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CorgisRule

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Joined
Jun 16, 2017
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30
Reason
DX FIBRO
Diagnosis
06/2017
Country
US
State
TX
I'm wondering if others have questioned whether their pain, fatigue and brain fog could be caused by taking a statin. I realize I'm probably grasping at straws and balking at accepting that I have a chronic disorder that has turned my life upside down.

I would love to hear others' thoughts and experiences.
 
Hey, CorgisRule,

I blamed statins for my pain for many years also....I'm still thinking it's a possibility but then....it's probably just fibro. I'm still keeping that one in the back of my mind, though.
 
I dont take statins and was on no medication at all when i got struck with fibro a decade ago...and was perfectly fit and healthy and active before hand.
 
Thanks Peaceandquiet--I will let you know if stopping my station makes a difference. There's research done by Barbara Golomb in San Diego that is specifically on side effects of statins. In one of her articles in 2012, Archives of Internal Medicine, she found 40% of women experienced fatigue, including post-exertion fatigue.

As I said, I may be grasping at straws but I figure it's worth trying a trial of being off the atorvastatin.

Diamond--thanks for the feedback. I'm guessing most people on the forum have had a similar trajectory of developing fibromyalgia. And I may be as well. It's such a difficult thing for me to accept and I just received this diagnosis a month ago.
 
Hi again CorgisRule,

I trialled stopping the statin about three or four years ago and and the pain backed off enormously. I went back on them for short periods to test and the pain came back so I stopped all together for a few years and refused to take them.....but then the pain eventually came back. More recently my doctor somehow talked me into going on Rosuvastatin since I have a strong family history of heart disease so I'm trialling it at present....since I have the pain anyway.

Yes, in the back of my mind.....did the statin cause the fibro in the first place? Or did I just have fibro already? I'm resigned to the fact now that it just 'is'. Like diamond, I think it's probably more about sensitive types.

Will read up on those studies you mentioned.....thanks.....keep in touch.
 
Hey Peaceandquiet--do you recall how long after discontinuing the statin that your pain backed off? I stopped a couple of days ago and am just wondering how long it might take, IF it's going to make any difference.

Thanks!
 
As I recall, it was a couple of weeks but on reintroducing statins the pain returned within a couple of days. Did that several times until I was convinced.

When the similar pain returned after stopping statins....can't remember how long because it crept up on me.

Keep me posted....
 
This is fascinating as i have seen reports on TV of these side affects with Statins and is one of the reasons if i was ever told i needed them i would try ever other method possible to reduce cholesterol myself. I realise this isn't always possible and for some the risks of heart disease etc far out ways taking statins and that millions of people take them without severe side affects.

Long before poor health hit me i recall seeing a TV documentary where statins has caused a man to become pretty disabled with fatigue and pain to point he couldn't walk far and with a stick....it stuck in my mind after i got fibro as a medication to avoid.

So maybe if you can reduce your cholesterol with diet and exercise you could tail of the statin...at least you could try coming off it for a while to see if it helps take your pain down.

Take Care
 
Yes, there's some research out there that's found statins can exacerbate pain in some individuals with fibromyalgia. Some people can take them with no problems at all but others apparently can't. I've skipped 3 doses so far and have had more energy this weekend. I actually got up by 7:00 both mornings and took the dogs for a walk. I even made pancakes! Of course, we'll see if this is just coincidence, but I'm hopeful.
 
Well, I suppose it was inevitable. Although I had a good weekend, I woke up feeling pretty crappy on Monday and stayed home from work. I did have an epiphany today on my way home from work: I just have to accept that I'm not going to feel well most of the time so just get up and go to work despite feeling crappy. I'm not sure what else I can do since I need an income so I will just get up and go, regardless. :cool:
 
I travelled to visit a friend today....went for a walk....caught a train....came home feeling much better than I did this morning when I set off. Isn't it strange? Yesterday I was useless. I'm so glad I didn't cancel because I had a dreadful night with hip and leg pain and it was a huge effort to go. They say keep moving....and I think that's good advice.

Sorry to hear the pain was back but it's early days off the statins....see how you go from here.
 
I agree--sometimes we need to push ourselves because we end up doing fairly well, having a good time, etc. Of course, there are those days when we just can't function well enough to do much of anything.

I'm trying to find that line in my early adjustment to this new diagnosis. Strangely, accepting that unlike most people, I won't be feeling good when I wake up is going to be functional for me. This is my reality and given that I have to work to support myself, this is going to be my approach. It's irrelevant whether I feel good when the alarm goes off.

My plan on the statin is to stay off for a few weeks or so, see how that goes. If there's no consistent change, I'll re-start and see how that goes. :)
 
Well, as much as I wanted it to be the statin, my symptoms are not due to the atorvastatin. I've been off it for a while and no change. In fact, on Tuesday, I came home from work and bathed my two Corgis. Keep in mind that they are very well-behaved so this only entails lifting them into the bathtub, hopping in with them (so I don't have to bend over the tub) bathing/rinsing them, and then lifting them out. I had to stay home from work on Wednesday. I was totally exhausted, in a lot of pain and not thinking well at all. I dragged myself into work Thursday and today because I couldn't miss anymore. So, darn it. I just have to accept that I have fibromyalgia and it significantly affects my life...
 
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