3 ms·

I have strong upper chest pains (constant pressure), regardless of position. Went to first doctor, was told "it's just bruised ribs", even though I don't play a

by byuu 12y ago

I have strong upper chest pains (constant pressure), regardless of position. Went to first doctor, was told "it's just bruised ribs", even though I don't play any sports or do any serious workouts. Went to a second doctor recently after a few months as it started getting worse. "It's just heartburn", even though I told him I already take a PPI, H2 blocker and calcium. I've had heartburn for 12 years and know this was a very different feeling, but he basically ignored me and proceeded to ask me about how often I went to church and about my sex life. I wish I was joking. So he wrote me a prescription for ranitidine (a weaker H2 blocker, sold as Zantac OTC.) But thankfully the second time I was given a blood test and found that my vitamin D level was <9ng/ml, even though I was already taking vitamin supplements. So he wrote me a prescription for 150,000 IU of D2 weekly. That seemed to make it worse. So I looked into this and found that D2 has poor bioavailability and depletes magnesium. So I obtained D3 and magnesium supplements, am taking a saner supplement level (10,000 IU daily), and have been feeling quite a bit better. Not perfect, but supposedly it can take three months to fully recover. I was very surprised to learn that a lot of people develop random musculoskeletal pains in response to very low vitamin D levels. Neither doctor even considered that possibility. I was very worried that this might have been something more serious, and it was basically impossible to convince either of two doctors to actually do some real tests just to be safe. When I read stories like this, I can't help but wonder, what if it was the start of cancer (which killed my father)? And by the time the symptoms got bad enough to not write me off right away, it'd be too late to treat it? I've had similarly terrible experiences with fatigue during the day due to my job's oncall responsibilities. That doctor told me it was depression (I am absolutely not depressed), and tried to get me to start taking Zoloft, which I refused. These GP doctors just don't listen to their patients nor take their concerns seriously. I'm sure everyone always assumes the worst when something bad starts to happen, and likely it does turn out to be nothing. But one in three people do develop cancer in their lifetimes. How the hell are we supposed to get it diagnosed early when doctors just casually dismiss us out of hand?

mingmecca 12y ago
I can relate to this. A few years ago I was a 30 year old guy who felt like a feeble 70 year old. I was tired, depressed, and just didn't feel well at all. I had a blood test and the doc was flabbergasted at how low my Vitamin D levels were. Technically I had rickets! But then I started taking 10-15k of D3 a day and in a couple of weeks I felt great. Now I take 5k in the summer and 10k in the winter and haven't a had a problem since. So, moral of the story: get your Vitamin D levels checked. And take D3, not D2.
- byuu 12y ago
  Exactly how I felt! I'm 31 now myself. I'm really hoping my experience is like yours, because I'm still not 100% myself again. Currently 2.5 weeks in. I can't even imagine what my levels were prior to taking the 500% RDV supplement I was on before having my blood checked. But at <9ng/ml, I most likely have osteomalacia. All doctors will only prescribe D2 (ergocalciferol); so you really need to go and get D3 (cholecalciferol). Your body naturally produces D3, and the latter is much more bioavailable. Because of this, you will also want to scale down your dose and not take as much. It's possible to go too far and end up with hypervitaminosis, which ironically can also cause random bone pains, and calcification of your arteries. It's important to test your 25(OH)-D levels every few months when taking extreme supplements. Also, be sure you are getting enough calcium and magnesium. These are the chemicals needed to maintain healthy bones. Doctors do not prescribe the magnesium, and large vitamin D supplements will deplete this, also leading to calcification and other problems. Finally, for anyone living north of South Carolina, you will not receive enough UVB radiation from the sun to produce sufficient levels of vitamin D during the winter months, and milk really has very little vitamin D. So you might want to test and possibly supplement if you are experiencing random musculoskeletal pains. Low levels are fairly common, and usually not a huge deal. But at my level, it was fairly severe.
  - jeorgun 12y ago
    Out of curiosity, why do doctors only prescribe D2? It sounds from your description like there's essentially no reason they shouldn't be prescribing D3, and yet apparently none do.
    - abecedarius 12y ago
      A doctor did advise me to take D3, though she's an unusual one, far more helpful than my official insurance-provided doctor. I don't know what the official one would've prescribed, because none of them even considered testing for it.
  - pstuart 12y ago
    Vitamin K should be considered here as well. K1 is found in leafy greens, while K2 is found in meat and poultry (liver is a super source), and natto.

by byuu 12y ago

mingmecca 12y ago

I can relate to this. A few years ago I was a 30 year old guy who felt like a feeble 70 year old. I was tired, depressed, and just didn't feel well at all. I had a blood test and the doc was flabbergasted at how low my Vitamin D levels were. Technically I had rickets! But then I started taking 10-15k of D3 a day and in a couple of weeks I felt great. Now I take 5k in the summer and 10k in the winter and haven't a had a problem since. So, moral of the story: get your Vitamin D levels checked. And take D3, not D2.

byuu 12y ago
Exactly how I felt! I'm 31 now myself. I'm really hoping my experience is like yours, because I'm still not 100% myself again. Currently 2.5 weeks in. I can't even imagine what my levels were prior to taking the 500% RDV supplement I was on before having my blood checked. But at <9ng/ml, I most likely have osteomalacia. All doctors will only prescribe D2 (ergocalciferol); so you really need to go and get D3 (cholecalciferol). Your body naturally produces D3, and the latter is much more bioavailable. Because of this, you will also want to scale down your dose and not take as much. It's possible to go too far and end up with hypervitaminosis, which ironically can also cause random bone pains, and calcification of your arteries. It's important to test your 25(OH)-D levels every few months when taking extreme supplements. Also, be sure you are getting enough calcium and magnesium. These are the chemicals needed to maintain healthy bones. Doctors do not prescribe the magnesium, and large vitamin D supplements will deplete this, also leading to calcification and other problems. Finally, for anyone living north of South Carolina, you will not receive enough UVB radiation from the sun to produce sufficient levels of vitamin D during the winter months, and milk really has very little vitamin D. So you might want to test and possibly supplement if you are experiencing random musculoskeletal pains. Low levels are fairly common, and usually not a huge deal. But at my level, it was fairly severe.
- jeorgun 12y ago
  Out of curiosity, why do doctors only prescribe D2? It sounds from your description like there's essentially no reason they shouldn't be prescribing D3, and yet apparently none do.
  - abecedarius 12y ago
    A doctor did advise me to take D3, though she's an unusual one, far more helpful than my official insurance-provided doctor. I don't know what the official one would've prescribed, because none of them even considered testing for it.
- pstuart 12y ago
  Vitamin K should be considered here as well. K1 is found in leafy greens, while K2 is found in meat and poultry (liver is a super source), and natto.