Withdrawal Symptoms

[poliphilo]

 I'm coming off statins and I feel like I'm drunk- only without the euphoria.

Comments

[veronica-milvus.livejournal.com]

why are you coming off them?

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I'm not happy with the side effects- which include memory loss. Also I've been looking at research that suggests cholestrol isn't the killer we've been told to regard it as.

I don't have a history of heart disease in my family- and I'm willing to take the risk.

[lblanchard.livejournal.com]

You're tapering off, right?

[daisytells.livejournal.com]

A neighbor of mine suffered irreversible muscle damage from Lipitor and now uses a walker all the time. He is not even sixty years old yet. I am on your side on this one. there are other ways to lower cholesterol - diet and exercise (even just walking). There are no substitutes for a healthy lifesyle.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Erm, no.......

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I've been reading that cholestrol isn't actually the killer we've been told it is. Low levels of cholestrol are in fact associated with all sorts of bad things I'd rather not have.

[veronica-milvus.livejournal.com]

Yes, you need some cholesterol to synthesize sex hormones!

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Exactly.

Ailz just read me an extract from an article that says that taking statins increases your chances of getting breast cancer by 30%.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

If you have a heart condition then taking statins is probably sensible- but these days they're handing them out to virtually anyone over 55- irrespective of medical history (or, at least, our doctor is).

[veronica-milvus.livejournal.com]

I think the key thing is your blood pressure. I mean - the worry with high cholesterol is that it deposits in the arteries and narrows them, and forcing the blood through stiff and narrow arteries raises blood pressure, which puts strain on the heart. So if your blood pressure is doing ok without anti-hypertensive medications then there would be no need to go after your cholesterol...?

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

That's what I think. My blood pressure is average for a man of my age. I believe the doctor is being over cautious.