aching legs/low potassium?

i am 3 years 5 months post op gastric bypass. sometimes my legs ache. this has been an issue for about 2 1/2 years now. usually it is below the knee like my calves and very occasionaly in my thighs right above my knees. i think it is low potassium but the 2 times i have had my potassium tested my dr. said my potassium as well as all other levels are fine. over the last probably 18 months my weight has fluctuated about 10 pounds. what leads me to believe it may be low potassium is because i only notice my legs aching when i am carefully watching what i eat to try to lose any excess weight i have gained. it does this whether i excercise or not. when i am watching my diet i try to get in some potassium but i know my body does not absorb nutrients as well since wls. has anyone experienced anything similar or ever had problems with low potassium since wls? i do take adderal for attention defecit disorder and i seem to urinate more when i take it. i think urinating a lot makes you lose potassium but i'm not sure. any info is greatly appreciated.

It might be potassium.  But it also might be a dozen other things.  There are many deficiencies that can cause aching muscles, cramps and muscle fatigue.  For instance low B-vitamins can cause muscle weakness, low calcium and low Vitamin D can cause pain and muscle fatigue. 

When you have your bloodwork checked, are they checking all the standard WLS labs?  Which means they draw about 11 to 13 vials of blood.  Here's a list of the recommended labs in case you don't have the full list already. 

Also remember that when your doctor says your levels are "fine" .... that just means the lab didn't flag anything as abnormal.  Make sure you get a copy of your own lab results and study them to see if anything is trending low and is on the edge of being abnormal.  Nobody is going to care about your lab results as much as you are... so don't trust anyone to review the results until you've seen them yourself. 

Be the squeeky wheel if you need to be.  If your doctor is not dealing with the pain you're experiencing, keep bugging him until he pays attention.  Pain is the signal from our body that something is wrong, so you need to keep at it until you and your doctor get to the bottom of the issue. 

HTH
Pam

thanks pam. this is very helpful. i printed out the list of labs that need to be done. i don't think i've ever had over 1 maybe 2 tubes of blood drawn. this certainly tells me i've never had all these labs done. gonna make an appointment first thing monday morning for this. you are an angel. have a great day!

On a side note, I get leg cramps at night when I eat too much salt (ie Mexican).  You migh****ch for that connection.