Only 2 doses of lipitor and I am a mess

[Dan]

I took two doses of liptor 8 and 9 days ago. The doses were 10mg. So after putting a total of 20mg of this poisen in my body i have had muscle spasms over my entire body, stiffness in just about every muscle, and joint pain in wrists,ankles, knees, hips, and elbows.

I have been taking vitamin c (about 3-4000 mg a day) and coq10 (only 120 mg a day). felt better yesterday but worse today. Are the side effects of Lipitor permanent? should i be taking more co-q10?

Any help would be most appreciated.

Thanks

[sos_group_owner]

Hi Dan & Welcome to the Forum,

Some do have immediate, life threatening side effects to statins. 120mg of CoQ10 is a very low dose. You were probably already low in CoQ10 and Lipitor was the final insult to your body.

Try taking 120mg - 2 or three times a day. Some also obtain benefit from carnitine; try either or both forms... L-Carnitine or Acetyl L-Carnitine; some take 500mg 2 to 3 times daily.

Note: CoQ10 can lower BP in those with hypertension especially if you are taking BP med, so monitor your BP when starting and increasing the dosage.
Carnitine in high doses can cause intestinal upset (as can vit C) so increase dosage gradually.

Dr Graveline's Statin Alternatives
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Buffered Aspirin - 81 mg (contains beneficial magnesium)

CoQ10 - 100 to 150 mg (gelcaps - NOT powdered) with some Vit E
* Folic Acid - 400-800 mcg
* B6 - 80-100mg
* B12 - 200-250mcg
* (all 3 of these B Vitamins control Homocysteine)
Omega 3 (Fish Oil or Cod Liver Oil) - There is no upper limit

Dr Graveline's Statin Alternatives reduce and prevent inflammation, are anti-oxidants, reduce platelet stickiness, control (toxic) homocysteine and have the same anti-inflammatory affect as 20 mg's of Lipitor, without side effects.

"Statin Alternatives" are NOT intended to reduce cholesterol levels. Statins (as do statin alternatives) reduce the type of inflammation that leads to heart attacks and strokes. The fact that statins also reduce cholesterol levels is 'irrelevant'.

Source: http://www.spacedoc.net/statin_alternatives.htm

Personal Note: If you are "aspirin sensitive", grape seed extract (GSE) is a good alternative (reduces platelet stickiness/prevents blood clots).

Tell your doctor of your immediate adverse reaction to Lipitor and ask for a CK or CPK blood test (checks for muscle damage). Your doctor will most likely suggest another statin (or non statin) cholesterol lowering drug. Do not start another drug until your Dr checks for muscle damage. The CK or CPK blood test can come back OK but there is still muscle damage. A muscle biopsy would then be necessary. Excellent article that discusses this:
[http://www.impostertrial.com/physician.htm]

What are your cholesterol levels?
LDL
HDL
Triglycerides

Do you have any other risk factor?
diabetic
hypertension

Fran

[Cat Mom2]

I have a friend that ended up in ER after taking only 1 dose. He has a terriable reaction to taking it and will never take another one.

My symptons started within the first month or so of getting on the stuff but I didn't connect it until 5 to 6 years later. A lot of my symptoms went away as soon as I got off the stuff but some did not. I will always wonder how much permanent damage was done by the drug.

[Dan]

Thanks for the responses. My total level was 260. I don't remember
the break downs. the co-q10 seems to help. getting my kidney and liver functions checked out on Monday.

Has anyone thet you know of recovered from exposure to lipitor? Have people been able to function normally w/out suplements? Scared to death here.

[tex62]

Dan,

Yes, I've known two people who had side effects from Lipitor and recovered completely after stopping the drug. I'm almost certain that neither of them take supplements and are doing fine. I also know another person who had side effects from Zocor. He stopped taking the drug, but didn't take supplements for a couple of months and saw no improvement. The third month he started taking CoQ10 and L-Carnitine and recovered completely in about a month. He no longer takes the supplements. My husbands recovery took about 9 months. He still takes the supplements, but it might not be necessary anymore. It seems that some people recover quickly, others take months, and some never make a full recovery. Based on your short term use of Lipitor, in my non-medical opinion, I would think that with Q10 and L-Carnitine, you could expect full recovery.

[Dan]

Thanks tex. I will pick up some L-carnitine tomorrow.