Vitamin D deficiency

[SquigglyFrog]

Hi Everyone, I've recently been told by my doctor that my vitamin D level is at 23 Nmol per litre. They have prescribed me 40,000 IU once per week for 7 weeks and I was wondering if anyone else has taken this dose before? How long did it take you to feel any different?

Initially went to get checked out for near constant tension headaches, feeling exhausted all the time, pins and needles, aches and pains in the muscles in my chest/back/shoulders and mild nausea most days.

I have terrible medication anxiety and even though its just a supplement I'm a bit worried about side effects since its such a high dose.

I’ve taken 20,000iu for 2 weeks then once a week. The daily dose gave me awful headaches so I had to swap to every other day. Every time I stop taking the weekly dose my levels drop again. So they’ve just left me on it now for over a decade.

Why don’t you spend a few hours in the sun each day instead of going on medication

But you were worried enough about the symptoms of not getting enough of a dose to see the doctor and this is to counteract thst.

I asked if there was an alternative to medication and my doctor said my levels are currently far too low to correct in that way

Very true, I took my first dose this morning and I feel fine so far. I'm just wanting to hear others experiences to try and put my mind at ease and see how long it's taken others to feel better

Hi, my daughter’s level was 20 Nmol / litre. She was prescribed the same high dose as you for 7 weeks followed by a maintenance dose of 800 u daily long term. She felt A LOT better within a few weeks and had no side effects at all. Much better than feeling the effects of a deficiency!

I was issued 40,000 once a week x 7wk course ( I think was 16 or 19) and also folate deficient so on a high dose for that too. I don't recall having any side effects and noticed an improvement on the fatigue fairly quickly and the pains in feet, legs and hips that I'd assumed were due to gaining weight went away after a few weeks.

I am currently 3 weeks into a 6 week course of what you’ve been prescribed. Feel better in that I’m sleeping better and have finally fought off a cough I’ve had for 3 months, and no adverse side effects. I’ll be on a maintenance dose for 6 months after this 6 week intensive phase.

Thank you, I'm hoping that in a few weeks time I'll feel more like myself again. I'm glad you're feeling better

My level was 17 - GP said it was “slightly low” - took 1000 per day and it had gone up to 70 odd a few months later.

I take 40,000 a week as I was low - no side effects at all.

My level was 22 round about November. Dr put me on (I think, as far as I remember) 6,400 IU a day. After the prescription ran out I stayed on about 4,000 a day until I had another blood test back in March, I think. My level is now over 100 so glad it worked. I now take 1,000 IU a day as recommended. I went to the Dr for hair loss. There is another thread on it with my name on it for the exact details. You can't get enough Vit D during the winter months so I will take a supplement now every winter.

I had mine checked years ago and I was vey deficient, requiring similar dosage to yourself. I don't recall any symptoms though- it was found during routine blood tests.

Everyone living in the UK is advised to take a vit D supplement in winter though- which I was not doing back then. I hope you feel better soon.

From my research it seems like different areas have very different benchmarks for deficiency. The lovely doctor I spoke to said that <25 is considered deficient, <50 is insufficient. Have you noticed much difference since your level has gone up?

Vitamin D made a huge difference, no bad symptoms only good

I work from home and have sensory issues (ASD) around clothing, I can't stand the feeling of having my arms or legs unclothed so it really shouldn't have come as a shock to me that I'm deficient. Once my levels are back up I'll definitely be keeping up with the maintaince dose. Thank you for your response ♡

I was put on 40,000IU per week for, IIRC, 8 weeks because I was very deficient with a lot of bone pain. It took a while to kick in, possibly because I'd been badly deficient for a long time. I'm on a maximum dose to maintain my levels of vitamin d and still get bone pain from time to time, but nothing like it was.

I've had this medication several times. Once I was so low the hospital refused to let me leave until I'd had a Vit D injection.

Honestly speaking the only bad side effect has been the feeling of a slightly upset tummy (that is so slight it's not even worthy of a Rennie), but the good side effects of feeling better, more energised, deeper sleep and less pain in hips and shins far outweighed that.

I’ve just been prescribed 50000u to be taken every other day. Also, folic acid every day. I’m under a lot of tests which have taken far too long. Still not got a diagnosis and I’ve been through this rigmarole since December.

I haven't read all the replies so don't know if it's been mentioned already but you need to take vitamin K2 with D3 👍

I've read this a few times but when my GP gave me the prescription for Vit D there was no K2. I've no idea why.

There's no side effects. I didn't really notice I felt much different at all to be honest. I took the loading dose and now try to remember a supplement. You don't need to worry - it's not exactly medication - just a substance your body needs more of.

They don't. Vit K aids absorption and helps put the calcium in your bloodstream in to the right place, ie bones.

Iron tablets should always be taken with Vit C/fruit juice for better absorption and they don't tell you that either. It's quite ridiculous really.

I had to take 10000 iu every day for 3 months as I was very low. No side affects, helped with my fertility