Vitamin B12 defiency - anyone have it or know much about it??

[sas21]

Hi all,

I have recently found out I have a quite bad vitamin B12 defiency and wondered if any of you suffer from it?

I have done some research into it and it does make a lot of sense as I'm permanently tired and always cold as well as various other things.

I have to get some moe test done as they think there must be an underlying reason for why my body cant absorb the B12 because I eat the right things and my diet is ok, it's all a bit weird.

I have had one of 5 B12 injections, the rest are over the next week and a bit and then I'll have to have one every 3 months for the foreseeable future.

Apparently its quite rare in someone of my age (27) and usually happens in older people ie over 60 or strict vegans (which I am not), the nurse who did my jab said I was only the second person she had ever given the jab to who was under their 60's.

I'm just a bit surprised by it and a also a bit scared in a way as to what's causing it.

I'm having a blood test for Coeliacs disease on Monday as that can apparently cause the deficiency.

Any thoughts or advice would be much appreciated if you have any experience with either the B12 defiency or Coeliacs.

Thanks
:hug:
xx

 

[loubylou]

I have to take B12 and folic acid,
my body will not absorb B12 normally but this is because i have pernicious anemia,
this is something that is past down from parents and other blood relatives but has the same sort of symptoms
tiredness
always feeling cold
and i often have numb hands and feet.

Wait till you get your test results hun and im sure they will be able to put your mind at rest, hth :hug:

 

[sas21]

Hiya, thanks for replying.

I have found that my cousin on my dads side has the same defiency, but none of my other family that I know of.

I should get the results by the end of next week so will know whether or not I have Coeliacs at least by then.

I'm mainly worried about the reason why I'm not absorbing it, it's freaking me out a bit if I'm honest.

How did you find out the cause of why you couldn't absorb it if you don't mind me asking?

I'm just trying to find out some possibilities so I have a slight idea of what it could be, I don't think there are many things it could be from what I have read.

Thanks again for replying

:hug:
xx

 

[number1kitty]

The tonus B12 cream from Karin Herzog is great. If you use that and the Silhouette the body absorbs b12. Its supposedly far better than taking supplements.

Kate

 

[fiona wallace]

My husband, myself and my daughter were all found to have a deficiency, we also have a very good diet.

They ran tests on us all and couldn't come up with a reason....none of us have pernicious anaemia.

Hubby and I got the jab (once) and he took folic acid for a couple of years, I am still taking them. Daughter got no treatment.

Hubby and I found out through blood tests that were done for another reason altogether....we had no symptoms. Daughter did have some symptoms. All of us were cleared eventually, although consultant said it wouldn't do any harm to keep taking the folic acid and consultant was happy that although he could find no reason for the deficiency, we were in no danger.

Don't know if this helps much, but I tought I would let you see that it can be very common and you may have absolutely no need to worry.

 

[oey]

I dont feel it is as uncommon as your nurse feels. My mum too has pernicious anemia, which she has had since she was in her mid 20s. She does has to have the 3 monthly B12 injection now for the rest of her life. One of my clients also has this illness too.

My mum being diagnosed with this seemed to be appear immediately after pregnancy.

 

[hannajadem]

I was diagnosed with this as it was picked up from one of my blood tests when I was pregnant (I was 21). I had all the other tests to see if I had accompanying anaemia etc, but all came back negative. I have to have the injections every 3 months and get all the symptoms too.
Try not to worry about it too much, sometimes there's no 'reason' for a deficiency. HTH

 

[Kelly-Tara]

Hey i had this aswell, i had to have the 5 injections. I am only 21, and get tired all the time. The injections boosted my b12 levels and therefore the doctor has said i do not need any more injections, but do have to have blood tests every 6 months to check my levels are ok.

 

[Lucy-Jayne]

I'm 23 and have it too. I have injections every 3 months.

I don't particularly look at it as a disease or anything. It doesn't stop me doing anything and isn't a problem.

All I know is that once you have the deficiency, you can't top it up with vitamins, it has to be injected to be absorbed properly. Apparently it's good if you can find this out before you start to conceive children so that you can ensure that your levels are maintained.

I have a client who has it too and when she found out, she was acting like it was the worse thing in the world! It really isn't. I don't know any different apart from having an injection every three months. The only bad thing is that the injection bloody hurts!

 

[loubylou]

Hiya, thanks for replying.

