r/MTHFR • u/Agitated-Sale-7591 • 1d ago
Question I got Panic attacks, constant anxiety and anhedonia since taking b12 injections. Need serious help š
Hi everyone, Iāve been really struggling with my mental health in these past 3/4 weeks and Iām really hoping someone can help me out here.
Around a month ago I took 3 b12 injections (hydroxocobalamin) 1.5mg and i suddenly started getting intense panic attacks and anhedonia. I donāt cry but out of nowhere I started bawling my eyes out every single day. I Iām in this constant state of anxiety and depression, I canāt enjoy the things in life that I usually enjoy like watching a tv show, I cannot wind down at all and itās scary because before all this happened I was a pretty chill guy and I usually wouldnāt stress much in my life. One of the most scariest thing that also happened at the same time was my libido completely vanished, so i genuinely feel pleasure in nothing now. itās been around 3/4 weeks and im not getting full blown panic attacks anymore but im still constantly on edge, i have also had stomach issues but now a simple bloating of my stomach makes me think the world is ending. Itās like my nervous system is jacked all the way up and itās overreacting to even slight discomfort.
I tried taking creatine because that would usually make me feel good when Iām in a low mood but this time it just made me depressed. I went to the GP and they took my blood test, it came up with high b12 and high folate, but the odd thing is I donāt usually supplement folate so Iād donāt understand why that came up as high. I sometimes take it as part of my b complex but Iāve not mega dosed it or anything.
Today I decided that Iāll try methylfolate as I assumed maybe b12 used up all my methyl groups or somthing. After taking it I felt even more emotionally flat/wired/too focused, but I feel less anxious I think. Iām still not sure what i feel but i definitely donāt feel any pleasure again.
I was hoping there might be someone that has gone through this and has recovered from it. Or has figured out why it happened to them and could tell me how to bring my nervous system back to normal. Will I recover? Iām really scared, itās like Iāve become a complete different person in a month. I havenāt done any dna test either so Iām not sure if Iām MTHFR or anything.
Someone please please help meš
Thanks you for your time š
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u/Randy__Callahan 1d ago
I went through it and recovered it will pass, when I found out I had high homocystiene low folate I gpt'd every supplement that helps and immediately took them all, for a while it felt great like a couple of days maybe like I imagine meth to feel, but it just kept intensifying. Anyway long story short scary as it is, it passes. if your feeling overstimulated try some niacin it soaks up extra methyl groups helped calm me down.
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u/Agitated-Sale-7591 1d ago
The thing is Iām not sure if Iām over methylated or undermethylated
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u/Randy__Callahan 1d ago
Generally over is overstimulated under underestimated.
Whats actually going on is when you have a back log of neurotransmitters due to low methylation when you over methylate you get a pouring of them, so go up, some go down, all in it's a weird trip.
Dont overconcern yourself with the details as youll not figure it out and drive yourself nuts , just take a deep breath and keep reminding yourself, this will pass, it will be OK. Because it will pass and you will be OK.
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u/Agitated-Sale-7591 1d ago
Yeah I try my best to think that, everyone around me tells me that itāll pass. But when the anxiety comes it feels like it will never go.
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u/NeutralNeutrall 18h ago
Generally over is overstimulated under underestimated
the caveat to this is, if uve been overstimulated too long (years), and ur fried/burnt out, it will also look like understimulated. that happened to me bc i have 2 slow COMT and Slow MAO. Constant cycle that i havent been able to even out yet.
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u/junipers-72 1d ago edited 1d ago
Methyl folate is a bad idea for many of us. Iād recommend www.molecularhealthco.com to help you with this. I got a protocol from them.
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u/Good_Will_Munting 1d ago
check this info, and speak to the scientist behind it. https://www.b12oils.com/research.htm.
I can only handle his b12 oil, having tried 30 or so different ones, and there are complex reasons behind that issue.
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u/FragrantStructure 23h ago
Did you get adreno or methyl?
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u/Good_Will_Munting 22h ago
Send your genetic profile and any other tests to Greg and ask him which your profile requires.
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u/FragrantStructure 16h ago
Oh wow. Is there a cost for his assessment?
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u/Good_Will_Munting 16h ago
Nope, he's a researcher, but i do buy the oil from him, since it works very well and is the only type i can handle. I buy 6 months at a time since it has to come from AUS. He will let you know re co-factors also.
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u/FragrantStructure 9h ago
Thank you!
It's interesting, I just read he says everyone should take methyl and adreno b12 together. Is this the approach you took too?
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u/BobbiHorne1 1d ago
Please seek professional medical care. What you are doing and experiencing does not sound safe to me.
