Finding my own way forward

[HDub]

I had a few days away and it gave me time to think on what i can do for me...but i would welcome any thoughts.

All my blood tests a couple of weeks ago came back 'within range' - though some were high / low.

My b12 was below 400 so i am upping the sublingual drops, and having read things on this website i am now supplementing with vitamin d too.

I take 250 mcg thyroxine - which i will continue with at night on an empty stomach.

In 6 weeks time i am going to get my thyroid levels and b12 checked. At that point i'll see about making a private appt with an endo.

It's only little things - and i don't know how much difference additional b12 & d will make ( or how quickly) but it feels like a positive step.

Apart from going gluten free is there any other small changes people would recommend?

Hx

[dang]

Have you had your vitamin d checked first? It's not the type of supplement where you want to guess the correct dose. Your right about the b12.

Also it's good to check folate and ferritin and correct those as well. I think you're being smart for taking little steps at a time and making little changes. Eventually you may want to look into supplementing zinc and/or selenium, but just like vitamin D it's best to get your levels tested before supplementation. Zinc is required for the production of T4 and conversion of T4 to T3, and selenium also required for T4 to T3 conversion. A deficiency in either would cause you low FT3 and therefore symptoms.

[HDub in reply to dang]

Hi,

My gp checked my folate levels...once again they were within range.

But i'm at the end of my tether asking for things to be checked ( he wouldn't check my t3 levels - i had that done privately).

I've opted for vitamin d as i am very pale and burn at the first whiff of sun so i rarely go out in it uncovered, nor do i eat any foods supplemented with it. 😕 It's a finger-crossed scenario it might help ( quite frankly i couldn't get much worse!)

Do you have any idea how quickly the benefits of b12 might kick in?

[dang in reply to HDub]

Do you know your folate levels? Within ranges isn't usually good enough, preferably you'd be half-way in the range. I understand it's not necessarily easy convincing a doctor to do all the tests.

I can't say when the benefits of b12 will kick in. Personally I didn't feel improvements until I started rectifying all my deficiencies and I had a lot of them! I think as long as you're deficient or close to deficient in any vitamin or mineral you can have symptoms from it. So it's important to correct them all.

What dose of vitamin D are you on? A regular maintenance dose is 1,000IU per day, oil capsules are much better absorbed than tablets (which frankly don't absorb at all unless taken with a fatty meal). You could safely take a dose of around 1-2000IU per day in the meantime, but try to have it tested because this could likely be insufficient to help if you are truly deficient. The problem with vitamin D is that there is a toxic point that you can hit if you take too much (granted it takes quite a lot to reach it). So you want to be careful.

[cwill]

You sound to be making the right changes, slow and steady. I would strongly recommend a nutrient dense diet with minimal processed foodstuffs and little that is too sweet. Our gut likes vegetable diversity to be healthy. And if you are not yet gluten free start reading labels and noting how much you currently consume. I also checked all personal care products that took some time to find replacements. Stick with it.

[HDub in reply to cwill]

Thank you 😊

I'm a dairy free vegetarian so label reading is 2nd nature.

I love bread but i do limit how much i have. I will start looking more closely at lower gluten options ( i really hope eating dust isn't my final diet option!!)

[Stourie in reply to HDub]

I think that it will be pointless getting your b12 checked because it is recommended that supplements for it should be stopped 4 months before testing. I would check that that is correct.

Jo xx

[cwill]

I went through lots of vegetarian phases until my gut is finally a bit happier. Coals to Newcastle then? I can't manage fish eggs nuts or seeds at present so without meat I wouldn't be here. I certainly recommend an exclusion diet for 4 weeks to decide if what you eat is reacting adversely. I always suggest that this is done when the weather warms up as our seasonal veg is more intersting and it is easier to do when the sun shines. So plenty of time to prepare then... Face and hair products were the worst as most hair products contain wheat: it is the stickiness of the mousse etc.

[greygoose]

A gluten-free diet has to be 100%, or it won't help.

You really are taking a risk, supplementing with vit D3 without getting it checked first. But, if you're going to take it, take vit K2-MK7 with it, and magnesium.

Most people are zinc and selenium deficient, so not really necessary to get tested first, you can do that later, when you can afford it.

Are you taking a B complex with your B12? All the Bs need to be kept balanced.

Oh, and are you getting enough fat and protein? They are often lacking in a vegetarian diet.