switching AI/tamox- share your experience

I started on Aromasin and had many SEs - mood changes (I was mean as a snake), significant knee pain, insomnia. After 4 months I changed to Arimidex and lasted 2 weeks. I had such fatigue I was napping 5 hr during the day and wanted to go right back to bed. I was on Femara almost 3 years. I still had some mood and sleep issues but far less troublesome than with Aromasin. I had significant joint and muscle pain that diminished a great deal when I stopped taking my statin and Femara at the same time. Taking one in the morning and the other at night made a huge difference in pain.

I was doing ok and intended to finish 5 years when I started having some of the more serious SEs. I had a normal DEXA scan last May and thought I had dodged the osteoporosis bullet. I developed tendinitis in July followed by a patellar fracture in Sept. Then trigger thumb in Oct which caused me to drop a pan of fatty juice and I fell in the kitchen, causing a wrist fracture.

My PCP says a fall from a standing height should not cause a fracture. The fact that I had fractures despite a normal DEXA scan still landed me with an osteoporosis diagnosis and I am now on Boniva. I recently stopped Femara because I am afraid of the other serious SEs like heart problems.

Until the point of the fractures I planned to tough it out for 5 years but I reached a point where the cost outweighed the benefits for me.

I hope you have a better time of it than I did.