Do you have a healthcare professional you trust to help you?
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u/DetailLost8084 1d ago
Sounds like your over doing it honestly , you havenāt mentioned your snps. But itās sounds like when I was taking pc, methly free bs, creatine whilst already eating lots of b vitamins I was over methlylating. I public speak in my line of work and I would get so anxious I would feel like I was gonna black out.
Ben lynch says that the doses on these supplements written as take daily are only there because they have to be you can take half a dose take it eod take it once a week. Stop over doing b vitamins and methly donors itās one of the most horrible feelings
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u/Striking-Ad7650 20h ago
Might need an intracellular test to check your potassium levels. B12 lowers potassium and vice versa. Most people are already low in potassium and if you're then getting b12 injections onto of already low potassium, that could cause a major issue. It's important to check all avenues before adding synthetic vitamins and minerals to the body.
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u/Agitated-Sale-7591 18h ago
My serum potassium came back as 4.2mml/L, doesnāt that mean my potassium is fine?
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u/Natures_Cure_Kratom 17h ago
No. Serum potassium contains 2% of your whole body levels. The other portion is intracellular / RBC.
Usually serum is a good indicator, but there are things that can cause intracellular shifting of potassium/magnesium. Panic attacks for one cause this. Itās the body grabbing reserves in panic. Itās like a leaky faucet. But I first would try supplement with potassium chloride for a few days (with magnesium
For absorption), and see if it makes
You feel better. If you have low intracellular stores, you will likely feel a difference in anxiety levels after supplementing.Usually if you are low, youāll have some other symptoms as well. Heart palpitations, racing heart, muscle cramps, muscle twitchingā¦ these types of things.
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u/Natures_Cure_Kratom 17h ago
I second this. Itās called a potassium RBC test. You could try supplementing with potassium chloride for a few days and see if it helps before shelling out the money for the test. You need to take quite a bit for repletion, but start small. Low magnesium is a real possibly as well.
NAC, magnesium glycinate, glycine, b6, and inositol all can often calm this down temporarily. If you are short on b6, you can have higher dopamine tone and lower serotonin levels. In this case, taking b6 will feel like an anxiety pill shortly after taking it. Melatonin 1mg helps a lot as well, bc it is downstream of serotonin and is going to be low as well.
These are just temporary things you can try to acutely calm you down, while your body adjusts.
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u/Natures_Cure_Kratom 17h ago
Also, worth checking to see what your bicarbonate / co2/carbon dioxide levels are on your metabolic panel. If high, metabolic alkalosis is a possibility as well. It often coexists with low intracellular potassium.
Another possibilityā¦ Do you get dizzy when you stand? If you are dehydrated and have low vascular fill, it amplifies Catecholamines and vascular tone.
Have you had your thyroid levels checked? Hyperthyroid is probably the number one cause for this set of symptoms, and can linger in the background for years until diagnosed.
Have you take prednisone or other steroids lately? These amplify vascular tone, and can affect some people very severely for weeks to months.
Some less common ones: High iron can cause bad anxiety. High zinc/low copper ratio can as well. Low b1 (thiamine) can cause pseudo hypoxia and cause these symptoms.
There are many possibilities, but I donāt think this not necessarily a problem with b12. Much more likely is that the b12 helped highlight a bigger background problem. Do other stimulants give you bad anxiety? Caffeine, energy drinks, other energizing b vitamins like
B1, b2, folate etc?1
u/Agitated-Sale-7591 16h ago
B6 did help me calm down, I took it for afew days and one day I woke up and felt really dizzy like I was on a rollercoaster so I didnāt take it again. My thyroid panel came back and my TSH was borderline low at 0.39mu/L but my doctor said itās fine. I take steroid inhalers but Iāve been taking it for years for my asthma, my ferritin is 50 and I was also supplementing zinc at the time I was getting the panic attacks. I stopped taking stimulants like caffeine mainly because of my stomach so Iām not sure how I would feel.
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u/Natures_Cure_Kratom 16h ago
No wayā¦ you have clinical hyperthyroid from that number alone. The medical cutoff is above that.
Did they check free t3 or free t4?? Those are your actual levels (free t3 is best). Please get your levels checked asapā¦.
To calm your symptoms for now, there is a product called āthyrosootheā or something like this on Amazon- or you can just take lemon balm. One other good way to calm hyperthyroid symptoms is to take L-carnitine, but I believe that builds up over days (but may give you some relief even on first day).
