Recovery timescales

[Carrie1959]

Hi, I have had muscle, tendon and joint pain for 2 years I have had blood tests, x-rays and MRI scans which all showed normal.  I have just had a Vit d test which has shown I am deficient (25).  My doc has told me to take 3000 units of vit d supplement per day.  Can anyone give me a clue how long it will be before I start to see signs of recovery and how good the prognosis is for a full recovery.  Also is it good to exercise during the treatment of just rest.  Thanks

[Seattleanne]

Hi :)
Magnesium should be around 300mg or so... Some ppl tolerate more some do better with less...start with 1-200. If you get the runs cut back and add slowly. calcium I think should be around 1000.(double check that)

It's pretty shocking how little the medical community understands about vdd.!!! Story after story after story of ppl suffering for yeeeaaarrrs. And it's such a basic, simple test!

I would say listen to your body when it comes to exercise. I was so broken down that excersise felt like it did more damage than good. It was only recently (after 5 months of lots of rest and d therapy) that I actually felt the good kind of muscle sore after exertion as opposed to feeling torn down by it. Course, I was pretty out of shape to begin with too...I'd been deficient for a long time before it was caught.
Keep us posted :)

[Phyllis2010]

I concur with everything SEattleanne said. In terms of exercise, once I began to feel better (I had a pinched nerve as well), I resumed exercise. I had around 30,000 worth of tests before asking an endocrinologist for a vitamin d test which revealed a level of 20 ng/ml and only with the help of this forum was I able to arrive at a correct dosage. I seem to feel much worse as my d levels go up -- I'll feel worse then markedly better and this coincides with my d levels rising. I'm currently on a dose of 4400 IUs D3 gel caps daily. (I failed therapy with D2 50,000 IUs due to side effects caused by mega-dosing). My levels hit the 40s after 6-7 months of therapy and I felt much, much better. (I'm back to the gym 5-6 days per week). Good luck and let us know how you're doing.

[Carrie1959]

Thank you for responding, yes that is 25ng/ml.  I will take your advice and up the dosage maybe to 5k initially and see how that goes.  I will also get the magnesium and calcium as you recommend.  How much magnesium is recommended.  I was getting quite worried that the pains in my muscles and joints seem to have got worse since I have started to take the supplements so it was reassuring to hear that this is something to expect.  I was most amazed that during the two years of having the pains no doctor suggested testing me for vitamin d and it was only with my own research and a friend of a friend having the same symptoms and also being diagnosed with vit d deficiency that I approached my GP and asked him to do the test.  How crazy is it.  They must have spent thousands of pounds on other tests!!

[Seattleanne]

Hi and welcome!
Is that ng/mL? It's normal to be between 3-6 months before you feel any improvement. And I've got to say 3000 is very low dosage. Most of us, I believe, have been taking between 5 and 10 k/day of d3. I take 10k iu/day and it's taken 5 full months before I really started to feel better. It's important to know that it is also often more painful in those months, so don't get discouraged!! You have to consider it took years to get where you are now... Replacing the d & calcium to your body and healing in just months is major hard work for your body! The good news is that it does heal and you will feel better :).
Also important to know is that you should be taking magnesium and calcium along with a good multi strong in the b vitamins in addition to the d3.(not d2!!)
Check out easyimmunehealth.com and vitaminscouncil.com and dr. Holicks books are all great resources for info on d deficiency. Too, this forum gives good support and understanding when you have questions or are struggling.
I also really suggest you consider taking a higher dose too. It'll take longer at 3k... Probably much longer. Some ppl take even a year to feel better and I suspect it's due to low doses.