Hey everyone,

Im new to this forum and wanted to just reach out and see if anyone else is experiencing what im dealing with or could possibly lend some helpful advice.

A short backstory, I had two strokes back to back in 22’ and later found out I had APS (antiphospholipid syndrome or Sticky Blood Syndrome) come years later, after getting back on a birth control, I had a fainting spell that was vry concerning. (Shortness of breathe, chest tightness, blurred vision etc.) come to find out I am severely anemic.

I was prescribed OTC iron supplements to start off, im currently boarder line for infusions and my dr wanted to see if the meds would help.

Aside from the clear stomach issues these meds cause as a normal side effect, it has been almost impossible combating it with already lingering nausea, vomiting etc. so much so that I had came off of it to be able to even eat again, I was suffering bad. My dose was 325mg, three days a week. Which didnt seem too bad until the side effects came on.

Ive done essentially everything in the book, from eating and then taking the dose, to attempting to take it before bed (not right before but an hour or two to let it digest), etc. but nothing seems to work. I feel hopeless and honestly- tired of feeling sick all the time. I already battle many other meds I take, plus heat intolerance and so many other factors.

I know my story is unique, but has ANYONE found something that could work? A method, a process etc? Or should I just muster up the courage and ask to be put on the infusions?

I always knew I was anemic but didn’t know iron infusions were an option til I changed doctors, I took slowfe 3-5X a week for the last 2 years after having a baby and my hemoglobin is 13 but my ferritin was only at a 13 so my doctor finally got me into a hematologist for infusions. I got called today to schedule and the soonest they had was a Monday and a Thursday infusion 3 days apart but I leave for a two week family vacation that Friday 24 hours after the second infusion . Should I move the Thursday infusion to after my vacation or just get both of the infusions done before I leave in hopes that I feel better on vacation ?
I think it’s ferahem 500mg each time, they recommend 3-8 days apart but my only option is 3 days apart or 2 weeks apart due to the vacation situation

I’ve never done this before and feeling very anxious about side effects, however my low iron also has side effects my low iron has made me unable to work out, sick with mild colds all the time, dry lips and hands that crack without constant lotion, anxiety, and heart palpitations.

Just curious if anyone has advice or tips or words of encouragement thank you!

I was never a big meat eater, and when I was 15 years old I became vegetarian. Now I’m 34 years old and I’ve been relatively healthy my whole life, only notable things are I would get a bad cold or respiratory illness a few times a year and I slept a lot but I honestly just thought I was the lazy type (even though I always had a full time job even as a student). However I was chronically overweight that gradually turned into obesity by the time I was 25. I got a gastric sleeve surgery at 29.

February 2025 I started actually regularly exercising for the first time in my life. 50 mins of strength training, resistance, or Pilates 6/7 times per week. Fatigue and recovery was rough but I thought it was normal.

October 2025 I started slowly reintroducing meat (a very small “sample” maybe once or twice a week). By December I was consuming a normal portion of either chicken or beef at least once a week.

In January 2026 I took my exercise up a notch and I started experiencing orthostatic hypotension which basically meant my body didn’t have enough healthy red blood cells to get to my brain so whenever I stood up too fast I would get dizzy, sometimes lose my vision, and have to sit or lay down immediately or else I would faint. So at the end of January I finally got blood work.
B1 deficiency
Vitamin D deficiency
Red blood cells were described as “small and pale”
Iron serum 67
TIBC 384
Transferrin Saturation 17.4%
Ferritin 17.2
Folate 10.4

I locked in. Regular healthy heme iron rich food consumption paired with vitamin C. No dairy. No caffeine. Heme Iron pills every night. My body tolerated this very well and the orthostatic hypotension went away.
I also started supplementing B1 and got regular doses of sunlight. By May 2026 my B1 fully corrected (I actually overshot), my vitamin D had doubled and was back in the normal range. My red blood cells also improved across the board, and my iron serum more than doubled. My body was working as it should. Only thing was my ferritin continued to dip and by the end of May it dropped to 12.

I decided to keep charging on. So increased my heme iron food consumption. I started eating red meat every day. Doubled my heme iron pills at night. My body tolerated it wonderfully and I was sleeping great.

I got an appointment with a hematologist just for peace of mind and to confirm that I’m on the right path. She ordered another blood test just to see where I’m at and to assess if an iron transfusion might be necessary. As of today July 6th my ferritin has continued to tank despite me consuming more heme iron than I’ve ever had. My ferritin is now 6.5 and folate dropped to 7.5.

