Can someone pls tell me how should I take vitamin B12 injections?
My internal medicine doctor prescribed Methylcobalmine injections twice weekly.
His intentions are just to bring my b12 levels in clinical range and I am afraid that he will stop once my levels are within the limit. I read that some people take these every day.I need to know the correct way so that I can convince my doc.to let me take the injections as I need them.
My b12 was
Vitamin B12 ↓ 117 pmol/L (156.1- 698)
It was tested on 12/09/2015
My folate was
Folate ↑ >20.0 ng/ml (4.8-20.0)
I was taking Iron+folic acid chewable tabs which were given to me by my internal med.dr. The tabs contained 100mg iron III hydroxide polymaltose complex and 350 mcg folic acid.
I only took these for about 10 days and stopped because I wanted to know my iron and folate levels.After about 12 days of stopping Iron+Folic acid,I had my Iron,folate,B12 and thyroid hormones tested.
My Iron was normal IRON 53 ug/dl (37-145) but my Folate was high.
After researching online,I found that folate needs enough b12 to be absorbed by the body.
I want to know if I should take a B-Complex supp. along with the B12 injections?Or should I start taking my Iron+folic acid chewable tabs after few B12 shots?
I would be grateful if someone please tell me optimal iron levels?Is mine OK?
I am also taking Vit.D capsules ....trying to bring the levels up, from 49.5 to 75 or higher.
I also read that to much Vit.B12 can lower Potassium levels so one should monitor potassium levels as well.Any comments on this pls?
Along with Vit.B12 injections and Vit.D ,I will be taking a multivitamin+multimineral supp.
I also plan to start taking T3 with my Levo.But I will do that after a couple of weeks because I feel that I don't have enough nutrients right now to help with T3 metabolism. Pls advise if I am doing the right thing?
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If your doctor stops your injections, it is easy enough to do them yourself. You should take a good quality vitamin B complex along side the injections. There are many videos on You Tube, but without knowing where you are, it is difficult to suggest sources of injectable B12.
I've been doing B12 injections for a little while,and my very recent blood tests show that while I have very high serum levels of B12, my potassium levels are fine.
Your iron levels are in the 'normal' range but at the lower end of it. Mine were the same so I have just supplementing some iron each day.
As regards the T3, you would be best posting your thyroid test results on the thyroid section of HU, and asking for advice there. It is a fact that many of us cannot do well on T4 alone.
I read somewhere that B12 injections should be given everyday or every other day for a week or two and then 2-3 inj. every week for 2 months....something like that.
I can't seem to find that post anywhere now.There was something about a loading dose and then maintenance.
Can you pls tell me if starting with 2-3 injs.a week would be ok or still too low?
1 ampule has 500mcg methylcobalmine in a 1ml vial.
The loading injections given over the first week or two are probably not needed if you are already receiving injections.
If you are starting out then yes, an injection every other day for a couple of weeks, and then see how you feel. If you feel that you need more, and your condition is improving still, keep on with the injections until you feel no further improvement.
We are all different, and need the injections for different reasons so nobody can say how much B12 you will need. Your folate levels look high, so don't go overboard with more supplements.
My doc.gave me iron+folic acid supp.for anemia and he never checked my b12 or folic acid.I had my b12,folate and iron tested first time after reading on HU that people with HypoT are mostly deficient in these.Anyway,I won't supp.with folic acid....just iron+vit D and folic acid.
I will start with 4 inj3ctions weekly and see how it goes.
I am loosing a lot of hair,feeling mentally and physically exhausted,my vision is getting weaker and blurry,low immunity,periods getting scanty,very poor memory ,numbness and tingling feeling in feet.I will continue with weekly 4-5 injections untill i see improvement in these symptoms.
Yes, that will be OK, but never assume that your illness is down to a single factor. Chronic illness is often more complicated than that. All we can do is try and get everything right.
Keep a logbook of your symptoms along with your food, drink and meds. You may need it to justify to your GP that you need more frequent injections .
Also new symptoms do show up after you start injections. These are your body detoxifying. You seem to get worse before you get better.
The logbook helps you sort out which symptoms come from food - i.e. Gluten and dairy, versus the meds. The clue is that there is a delay due to your gut. Sometimes 6 hours, or 12, 24 even 48 hours later.
Thank you so much for the valuable information.I will definitely keep an eye on the detox symptoms when taking B12 injections.
I did notice my skin looking yellow when I was taking Methycobalmine tablets.Maybe it was a detox symptom? But now I know my iron,folate and vit.D levels,so I will supplement with iron,vit.D and other B vitamins this time.Hope I get good results thsi time.
I started taking 500mcg b12 methycobalmine injections 4 days ago and I have taken 2 till now on alternate days.
Since you mentioned in your post that new symptoms will show up so I wanted to ask you if what I am feeling is normal or should I see my doctor again for these symptoms.
After my first injection,I felt heartburn.I also felt very empty in my stomach and brain.I was also feeling more sleepy than before.My symptoms are so strange and I don't know how exactly I should express these in words.But after taking these injections,I am feeling more depressed and anxious.I feel like crying and sad all the time.My legs feel so empty.If I sit leg crossed,I feel pins and needles or ants crawling in my feet.
