HELP - How long until deficiency symptoms go away!?

[blaporte332]

Hi all,

I'm wondering how long it's taken people to notice a notable/complete recovery from B12 deficiency, particularly regarding memory and critical thinking symptoms? I was diagnosed as severely B12 deficient in July and have taken high dosage pills every day without fail since (At it's worst point I even went to the ER for a brain scan since memory recall was so bad it was thought I could have a brain tumor :0). About 2 months ago I was retested and blood levels were a healthy ~1800.

I've noticed somewhat significant improvement in the ability to verbally speak what I'm thinking and with other symptoms such as horrible hand-eye coordination and balance, but despite the healthy levels for 4 months, I still notice memory issues, particularly with short term memory and still thought-->speech conversion. I'd say short term memory issues are still 65% present, and speech issues are still 40% present.

I'm wondering specifically, how long has it taken other people to notice a complete restoration of previous abilities, if at all? 6 months? A year? I just finished watching the Stranger Things 2 for the second time and really want to know how much longer it'll be until I can watch it without immediately forgetting large aspects of it!

[Gambit62 Administrator]

assume that you are in the US

recovery is going to be slower if you have an absorption problem and it is being treated orally but it is good that your B12 levels have risen on the tablets.

Generally a severe deficiency (unless dietary) should be treated with injections which will raise your B12 levels significantly almost immediately.

Unfortunately there isn't a clear answer to your question even if you were on shots - some people notice changes very quickly - within a week on shots - but for others it really does take months and some people don't recover completely (generally nerve issues).

Are you getting enough folate (and possibly B6 - though be careful with B6 as you can overdose) - and do you know what your iron levels are like. The absorption problem that made you B12 deficient in the first place can affect other vitamins and minerals as well.

It would also be worth keeping an eye out for thyroid problems as 40% of those with auto-immune gastritis (the most likely cause of your b12 deficiency) go on to develop autoimmune hypothyroditis ... and the symptoms are more or less the same.

ie it is possible that there is more than the B12 going on.

It can be very difficult to gauge accurately how you have been affected by memory and communications issues as you tend to be more aware of them than you might have been otherwise though having to watch a programme more than once because you forget bits would be quite a good indication that something isn't quite right yet.

anxiety is among the neuro-psychiatric effects of B12 and can also have an impact on memory etc.

[Mhk92]

I am on the same page as you. However my b12 deficiency started since April. Tbh I was on oral before then shifted to sublingual b12 and later on injectable which had a significant impact on my memory, fatigue, leg muscle cramps, breathlessness etc. It's been over 6 months, I am improving but very slowly and what really affects my daily life is the dizziness that makes it really hard to focus. That dizziness was ALOT! In the beginning but noe it has decreased alot but it's still there. I was so good with my books but damn now I struggle alot with my recall and visualisation however I can see improvement and I am still improving daily but very slowly. I prefer you shift to injectables and maintain the dose with sublingual b12. 😛

[blaporte332 in reply to Mhk92]

Thank you so much for the response and I'm sorry for the late reply. I appreciate your help. Did you notice a bigger improvement after you switched to injectables or was it just over time? I've read many people say injectables are better, but my blood levels are already high at ~1700, so do injectables have some kind of additional/different effect or are they not necessary here?

[Mhk92]

Why are your levels so high? Do some more testing I have read somewhere if b12 is extremely high it is also a sign of cancer but nevertheless go for shots with the 5th or 6th shot you will notice a difference and if you see improvement then you need it. Orally you only absorrb 1% of the total drug so you need injectables. If you can find an IV methycobal I recommend you go for that.