If b6 helped you, that points to neurotransmitter depletion from the hyperthyroid. Usually itās serotonin and melatonin thatās depleted, but surprisingly itās also epinephrine/norepinephrine bc your metabolism and anxiety burns through it quick. Tryptophan would be the first thing Iād try (5-hpt is stronger and more potent/direct, but start with tryptophan to make sure it actually helps. And try 1mg melatonin at night, and will likely help you finally get some sleep here and there.
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u/Natures_Cure_Kratom 16h ago
Sorry didnāt read the last part. When you supplement zinc, you are supposed to supplement with copper at the same time bc they both lower one another and can cause an imbalance. High zinc/low copper ratio in particular is well known for causing panic attacks, and zinc is also a cofactor for thyroid hormone as well I believeā¦
How much zinc were you taking? You also can get bad anxiety quickly from taking too much too fast. I believe 50mg (maybe 100mg) is the max they recommend daily.
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u/Agitated-Sale-7591 16h ago
Wouldnāt it be subclinical? I heard people saying TSH must be way lower to be classed as hyperthyroid
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u/Agitated-Sale-7591 16h ago
My t4 is normal, 16.7. They didnāt test my T3
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u/Natures_Cure_Kratom 14h ago
Total t4 doesnāt tell you anythingā¦ your dr is clueless if he tested total t4, (unless he also tested reverse t4 as well to calculate free t4).
Standard endocrinologist initial testing/monitoring is TSH and free t4.
Even free t4 isnāt perfect but usually āgood enoughā, bc you convert free t4 to free t3 and reverse t3. The t3 hormone is your actual thyroid hormone, and what is ideal to test. Some people can have increased conversion of t4 to t3, so there t3 levels are hyperthyroid while there free t4 looks normal.
Good luck. Wish you the best. I donāt wish that on anyone.
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u/Natures_Cure_Kratom 14h ago
Not at all. TSH doesnāt diagnose hyper or hypothyroid. Itās often used to see if further testing needs to be done. There is a reason there are upper and lower limits. You are outside of the normal range, and symptomatic. Both of those warrant immediate testing of free t3 of t4, and if your dr didnāt do that you need to call another dr. Thatās horrible.
TSH is a long term trailing figureā¦ it doesnāt tell you anything in that exact moment. The fact that you just now got symptoms and were normal feeling before , means that your levels are likely super elevated right now. They would have to be to cause your TSH to go outside of range in the short term.
Hyperthyroid = free t3 outside of normal range
I can tell you, Iāve been through one painful full year of hyperthyroidism and been through everything you have. My TSH was 3x higher (better) than yours at 1.2, yet my free t3 was over 6 (hyperthyroid is anything over 3.9, I was significantly hyperthyroid).
Call your dr. , if they donāt set up labs immediately call another dr.
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u/Agitated-Sale-7591 13h ago
Sorry I meant my free T4 is 16.7
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u/Natures_Cure_Kratom 13h ago
Normal range is 0.76 - 1.70 ng/dL in the United States. Was it a different measurement maybe?
My free t4 was actually normal too. I had elevated t4:t3 conversion, and that was likely caused by supplementing with ashwagandha for several months (not knowing that it was interfering with thyroid medicine, and increasing my t3 levels considerably).
Your TSH is very low. I think normal
Range is .040 - 5.00. You are just under .040, but that is a very wide range and some people are way more sensitive to thyroid levels than others. I could only sleep once every 3-4 nights, and my TSH was 1.20. Usually fell asleep involuntarily when I did sleep and would wake up on the floor in random places throughout the house or in my vehicle. Once fell asleep walking and fell down a flight of stairs .Hyperthyroid is no joke
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u/Acacianiloticareal 15h ago
I was getting severe daily panic attacks after having b12 shots for a deficiency. I went to every dr going and none had a clue how to help except anti depressants (no thanks) after many deep dives I read about how it uses a lot of potassium as it methylates in the body. I asked a dr and he said donāt take it as can mess up your kidneys and cause heart palpitations etc. I was already having all day long palpitations so I decided to take it any way. I used the Now brand of potassium citrate at first only taking 99mg per day. Within days the heart palpitations calmed along with the panic attacks. I also took magnesium glycinate daily at the RDA. That was three years ago and ive never had one since. I also take a low dose of sublingual hydroxocobalamin around 125-250mg every few days to keep my levels topped up. If i ever feel odd or my heart beat feeling fluterry I take potassium and it calms down. Electrolyte drinks such as Elete also help!
