter, dry- as-shit-in-a-desert blah blah blah nonsense. My doc said I was too young to go on meds (like everyone else in my family -- so you know it's hereditary) and that the diet was the only option.

I tried the diet, and after about a week I told my mom "f*** that". And yes. Those were my exact words. I was such a chav.

Well... one thing led to another and eventually adulthood came about and I found a doctor who had the audacity... THE AUDACITY!!!! ...to put me on a statin. I don't remember the name of that first drug but eventually I ended up on Lipitor.

Long story short... after so many years of taking these drugs, my liver has started to show signs of problems, which has just now been discovered here in Switzerland. I don't know yet if it's caused by taking statins or if it's caused by something else. But I don't have Hepatitis and I'm not an alcoholic so... that rules those things out. Regardless, my doctor has ordered me to stop taking statins until she can figure out what is going on. In the meantime...

"f*** it" I'm eating fondue.

Keiny, I think you got a lot of mileage outta that fondue pic lately

I certainly would get a 2nd and 3rd opinion from different doctors before putting up with a doctor's emotions. It's your body. I don't abide to obedience regarding health matters.

Hahaaa, ....... thanks for the witty post, I had my smile for today!

Ja, I just have no faith in doctors for dealing with the inner workings of the body - I only ever consulted them for sewing up torn flesh or putting together broken bones. A village Shaman would come in more handy, for me, for dealing with mysterious things.

A Naturopath friend of mine in SA told me it is normal to have increased cholesterol as one ages, that it assists in protecting one from Alzeimers disease, plus other things the body needs in aging, and therefore one`s blood pressure increases over time too. That it is all a "natural progress".

Now ...... I wonder at the sheer volume of aged who are developing Alzeimers....? And they all take their pills! Is, perhaps, humanity one big experiment for Pharmaceuticals?