Simvastatin and extreme depression and memory loss

Treatment and medication
1

Thank you for all the comments here.

I came to this site because I am very concerned for my Mother in law who is taking these tablets.

She recently experienced a TIA, her second in 14 years so she has a risk of stroke.

She is 84 years old and has been suffering with short term memory loss for almost 4 years. Something we've explained away as age related dementia until now!

We have recently had to send her for respite to a temporary care home and she has deteriorated rapidly.

She is very, very depressed and continually tells us she wants to die because she is feeling so unwell.

It is terrible to see someone suffering like this, but after reading some of the posts on here, I am going to get in touch with her GP and ask if she can stop these tablets immediately! We can then judge if her symptoms are caused by statins or her old age.

She has never complained to us us about aches and pains but instead, tells us she's just being lazy when we are out and she has to walk any distance, preferring to wait in the car.

This was a lady with a very good sense of humour and a real zest for life.

She is being crippled, mentally and physically, I believe by this drug.

I know we could use her age as an excuse, but if her last years can be made more bearable instead of this living ■■■■, I at least will not reproach myself for sitting back and doing nothing to help her.

I will update as soon as I can to let everyone here know what's happened.

I'd like to send my best wishes to all sufferers of the side effects of this awful drug

2

I am on a list of medications for Dilated cardiomyopathy(Heart Failure) one is a Beta Blocker called Bisoprolol which has a weight gain and depression side effect but recently I was put on Simvastatin for very high Cholesterol.

I stopped taking the Statin after 2 weeks because if I did not I would have killed someone else or most definitely killed myself. The Depression and suicidal thoughts were just too much and I will never take Statins again.

The Great Cholesterol Con by Anthony Colpo could be of interest to you.

3

My 83 year old mother has been on simvastatin for a while now, it has been prescribed for cholestrol. She

had a bad water infection in september, and spent two weeks in hospital. The week before she was

admitted, she was doing her own garden, shopping twice a week, cleaning her house and visiting friends.

She was mentally alert - she had a touch of arthritis, but nothing a walking stick couldn't cope with.

Since she came out of hospital, she can't walk without a walking frame, and she can't remember what she

had for lunch 15 minutes ago. The doctor is now thinking she has dementia, but i've just read the list of side effects. I'm beginning to think she shouldn't be on them...

4

It does sound that the Simvastatin is definitely affecting your mother. All the issues you mention she is now suffering from are side effects of statins, I'm sure of it.

Short term memory loss is extremely common as is muscle weakness and nerve damage.

My advice would be for her to stop them immediately and if her symptoms improve you'll know for sure it's the statins, I'd say stop for at least 4 weeks.

I'd also recommend your mother takes Co Q10 it's an important enzyme that our cells need and in particular our brains, you can buy this supplement at any health store or chemist.

I'm hopeful you'll see a marked improvement once your mother is off this terrible medication.

Please check the internet for lots of info regarding the serious side effects of statins.

I wish your mother well and please let us know how she gets on

5

Thanks Sonia. :-) The doctor is visiting her tomorrow. I had a call today from the memory clinic. I know they think it's dementia, but i think they are wrong. I'll have a look at what you recommended, and ill post any changes. Thanks again for the info. :-)