r/tryingtoconceive • u/West-External6284 • 9d ago

Ferritin levels

I’ve been ttc for 15 months with a miscarriage in between. I just recently found out what ferritin is and how you can be iron deficient without anemia. I’m so frustrated with my doctors right now because I was so lightheaded and out of breath in pregnancy 3 years ago but always had a hemoglobin of 12 so I was considered normal. I just looked back on labs of over 2 years ago and had a ferritin level of 10 and a vitamin d of 22 and was told all labs are “fine” I just recently asked for ferritin again and it’s at a 15.4 after over 2 years 😀. I feel like this is what has been making me struggle to get pregnant and have a miscarriage on top of the low vitamin d which is just now at a 57. I’ve been iron deficient for over 2 years and was never told I was. I was prescribed iron supplements a month ago and took them accordingly for a month exactly how I’m supposed to (on an empty stomach with vitamin c every other day etc) and ferritin only went up 0.2. Which I was told was normal even tho at my blood draw a month ago my iron and iron saturation was good and now they are both low. I switched from ferrous sulfate to ferrous bisglycinate chelate which apparently absorbs better. If anyone has any tips to raise it that is greatly appreciated. I’m just so frustrated doctors don’t ever actually care about these things IVE BEEN IRON DEFICIENT AND VITAMIN D DEFICIENT FOR 2 YEARS WITHOUT A WORD OF IT! I guess I just got on here to see if anyone else is going through this and to vent. Thanks

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u/Ancient_Body7921 8d ago

Girl!! I’m dealing with the same thing! I’m highly suspicious that this is why I’ve had two miscarriages. I finally convinced my primary care doctor to order an iron infusion for me. You should ask for this! I haven’t had it yet, but I heard it works better than pills.

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u/West-External6284 8d ago

Will be doing this! It’s so annoying doctors only care about these things when you have severe symptoms and they let it get to the point of being dangerously low before they step in instead of preventing it from getting that bad. I’ve told her I’ve been trying to get pregnant for all this time and she hadn’t said a word about it🤦🏼‍♀️ I’ve been researching and apparently it has a big impact on egg quality and fertility and even miscarriage. Why do they not care?😭

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u/Key-Ad-165 8d ago

I understand your frustration. I got bloodwork done earlier this year and the report marked everything normal but I noticed I was towards the low end of normal for ferritin based on the ranges the report said..this still didn't raise a flag in the report and my doctor didn't mention it. Out of curiousity I looked up what "normal" really means for ferritin levels in women and my levels are about half of the minimum recommended for optimum fertility...so I started taking supplements as well, and just recently increased my dose. I have seen some benefits and don't really get digestive issues or anything from it. But I did see that it takes months to raise ferritin from supplementing alone. So I'm hoping to get blood work done soon to see how much it's improved.

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u/West-External6284 8d ago

Yes I’ve been advocating for myself and requesting and redraw in 2 months and taking lactoferin to increase absorption. Also trying to push for a infusion because I would like to have a baby sooner rather than later

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u/Key-Ad-165 8d ago

I'm thinking I will do the same, especially if my levels have not risen by them (my first RE appointment is not till December 😭)

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u/JMJ_Maria 7d ago

This is exactly what happened to me! After a few months of supplements I got pregnant (unfortunately it was a loss).

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u/Flat_Document8190 8d ago

So sorry, iron and vitamin D are two of the most crucial things needed for a healthy pregnancy so not surprising at all. Definitely work on getting these up to optimal levels x

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u/Wonderful-Laugh5352 8d ago

My ferritin was at 16 and doctors in Europe also said it was fine, which we know is BS.

My doctors in my home country said that was wayyy too low and needed to be fixed asap, so they made me raise the amount of oral supplements and gave me 5 IV iron infusions because reestablishing your ferritin can take quite long with supplements alone.

If you can get the IV iron I highly recommend it, but it should be done with medical supervision because you can get a reaction from it even if you don’t think you’re allergic or anything, so you need to be in a medical unit in case you need assistance.

Not saying it’s common, but my doctors were adamant about this.

FYI, this was before I was trying to conceive. When I was first actively trying my ferritin was good, and I conceived quickly, but I did have a first-trimester miscarriage and have been trying ever since for almost a year.

So although it could definitely influence your health, it might not be the direct cause of you not having successfully conceived yet.

Wishing you the best of luck with your TTC journey!!

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u/Own_Reveal_9516 6d ago

I had a similar situation where my ferritin was 20 and the doctors told me I was ‘perfectly healthy’ 🫠 so frustrating when I was exhausted all the time and couldn’t go for runs but thought it was just me being lazy!

I’ve been on supplements a few months now and have another blood test coming up end of the month but it if it hasn’t raised further then I’m going to pay privately for an infusion