I have found that my cousin on my dads side has the same defiency, but none of my other family that I know of.

I should get the results by the end of next week so will know whether or not I have Coeliacs at least by then.

I'm mainly worried about the reason why I'm not absorbing it, it's freaking me out a bit if I'm honest.

How did you find out the cause of why you couldn't absorb it if you don't mind me asking?

I'm just trying to find out some possibilities so I have a slight idea of what it could be, I don't think there are many things it could be from what I have read.

Thanks again for replying

:hug:
xx

I don't mind you asking hun,
i was having bad dental (gum) problems,
my gums receded so much they thought they may have to operate to replace the gum loss,
after loads of blood tests they realised this was what was causing the problem,
so after the B12 & folic acid my gums recovered fairly well (not perfect)
i have always suffered with tiredness and feeling cold and my GP since childhood said it was anemia and gave me iron tablets but they never helped,
my mum was also diagnosed with it when pregnant hth :hug:

 

[Jessica Rabbit]

Hi I had this and used to get jabs for it. after a year it sorted itself out.. But docs ran test and couldn't find out why I was like this... Hope you get it sorted ... xx

 

[sas21]

Wow! Thanks for all your input guys

It make me feel a lot beter knowing there are so many others who have the same thing and that it doesn't seem to be caused by anything major.

I was meant to have a blood test and another jab today but I couldn't get to the drs because of the snow! lol

I'm really glad I found out now because we have just started trying for another baby and from what I've heard I could of been trying for a long time if I hadn't found out now and also the fact that if my levels are really low then that can't be good for a baby either.

Thanks again for all your help, I'll update this thread if I get any more info or find out the cause, which should be in a week or so if anything comes up in tests.

:hug:
Sarah
xx

 

[oey]

Good luck Sarah, but dont worry as long as you manage things well you should be able to live you life normally.

 

[sas21]

Hi guys,

just a quick update, I had the test for Coeliacs and it came back negative.

I have another blood test booked for Tuesday which is for the Pernicious Anaemia and am also being referred to a gastro-enterologist (if I have spelt that right?).

I have had my course of 5 B12 jabs and am feeling a bit less tired now but have had the worst stomach pains in the last few days, don't know if it's anything to do with the jabs or not.

I'm glad I found out before I fall pregnant though, saying that, i have heard that it is quite hard to fall pregnant when you have low levels anyway so who knows.

I found out that my levels were 145, and apparently the norm is anywhere between 200 and 1000.

Thanks for all your support and info , it has really helped in knowing that there are people who have the same thing and that it's not quite as uncommom as I thought.

I have to say though, I am so glad that I haven't got to have another one of those jabs for a while.... my god they hurt!!

Everytime I was in the doctors waiting for the nurse to call me I so wanted to get up and run out o the waiting room! lol I hate needles! :cry:


:hug:
Sarah
xx

 

[minky]

Hi,
Just wondering where do they inject you for them to hurt so much ?

 

[sas21]

Hi,
Just wondering where do they inject you for them to hurt so much ?

Hi,

Its not so much the needle that hurts, its the fluid that they inject.

The needle doesnt actually hurt that much but when they inject the fluid in, it really stings and kind of burns, then it can hurt for a while afterwards too and feels like someone has punched you really hard on the arm (they inject mine into the muscle in my forearm). :irked:

It's not very comfortable, I ask them to do it in my left arm because I'm right handed so it doesn't affect me too much if I'm doing something! lol

I have a bruise on my arm that I have had for about a week and a half from one of them.

Having said all that, I am a wimp when it comes to pain so other people might not find it as painful :o

 

[hannajadem]

It' s a deep intramuscular injection, so yes it does hurt when the fluid goes in, and for a while afterwards, my brother said it was 'the most painful thing he had experienced in his life' (men-try giving birth!), but when I had them I just found it hurt the same as any other injection tbh.

 

[sas21]

Hi all,

Just a quick update.

I had the test for Pernicious Anaemia and it came back clear so still don't know what's causing it.

Got another docs appointment next week so will see what happens then I guess.

I also might now have fibroids or endometriosis after ending up in A&E the other week with awful stomach pains so got to wait for a scan for that too, I swear this has all come up since I have come off of the pill, maybe just coincidence but it's a bit weird !lol

Thanks again for all your help :hug::hug:

Sarah
xx