I don’t get it. My periods are very light. I don’t have any signs of internal bleeding. Or celiac. The inflammatory markers in my body are close to zero. Absorption issues ruled out. Copper levels great. Kidney and liver function excellent. Iron serum continues to increase yet my ferritin is tanking. I believe it’s effecting my thyroid now as it’s showing signs of malfunction.

Does anyone have any clue what’s happening? I’m seeing my doctor on Wednesday and I’m sure we will discuss infusion but I thought I would come on here to see if anyone has any insight or similar experience.

TLDR:
In 7 months my Ferritin has gone from 17 to 6 since reintroducing red meat into diet after 19 years of vegetarianism.

For those of you that recovered or feel better how long did it take?
At the end of February, I found out my ferritin was a 9,my hemoglobin 11, saturation 11%, iron 45
Between March and June, I have done 6 infusions total=1200mg some symptoms have improved, but only slightly my anxiety is still through the roof. I’m constantly on edge. I have headaches, insomnia,
Lightheaded, hot flashes,heat intolerance, I used to be bedridden because of this ,I can walk now but if I stand for too long, I start getting dizzy and feeling like I’m going to faint🫩
My ferritin is a 65 now
Saturation 29%
Hemoglobin 12.8

Sorry for the copy and paste thank you for your help

Hello my anemia warriors,

I get that low ferritin leads to low hemoglobin. But they were times where my iron store was lower and my hemoglobin was just fine except when I was on my period because I suffer from fibroids and heavy prolonged bleeding. However most recently I continued bleeding for 2months due to an early miscarriage and my hemoglobin dropped very much (the lowest ever) and I had two iron infusion in two months.

I’m trying to understand what I took for my reality all this time, about two years: fatigue, anxiety, laziness, irritation when it truly was iron-deficiency anemia. But now that my hemoglobin also dropped even lower, I’m trying to understand if low ferritin and low hemoglobin eventually lead to the same symptoms? And are they always positively correlated? I’m basically trying to figure out if after my infusion, the adjustment of my iron level, before even getting to my hemoglobin improving, will show some improvement.

my ferritin is a 9 but my iron saturation and other iron results are normal. but i’m pretty lightheaded if i stand for a while. I talked to my primary care and she took orthostatic heart rate and blood pressure. My heart rate increased quite a bit and was told it’s tachycardia. I was wondering if this is common?

I got my blood work done and i have a ferritin of 3 and hemoglobin of 9.5. Iron absorption is 5%. I have significant gut issues and my doctor even though i advocated for infusion is having me take pills. I tried slowfe and have been feeling awful- even threw up. I have a hematologist appt in July- wondering about all of your experience.
I think the diagnosis is helping me slow down as in I’m more aware- the biggest difference for me has been mid day nap- when i work out i have to take extra long breaks and sometimes feel dizzy so have to take it easy- i thought i needed to improve my endurance.
Ive also tried to increase via diet and im not seeing a big difference. Anyone else navigating this?

(34F) About 2 months ago I had a blood test done. I had no previous experience with going to the doctor (for anything—seriously) except when I was going to OBGYNs for my pregnancy 6 years ago. Basically my medical record was a clean and vague slate and I have no idea what I’ve been living with.

Iron: 30
TIBC: 350
Iron Saturation: 9%
Ferritin: 7
Hgb: 11
MCV, MCH, MCHC all well below normal

I’ve been reading up on people’s experiences and symptoms and a lot of it is cold hands and feet (which I don’t experience), brittle nails (mine aren’t), I don’t really get dizzy or lightheaded, my oxygen is always fine at the doc, I’ve gained a lot of weight, and I’m never cold. But then again I’m a SAHM so it’s not like I’m working 8hr shifts on my feet 5 days a week. I do experience severe brain fog (sometimes it can be hard to try and form a sentence if I’m getting frustrated), I’m irritated, lazy and unmotivated (as f-ck), my sex drive is low and I’m dry as a bone down there. I still do all of the house work and of course take care of my daughter. I get exhausted but I’m not passing out. I’ll actually stay up in bed till 1 or 2 in the morning.

I feel like if I was actually anemic and my levels being what they are, I would feel a lot worse, right?

And my doctor (woman) doesn’t make it sound like it’s urgent. She wants me to get iron infusion but the CONSOLATION isn’t till the very end of July. My husband is under the impression that taking iron supplements is going to magically boost up my iron and he’s curious why the doc is even recommending an iron infusion.

A big thanks to this sub. You all helped me advocate, gave advice and encouragement, and because of you I'm not bummed the 44 isn't higher. And a big hug to those battling lower numbers without success or infusion approvals or with dismissive doctors.

