Anaemia, fed up with everything

[jue67]

Hi
I posted a while ago how i was having some calm times in my anxiety, i seem to have been struggling just to get going for some time, tired and dizzzy and fought against it. I eventually went to see my GP for the first time about the anxiety, she referred me for CBT and im going next week. GP also said lets get some bloods and check everything,,,,well im severely anaemic with my count at 7 but my cholesterol, thyroid, sugars and kidney function are okay.
I got a phone call at 7pm on wednesday from nhs direct saying the path lab had phoned them and something was wrong with my bloods, but couldnt tell me what it was, they made me an emergency appointment with an out of hours gp and she managed to ring path and get the results, she then told me to start on iron tablets and see my gp
so i phoned and they didnt have my results but phoned the lab, the gp said she wanted to see me urgently and prescribed high dose iron and wanted tests to find out why my blood count is so low, the usual specimins(and for women only she has referred me for a pelvic scan as i have very heavy periods. gp was absolutely excellent and off course remembered me going for anxiety so said, im not going to send you for a transfusion at the moment as on top of everything else your in shock.

So im here, she told me my heart is fine and compensating for the lack of oxygen in my blood, im tired, dizzy and the iron tablets make me feel sick and horrible. Im waiting for results to see what sort of anaemia i have, but im as worried as hell.
my left arm is aching, i keep feeling my pulse and if it really slows i feel bad, and i think im bleeding from somewhere as i cant see that i can have low blood counts from heavy periods, although they are bad.

i think i just need a hug, i keep crying and know that anaemia can cause depression(this is notmy worry), im just so scared of this, im trying to reason that this is anxiety that just because i am ill the anxiety is still there, causing the usual feelings.
sorry for rambling but the GP telling me i will need a blood transfusion if i dont feel better in a few days and signing me off sick for 2 weeks has knocked me for 6!

thanks for reading
jools

[Trish]

Hi
I posted a while ago how i was having some calm times in my anxiety, i seem to have been struggling just to get going for some time, tired and dizzzy and fought against it. I eventually went to see my GP for the first time about the anxiety, she referred me for CBT and im going next week. GP also said lets get some bloods and check everything,,,,well im severely anaemic with my count at 7 but my cholesterol, thyroid, sugars and kidney function are okay.
I got a phone call at 7pm on wednesday from nhs direct saying the path lab had phoned them and something was wrong with my bloods, but couldnt tell me what it was, they made me an emergency appointment with an out of hours gp and she managed to ring path and get the results, she then told me to start on iron tablets and see my gp
so i phoned and they didnt have my results but phoned the lab, the gp said she wanted to see me urgently and prescribed high dose iron and wanted tests to find out why my blood count is so low, the usual specimins(and for women only she has referred me for a pelvic scan as i have very heavy periods. gp was absolutely excellent and off course remembered me going for anxiety so said, im not going to send you for a transfusion at the moment as on top of everything else your in shock.

So im here, she told me my heart is fine and compensating for the lack of oxygen in my blood, im tired, dizzy and the iron tablets make me feel sick and horrible. Im waiting for results to see what sort of anaemia i have, but im as worried as hell.
my left arm is aching, i keep feeling my pulse and if it really slows i feel bad, and i think im bleeding from somewhere as i cant see that i can have low blood counts from heavy periods, although they are bad.

i think i just need a hug, i keep crying and know that anaemia can cause depression(this is notmy worry), im just so scared of this, im trying to reason that this is anxiety that just because i am ill the anxiety is still there, causing the usual feelings.
sorry for rambling but the GP telling me i will need a blood transfusion if i dont feel better in a few days and signing me off sick for 2 weeks has knocked me for 6!

thanks for reading
jools

Hi Jools
I'm really sorry that your not feeling well at the moment..here are some huge big :bighug1: :bighug1: :bighug1: for you.

Really heavy periods can make you anaemic, my husband's cousin was, due to the same thing.

If you do need a transfusion i can say with my hand on my heart you will feel SO much better:) When your anaemic you do feel poorly all over and with your anxiety as well it's not helping matters.

Thinking of you

Trish xx

[fluffy]

I am so sorry to hear that you are having such a bad time. The anaemia will certainly make you feel really low, and although the iron tabs will help, they can also make you feel unwell. It sounds as if your GP is really on the case though, and also aware of your anxiety problems & is understanding. I am sure that you will start to feel better soon - make the most of the time off work & relax as much as you can (I know thats no easy). take care hun xx

[jue67]

Thank you.
It is good to know you are here and the hugs gave me a smile. Im gonna try my relaxation cd tonight and try and loosen up and tackle the anxiety again, i figure just cos i am a bit ill, then i still need to address the anxiety.
My GP is really good, she is the first one to listen to me and try and address the thing with me, i had seen another gp in the practice and said i had been feeling lousy for months and everyone assumed i just needed my holiday. So i have learnt anything it is that to go to your GP with the actual anxiety is a good thing and not something i have done before.
thanks for been here.

jools

[mummyto4]

