Major breakthrough with my health & the GP

[KatyMac]

I have some health anxiety & a fair amount of 'white coat syndrome' and I find it hard to be assertive with Doctors.

I have IBS, CFS & FM and I have been wondering if I have a B12 deficiency

I went and saw a new GP and I admitted to looking it up on the internet - I explained that I often get told I have depression even when I think things are going quite well & that I feel my separate 'illnesses' are somehow connected.

She suggested that I have an auto-immune condition, that they probably were connected as it was unlikely that 3 such significant conditions appeared separately. She doesn't think it's B12 but as it won't cause any harm & it's relatively cheap it might be worth trying, however she is concerned about a reaction to a recent drug I started, so as my system is so 'fragile' she wants to start slowly

I don't think I could have had a better outcome

[MrsCakesPrecognition]

That is good news. Is she planning to send you to a rheumatology consultant to investigate the autoimmune issues in more detail?

[KatyMac]

No

She wants to wait to see if the B12 does anything

[MrsCakesPrecognition]

I'll be keeping my fingers crossed that it helps, do you have a time frame?

[KatyMac]

6 weekly injections then a blood test & a week later another appt - so 8 weeks I guess

It feels slow but then I've been ill for nearly 20 years, why would it be speedy

[MrsCakesPrecognition]

No, 8 weeks is not too long at all. It all sounds really positive . So glad you've found a helpful doctor.

[KatyMac]

I was hoping for daily injections but I suppose I understand the caution, I certainly react violently to some things

[sanfairyanne]

really pleased the appt went well and you get to trial the b12. good luck

[KatyMac]

Thanks - we even discussed how random symptoms get ascribed to depression & that CFS/FM/IBS are almost certainly connected.

We also talked about how it easier to agree with a doctor rather than digging your heels in and saying no

it was enlightening

[awaywego1]

That's a really positive outcome.
I have a set of similar conditions and am always a wreck in the drs..awaiting to be fobbed off...if they are nice and actually listening and trying to make some sense of it all it makes me cry :) x

[Grokette]

I had the six week course of B12 injections about ten years ago. For what it's worth (and it might have been a bit placebo I suppose) I felt significantly better very quickly. Didn't cure everything else wrong with me but if you are deficient you should notice a difference soon. Good luck

[KatyMac]

Yes placebo is something that worries me

But it's positive

[KatyMac]

I had the injection on Tuesday

DH & DD noticed I was brighter on Thursday/Friday/Saturday but only mentioned it today as I'm back to normal now

[MrsCakesPrecognition]

That's good news, if the weekly injection gives you a boost for half a week and you don't get a negative reaction (fingers crossed) it might make a good case for the daily doses you were originally hoping for.

[KatyMac]

I hope so- but I think she will use the "well your level wasn't very low" & "it was only an experiment"

But we will see