Yep, and get low on magnesium and your muscles will KILL you!! But have to have the balance of cal/mag/d someone said they have also added vitamin k in the batch! Potassium cannot be forgotten either!
Dont' take these with meds before asking your Dr first, please!
A b12 test will not diagnose fibro but it will help rule out a deficiency which could be causing fatigue, etc. B12 deficiency is not an uncommon condition according to my doc. I take a shot once a month and my level stays good. No harm in getting it checked out as a B12 deficiency can mess you up as seen on the website that SK posted.
Awwwwww, you let the cat out of the bag. Now I might have to bake some more! Yes, B12 is the shot that people take for energy even if they don’t have a deficiency. I have known of people that get a shot every day so they can work harder, etc. Those people probably have fibro now due to all the stress they put on themselves.
Yeh that is a great question! Wish i knew I done know why they havent referred my to any specialist! They just keep saying they can't find anything including the hospital. Ive had lots and lots of bloods done (all normal) including thyroid and anaemia. Even had to go through an awfully painful Endoscopy which found nothing and resulted in me being bed bound virtually for over a week with abdo pain and then i got told It was because I had IBS! Iv been treated so poorly I wont go through it all as It really upsets me but Iv was on prescribed codeine for 2 years (not that they did much apart from taking the edge of my headaches/migraines) after 2 years they said 'You shouldn't be on them for that long' Hello you gave me a repeat prescription! So I was taken of them immediately and haven't had anything pain relief since .
If I didnt have children I would have given up by now!
Awww I know how you feel. I am lucky I have such a loving cat to keep me going. I didn't realise you're only 60 miles away. That is so weird.
Do you have pain in all four quadrants of your body etc like fibro? Have you tried asking if it could be FMS. Knowing what the docs are like round here you have to diagnose yourself. I've got to tell my doc a new illness I have got now. It's like they don't get paid to think sometimes.
I have been on tramadol for years and its ok, so codeine should be fine too. I'm not a doc though but it makes sense as they are both in the opiate family and tramadol is stronger (and a horrible dirty drug - which is crap too!)
Best of luck. If you need a hand to kick em up the ass, I am always up for it!!
Nutty Nikki girl! So good to see you here !
Don't feel it was a waste of time, this is all part of the "Evil Hoop-Jumping Ritual" we all have to go through! You have the diagnosis from the Osteopath, so now you just have to play along with the GP. Just don't get discouraged!
The list SK found is amazing, definitely use that for a reference!
Lab results here say that it's only deficient if under 200 pg/mL (picograms per milliliter). (US NIH Guidelines). But most doctors will tell you to keep it above 550 pg/mL, regardless of what the guidelines are.
The lab that we have to use even puts a disclaimer on their results, saying that "even though 200 is considered deficient, neurological symptoms can develop under 550". I guess it's their way around the government !
I've been taking shots every week for years, and can just barely make it to 500. I also take the over-the-counter sublingual pills to supplement it. I've been as low as 50.
In my opinion, everyone should ask their doctors about having their B12 checked, as it does correlate with Fibro and auto-immune symptoms, and can also be a marker for other diseases. Plus, it makes you feel horrible when it's low !
Hugs!
You got it Girl -- these are all the main things we should ASK OUR DOCTORS about, in addition to the basics:
B12
Folate
Magnesium
Calcium
Vitamin D-3 (make sure to ask the doctor to run the Vitamin D3 25-hydroxy test)
Potassium
Vitamin K's only properties are related to the blood. I think it's really only needed if you have a clotting issue. It has the capability to work as a blood thinner, causing abnormal bleeding--that's a little scary.
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With all of these things, and I'm sure more I've forgotten about ---- they all absorb differently, and some are taken in different forms. That's why you HAVE to talk to your doctor first; a lot of the OTC supplements from the drug store can just be a waste of money, or do more harm than good.
Wow, Renie, that is scary to take so much b12 and barely be able to keep your level up. My level is usually around 900 and I only have once monthly shots. Did your doc tell you what causes low b12? My doc said it is just something that happens. Huh? There has to be some reason. Thanks, MB
Mine basically say the same thing ... I have a malabsorption disorder, but the shots should over-ride that...
Something to look into, I've always just gone along with it. Thanks for making me thing about it!
♥
It's funny, even the couple times in the past 20 years I actually got up to around 900, I never felt a "boost" from the shots.
I wish I did !
Yeah, me too. I never feel anything from it except pain from the shot. The actual shot doesn’t hurt- I don’t even feel it going it- but it sets off a wave of pain down my whole body. It’s kinda like when you have an empty stomach and you take a drink of something alcoholic and when it hits your stomach, you can feel the “warmth” spread through your body. It’s like that but with pain. So odd. And that has just started in the last few months. I just can’t win.
Renie, I had a similar thing going on too. Doctor had me get b-12 shots but didn't help, then he also noticed that the red blood cells were large. You can look on your labs for "MCV", if that is at high end may indicate folic acid anemia, in which case, supplementation was given to me in form of 5-MTHF to increase folate levels. It's a type of anemia. I had a malabsorption disorder too. There's lots of info if you google folate deficiency. If you have celiac, it's very common to occur too.
Who did the endoscope a digestive disorders Doc? So what was their explaination of IBS anyway?
What's up nikki, how are you today?
They probably do, the curse of the Type A's!
Rene, I've seen similar discussions in regards to people with vitamin D def. Maybe it was in the Psoriatic Arthritis board? At any rate, like you, they'd take a lot of Vit D but their levels still wouldn't go up.
Yes, something to definitely think about, why is it happening?
Some people just don't absorb what they need, I guess. Besides all my vitamins, several years ago I saw a Hematologist for low iron. I began infusions of pure iron, and it was supposed to bring my levels up to normal in 8 treatments. I had 88 treatments, and NEVER got a normal number.
Endoscopies, Colonoscopies, CT-Scans, swallow studies, tons of bloodwork, etc.... finally a hysterectomy at 39.... and that didn't solve it anyway. They gave up.
Final diagnosis: Malabsorption Syndrome.
So who knows? What's another 20 pills every day !
Hey allergic,
Thanks for the information! My MCV has always been elevated for as long as I can remember. Questioning the doctor (my employer) what it meant, he said that the red cells were slightly larger than normal, don't worry about it. And that's all he said. (why do employees get second-rate care?) My MCH and MCHC have always been normal, so I never got concerned, or pursued it. Who knows with him..brilliant doctor, stupid person.
I do take Folic acid precautionary, although my Folate is normal. I have SO MANY things that I have issues with due to the malabsorbtion (my own fault, I guess--bypass surgery 10 years ago)--- I have a huge basket of supplements and meds I take daily.
I'm sure I have some sort of gluten intolerance/Celiac disease... I need to follow the diet, but as the saying goes: "I'll diet tomorrow". I have been watching what I buy, so maybe it won't be so bad to eventually get totally gluten free.
Thanks again for the link!
Renie♥
Oh my! Bless you. Thats a lot to go through. Nothing worse than a load of pills every day either. x
Holy freakin moly! That's utterly frightening, Renie. No wonder you get tired! And they have no clue as to what causes Malabsorption syndrome, huh? So it's another one of those illnesses that has a name but no real treatment. Freakin' weird.
I'll bet there are others on here with it too. And they may not even know it.