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If B12 Improves My Chest/left Arm/left Shoulder Blade Pain, Is It Heart Related Or Brain Related?


littlelymie19

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littlelymie19 Rookie

Hey everyone,

For about 5 days now I've been having really intense chest pain, left arm pain, left shoulder blade pain and occasional pain on the left side of my jaw. Of course, these are symptoms of a heart attack so I went to the ER the second night of this excruciating pain...but my chest xray and EKG were normal.

Along with this I've also had extreme nausea and weakness, with occasional dizziness. Basically, I'm couch-ridden. Everything gets worse when I move around. So I'm just chillin :)

But anyways, my doctor took me off of all my supplements when this happened, but now im slowly adding things back in . I've noticed though that after taking my sublingual B12, my pain and nausea get a little better for a little while.

I'm wondering, does that indicate that the problem is with the heart, or when the brain (neuropathy?)? I know you all aren't doctors, but I thought I'd ask because I know a lot of you guys have experience with B12 issues and deficiencies.

Thanks everyone, I appreciate your input! When it's the heart that may be causing symptoms, things can be a little freaky!

Hope you are all well!


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The One Apprentice

Hi Lymie, I can sympathize with you! Right about the same time i was diagnosed with Celiac about a year and a half ago I began with a pain on the left ribcage, eventually it got worse and landed me in the ER several times, it went up to the shoulder, arm and chest and of course I was really scared, I've had xrays, EKG's and everything comes back normal. I was told it could be a hernia, who knows, might be worth looking into. But from my research online it all comes back to some type of neuropathy I believe it was called radiculopathy. I do notice that when i am hungry it gets worse, but that's because I have diabetes and it seems my body gets weak as blood sugar goes low. Either way, I would say that if you are responding to B12 supplements it sounds to me like it would be related to the nervous system rather than the heart, of course I'm no doc! just someone who's looked online a lot about left side pain ;)

AJ

fedora Enthusiast

you may want to see a physical therapist. They can evaluate you for misalignments. Mine causes pain in my left jaw(tmj), left side of back, left shoulder and left arm. I have all these exercises to do regularly and they help.

  • 2 weeks later...
nanafur Newbie

How freaky, you are having the exact same symptoms I have had for a long time. Please let me know if you learn anything new!

My MD told me a few months ago that he thought the dizziness had something to do with a dumping syndrome where you stomach doesn't empty right causing too much blood to go to the stomach to aid digestion. I'm not sure if its right but my dizziness does get worse when I eat a lot. I've been having TMJ treatment from chiropractor and special dentist for years and its helped with the jaw and neck pain but not for the shoulder, chest and side. I did recently get diagnosed with a couple of ulcers (they were bleeding a little and hurting a lot!). I can tell now that the chest, back, shoulder and side pain definitely get worse when the ulcer hurts so I've been thinking they may be related. My GI doc thinks I've had the ulcers for a long time so maybe they were causing the pain all along.

I just don't know what connects them all. I'm starting to believe its bacterial overgrowth or candida. I have been keeping a small food log and I can tell that the pain, dizziness and palpitations get a lot worse after I eat cheese but I just can't stop eating cheese. I have been diagnosed with a milk allergy so maybe its just the cheese alone, but I don't think so. My dairy cravings get worse every day so I'm thinking that the bacteria inside me is living off dairy. I plan on cutting out dairy to see if that helps.

I also looked up B12 in my vitamin book and it helps with nerve pain. YOu will be more prone to pain if you are deficient which most people with any food allergies or intolerance are. Shortage of B12 also causes fatigue.

  • 1 year later...
nyctexangal Rookie

I have cosotchondritis (chest pain). I was just diagnosed with Celiac as well 2 weeks ago. I have the nerve pain in my hands, arms, and right rib cage and fatigue as well. Booo. I'm learning that when I take B12 vitamins, the pain is far less and I'm less fatigued.

