Weakness, dizzyness and fatigue and b12 deficiency

[Mok123]

Around 5 weeks ago I’ve started feeling really weak and sore round my left arm and back I’ve had a heart scan as well as bloods done in the hospital and they said I’m fine that my it must be a muscle injury as they checked for any infections and also had a chest x Ray. They gave me naproxen for it and after two weeks I wasn’t feeling any better I was getting back pains around my whole back muscles in random places and felt weak especially on the left side so I went to my doctors and got bloods done again and he said it might be a viral infection and said I’m low on vitamin b12. The symptoms I get currently and they’re not getting any better are weakness in my arms especially left, weird weak sore feeling round my chest, back and sometimes my neck. Extreme fatigue and I get sore head as well as getting dizzy however the dizziness only started last week and it feels like I’ve the cold as my nose and ear feels blocked and my left eye feels sore and heavy. I’m currently taking folic acid as that’s what my doctor gave me and told me to come back if I don’t feel better. Are these symptoms are due to b12 deficiency ? I also want to add that I’m a young male in my 20s therefore I feel really stressed about these symptoms as I never had any health issues until now

[ChitN]

If you take folic acid without b12 injections it will only lower your b12. I had similar symptoms as you describe. For me it was b12 deficiency.

[clivealive Forum Support]

Hi Mok123 Go back to your doctor and ask why you were not prescribed Vitamin B12 when your level was low..

Giving Folate to a B12 deficient person without B12 can lead to an irreversible exacerbation in neurological features

Care should be taken not to give folic acid (instead of B12) to any patient who is B12-deprived, as this may result in fulminant neurological deficit.

You doctor should be aware of this.

I am not a medically trained person but I've had Pernicious Anaemia (one of many causes of B12 deficiency) for more than 46 years.

I wish you well.

[Mok123 in reply to clivealive]

I went to my doctors and he told me it is Folic Acid that is low in my body isn’t that the b9 and not the b12 which I was told when I was getting my prescription for folic acid tablets. Do you think my symptoms due to it being low and I’ve been drinking alcohol on weekly basis which only lowers the folic acid? As he told me that apart from that everything seems fine. The worst symptom I get is the weird pain round my left lower centre back radiating to the shoulder and sometimes left arm making it feel weak?

[clivealive Forum Support in reply to Mok123]

Your original post said that your doctor told you that your Vitamin B12 was low and he's now saying that it's folic acid (B9).

Can you ask for a print out of the latest blood test to clarify just what is low and what is not. I'm confused.com

[Mok123 in reply to clivealive]

Yeah I have and when I was getting my prescription at the surgery reception for the folic acid tablets they’ve said it was for the b12 being low unless I missunderstood and they’ve said b9. Then I went back to my doctor the other day and they checked the results and told me it’s the folic acid that was low not b12. Sorry for the confusion!