Vitamin D, K2, Inflammation, Sleep...

[osu-danuki]

I've been having a rather mysterious and frustrating experience the past several months, maybe tangentially related to CPPS, though my CPPS is much better now thanks to stretches and internal tp massage.

About six months ago I was told I had low vitamin D3, which is quite common nowadays, but still, it was pretty low for being the end of summer, so I started taking higher doses to try to get it up--tried anywhere from 2 to 5,000 ius a day. At first I noticed little, if any, effect, but then I started getting severe daytime sleepiness and noticed I was sleeping a long, long time. At first I thought this was good--maybe it was my body just "catching up," but then I started feeling achy and downright painful--as if I had the flu, but with no fever or anything.

So finally I gave up on D for a while.

Then I read online that vitamin K2 is necessary for proper D absorption or something, so I tried taking the K2 for a bit, though I didn't pair it with D at the time, as I was thinking to get the K2 up before resuming the D, since I didn't want to experience the flu symptoms again. (This may have been a big mistake). Interestingly, the K2 made me feel GREAT--like super-energetic and happy, only I noticed it caused my blood pressure to go up, and eventually started causing chest pains and--worst of all--eye floaters. The ophthalmologist diagnosed me with a retinal hole that had to be repaired by laser. So anyway, I quit the K2, obviously, though it saddened me to do so, since it had many positive effects.

At this point, my D3 was even lower, probably due to the winter, or maybe because K2 "uses it up," so the doctor again suggested I go on D3. I gave it another go and same experience--feel fine at first, then sleepy all the time, then achy and painful.

Now, I have read a variety of anecdotal takes on this type of experience online: some say that feeling some fatigue, aches, and pains when upping your D levels is normal, as the body is getting reacclimated to higher calcium levels, and calcium going into bones may be painful. I also wonder if it isn't a kind of immune reaction, as D is supposed to stimulate the intrinsic immune system.

So a part of me wants to try to stick with the D and "push through" the pain and sleepiness to see if it won't subside and produce better long-term results. Then I might carefully try the K2 again via food (natto, etc.--I will never take that stuff in pill form again--I think it's dangerous as a standalone nutrient for a certain percentage of people) once my D is in a good range.

But at the same time, pain is a warning something is wrong, and I've also read accounts from people who persistently stuck with vitamin D3 supplementation only to end up stuck with chronic pain and fatigue.

Obviously calcium (and magnesium), sleep, muscle pain, and autoimmune reactions are all related to CPPS symptoms in some, if not many people, so I'm also wondering if addressing this might not address some of the underlying causes of CPPS.