Hull man calling for B12 deficiency awareness after being left fearing for his life
B12 deficiency can cause severe tiredness, headaches and depression.
A painter and decorator from Hull is warning people not to ignore symptoms of B12 deficiency after he was left fearing for his life.
B12 deficiency runs in Jimmy Norman's family, but due to his symptoms gradually worsening, he did not immediately realise he was ill.
Jimmy said "I honestly believed I was going to die. I felt as though my body was just giving up, I've had days where I'd wake up in the morning and my brain would be saying 'let's get out of bed, let's get some breakfast' and my body had no energy at all - it gets debilitating."
Jimmy claims that he should have been given injections by his GP based on his symptoms, but was only given tablets. He now has an ongoing legal case against his GP for medical negligence.
Jimmy said: "If you don't get the correct treatment or if it's delayed, the symptoms can become irreversible, so I'm at a point now where I'm worried is this what it's going to be like now for the rest of my life, am I going to be this tired all the time, am I always going to have these pains in my legs?
"I've come to the realisation that I'm limited in what I can do, I do the best I can at work in quite a physical job, but it's difficult. It's had an impact on my social life, I can't do as much as I want to."
Jimmy is now hoping that his story can make others aware of the symptoms of B12 deficiency, and the need to get early signs like severe tiredness, muscle weakness, pins and needles and vision issues checked up before the illness progresses.