Delayed B12 treatment leads to nerve damage in eyes and spine

B12 is a nutrient the human body needs to make red blood cells, keep nerves healthy and create DNA. Unless you’re deficient, it’s not something you’d think about and normally, a deficiency is easily treatable. However, in Charlotte Heywood’s case it wasn’t that simple, and a delayed diagnosis and treatment resulted in devastating effects that have affected the rest of her life.

Having a lack of B12 in the body can cause a variety of symptoms;

• Rapid breathing or shortness of breath
• Headaches
• Palpitations
• Problems with your vision
• Feeling weak or tired
• A sore or red tongue, sometimes with mouth ulcers
• Problems with memory, understanding and judgment (cognitive changes)
• Numbness
• Muscle weakness
• Problems with balance and coordination

When Charlotte began noticing how tired she felt and a tight pain in her ankles, she went to the doctors. After a couple of appointments and a blood test, she was told she was slightly low in B12. After being prescribed with a month-long course of tablets, she was sent away.

However, instead of getting better, she continued to get worse, citing exhaustion as a massive symptom as well as severe ankle and leg pain. The doctors Charlotte saw insisted the pain was caused by her anxiety and depression, despite sleeping 20 hours a day and losing four stone in eight weeks. It wasn’t until a routine doctor's appointment on a separate issue, when they noticed the dramatic changes, that they told Charlotte she needed to urgently see a neurologist. Though initially the neurologist didn’t believe there was anything neurologically wrong with Charlotte, she ran multiple tests. The results led her to be referred for further tests including an MRI, lumbar puncture and several blood tests for the results to come back saying Charlotte was B12 deficient.

What was an easily treatable diagnosis consisting of monthly injections, has caused detrimental effects to Charlotte. The delayed treatment caused irreversible damage to her spinal and optic nerves, which means she has difficulty walking due to severe numbness, hypersensitivity and pain in her lower back and impaired vision. Though Charlotte now gets treatment for low B12, it won’t reverse the damage that has already been done and she will spend the rest of her life navigating life with disabilities.