8 nmol/l!!! Recovery timeline?

Posted , 6 users are following.

Hi guys!

So, say your vitamin D tested at 8 nmol/l (all other bloods within range) and that your doctor had told you that this undoubtedly played a role in your recent calcaneus fracture. You're an active man in his 30s with a good diet, yet you've been feeling exhausted, weak, spaced out and dizzy, sometimes shaky and losing co-ordination to the point you struggle to function and, before your fracture, had to resign from a job that required work at height. Somehow you don't have muscle or bone pain though.

You've been prescribed large doses of D3 followed by maintenance doses and calcium plus multivitamins and minerals for cofactors.

You've already got anxiety problems, you've been frustrated for perhaps three years over feeling so rough, and now you're being treated for depression. You've been given a glimpse of hope that correcting your deficiency might correct your physical ailments.

How long do you expect to hang on for improvements given a level as low as 8 nmol/l? And how will these improvements become apparent?

I hope someone can give me a clear indication, thanks guys x

0 likes, 8 replies

8 Replies

  • Posted

    Not sure if this will help but I spent 6 1/2 years being diagnosed with low vitamin d. I had to have a hip replacement and had multiple cracks and fractures before being diagnosed with Tumor Induced Osteomalacia. They ran a blood test FGF23 which confirms I had a tumor somewhere in my body. This is a very rare bone disorder. The good news is if you have to have a surgical removal of the tumor and you Begin to heal.

    Your doctor will most likely not know what it is as I'm one of about 300 cases in the USA.

    Best of luck. The Mayo clinic in Rochester and Dr Tebben know about it.

  • Posted

    Hi Anthony, normally the minimum time to get vitamin D up to a reasonable level is three months and often more time than that. Try and sit out in the sun each day for a short time with no sunscreen. There are a few foods that contain vit D, you can Google them. However the main source is sunlight. Good luck.
    • Posted

      The main source is sunlight - PROVIDING the skin mechanism works. In my husband's case it seems not to as he had a level of 7 and while high dose supplements brought it up, the fact he takes low dose supplements AND spends a LOT of time outside with no sunscreen you would have expected it to be better now than it is. Just saying ;-)

  • Posted

    Hi Anthony,

    When I started out with vitamin d deficiency at level 13 my first symptoms were dizzy, fatigue and weakness. Three or four months into the deficiency that's when I started getting muscle weakness, joint and bone pain.

    It's been 7 months for me and the pain has gotten better but the fatigue and dizzy is still there. My mood got better not from supplementing but from going outside sunbathing in the sun 1 hour a day.

    What I've learned is getting your level to 40ng/ml in order for your body to be able to start storing vitamin d and be at a level 60 ng/ml to carry you through winter. Vitamin d stays longer in the body from sunlight than supplement.

    Also make sure your cellular magnesium levels are optimal before supplementing vitamin d or you will start having heart issues from potassium and magnesium wasting. I learned this the hard way.

    Everyone is different so expect 6 months to a year for recovery.

    Hope you start to feel better soon.

    • Posted

      Thanks for your response.

      Were you 13ng/ml or nmol/l to begin with? And were you treated with a loading dose followed by maintenance?

    • Posted

      I was at 13ng/ml to begin with and was treated with 50,000 iu d2 for 4 weeks then my body just wasn't tolerating it I began to feel extreme thirst, weakness and fatigue. I was getting palpitations, irregular heartbeat and high blood pressure spikes. I'm only in my thirties and was in good health never experience any of these symptoms before.

      I lowered the dose to 5,000 iu d3 but was experiencing the same thing. Since I had to quit my job just like you being dizzy and weak working with kids is not a good idea. I get my vitamin d from the sun and keep up with my magnesium.

      So far symptoms are improving gradually at level 42ng/ml. I heart issues has greatly improved. I will recheck my levels again in September.

    • Posted

      how are you feeling and what are your symptoms?
    • Posted

      I recently tested my levels at 22ng/ml, my doctor thinks my active vitamin d might be high because of inflamation due to chronic fatigue/ fibro. That's why the body is keeping the storage form low.

      I'm not sure if vitamin d deficiency was the root cause of my symptoms, maybe part of the problem. I still suffer from fatigue, body aches, bone/muscle pain, high resting heart rate, heaviness legs and arms. My blood pressure and irregular heart beat has improved.

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