How long to feel better after loading shots

[Yellowkangaroo]

I finished the 6 loading shots 2 wks ago... felt great for 2 days, then really rubbish for a week. Last couple felt reasonably ok. Question is, is there an approx time it takes from the loading dose until you start to properly pick up? If people self inject how soon after the loading dose do they decide to take this route, or is is it only after some time of not feeling better? My doctor will reduce the 3monthly to 2months if I need it but said to wait a couple of cycles before you really know what you need as body is still healing.

Basically from reading everything on here regarding self injecting I didn't know at this early stage if I just need to wait and see if i improve with the docs injections only.

Hope this makes sense! Many thanks

[wedgewood]

A lot depends on how long you have been deficient . Also on the individual . You are fortunate to have a doctor who will give you 2 monthly injections if necessary .Thats a huge advantage . Most people don’t get that ..Also sometimes you get worse before recovery sets in . So you need to be patient , but it’s difficult I know . I’m sorry to be so vague . I assume that you are taking a folate supplement to help the B12 to do its good work

I had to resort to self injection when my doctor refused to budge from the 3 monthly regime. even hinting that it was all in my head , and that more B12 would be toxic anyhow . ...........

Don’t worry if you eventually feel that you need to S.I. . It’s not expensive ( about £1.30 a shot if you buy everything in bulk But in the mean time try to be patient , and give it a bit longer . Very best wishes .

[Yellowkangaroo in reply to wedgewood]

Thank you - yes I'm taking folic acid. Ok I will keep being patient which is hard for me!!

It's a shame how people think it can be all in the head - even my husband doesn't really believe it can affect you so much and often thinks I shouldn't be blaming things on B12 and just try harder

All the best!

[wedgewood in reply to Yellowkangaroo]

Yes that’s another thing to deal with — nearest and dearest thinking that it can’t be just a vitamin deficiency . Yes it can ! PA /B12 deficiency spreads its claws far and wide . I might get some B12 ampoules , needles syringes , swabs etc in readiness, in case the GP doesnt come up trumps .

[clivealive Forum Support]

Hi Yellowkangaroo

It is also important that your Folate level is monitored as this is essential to process the B12.

There is a complex interaction between folic acid, vitamin B12 and iron. A deficiency of one may be "masked" by excess of another so the three must always be in balance.

Symptoms of a folate deficiency can include:

symptoms related to anaemia

reduced sense of taste

diarrhoea

numbness and tingling in the feet and hands

muscle weakness

depression

Folic acid works closely with vitamin B12 in making red blood cells and helps iron function properly in the body .

As wedgewood rightly says it is not uncommon for some symptoms to appear to get worse before they get better as the B12 you are having starts repairing the damage done to your nervous system and your brain starts getting multiple messages from part of the body it had "forgotten about" or lost contact with. I sometimes liken it to a badly tuned radio on which you have turned the volume up high trying to catch the programme you want when all of a sudden the signal comes in loud and clear and the blast nearly deafens you.

A lot will depend on the severity and longevity of your B12 deficiency as to how long before there is no further improvement or recovery. Some symptoms will "disappear" quite quickly whereas others may take months or even years. There is no set timescale as we are all different.

I am not a medically trained person but I've had Pernicious Anemia (a form of B12 deficiency) for more than 46 years.

I wish you well.

[Yellowkangaroo in reply to clivealive]

Many thanks clivealive, I will keep up with my folate and hang in there as the doctor told me!