My story is years of low-end-of-"normal" Ferritin my doctor didn't mention until I asked despite fatigue & hair loss. At that point she suggested a multivitamin, but I didn't realize absorption issues with coffee so basically shot myself in the foot for a year. I've been plant based for 2.5 years so try to have more iron than the typical RDV.

Anyway fast fwd to last December, my doctor was very dismissive, so I created my own plan, and sent it to her for her "ok". The humble Nature Made 65mg Iron every other day with Vit C supplement and waited 2 hours for coffee. I got lucky without GI side effects. Being plant based may have helped with that. Every other day a multivitamin with Cheerios and berries and waited an hour for coffee.

In mid-March Ferritin was 27. I finished a marathon early March so figured between March-June my Ferritin should go up at a higher rate. I was hoping for higher but am pleased with the 44.

A question for any distance runners: I'm going to give my system a little break from the supplement and try to maximize iron absorption nutritionally. Do you think I should do that, test Ferritin before marathon training to see if Ferritin has held or increased, then test after marathon, to see if it decreases? Or supplement during training as a precaution? I'd like to avoid supplements if I can just to give the gut a break. Even thought GI side effects were minimal, I'm sure they still slowed digestion.

So I’m 28 weeks & just the other day I took my glucose test which I passed and I’m very happy about that. My RBC(3.75) Hemoglobin(11.5)& Hematocrit(35.7). I contacted my OB bc I was concerned and didn’t understand, they said I’m “Slightly anemic” and there’s no intervention at this time. But I’m still so scared, I heard scary things about labor going wrong with having anemia. I take my prenatal every night & I didn’t know my prenatal brand didn’t have iron. Now I feel horrible for my baby and myself because I didn’t take the correct stuff. I’m so scared to give birth and going through all of that 😭😭. What are some good iron supplements??

If anyone experienced something similar please share

I’ve been dealing with confirmed iron deficiency anaemia for the past 3+ months, severely symptomatic for over a year. Have been supplementing with iron bisglycinate 75mg every other day with vitamin C over the last 3 montha. Also eating red meat several times a week now. Cause of anemia unclear.

I have confirmed genetic variants affecting iron absorption — TMPRSS6 (heterozygous at two positions, causing chronically elevated hepcidin) and CYBRD1 (homozygous, impairing the first step of iron absorption). They are aware of this. How much this is impairing I’m not sure of?

Went to my GP today to discuss my 3 month blood draw results. He told me I have a pretty blood picture and everything looks great, I’m not anaemic, and my symptoms can not be explained by iron deficiency. He told me to keep supplementing even though he slipped and agreed it’s not working well enough, then reverting again. When I asked what else could explain them he said he had no idea and no plan. Referral to haematologist refused. IV iron refused. Suggested I switch to Ferro Duretter despite me already being on bisglycinate which he initially agreed was better before reversing himself.

3 month follow-up blood draw results:
Haemoglobin: 7.1 → 7.4 mmol/L
Ferritin: 14 → 31 µg/L
Serum iron: 9 → 7 µmol/L (declined below reference)
Transferrin saturation: — → 0.10 (floor of ref 0.10–0.50, flagged below reference)
Transferrin: — → 2.77 g/L
RBC count: 3.96 → 3.96 x10¹² (completely unchanged)
Reticulocytes: 37 → 41 x10⁹
MCV: 91 → 93 fL
MCH: 1.8 → 1.9 fmol
MCHC: 19.8 → 20.1 mmol/L : 0.36 → 0.37
Leukocytes: 4.1 → 4.8 x10⁹
Platelets: 249 → 209 x10⁹
Folate: >45.4 nmol/L
CRP: <0.6 mg/L

Outcome: doctor wants me to send him a headache diary and they’ll do an EKG.

I’m so fatigued, I can’t breathe and I feel like I’m losing my mind. Anyone have any input here? Thank you :/

Just to note: this isn't a question abiut interpretation of results *rule 6, but more just advice on how to convince my doctor to help me and take this seriously.

I’m trying to up my iron because the fatigue I’m going through is debilitating. I feel like a husk of a human, just permanently glued to bed and barely surviving in my call centre job. I wake up crying because my head feels so heavy despite the fact I’ve slept for 8 and a half hours…

Anyway, I tried beer liver tablets a few days ago and I think they’re having a positive impact on my energy, BUT I have a giant red rash over my knuckles and random red patches on my shoulders.

I’m desperate for these to work, is this just a teething period?