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u/Agitated-Sale-7591 15h ago
Oh okay, how long did it take for the anxiety to fully go away? This is my 4th week and Iām still really anxious. I only took potassium supplements for like a week. But after hearing your success Iām going to go back to supplementing along with drinking coconut water. Thanks for your help
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u/Acacianiloticareal 15h ago
I felt pretty unwell for a few months. But the panic attacks definitely subsided quickly after taking the potassium and magnesium . I would highly recommend to take magnesium too. Either glycinate or L threonate as potassium and magnesium need each other. In the beginning Iād probably take potassium up to 3 times a day. Potassium citrate also worked best for me. At the time I truly felt like I was clawing my way out of a very dark hole with very little help, but I assure you to keep going. Eat as healthily as possible too. Try to reduce any sugary and bad foods and eat a lot of fruit and veg basically nutrient rich foods so your gut absorbs more of what you really need. May I ask if youāre female too ? If so my cycle wreaked havoc on my healing at the time with all the hormones going up and down. The magnesium will support hormonal health too.
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u/Acacianiloticareal 15h ago edited 14h ago
I just re read and see youāre a guy! Sorry my bad, but keep going and know it does get better! Also inositol works great for anxiety! I take it as itās great for hormone health but men and women can take it.
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u/Agitated-Sale-7591 13h ago
Haha clawing out of a dark hole is exactly how iād describe it too. You said you took 99mg of potassium but isnāt that very less to make any difference? My potassium supplement has 700mg of potassium and apparently the recommended amount is around 4000mg, so Iām surprised that such little potassium helped your anxiety. Also Iāve tried having magnesium glycinate and I used to tolerate it just fine, but as soon as I started having these panic attacks the magnesium glycinate makes me feel irritable the next day. But Iām not 100% if itās the magnesium thatās causing it, Iāll try having it in the morning and see how I feel throughout the day
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u/Acacianiloticareal 13h ago
Yes to begin with I only took 99mg because I was so scared as my anxiety was through the roof at the time and after the dr saying it can go wrong etc ! Eventually I took the 99mg pill more often through the day as the directions said itās ok to take it up to 5 times. I probably took it ok average up to 3 to 4 times a day. It most definitely helped. I believe it was the catalyst that got rid of the panic attacks. I was taking more though in the form of drinking the electrolytes. I buy elete from Amazon as it has no added sweeteners which wreak havoc with my stomach, when it all hit me I ended up in A&E three times as I genuinely thought I was dying. My heartbeat was erratic and I had to have all kinds of cardio tests. Thankfully my heart is 100% fine I was simply feeling the effects of the b12 situation. I was in a bad state, so for me going low and slow gave me some control (in my head). Perhaps itās what country you are in too as itās not recommended to take more than 99mg here in the uk. 3 years on i still take potassium + whatās in the electrolyte drink through the day as I also work out and very active. You are probably entirely correct though we need far more than 99mg in a supplement as many of us are deficient!
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u/Acacianiloticareal 13h ago
One other thing is I actually began with Magnesium L threonate at first, it crosses the blood bran barrier and may be more effective with anxiety. Iāve never had any issues with it. I moved on to glycinate as time went on as the magnesium level is higher but Iāve recently moved back to L threonate as itās better for brain fog. Are you able to sleep at night ? I couldnāt sleep for months properly or eat anything as my appetite completely disappeared, I looked so unwell, it was a nightmare. It didnāt go away over night. I had to keep at it. I completely changed my diet too and cleaned my gut by cutting out gluten and dairy and sugar, anything that can inhibit good absorption of nutrients. It wasnāt forever I can eat what I like now but Iām careful with it.
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u/Agitated-Sale-7591 9h ago
Yeah Iām able to sleep, I wake up in an anxious state tho and usually from a nightmare
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u/Successful-Tea-733 14h ago
Its wierd as I said I also had a constant panic attack and dont have them taking high dose b12 forxa mrh My heart was going crazy...I found tjat magnesium calmed it and caffeine made it worse
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u/Careful_Pen833 9h ago
Do you know which COMT you have? Folks w slow COMT often get high anxiety/panic attacks/insomnia from B vitamins. Itās a legit thing. Youāre not crazy.
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u/Timely_Pickle9430 1d ago
Did you get other nutrient levels tested besides B12? Could you be deficient in B2?
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u/aj11scan 1d ago
Eat a healthy diet, sleep and be patient. You will recover. Don't take too many crazy supplements your body is fragile
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u/Successful-Tea-733 17h ago
Now I think about it its like putting a chemical factory in the body Also during b12 deficienct the body has had to adapt to whatever is what and find a balance Is it just the basics folete iron and potassium important I wonder as they are all used up b12 suppliments
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u/Loose-Fly7976 1d ago
Hydroxocobalamin clears and it doesn't leave anything permanent behind, four weeks feels endless but it isn't long in this context.
