Headaches from B12 shot
Recently, my wife had a really bad headache that lasted almost five days. She also felt jittery and anxious. She gets headaches fairly often, but this was different due to the type of pain, the duration, and the additional feeling of what she described as “nervous energy.”
We treated it with medication and ice packs, but it was a very stressful experience for my wife, who obviously has enough to deal with as it is. We were trying to think about what could have triggered the episode, and she told me she had gotten a B12 injection when she was at physical therapy. We did a little searching and discovered that these types of headaches can be a side effect of a B12 injection.
It’s odd, but I also remembered that she had a similar, but much less severe reaction when she was taking B12 in pill form sometime last year. I should really be better about keeping a more complete record about this stuff.
I was just curious if anyone else had a similar experience with side effects from a B12 shot or any other type of high-dose vitamin interactions.
Hi, my name is Nicole. I am 39, & have had Lupus since my early teens. From age 15 or so until I was 29, the symptoms were almost non-exsistant. Then all of a sudden one day I had a stroke, and then it was a snowball effect, 3 more strokes followed RA, Fibro, cognitive problems,& etc. I have not had a remission in 10yrs.
I have been B12 deficient since I was a kid. Nothing seems to work to bring me back to normal levels, or let me rephrase that, other peoples normal. lol I have kept a running blog of symptoms, & I have noticed that after recieving my B12 shots, I have headaches that lasted more than a couple days, & its “different” from my other headaches. I have suffered from migraines since I was in my early teens, so I am used to nasty headaches, & the ones after the B12 shots are “different” than daily migraines. I use the word “restless” but I also get that as well with the headaches.
I have spoke to my Dr about this, & I hear the same thing when I walk in the office with some off the wall symptom, My Dr hadn’t heard of a side effect like that, big surprise. lol
I basically have learned to just improvise, & see what works best for me. Our bedroom is blacked out, no light, I sleep with icepacks on the back of my head, I find for me at least that the cooler I stay, the better I feel, laugh at me if you will, I put a pair of pj pants, & a shirt in ziploc baggies to break out when I have a migraine. I use 3 fans in my room to help with air circulation so it stays cool. I use an eye mask whenever I sleep, & after 10yrs, I am still finding little things here and there. Somedays I don’t come out of my little dungeon, & I feel absolutely no guilt what-so-ever. I know that laundry, dishes & vacuuming will still be waiting for me, when I feel a little better.
I am always happy to swap stories & talk with people in the Lupus circle, its nice to have someone that knows about how crazy it is to live with Lupus.
-Nicole
I don’t know about the B12, but I had a suggestion for keeping track of it. I keep a calendar (a Google calendar) where I write things that happen as they happen. I usually write down the symptoms that I’m having when I’m not feeling well, when I start new medicines and stop medicines, change my doses, etc.
I hope that helps.
I am 27 years old and also have Lupus. I am glad to have come across your blog as my rheumatologist just recommended I take a B12 supplement for my chronic fatigue. If it’s going to give me worst headaches, I’d rather deal with it as it is now. Thanks for sharing your experience.
Hi there, I’m a 35, female with SLE and I just increased my vit B12 again. I just only made the possible connection between an increasing anxiety/strange headache…although not a diabilitating headache, and the timing of my increasing my vit B12. (in pill form) Tonight at a social gathering, my anxiety was out of control and I just confided in my bestfriend that I was losing my mind. So we came searching for answers. This isn’t conclusive, but it’s worth taking notes on.