Hi - I have never done this before, and it feels a little odd- but I am desperate to get info on my illness- I was diagnoised with Pernicious Anemia 22 years ago, but was never put on b12 shots. My symptons have stumped the doctors for the past 22 years, many of the doctors I saw noticed my b's were low and would suggest that I be put on b12 shots, and one doctor went so far as putting me on the shots while my doctor was on Maternity leave, when my doctor got back she took me off the shots, she has been treating me for depression and felt low b's had nothing to do with my symptons. Last year I had become so sick that I thought I was dying and I decided to go on the internet to see if I could find any disease that matched my symptons- and to my surprise every single on of my symptons was related to pern. anem.. My research also lead me to belive that mine is probably congenital. I have been trying to find info on longterm without treatment, I would really like to know what improvement I can expect!!!!!
I know this won't make any sense but I have been on the shots since Jan/07 and for the past 6 weeks have been feeling like I am getting worse. I can not find any current info on long term untreated!
If anyone out there has any info on what kind of recovery I can expect I would be grateful.
Leeanne

Welcome Leeanne,
I hope you can find the info you seek , nice to meet you.

Hey Leeanne

Welcome to NT. We have some members here who have a great deal of knowledge with b12. Rose has posted a lot about B12.

I have had both the shots and the I take methyl b12 sublingually and have gotten my stores backt o normal. I malabsorb not congenital.

What kind of symptoms do you have? Any nerve pain or neuropathy? When healing keep in mind that nerves produce the smae feeling as when they are damaged so it might not be unusual to feel worse before feeling better. BUt I think you should definitely discuss with your doc.

I would also tell you to have your iron and iron saturation checked. Maybe even all the vitamins. Chances are you could be low in something else as well. Spectracell does great vitamin tests.

Hi Leeanne and Welcome to NT.

Leeanne,

Hello and welcome to NeuroTalk. Nice to see you have come to be with us. You will find a great number of caring members here willing to help others as they are able. Again welcome, looking forward to seeing you around.

Darlene

Oh my gosh.

Your post is so upsetting to me that I can barely concentrate enough to understand it properly.

Did you really say you were diagnosed with pernicious anemia 22 years ago? and you've never been on B12 shots?

I am in shock.

I am amazed that you are alive.

My mother had it and I have some kind of problem with low B12...

It was hard for me to get shots early on... but then on Christmas Eve one year the doc gave me a prescription to give myself shots, and from then on it was improvement that I had not even imagined was possible.

In terms of gifts in my life, that was the big one. Or, one of them. I tend to be a very lucky person.

I sure hope you are taking Methylcobalamin now. If you aren't and start, do keep notes so that you can look back and see how it actually affected you and your symptoms. That can be very useful to know.

I have to go back, now, and read your post again. I hope I can understand better, now that I've released my shock.

I'm so glad you joined this forum. You will find so much invaluable information!

(((((((((leeanne))))))))))

OMG, I'm nearly crying now that I read about your depression. I was so depressed and so unable to deal with things that in May, 1997 I tried to kill myself. That's when the hospital found my low B12. But I wasn't put on shots for nearly a year after that.

The thing is, that now I'm having similar problems to those I had then, foreclosures, etc. and I'm not depressed. I'm tired, and freaked out by the courts and the prejudice and discrimination, but I am not depressed.

((((((((leeanne)))))))))

If you read the research excerpts at the bottom on my Fingernails page, you will see that depression has been found to be associated with low B12.

Not for everyone, I'm not saying that all depression is a result of low B12. Some is, some is not.

If you are lacking in intrinsic factor, you depression may well be associated with your low B12.

((((((((((leeanne)))))))))))

I just read and comprehended that you are on shots now but feel as if you are getting worse.

You didn't say how many shots you have, in what period of time.

I had a shot a month for awhile and improved. But then the nuerologist I was seeing said to have more when I was under stress. So I think I sort of combated some of the stress.

Then to make a long story short, a doctor gave me a prescription for a shot a day for a year... and that made HUGE improvements take place.

The doctor was holistic. Maybe you could find a holistic doctor near where you are.

((((((((leeanne))))))))))

One thing about taking B12 and getting worse, is that I think stress really devours B12... so if you were getting better and then you were under stress, you would need more B12 to remain at your new, improved level. Only you would onlly be getting the regular amount... so you wouldn't be able to sustain the improvement, and that would be stressful, in terms of how you were feeling, and so that in itself would require more B12... just to handle the stress.

I don't know if that made any sense. I'm sure it's true, but I'm really tired and I'm not sure I'm writing clearly.

Time to say good night... perhaps.

Hi, Leeanne, welcome to NeuroTalk!

Feel free to join in anywhere, but it looks like you're going to be busy right here.