Front cramping and back pain

jperiod

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My husband and our 21 year old son pin 1 mg 2x a week. My husband has had deep muscle back pain ever since he moved up to .8 mg 2x a week. Is that usually put down to electrolytes and magnesium, and does it settle down? He takes plenty of vitamins, mag glycinate included, so it comes as a surprise.

My son gets a lot of front cramping that radiates all the way down to a burning feeling when he pees, though it is not a UTI. Could that be an electrolyte thing as well?
 
Nothing here matches the usual side effect profile. Did the reta start only a short time ago? My inclination would be to stop using it — the presentation seems strange and atypical — and to seek medical advice. What makes you rule out a UTI?

It is uncommon for contaminants in peptides to produce toxic reactions, though not unheard of. When 2 people develop unusual symptoms simultaneously, that does make such a scenario somewhat more plausible. Even so, the odds remain low. Still, erring on the side of caution seems wiser: discontinue the reta, arrange an evaluation, and if anything abnormal turns up, bring the product along to that appointment. I fail to see how electrolytes could play any role here, unless an excessive amount of some substance is being taken and that itself is creating the problem. At the very least, a urine test plus standard blood work would be necessary. The sole explanation I can conjure for these symptoms appearing in 2 individuals is a toxic agent irritating the kidneys (if we assume the back pain originates in the kidneys) along with inflammation of the urinary tract. That is improbable, and most likely these are just 2 separate, unrelated, random events. Nevertheless, gambling on even a tiny possibility of kidney toxicity does not strike me as wise.
 
lessthanhalf said:

Nothing here matches the usual side effect profile. Did the reta start only a short time ago? My inclination would be to stop using it — the presentation seems strange and atypical — and to seek medical advice. What makes you rule out a UTI?

It is uncommon for contaminants in peptides to produce toxic reactions, though not unheard of. When 2 people develop unusual symptoms simultaneously, that does make such a scenario somewhat more plausible. Even so, the odds remain low. Still, erring on the side of caution seems wiser: discontinue the reta, arrange an evaluation, and if anything abnormal turns up, bring the product along to that appointment. I fail to see how electrolytes could play any role here, unless an excessive amount of some substance is being taken and that itself is creating the problem. At the very least, a urine test plus standard blood work would be necessary. The sole explanation I can conjure for these symptoms appearing in 2 individuals is a toxic agent irritating the kidneys (if we assume the back pain originates in the kidneys) along with inflammation of the urinary tract. That is improbable, and most likely these are just 2 separate, unrelated, random events. Nevertheless, gambling on even a tiny possibility of kidney toxicity does not strike me as wise.
My mom and I are also using reta, drawn from the same vials, and neither of us has had symptoms like these, so contamination doesn't seem likely to me. In other places I've come across mentions of assorted aches and pains, and magnesium keeps coming up as a recommendation. My son has fatty liver disease, and according to him the pain disappears once he urinates — as though a full bladder was pressing against something. He also gets digestive pain when he eats or has a bowel movement, and it subsides after he poops. My guess was slower digestion, possibly constipation, though he isn't really convinced that's the case. Abdominal discomfort does appear to be a frequently reported side effect.
 
What age is your child? That stinging sensation when urinating resembles an enlarged prostate, which many older men develop. I would stop taking the R temporarily, and see a doctor if it persists. Best of luck.
 
The back pain is something I have too, though none of your other symptoms apply to me. It sits in the middle of my back, flanking my spine on both sides, and is located well above the kidney area. A blood test confirmed my kidneys are in excellent shape.

What it resembles is severe muscle exhaustion, yet lying down or resting my elbows on a table in front of me makes it fade. This began during a short stretch on Reta a few months back. I went back to Tirz, but the muscle discomfort did not go away.

Magnesium Glycinate is part of my routine, but I'm beginning to think my fluid intake is simply too low.
 
If it were me, I'd pause and have labs drawn. You can get reasonably priced private testing, which would show them their current status and what needs monitoring. Honestly, that should be done by everyone before starting peptides.

Beyond that, early on I had trouble staying hydrated, so I took electrolytes twice daily and made sure my fluid intake was sufficient; those hydration issues resolved within a few weeks. So I'd absolutely confirm both of them are getting enough water, particularly your son.
 
