Do you (or did you) take Statins?

Do you take statins?

  • I take statins and have no ill effects at all

    Votes: 12 27.3%

  • I take statins and may have some slight side effects but not enough to make me stop

    Votes: 4 9.1%

  • I had side effects with one type of statin, but now take another with no side effects

    Votes: 4 9.1%

  • I stopped statins because of side effects and would not take them again

    Votes: 10 22.7%

  • I stopped statins (because of side effects or another reason) but would consider taking them again

    Votes: 3 6.8%

  • I have never taken statins

    Votes: 11 25.0%
  • Total voters
    44
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everydayupsanddowns

everydayupsanddowns

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Prompted by responses to another thread I just found myself wondering about the prevalence ot 'happy statin takers' vs 'had problems and stopped' amongst forum members. Wold be very interested to see the results of this entirely unscientific poll. Of course in many medication trials side effects are reported in the placebo arm, and it can be very difficult to tell what is causing what, but please just answer based on your best understanding of your experience.
 
everydayupsanddowns said:
Of course in many medication trials side effects are reported in the placebo arm, and it can be very difficult to tell what is causing what, but please just answer based on your best understanding of your experience.
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Good question, Mike. I was put on them even though my cholesterol was 'normal for a normal' ie under 5, but not under 4. I immediately had pains in forearms and shins, and gave up, where upon the pains disappeared. BUT I was newly diagnosed, and it may very well have been the result of my very high blood sugars ( 16.1 HBA1c) falling. Would be reluctant to try them again, though.
 
everydayupsanddowns said:
Prompted by responses to another thread I just found myself wondering about the prevalence ot 'happy statin takers' vs 'had problems and stopped' amongst forum members. Wold be very interested to see the results of this entirely unscientific poll. Of course in many medication trials side effects are reported in the placebo arm, and it can be very difficult to tell what is causing what, but please just answer based on your best understanding of your experience.
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I tried more than one and had side effects, so stopped taking them. It now says on my records I am allergic to them.
 
My experience was similar to @Robin's - took them for 6 months and experienced what I thought were side effects, but possibly related to my new diagnosis or even the combination of meds I was on then (11 pills). Since my cholesterol levels were way below 'target' whilst on them I didn't see the need for them. However, if something went crazy with my cholesterol for some reason then I wouldn't discount taking them again if they were deemed essential. My levels have been fine since stopping them.
 
I stopped taking them because my I was worried about taking too many medications as there's a correlation with taking more than 3 meds and dementia. I was taking metformin, simvastatin, BP meds and a PPI. I've given up the statin and the PPI. My cholesterol did go up to 5.2 after 3 months, but I reckoned that as my HbA1c was 38, I didn't need to get below 4. My DN didn't have an argument against this, and my HDL was high and TRI low. I just don't trust the research any more, I don't think I've suffered side-effects, but I had so many things wrong with me, it's hard to know what's a symptom, side effect of drug, drug interactions with other drugs and drug interactions with other symptoms.
 
I have never taken them and never will.
 
I do. Made me dizzy as anything to start with but now I'm okay.
 
I took Simvastatin for a long time before I suddenly started getting pains in my arms. When I told my GP she swapped it for Atorvastatin, and since then I've had no trouble. She is keen for me to stay with it, and to be honest I don't mind now as I have no trouble with it.
 
After the stroke I was prescribed statins. I was very weak and could only walk at a snail's pace but I thought it was the stroke. One day I felt like I had flu, I went to bed and couldn't force myself to go downstairs to take my statin. The next morning I woke feeling fine. I thought it was very odd but made no connection with the statin. I carried on taking them. A few days later I had "flu" again! Flu doesn't come and go in that way so I started to think outside the box. I found that when I stopped statins I didn't have flu and began to get my strength back. I stopped them and would never consider taking them again.
 
Stopped them due to loss of memory - long and short term. Cured within 3 weeks of ceasing to take them, and not returned. My memory of some things isn't photographic - but those absolute sudden complete stunning blanks mid sentence and suchlike, simply no longer happen even though yeah - I do fail to clock people's handles correctly sometimes and have occasionally addressed the odd post to the wrong person, as they asked what I was responding to, on the previous page or something - but nothing too serious even though over 10 years has passed by now since I binned em!
 
As you may know I have never been unemployed in my life. I was put on Simvastatin . I go up & down ladders all day long, on my knees a lot as an Electrician. Have done lots of peddle bike rides & one time I started the c2c with my Rugby mates. I did the first day but the second day was in agony ! I really thought someone had put kitting needles in my knees. I never like to stop what I am doing but had to. Told my Dr & she changed the type of statin & have done the c2c & others since. I think certain drugs affect us differently. 🙂
 
grovesy said:
I tried more than one and had side effects, so stopped taking them. It now says on my records I am allergic to them.
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Well it shouldn't say your allergic. It's not an allergy, it's a side effect.
 
I've taken simvastin for 16 years without any problem. Vivid dreams, maybe, but that wasn't a problem.
 
mikeyB said:
Well it shouldn't say your allergic. It's not an allergy, it's a side effect.
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Yes it suprised me , it also made sense when me I saw it why after my GP retired the new one I see never mentioned.
 
Very true, Hobie.

It's interesting. One double blind study showed just as many people getting side effects on the placebo as were taking the actual statin. There's no accounting for folk for sure.

The main thing you see is that there is a much higher ratio of people suffering side effects from statins compared to the general population. Is there some diabetic medication that alters the effect of statins? Or is there a metabolic change in diabetes that affects it? its not a big enough survey to be significant, but it's an indicator that something might be going on. First thing to do would be to repeat the survey on a much larger population of diabetics. This is a highly self selected group, My guess is that the difference will disappear, but you won't know till you try it.
 
I was prescribed simvastin about 20 years back for no reason other than I was diabetic. After a short time it made the muscles in my arms feel very peculiar as if I couldn't control my arms so I was told to stop taking them. I was prescribed Ezetimibe instead which I've just been told to stop taking.
 
I've never had them. Nurse and GP tried pushing them a few times when I reached 40 'because you're diabetic and they're recommended' but my cholesterol levels were fine. I declined and they never mention them now.
 
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