Statins.

[Nora]

I used to be on Sinvastatin but found my neck and shoulder use to 'freeze up! (That's the only way I can describe it) so I went on to Atorvastatin and its stopped. my reading before was 7.9, now it's down to 4.5 thank goodness.

 

[LorraineJ]

I was diagnosed with MS about 2.5 years ago and the hospital decided my blood was as my GP called it a bit rich at 4.6 and put me on Simvastatin. All was well for about a fortnight and then I started throwing up after every meal, went back to my GP who stopped the Simvastatin straight away. I was not given another form of Stain but decided to do myself a favour and cut back on fried food and have also been eating walnuts which seem to actually lower your cholestrol. The MS means that I can't do a lot of exercise as its complicated enough managing to move round under my own steam. I do suffer from high BP and am managing to lower it through losing weight.

 

[IceT]

Regarding statins: I don't know if this article might be informative for any of you, but just in case here it is:
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/a...20/the-truth-about-statin-drugs-revealed.aspx

As for giving up smoking, a friend of mine gave it up just like that (after smoking for over 35 years and failing to give up on numerous occasions), by only reading this book: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0718194551/?tag=shoppingcom03-21
Can't speak from personal experience, but the friend in question is smoke free now for over a year and lots of 5 star reviews on amazon :star:

 

[LE lover]

Thanks ice t, that makes very interesting but scary reading. Certainly food for thought.

 

[Tinkerbelle]

I can't help with statins and I'm hugely grateful for my low cholesterol level. I think last time it was 3.6.

But do go and see your GP. I take a basin full of drugs every day and suffered from what I thought were side effects. Well they are listed as side effects to one of the drugs ... terrible stomach cramps and an upset stomach at the drop of a hat. And so I put up with them for longer than I ought. I now know I'm lactose intolerant (I wasn't before) and my GP thinks I may have Crohn's Disease.

 

[Flying Pigs]

My doctor has taken me off simvastatin this week for a trial period which I intend will be permanent LE. I have been incredibly thick in realising that it was this that has been causing me serious problems for the last 2 years, in spite of DH telling me that someone he worked with had been affected and did I think what was happening to me could be linked. It was my chiropractor that suggested I go back to my doctor as he did not think arthritis was causing all the muscle weakness I have been experiencing. When I saw the doctor on Wednesday and described my symptons he immediately said stop taking the pills for a trial period and get some xrays done to check it isn't arthritis. After 3 days I can do things I have been struggling with for weeks. Things can only get better! My major concern is that some people can never get their muscles back to full strength after this so I will be working really hard to get back to normal.

 

[mediastar]

I am another ex-smoker with high cholesterol (over 8 but again my triglycerides are low and my "good" cholesterol is high!). GP tried me on statins (simva) and my legs found going up stairs agony they were screaming at me! Stopped statins and stopped the leg pain. Use Benecol and benign neglect!!!! Still after the night I had, probably down to reflux as this morning one glass of OJ on an empty stomach had me doubled over in pain, the other night when my normally low heartbeat and BP spiralled to way beyond what I am used to (being normally around 101 up to 120 over 60 up to 80 and a resting heartbeat of around 60 to 70 and the highest reading that night was 170 over 105 and then it was unequal in each arm by quite a margin, and my brother developed cardiomyopathy around 10 years ago when he was my age, I guess it is time I toddled by the GP and had another ECG (I had to have one as the kind of myopathy he developed is hereditary, but at that stage my heart was fine) and some blood tests. I just feel much too young to be permanently medicated, I want to enjoy life not suffer all sorts of side effects. And by the way, giving up smoking was no breeze, but I set a date and stuck to it. I think I must have the lungs of a child (my asthma has virtually ceased to affect me since the smoking ban and since I gave it up). I was one of those awful people who smoked as the last and first thing they did every day and crammed in as many as possible in between, so if I can do it, so can you, promise. My trick was to remember my Dad had crap lungs, lousy circulation (lucky not to have lost a leg or both), varicose ulcers and intermittant claudication that had him crying like a whipped pup night after night AND he lost his eyesight to AMD (more prevalent in smokers apparently), I simply didn't want to feel like that for the rest of my days.

 

[Pick-a-Lily]

This is a very interesting book, written by a Scottish GP: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1844546101/?tag=shoppingcom03-21
He suggests there is no evidence to support the use of statins for women, and that STRESS is the main cause of heart attacks.