Get Help From Caregivers
Who Is a Caregiver?
Caregivers can play a very important role in your heart health. They can keep you on track in managing your cholesterol levels or maintaining a healthy lifestyle. A caregiver might be a friend, family member, or loved one. In some cases, the caregiver may be a healthcare professional.
How Can a Caregiver Help You?
A caregiver can help you by:
- Encouraging you to stay on track to reach your cholesterol and heart-health goals
- Discussing how you can improve your lifestyle (how to achieve lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol, and a healthier weight) as a team effort
- Helping you understand the importance of following a heart disease treatment plan
- Joining a gym with you
- Sharing recipes with you that taste great and are made with heart-healthy foods
- Supporting your efforts to quit smoking
- Going with you to doctor visits (both to help convey your complete health information and help you understand all the instructions given to you by your doctor)
Are You a Caregiver?
Children, spouses, and friends are important members of a patient's heart-health team. Working as part of this team, you can be a very powerful advocate. You can be a much needed cheerleader—to help inspire someone to get started on a heart-health plan, or to keep them on track. You might be the inspiration needed to make important lifestyle changes. And these changes may benefit you both.
Next Section: Tools and Resources >>
LIPITOR is a prescription medicine that is used along with a low-fat diet. It lowers the LDL ("bad" cholesterol) and triglycerides in your blood. It can raise your HDL ("good" cholesterol) as well. LIPITOR can lower the risk for heart attack, stroke, certain types of heart surgery, and chest pain in patients who have heart disease or risk factors for heart disease such as age, smoking, high blood pressure, low HDL, or family history of early heart disease.
LIPITOR can lower the risk for heart attack or stroke in patients with diabetes and risk factors such as diabetic eye or kidney problems, smoking, or high blood pressure.
LIPITOR is not for everyone. It is not for those with liver problems. And it is not for women who are nursing, pregnant or may become pregnant.
If you take LIPITOR, tell your doctor if you feel any new muscle pain or weakness. This could be a sign of rare but serious muscle side effects. Tell your doctor about all medications you take. This may help avoid serious drug interactions. Your doctor should do blood tests to check your liver function before and during treatment and may adjust your dose.
Common side effects are diarrhea, upset stomach, muscle and joint pain, and changes in some blood tests.
When diet and exercise alone are not enough, adding LIPITOR can help lower cholesterol. LIPITOR is one of many cholesterol-lowering treatment options that you and your doctor can consider.
Copyright 2006-2010 Pfizer Inc. All rights reserved.
Terms of Use AgreementThe health information contained herein is provided for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace discussions with a healthcare provider. All decisions regarding patient care must be made with a healthcare provider, considering the unique characteristics of the patient.
The product information provided in this site is intended only for residents of the United States. The products discussed herein may have different product labeling in different countries.
LIPITOR.com | Pfizer.com | Site Index | Privacy Policy | Physician Prescribing Information
LPU00182T