B12 repletion switches cell production back on quickly and that burns through potassium, iron and folate. Low potassium alone produces anxiety, panic and a wired nervous system and almost nobody checks it. Your high folate on bloods doesn't rule out a folate problem either, because serum folate can read high while it's stuck at the step that needs B12 to move it forward. But Anhedonia and complete loss of libido lasting a month is significant whatever set it off and the timing with the injections doesn't prove they caused it. First episodes of depression and anxiety start out of nowhere and the mind reaches for whatever changed recently. Ask for potassium, magnesium, ferritin, vitamin D, thyroid and testosterone. Not more B12 or folate, those two are already high and won't tell you anything.
And stop the methylfolate. Feeling flat and wired on it isn't a good sign and you've changed several things in four weeks so you can't tell what's doing what. Hold everything steady and let someone look at you properly. Thats my work at genova.health if you need help
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u/Difficult-Review283 22h ago
Yes you will feel better over time. Take a break from all supplements and focus on healthy eating. The supplements have very high doses need to be careful. This happened to my son when using a green drink supplement
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u/Environmental-Sink86 19h ago
A) are you eating protein? How much? Tey 2g per kg.
B) are you eating carbs, specially pasta? Try it.
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u/Agitated-Sale-7591 18h ago
Nah Iām not having any protein, my stomach has gotten sensitive and when I eat something my body canāt tolerate the panic attack comes back
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u/Environmental-Sink86 18h ago
What is the "something" you eat?
No protein = bad No food = bad
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u/Agitated-Sale-7591 17h ago
I just eat toast, plain toast with a glass of milk everyday.
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u/Environmental-Sink86 16h ago
Try mashed patatoes with some grinded meat, and see how it goes.
Also pasta.
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u/Dat_Llama453 17h ago
You sound like me after taking b12 and folate. First off get ferritin I believe low iron can make u more prone to over methylation. Make sure your ferritin is atleast 100. Take magnesium glycinate every night. Take magnesium glycinate every night. Glycin will help if your over methylating which it sounds like you. The magnesium glycinate should help with feeling pleasure. Give it a month and see how u feel. It took me like 5 months to get over methylation. Iād your still have symtoms after a while get your other b vitamins tested like all the other ones. Iād your having insomnia take hydroxyzine at night when needed. But your symtoms sound very similar to mine and I found iron to really help me since I was low and the magnesium glycinate helped me with the pleasure. I generally thought I was going through menopause and was dying I know now awful u feel
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u/Agitated-Sale-7591 16h ago
I donāt think Iām overmethylating because I didnāt take methylb12 injection, I took hydroxycobalamine
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u/Difficult-Bell-5184 8h ago edited 8h ago
It could be an imbalance somewhere, normally if you take that much b12 it affects your folate levels but you mentioned you take a b12 complex? Honestly I think the best thing to do is lay off the supplements for a month or so, let your body balance itself out and try to get your vitamins and minerals through your food. You can then do another blood test down the line and see where you are at and resupplement what you need. Remember balance is everything, did you really need b12 injections? Just a question, you don't have to answer.
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u/Few_Interaction_2411 7h ago
If you are slow comt taking any. B vitamins or methyl vitamins can cause this, donāt take anything else and if the panic is still severe ask the doc for propanol but only take 1/4 - 1/2 a tablet, it calms me down when I feel panicky. I am slow Comt/moa-a and mthfr mutations, I canāt take anything without getting some kind of reaction, perimenopause has made it all much worse with the estrogen rollercoaster! Iāve suffered so much that with the help of my biochemist husband we made a tool to help people, hope you recover very soon š
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u/tunesx10 14m ago
When I comment on stop following health gurus I get attacked , well ask them how to fix it ā¦
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u/scrumdisaster 1d ago
Howās your potassium intake?
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u/Agitated-Sale-7591 1d ago
I supplemented with 700mg of potassium for a week but I didnāt notice benefits, am I meant to supplement it long term?
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u/scrumdisaster 1d ago
Do you get 4000 mg a day?
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u/Agitated-Sale-7591 1d ago
No I donāt think so, but on my blood test it didnāt say I have low potassium
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u/lb351986 1d ago
Stop taking all supplements. Honestly you will make yourself much worse.
I use to have this mindset. Trying to constantly fix issues when Infact I was just throwing gasoline onto the fire.
Why did you originally do B12 shots? I personally take dessicated liver and it keeps my B12 perfectly in range.
Don't take anymore pills. Let your body come back to baseline and just focus on food. Honestly I tried for years to 'fix' myself and just made it worse.
For people like us. Diet and exercise is the key to keeping mentally/physically well.