BNLFL said:

What age is your child? That stinging sensation when urinating resembles an enlarged prostate, which many older men develop. I would stop taking the R temporarily, and see a doctor if it persists. Best of luck.
He is 21 and for 1 year has had fatty liver along with related pain (his doctor diagnosed it, plus u/s and bloodwork)
 
Quick update: after a longer chat with my husband, it turns out he'd been drinking a lot and urinating a lot, so it looks like he wasn't holding onto fluids. Yesterday I gave him liquid IV plus a better-quality mag glycinate that I personally use (the brand my husband takes wasn't getting my levels high enough), and he had no back pain that night, so that appears to be the culprit.

My son still hasn't gotten up, but last night he told me he'd barely been eating lately, so I think that's connected. I made sure he got dinner and electrolytes too, and we'll see how he is this morning.

All of them have had bloodwork within the past year or less, so nothing was flagged before starting reta (other than the fatty liver and excess weight). I'll bring up skipping the next dose or lowering it while we sort out what's happening. Right now neither of them wants to quit.
 
Liquid IV works well for hydration, though its magnesium and potassium content is quite low since salt makes up most of it. For anyone using Reta, you really need to chug the Brawndo!!! (Joking aside) You require more electrolytes than you'd expect.

Check what your body needs each day for every electrolyte, then get in as much as possible. Usually I'll have 1 or 2 Liquid IV's daily plus around 4 servings of Nutricost electrolyte mix. Despite that, my daily targets still aren't met. If cramps begin, I'll occasionally add Mg and Potassium supplements.
 
Mr. Blonde said:

Consider adding taurine powder alongside your electrolytes.
If I don't take 3 or 4 grams of taurine every day, plus a good potassium pill and magnesium glyc twice daily, I end up with severe lower back pumps after just 20 yards of walking. Even when I do take all of that, my blood tests still come back at the very bottom of the normal range. There have been times I noticed a mild burning when urinating, and those were weekends where I hadn't realized I'd only had 48oz of water over the entire weekend.
 
Airborne Daddy said:

Mr. Blonde said:

Consider adding taurine powder alongside your electrolytes.
If I don't take 3 or 4 grams of taurine every day, plus a good potassium pill and magnesium glyc twice daily, I end up with severe lower back pumps after just 20 yards of walking. Even when I do take all of that, my blood tests still come back at the very bottom of the normal range. There have been times I noticed a mild burning when urinating, and those were weekends where I hadn't realized I'd only had 48oz of water over the entire weekend.
Taurine works really well. Wow, is that from anabolics, or what's causing the pumps?
 
Mr. Blonde said:

Airborne Daddy said:

Mr. Blonde said:

Consider adding taurine powder alongside your electrolytes.
If I don't take 3 or 4 grams of taurine every day, plus a good potassium pill and magnesium glyc twice daily, I end up with severe lower back pumps after just 20 yards of walking. Even when I do take all of that, my blood tests still come back at the very bottom of the normal range. There have been times I noticed a mild burning when urinating, and those were weekends where I hadn't realized I'd only had 48oz of water over the entire weekend.
Taurine works really well. Wow, is that from anabolics, or what's causing the pumps?
My guess is it comes down to genetics, plus many years of heavy drinking, and a bit of spine deterioration... Both my mother and grandmother dealt with intense muscle cramps and took potassium and magnesium supplements....
 
Airborne Daddy said:

Mr. Blonde said:

Airborne Daddy said:

Mr. Blonde said:

Consider adding taurine powder alongside your electrolytes.
If I don't take 3 or 4 grams of taurine every day, plus a good potassium pill and magnesium glyc twice daily, I end up with severe lower back pumps after just 20 yards of walking. Even when I do take all of that, my blood tests still come back at the very bottom of the normal range. There have been times I noticed a mild burning when urinating, and those were weekends where I hadn't realized I'd only had 48oz of water over the entire weekend.
Taurine works really well. Wow, is that from anabolics, or what's causing the pumps?
My guess is it comes down to genetics, plus many years of heavy drinking, and a bit of spine deterioration... Both my mother and grandmother dealt with intense muscle cramps and took potassium and magnesium supplements....
You're fortunate to be so resilient!
 
jperiod said:

My husband and our 21 year old son pin 1 mg 2x a week. My husband has had deep muscle back pain ever since he moved up to .8 mg 2x a week. Is that usually put down to electrolytes and magnesium, and does it settle down? He takes plenty of vitamins, mag glycinate included, so it comes as a surprise.

My son gets a lot of front cramping that radiates all the way down to a burning feeling when he pees, though it is not a UTI. Could that be an electrolyte thing as well?
What’s the reason for splitting it into 2 doses each week? It fascinates me that a large number of individuals choose to act as guinea pigs. The clinical trials never included this approach.
 
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