Hello

[Manda55]

Hi I have been on statins on and of since my late 20's now 55, as have familial high cholesterol. Always suffered with side effects. 6 months ago my total cholesterol was 12. Told I must take statin as my risk of CHD is very high. So now on 40mg atorvastin and in so much pain and discomfort with joint pain, muzzy head not sleeping properly, irritable legs list goes on.i (try) run regularly. I've now decided to stop them for a month and see how I feel. Scared tho as I know levels will go up again, but I feel like an old crotch and really fed up with this quality of life.....

[olfella]

Sounds like sore muscles that can be associated with that statin. Talk to your doc to change to a different type or try using Q10. I get relief using it but my symptoms do not seem to be as severe as yours.

[Sandy267 in reply to olfella]

I have that and it is no better than statins with me

[Mascha1900]

This is part of a very long reply I wrote a few days ago to someone else’s post here on HealthUnlocked: what it comes down to is that you should not see cholesterol as the enemy and that you shouldn’t be taking statins!

Here is a quote from my response:

‘ ...... Heart disease is not caused by high cholesterol. (....) The whole ‘cholesterol thing’ was started in the fifties by a scientist called Ancel Keys, who wrote an article called the Seven Countries Study, in which he ‘proved’ that high cholesterol and heart disease are related. However, in this study he conveniently left out France, where cholesterol levels are on average very high, but heart disease rates are low. So the whole premise that heart disease and cholesterol are related was built on bad science (....) However, by that time politics and industry had picked this up, and the financial interests had become too great to let go of this ‘science’. And the rest is history!

So: cholesterol is not the enemy!! There are indications that the actual cause of heart disease is quite different and that it may have something to do with certain bacteria that infect the cardiovascular wall. What is certain is that heart disease is caused by inflammation rather than high cholesterol. There is also plenty of research that shows that people with high cholesterol actually live longer - especially in the elderly high cholesterol is a marker of good health.

If cholesterol is consistently very high, there may be a reason for this, but even then lowering cholesterol is not the answer; that would be like getting rid of the firemen when there is a fire!

And regarding statins: statins are actually a mycotoxin, which means ‘poisonous mushroom’ or fungus. What they do is block the production of certain nutrients produced by the liver, at an early stage. This means that not just the production of cholesterol is blocked but also, among others, the production of an enzyme called CoQ10 which is essential to your muscles and also the heart. That is why so many people on statins experience muscle problems.’

Hope this helps!

[Dluscombe]

Thank you to this forum. I was able to reduce my cholesterol dramatically by diet and exercise changes. My cardiologist didn’t believe I could do it but I proved him wrong! I would rather die then take statins due to muscle ache. My new doctor believes all of the above and says forget about the numbers!

[Sandy267]

I refuse to take statins again and for 4 months now have had very little pain and muscle cramps as that is the side effects of those terrrible meds. I tookm two months off those tablets to stop those terrible side effects

[sos007 Ambassador]

Medications are band aid solutions - they don't resolve the underlying problem. You can feel better and enjoy better health, but it requires you to make dramatic, permanent change to your diet and lifestyle.

I'm currently 56 and had a triple bypass in March 2015. The bypass failed and I required 4 stents within 2 months of that. I was given a cocktail of drugs to take for the rest of my life among which included statins - Crestor - the most powerful of statins. Within 9 months I was a wreck suffering from anxiety and extreme pain in my left shoulder in the rotator cuff which had become immobilized.

After reading about all of the side effects of the drugs I decided it was time to do things naturally. In January of 2016 I became a vegetarian - I still had dairy though and had fish for 2 meals per week. While I had begun walking daily, I increased my daily step requirement from 10,000 to 15,000 (about 60 minutes per day) along with a new commitment to go to the gym and work with weights.

I committed to doing this daily.

By October of 2016, I had lost 40 lbs and achieved my body's natural weight which turned out to be 155 lbs. - I'm 5'10" tall or 178 cm.

As I lost weight my need for blood pressure medication ended and I gradually reduced my dosages of the beta-blocker - Metoprolol, as well as the statin - Crestor. By the end of October, I had stopped taking all prescription medications.

I have since been monitoring my blood work 3-4 times per year and continue to follow what is essentially the Mediterranean Diet - whole foods, plant based. I continue to exercise.

I will be posting my next set of blood work in the next week or so on this forum for all to see.

Below is a link to all of my previous posts on this forum. I suggest you scan through them and read the ones that appeal to you. I would encourage you to eventually read all of them.

healthunlocked.com/user/sos007

I have accomplished what everyone on this forum seeks to accomplish - normal cholesterol levels, no pain, and great health.

Time to get started.

Good luck.