I was taking 1500 mcg of B-12's and changed my daily vitamins brand last week and my pain has gotten worse. Just checked the label- only 80 mcg of B-12- eek! :blink: Headed now to get more B vitamins so that the pain will subside while I'm healing. yay! :D

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    • Russ H
      I used to react very badly to milk - much worse than to gluten and I was always worried about exposure. Any diary product would make me extremely ill and put me out of action for 5 days or so. I would have watery and bloody diarrhoea, bloating, malaise and be unable to eat. If I recall correctly, it was about a year after being diagnosed with coeliac disease and going on a strict gluten free diet that I accidentally consumed dairy products and didn't react. From then on, I have been fine with diary. 
    • Jane02
      Sorry, I just realized how old this thread is and only read the initial post from 2021. I'll have to catch up on the comments in this thread. 
    • Jane02
      Sorry to hear you're going through such a hard time. It would be worth looking into MCAS/histamine issues and also Long Covid. Perhaps there is something occurring in addition to celiac disease. It would be worth ruling out micronutrient deficiencies such as the b vitamins (B12, folate, B1, etc), vit D, and ferritin (iron stores). 
    • knitty kitty
      This sounds very similar to the neuropathic pain I experienced with type two diabetes.  Gloves and boots pattern of neuropathy is common with deficiencies in Cobalamine B12 (especially the pain in the big toe), Niacin B3, and Pyridoxine B6.  These are vitamins frequently found to be low in people with pre-diabetes and diabetes.  Remember that blood tests for vitamin levels is terribly inaccurate.  You can have vitamin deficiencies before there are any changes in blood levels.  You can have "normal" serum levels, but be deficient inside organs and tissues where the vitamins are actually utilized.  The blood is a transportation system, moving vitamins absorbed in the intestines to organs and tissues.  Just because there's trucks on the highway doesn't mean that the warehouses are full.  The body will drain organs and tissues of their stored vitamins and send them via the bloodstream to important organs like the brain and heart.  Meanwhile, the organs and tissues are depleted and function less well.   Eating a diet high in simple carbohydrates can spike blood sugar after meals.  Eating a diet high in carbohydrates consistently over time can cause worsening of symptoms.  Thiamine and other B vitamins like Niacin B3 and Pyridoxine B6, (which I noticed you are not supplementing), are needed to turn carbs, proteins and fats into energy for the body to use.  Alcohol consumption can lower blood sugar levels, and hence, alleviate the neuropathic pain.  Alcohol destroys many B vitamins, especially Pyridoxine, Thiamine and Niacin.  With alcohol consumption, blood glucose is turned into fat, stored in the liver or abdomen, then burned for fuel, thus lowering blood glucose levels.  With the cessation of alcohol and continued high carb diet, the blood glucose levels rise again over time, resulting in worsening neuropathy.   Heavy exercise can also further delete B vitamins.  Thiamine and Niacin work in balance with each other.  Sort of like a teeter-totter, thiamine is used to produce energy and Niacin is then used to reset the cycle for thiamine one used again to produce energy.  If there's no Niacin, then the energy production cycle can't reset.  Niacin is important in regulating electrolytes for nerve impulse conduction.  Electrolyte imbalance can cause neuropathic pain.   Talk to your doctors about testing for Type Two diabetes or pre-diabetes beyond an A1C test since alcohol consumption can lower A1C giving inaccurate results. Talk to your doctors about supplementing with ALL eight B vitamins, and correcting deficiencies in Pyridoxine, Niacin, and B12.  Hope this helps! Clinical trial: B vitamins improve health in patients with coeliac disease living on a gluten-free diet https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19154566/ P. S.  Get checked for Vitamin C deficiency, aka Scurvy.  People with Diabetes and those who consume alcohol are often low in Vitamin C which can contribute to peripheral neuropathy.
    • Scott Adams
      I’m really sorry you’re dealing with this—chronic neuropathic or nociplastic pain can be incredibly frustrating, especially when testing shows no nerve damage. It’s important to clarify for readers that this type of central sensitization pain is not the same thing as ongoing gluten exposure, particularly when labs, biopsy, and nutritional status are normal. A stocking/glove pattern with normal nerve density points toward a pain-processing disorder rather than active celiac-related injury. Alcohol temporarily dampening symptoms likely reflects its central nervous system depressant effects, not treatment of an underlying gluten issue—and high-dose alcohol is dangerous and not a safe or sustainable strategy. Seeing a pain specialist is absolutely the right next step, and we encourage members to work closely with neurology and pain management rather than assuming hidden gluten exposure when objective testing does not support it.
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