I noticed this afternoon that the inner side of my left cheek has bite mark and it feels sore as well.
My hands are more cold but since I am hypothyroid this could be thyroid related.But I am feeling a little confused and dizzy as well and this could be another symptom related to b12 deficiency.My heart is racing so much ever since I started B12 injections.I am more hungry now.This is another hypo.realted symptom but now I feel hungrier and a little nauseated if I don't eat immediately.
I am confused and scared if I should continue with these injections or stop for a while or take these injections less frequently or increase my dose and take 1mg on alternate days instead of 5mcg.
I need some advise pls and I would be very grateful if you can help in anyway.
I haven't changed my thyroid med or any supp.or anything in my diet except these injections.
The hunger symptom is due to nerve repair of the vagus nerve. I get ravenous.
Does the nausea go away with some orange juice or acidic drink?
Do you supplement with folic acid also? Are you also taking a multivitamin to keep all your other vitamins and minerals in balance?
I haven't had the brain fog after the injection for a while. I think it is the one symptom from the injection that is the most confusing. Does it go away after a large soft poo? If so, this matches my experience.
I did drink orange juice once when I was so confused about what was going on in my body after taking b12 shot.But the OJ was not natural and was too sugary and sour for my taste.It didn't make me feel any better.I feel that my body craves for something after b12 shot.But I don't understand what it could be? Or maybe it's due to my nerves getting repaired and getting back to work? I have lived with so many symptoms for such a long time,I don't know what is normal and what is not.
I will take my b12 shot again today and see how I feel.
I am taking a multivitamin+mineral tab daily,vit.D ,B-Complex tabs and chewable Iron(just started yesterday).
I am not taking any folic acid separately because my Folate was too high when I tested last month.
I never get a large soft poo after taking b12 shots...lol instead I noticed that my lower back pain on the right side came back
I had tests of all kind to rule out gallstones,kidney stones,fibroid or anything related to ovaries or uterus but all tests came out negative.I noticed that this pain got more when I drank green tea so I stopped drinking it and the pain went away.But my started injecting b12,it came back.
My mind can't stop thinking about kidney stones.I sometimes think that I have tiny stones in my right kidney that don't show up in scans.
Do you think methylated b12 can cause kidney stones or any kind of other stones?
I don't have any food allergies.But I am allergic to dust and pet dander.
I was not tested for gluten intolerance because the dr.
I worry a lot about everything and this explains my gut issues. and my constipation is also due to that according to my doctor.Anyway,I am trying to overcome my nutritional deficiencies.Hopefully when my vitamin levels are optimal,I will feel some difference in my health.
I recommend keeping a logbook or diary to sort out some of the symptoms. Because the gut is involved there is a 12 to 24 hour delay from the cause to the symptom showing up.
Some of your symptoms are due to your meds.
Try to determine which symptoms appear after 6 hours or 3 hours. The liver filters most medications that are taken by mouth and the byproducts end up back in the gut.
For me rather than kidney my undetermined systems were urinary track infections and pain. The acidic drinks helped eliminate excess calcium build up where bacteria set up house. this also was only figured out after a lot of tests and probing.
If they don't show up on a scan, then don't worry about small kidney stones. They should pass through to the bladder.
Some pain is also false pain when you start on b12 injections especially if you've had nerve damage. The repair of the nerve makes the signal stronger which the brain initially interprets as pain. This kind of pain in muscles can go away with mild exercise. Getting the muscle moving at first is the hardest. Once you can get past this initial pain it all gets better and improves. The healing of the nerves also takes place when then muscle is moving because the nerve signals to make it move actually trigger the healing of the nerve too.
Worry causes stress and this consumes lots of B12. The logbook is a way to identify what is what and by knowing when a symptoms may appear after eating, drinking or taking a medication, you can stop worrying about that symptom.
Do you drink any alcohol? It consumes all the other B vitamins that b12 needs to do its job.
Pvanderaa,you are so helpful...I have no words to thank you.No doctor ever cared to listen about my symptoms and why I was feeling that way. I am glad I found support here.
I don't drink alcohol and never did in my entire life.I also stopped drinking sodas 2 years ago but after starting the b12 shots,I suddenly felt the need to have a soda.This must be due to excess calcium build up that you talked about.I do get UTIs every now and then and recently had one 3 weeks ago.
I drank ginger and garlic tea for the infection instead of antibiotcs.This tea always help me in curing my respiratory and urinary tract infections.I can't take antibiotics because of my low wbc.
Anyway,would drinking lemon water be ok if I feel the urge to have a soda after b12 injection?
I've also heard of drinking diluted red vinegar at the start of a cold. It sounds disgusting to me but my wife swears by it.
I'm gluten and dairy intolerant so I only have vinegarette dressings for salads and love that as it also increases stomach acid.
Do you take antacids? For my heartburn only acidic drinks work. My stomach doesn't produce enough acid due to surgery and that also led to the B12 deficiency
I don't take any antacids any more.Ever since I started taking Levothyroxine,my heartburn is almost 60% gone.Hypothyroidism effects stomach acid secretion.So this explains my stomach issues and malabsorption.
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