Vitamin D Deficiency

I know there are many postops out there who have dealt with vitamin D deficiency so this question is to all of you. 

In December 2007, my Vitamin D level was in the teens, I believe 12 or 13.  I was started on supplementation, but very low dose as my PCP didn't know how much to give me.  In exchanging emails with vitalady, my 4000 to 6000 units per day was nowhere near enough.  Anyway, my PCP repeated the vitamin D level as I am still having difficulties with severe fatigue in the evenings and fighting sleepiness all evening.  I sleep well, 8-10 hours every night but the severe fatigue is really getting to me.  The repeat vitamin D level was 31.1, so it has gone up but still not at the high end of "normal."  Vitalady said it should be more around 80, the top end of the normal range.

Anyone else suffer from severe fatigue?  If so did you have any other vitamin deficiencies other than D?  I'm not due for repeat labs until November, my 2-year postop mark, but I am seeing my PCP on Tuesday for the fatigue.

Thanks for any advise anyone has.

I also had fatique and the vitalady told me to drink 5 protein shakes a day. i take calcium 6x a day so when i take my calcium i put 4oz of water in a glass add my whey protein stir and just down it. what a difference more energy and my carb cravings went away. good luck vicki

oh i forgot i take 100,000IU vitD3 and my 25 hydroxy D level is 100. that's where i try to keep it. vicki

Most vitamin deficiencies can cause fatigue...In fact, there are so many things that cause it that it's almost impossible to know what is causing it unless you have other symtoms too...and lab work.  Anemia and magnesium def. made me very sleepy and restless at night. I'm still working on fixing these things....I'm also low low low on Vit A (another one that causes fatigue) and zinc...I forgot if that one does or not!  LOL I'm too sleepy right now to remember or look it up! I'm good on my B vits....but they often cause quite a bit of the sleepies if you are low.  Good luck with it all...Maybe your PCP will run your tests early!  Hope you feel better soon

My D is low, too.. it's 22 I think. Yeah, I'm tired.  I don't know how much of it is from a kiddo that gets up at least once a night (I'd kill to sleep through the night one time!), and how much is a deficiency.  My B's are all above range, my iron is not great, but ok, and my ferritin is on the low end of normal (11, 10 is beginning of normal range). Ask your PCP to go ahead and run your labs.  Iron, ferritin, b's, etc.  See what they say.  Maybe something else is low. Outta curiolosity.. how much vit. d were you taking to get up to the 31?  I've just doubled my dose from 4000 to 8000 and am afraid to do too much more because I don't know where we become toxic.

I just had my 2 yr labs done. My D was at 24. My PCP gave me a script for vit D but we can't absorb it so I went to vitalady. She's great! knows so much! anyway she said for me to take in powder form Vit D 50,000  two times a day for 30 days. I go back in 2 months to my PCP & I'll let him know about the script then.I had a few other things low selenium. not sure  what that does but I now take an OTC vit for that bun/creatinine ratio was high  26. i think this is calcium this next few my PCP wasn't concered but I'm not sure what it is. white blood cells  low 3.5 platelet count low 139 absolut monocytes low 172 I know it has to do with the blood but now sure what. & why he;s not concered ? I don't know. 

it's a long, long, long way from deficient to toxic. first gotta get:
outta the hole
then bottom of normal
then, normal ranges
then, higher in normal
then, top of normal
then, high
then, way too high

that'll take 2 yrs. Then when you reach way too high, the standards wil change again and you'll suddenly be mid-range when the range changes again.

about the only way I could see a prox rny reaching toxic (define: toxic) would be to stay on 100k a day forever, past all testing. Some actually will need 50k a day to hold normal, but usually only I only suggest those high doses to climb out of the basement into "normal land" and then begin stabilizing

Someone sent me a PM (LeeAnn over in the DS forum, actually) about a condition that can manifest itself within 36 hours of overloading on D.  I, of course, have deleted that PM with the name of the condition.  So this is what I was worried about. Since you're back online.. The D I take (it's dry) is mixed with calcium carbonate.  I guess this is as a filler because calcium isn't listed on the supplement information section.. just in the ingredients.  Is there a chance that I am malabsorbing the D because of the combo?  My pharmacist thought no.. my nut. didn't have a clue.. but you're kinda an expert.

here is the expert:

http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/vitaminDToxicity.shtml

Vitamin D council does nothing but study vit D. they do not sell it. they don't promote any brand or anything.

as unbiased as you can get.

the other articles that came up on google were PROLONGED taking of too much

but then again, there is taking it and there is absorbing it. two different animals. many MD believe that 50k a day is toxic, based on textbooks that are decades old. remember that vit D isn't really a vit, and was only discovered in the 30's and only measurable since 70's, so in its infancy, as far as studies go. As I said, 3 yrs ago, the desirable level of D 25 hydroxy was 40. Now it's saggy and we want 100. One of my local labs tops out at 150. Last summer, the top end was around 80.

You have to make your own decision, but vit D deficiency is considered pandemic and the damage done is permanent. you can fix the numbers but you can't reverse the loss to bones/teeth, joints and etc.

you have to find your own balance. I'm a bit more rabid since my broken arm. The calcium/D issue didn't cause it. That was flying thru the air and splatting onto a very unforgiving hunk of asphalt, but it will never heal correctly. Once you have the osteoporosis (or ostemalacia--adult rickets), you don't get long term care insurance; long term disability or even life insurance!

hey, 4 yrs ago, 31 in D was considered great. Now we want to reach 100 or more!

B12 (new studies show 800 as the bottom level)

iron (want to be around 90 in iron)
ferritin (want to be around 200)
regular CBC, in which we're just happy to be all in range. LOL

folic acid? want to be at top of range

B1 (want to be top of range, ok to be over the top a bit)