B-12 or BUST

B-12 OR BUST

First, let’s revisit what was happening when I was running my best in 2011 and 2012.  Every day, I woke up very over-stimulated and required a dosage of 6-8 adrenal suppressant (Thym-Adren) pills first thing in the morning to knock it out.  6 pills were needed when taking the proper amount of Magnesium.  Otherwise, it was 8.  Complications arose from time to time but it usually worked out pretty well.  Even on an off-day, I could usually salvage a half mary in the 1:40ish range.  Very few days were so bad that I hit the wall in less than 3 miles despite a slow pace.  If I was free from other complications such as the need for chromium or manganese, I had several “hot streaks” in which I missed very few workouts over the course of several months.  Despite a never-ending chase for balance that I never achieved, I was able to improve my times considerably as a result of consistent training at 40-50 MPW.   If you saw me training during that period, you would have had NO IDEA that I was sick and would not believe it if I told you.  Even sub-3 marathoners sometimes struggled to keep with me in training.  However, if I took even 1 too many adrenal suppressant pills even one time, I would feel fatigued and lethargic for the rest of the day but would revert right back to over-stimulation the next morning.  One too few pills and it was not enough to knock it out.  Not a good situation.

Though adrenal suppressants and mineral balance kept me afloat for several years, in the end it failed to produce balanced chemistry because toxic sulfates, the root cause of the hyper-active adrenals, was never addressed.  Maybe, I could have been better in 2012 if I had started the Magnesium sooner but the crash would have been even harder on me.  In any event, things began to unravel by the Spring of 2013.  Throughout that year and the next year, I worked to improve my Magnesium as well as Zinc and Copper balance.  Though my numbers improved considerably, my symptoms did not improve.  If anything, the sensitivity got worse.  I was still capable of producing a decent race on a good day and even as recently as the Fall of 2014, I achieved times well under (20/42/1:35) for 5K-HM.  However, the good days were becoming rarer and I lost a step in terms of fitness as a result of it not to mention intolerable swings in mood and energy as a result of doses as small as a half pill. 

B-12 and molybdenum are the two most important treatments to knock out toxic sulfates but several conditions must be met before starting it.  Lithium must be normal in order to transport B-12 into the cells, otherwise it will pool in the blood and leave you worse off than before.  In order to tolerate Lithium, ATP must be up to snuff.  Good gut health is probably required.  I started on ATP in December 2015 with some success for about a month then I developed a sudden intolerance.  Thankfully, Lithium was tolerated thereafter for the next month but I also faced a sudden intolerance and ATP only made it worse.  Now, I need mega doses of B-12 in a steady stream throughout the day.  If I take a large dose first thing but nothing after lunch, it will be a good morning but a lousy evening.

Though my Lithium and ATP status will not be known until I get the test results, it is a VERY good sign that I can tolerate the B-12 as I never could before.  I’ve also been easing molybdenum and small amounts of methyl into the program.  I never tolerated it before but so far so good this time around.  The adrenal supplements are no longer tolerated so if the B-12 fails me, I am officially out of options barring a surprise on the hair test (always possible).  In the future, I will recommend that others address their gut health first to prevent the worst of the sensitivity followed by sulfates/methylation.  THEN, move on to mineral and neuro balance.