Withdrawal Symptoms Lipitor (Page 7)

How long before muscle aches and weakness subside after discontinuing Lipitor

REPLY

REPORT

I was on 80Mg of Lipitor for 14 years. Also took 500 mg niaspan with the Lipitor which I was told by my doctor I should not have done. He was the one that put me on the two due to high cholesterol. I began having joint pain so Doctor stopped both. My problem now is extreme joint pain. Doctor did not mention joint or muscle pain but it is no fun. I feel silly going to Doctor and am trying to tough it out for a while longer. I am 82 and still very active. Go active fx to exercise 3 times each week. Doctor said stop active Rx for a week. No problem because it would be very painful.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

Hi Dawn, I noticed muscle pain and also some nerve pain in my shoulders. It is finally diminshing after 9 days now since I have been off the drug. I am sure it will take some time before I know if I will be able to heal myself from this drug. I hope you find your answer to the nerve pain. Definitely have your doctor take some blood and see what is going on. I hope you can live a drug-free life!

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

For me I noticed muscle soreness subsiding in 2 weeks. By 4 weeks off Lipitor i am muscle pain free.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

That's great news...makes me hopeful!

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

The muscle pain can be severe. I am 54 healthy weight. My arms and legs became so sore and weak I felt like an old woman. I quit Lipitor after 16 years cold turkey. Have had no ill effects. But my muscle pain is gone. After a month I felt so much better. I am walking and will start a new exercise program now too. Could never do either the past 2 years. Severe soreness all from Lipitor. Never had pain until menopause began. After that it all changed. I am glad I went off it now. The chance of heart disease from cholesterol is better than Alzheimer's from cholesterol being too low. Research it. There is a dr in Naples FL who swears that Alzheimer's is so prevalent due to 50% of population taking statins. Our brains are 25% cholesterol.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 1

Hi Sam...Dawn said about 2 weeks for her...you can read her post. Mine are subsiding after about 8 days...but I had already weaned myself off of 20 then to 10 then to 5mgs over a couple of years. I think it depends on how much you were taking.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

Absolutely right. There are more natural ways to get cholesterol down. It is good to do research on it.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

Why would anybody quit statins cold turkey. Why not just take a half pill for 4 weeks and let the body and brain get use to the withdraw. Use some common sense people.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

I had only been taking them for 2 weeks and at the lowest dose. I honestly didn't expect to have any sort of withdrawal symptoms at all. Unfortunately I was wrong. It took about a week for the muscle aches to subside and about two weeks for me to get my brain back.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 2

These drugs are so bad that even after tapering and NOT going cold Turkey you will still get terrible withdrawal pain. I tapered down from 20 to 10 to 5 over a couple of years and of course you have to go cold Turkey from the 5mgs or you will never stop taking them. Even then, I still have pain. These drugs will turn on symptoms you never had before. They are dangerous. I thought I had Lupus, Fybromyalgia; had panic attacks and extreme anxiety that I never had before in my life until I started coming off this drug.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 1

I think they are poison for some of us. Simple as that. I take colestipol now. No cognitive side effects and no muscle pain. Still too early to tell If it's helping though. Let you know at the end of the month!

REPLY

Was this helpful? 1

I was on 20mg twice a day for 5years. I also took Zomel (an antacid). Combined they are worse as there's more likelihood of muscle pain and foggy brain. Stopped three weeks ago due to months of muscle pains and severe thigh cramps. Best thing I've ever done, haven't felt this well in ages. No adverse effects, far less pain and cramp which I hope will eventually fade once I boost my CoEnzymeQ10 levels by taking Ubiquinol . Lipitor depletes this enzyme and antacids also effect your B12 levels.Everyone who takes a statin should take Ubiquinol!

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

I quit cold turkey after 16 years on statins. I had NO side effects from quitting. In fact, all my muscle pain was from taking Lipitor not quitting it.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

I just started cutting my Lipitor generic in half, from 40 mg to 20 mg. I realizing after reading these comments that I'm not reading since I'm on this since my stroke in Oct. 2009 when my doctors prescribed them. I plan on eliminating it completely and start taking ResQ 1250 which is as good if not better. The food that I eat isn't producing LDL cholesterol, so why am I still taking this? ...no reason.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

Easy for dr to say the benefits outweigh losing muscle mass. It's not just muscle mass it's severe muscle soreness and weakness. I got so weak I couldn't lift my briefcase or full coffee pot. Sore all over. Had trouble walking stairs. Ridiculous way to live for a 53 year old woman. I was on it for LDL control at 226. Never had a heart issue or stroke. And remember...your heart is a MUSCLE.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 1

I took myself off Lipitor two weeks ago..had been on 40 mg per day for 8 years. I have fibromyalgia and wanted to see if it would get better being off this drug. The nurse practioner said I could just stop it..nothing to worry about. Will check cholesteral level more often she said. Here I am scratching myself raw and ready to jump from the nearest bridge. Nothing has changed in my life except going off Lipitor. I am in tears every time i turn around.. I dont know what to do. So scarey

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

I had the same issue with discontinuing the med. If you have any left, you could try taking a half dose to stop the withdrawal. And then contact your doc to get advice on how to safely withdraw. I don't know why the manufacturer does not warn of this side effect.
PS I bet your "fibromyalgia" symptoms clear up once you are off this med.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

I stopped Lipitor, started CoQ10 and B vitamins supplement. I feel better than I have for 2 years. My muscle pain, which was severe and all over, is GONE. I was showing all signs of fibromyalgia, which I have to admit, I feel is a catch all term docs use when they really don't know why you have widespread pain. Their treatment is to give opioids and anti-depressants. I knew I'd NEVER take those drugs so I went off Lipitor, started CoQ10 and am trying to improve my diet. Best things I have done for my health during my whole life. Doctors just want to give drugs. It's not always the answer, and opiates are KILLING this country. Many, many opiate addictions begin with docs prescribing vicodin, oxycontin, etc. Don't do it and don't let you kids take these poisons. Find other ways to deal with the pain of surgeries, etc. The medical community has a large part in this epidemic.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

I am hurting aching flu like systoms all over I ran out of lipitor around 6 days ago but the aching started yesterday it is almost unbareable

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

Anyone experiencing itching and yeast problems will on Lipitor?

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

I stopped taking Lipitor, 40 mg daily, a week ago and am now experiencing some dizziness and my equilibrium seems effect...

12 REPLIES

I stopped lipitor on orders from a specialist... and now have a very itchy rash. Is it related? ## Frustrated, According...

1 REPLY

I've taken belviq twice a day for 3 months (i think- one bottle worth). I didn't refill the RX and now, 4 days l...

30 REPLIES

I started taking vimpat i think last June or July. Not too sure, the meds have messed with my mind big time. Stayed at 2...

13 REPLIES

I have been on Clopidogrel 75mg after having a slight heart attack thought to have been caused by a blood clot in a smal...

6 REPLIES

I came off A almost 4 months ago. It was very hard at first (I cut the dose in half for a few weeks and then I took away...

4 REPLIES

I started taking Viibryd approximately 6 months ago. Had a shaky start. Started with 10 mg and then went to 20 mg in a w...

4 REPLIES

I had used lisinopril/hct for 20 years. It started off with one pill per day, but ten years ago doc prescribed 2 pills p...

3 REPLIES

Hello. I had been taking fiorcet codeine ( for over a year. Recently, one of my primary care doctors told me to stop tak...

3 REPLIES

I have been taking generic loratabs for RA for a long time. I'm worried about symptoms I'm having, like not slee...

3 REPLIES