This is the second in a series of personal experiences from taking statins submitted by readers.
My statin nightmare began in Aug. 2001.
On the advice of my Endo (Endocrinologist) that I was seeing for Type 2 diabetes, I began statin therapy. I was 43 at that time. My cholesterol was about 226.
I was told that statins were very safe, and that routine blood tests would monitor for any “rare” complications affecting the liver or muscles, and that IF any abnormality showed up, I would simply discontinue the statin and be back to normal.
At this time I had a very busy, physically active life. I had always done hard, heavy work and was considered quite strong for a woman. Even with Fibromyalgia and Diabetes, I continued to work around the farm, doing all the chores, including carrying hay bales and 50# feed bags, for example.
Initially I was prescribed Baycol which I took for about 10 days. Then Baycol was recalled from the market and I was switched to Pravachol. By late Oct. 2001, I was having swelling in the lower legs/feet. My legs from my knees to ankles turned bright red. Suddenly, I could not walk far without becoming exhausted and needing to rest. My legs felt like I was dragging huge cannon balls.
At the very same time, in Oct. 2001, I began passing out because of EDS (Excessive Daytime Sleepiness), due to severe sleep apnea that was not diagnosed until Nov, 2002.
In May 2003, I had to quit a job that I had held for 16 years. I simply could not even get ready for work, let alone drive there and complete my duties. It was only a part time job, but was overwhelming with all the health problems I was having.
One thing that really sticks out in my mind is how I could no longer sit at a stop light for over a few seconds. If longer than that I had to put the car in “park”, because I could not hold the brake pedal down that long.
By November, 2003, my health had so obviously declined that my Endo (Endocrinologist) was sure I had developed right-sided heart failure. He referred me to a Heart Clinic for further testing. The tests showed NO heart problems, to the great surprise of the Cardiologist.
At my March 2004 Endo appointment, I requested another referral to the Heart Clinic to be tested for PAD (Peripheral Artery Disease). I had the tests in April 2004. The cardiologist I had seen in November was not available, so I saw a different one (my lucky day).
The tests on my legs were normal. He asked me to walk a few feet down the hall, and back, which I could barely do. He looked over my medication list, and said “No more Pravachol.” That was my first clue as to what was causing all my difficulties. The blood tests to monitor for any adverse statin effects had always been normal.
In November 2004 I had a muscle biopsy that showed nerve and muscle damage, and also mitochondrial problems.
I have been on a quest for recovery ever since. It is now 4 years since I stopped the Pravachol and I struggle every day to have a life. It’s not easy, and is quite discouraging.
All told, I have been struggling since 8 weeks after starting Pravachol. That is over 6 years of my life ruined, so far.
I think of myself as a 10%er. I can, on my very best day do 10% of what I SHOULD do, or 10% of what I WANT to do, or 10% of what I USED to do. My mother age 74 has very serious, long term heart problems, but gets around better than I do. I should be able to help her, and I can’t. That is beyond depressing, I don’t even know how to put it into words.
Statin poisoning is about more than just the victims. The entire extended family ends up losing out, including spouses, parents, kids, and grandkids. Everyone pays a price and loses something in the rotten deal.
I can no longer attend events that require standing or walking. I have to use a cane to get around the house, and a wheelchair for outings. My husband has to do all the household chores, grocery shopping, laundry, etc. I do what I can from a chair, but even then my strength and stamina are very limited, I tire very easily.
My loss of earning ability has been financially devastating. Just when I needed to be working more and earning more, I was rendered almost useless.
Up to this point I have only talked about myself. My husband also had bad effects from taking Lipitor. He lost muscle mass, became weak, had short term memory problems, lost his entire spark for life. His blood tests to monitor for any adverse effects were also normal. He stopped the Lipitor the same day that I stopped the Pravachol. He was lucky and recovered much of his health. He still has memory problems. He is now 55. I am 50.
My biggest challenge each day is to control the rage, the anger, the sense of what I have lost for a worthless, poisonous drug that was SUPPOSE to make me healthier, not totally disabled.
In order to keep this from becoming a book, I have skipped over many issues. I am listing below the NEW health problems I developed during the 2yrs. 8months that I took Pravachol. (The list is not complete, just what I can recall at this time.)
Number of NEW health problems I developed while on Pravachol: 21
Number of new health problems since I stopped Pravachol, 4 years ago: 0
Percentage of improvement is listed for conditions that have improved since discontinuing Pravachol.
No percentage listed = No improvement
The list:
This was originally posted on the spacedoc.com forum in May 2008
Update:
One thing that has improved is the swelling in my legs....that took about 10 years to resolve and I no longer take Lasix.
Other than that not much has changed.... I wish I had better news.
Dee.
October 2016