Personal Experiences of People Who Stopped Taking Statins
One of the more severe side effects of statins is liver damage. Yearly blood exams can help doctors find liver problems when they develop. Once you begin taking a statin medication, your doctor may request blood exams to check your liver enzymes. If you have an increase in the level of liver enzymes, you may have an issue. Low-level increases may be okay, but higher increases aren’t.
That’s why Betty Bates, 58, a retired high school band director, stopped taking statins. During an annual blood test, Bates’ doctor noticed her liver enzyme levels were too high. Bates quit taking the statin medication immediately and now uses fish oil supplements to help lower her cholesterol.
“Honestly, I wish that I had never taken them,” she says. “But that's what we do — take a pill for a problem. I am much more aware of the side effects of medications I take now.”
For 78-year-old Linda Bray, the muscle pain and weakness caused by her statin prescription became too severe and interrupted her ability to perform daily tasks.
“A friend on Facebook mentioned she had stopped taking her [statin medication] and was regaining her muscle strength. At that point, I had been experiencing severe pain for several weeks and wasn’t finding any help with stretching or over-the-counter painkillers,” the retired administrative assistant said.
That’s when she asked her doctor if her statin medication could be responsible for her symptoms. He agreed to a trial period without the medication to test that. Within a week, Bray’s symptoms had almost entirely disappeared.
Unfortunately, Bray’s high cholesterol is hereditary, so diet, exercise, and weight loss alone aren’t enough to help her reduce her cholesterol. Her doctor prescribed another cholesterol-lowering medication. So far, she isn’t dealing with any side effects from this medicine
No comments:
Post a Comment