Jools, I suffer with iron deficiency anaemia. It can make you feel really really REALLY low! I think they could possibly be checking to see if you have a fibroid by the pelvic exam which can cause heavy periods. I have one that was discovered during a routine pregnancy ultrasound 2 and half years ago! They are completely harmless as I am sure you know but they can cause heavy periods. Are you taking ferrous sulphate? I have taken soooooo many of these over the years, and they make you constipated, feel sick and have a horrible taste in your mouth, BUT keep taking them regularly as they do help but take a while to build up in your system. Try and take them wih orange juice as it helps absorb them quicker, also, try and avoid tea, coffee or anything containing milk for 3 hours before and 3 hours after taking them. This is the bit I hate as I love my coffee! Hope you feel better soon hunn, and I really do sympathise with how you are feeling.
xx

[countrygirl]

You must be feeling awful as I know how ill my elderly mother in law gets when her blood count falls to 7 - she has transfusions and feels like a new woman afterwards so don't worry if you have to have one.

I am assuming you are not taking any anti inflammatories or aspirin?? as this was the cause of my mother in laws severe aneamia and as soon as they stopped the aspirin she has been fine since.

Good luck with the scan - anything amiss even harmless will show up on one.
No doubt you have had to provide the poo sample:blush: as well.

[xfilme]

I also suffer from iron deficiency but not anaemia. Mine was caused by stress. Many people think it only caused by blood loss but extreme anxiety can actually drain your body's iron stores which take forever to replace even with high dose iron tablets. I study nutrition and may be able to give you advice and support should you want it via private messaging. There are many things you can do to aid your intake as many of the others have mentioned... such as drinking orange as vitamin c increases absorption, eating green veg and red meat, full of vitamin b12, and avoiding things that block it, such as certain medications, alcohol, caffeine etc depending on how strict you want to be in order to recover. Iron deficiency/anemia can also cause many psychological and physical problems, from pins and needles to being forgetful. This is due to not only a lack of oxygen being carried in your blood but also due to the fact that b vitamins do a great deal in protecting your nerves. Other factors worth considering from a nutritional basis are that a deficiency in one thing can often cause a deficiency in something else, eg, the lack of iron can cause a lack of vitamins a, d, and e, causing mouth ulcers, dry skin and other mild irritations. My main advice, so long as you are on no other medications than the iron tablets, is to go to a health store (not a supermarket or anything... a proper speacialist health shop like Holland & Barrett) and get yourself a strong multivitamin that covers all the main vitamins and minerals. There are a lot of things that can help you cut corners in the way of speedy recovery, and many symptoms that come as a result of the deficiency that you may not realise are related.... like for example Health Anxiety. I study a lot and have a lot of knowledge and personal experience concerning nutrition and deficiency, if you have any questions, I would be more than happy to try and answer them. x

[Southern_Belle]

Hi Jools,

I also had this problem and also suffer from low blood pressure. I was almost at the number where I needed a blood transfusion. I am post menopausal so it was not my periods that was the cause of my extreme anemia. They even did a biopsy of my stomach to see if I had celiac disease and then my intestines to see if I had IBS which I did. However, that doesn't cause one to be anemic, they never did figure out why. I could not tolerate the iron pills though so I ended up taking liquid iron. I took it for a year and a half and saw an Oncologist. I was also deficient in Vitamin B12 and D too. I had to learn to give myself B12 shots! I do hope you feel better soon and once you get a handle on it you won't be so tired. I don't particularly like red meat but have learned to eat it at least once a week and tons of greens. Let us know what your results say.

Take care,

Laura

[jue67]

Thanks for all your replies,
I am taking the iron with orange juice and i dont drink much coffee, one on a sunday morning from Mcdonalds! as caffeine was one of the things i gave up for anxiety, funny though i started having one 4 times a week from greggs for breakfast and noticed my tenseness came back so have stopped this again.
Im glad if thats the word! that im not alone in this iron thing, (and yes i do have to do the blood occult pooey samples)!!!

I have gastritis, and take lansaprozole so ive doubled up on them as i think these iron tablets are upsetting my tumm and giving me more indigestion. im trying to do things, eg a bit of cleaning before i take my first one on a morning. Im sending the hubby for savoy cabbage and veg for our sunday dinner.
Stress........yes i think your right can play a massive part, i have had a low immune system for a while, got 3 cold sores since christmas and i think thats an idicator, so i agree on that one, i just dont think we look at what it can actually do to us underneath the symptoms and tricks it plays on us.

My doubts........im praying that is something as simple as stress or periods and not bleeding from other places eg stomach, ive even gone as far as things leukaemia but reckon if it was i would be on the floor instead of sat here and trying to function, so im trying to reinforce positve thinking. oh and i take ramipril for blood pressure 10mg a day) so i think i would be okay getting multi vits.

so many many thanks for your replies, it means so much to me.

love to you all and peaceful days for us all.
jools

[jodiehind]

Hi there, I have been anaemic for about 8 years now due to heavy periods. My levels haven't dropped aslow as yours, the lowest about 9.2, however I felt dreadful!! I have since learnt that this can lead to depression, anxiety palpitations and all end of other problems. I suffer with Health Anxiety anyway and this makes it worse. My levels now are round about 11 which is not 'Normal' as they call it, but its good for me! I also have terrible trouble with Iron tablets, cant take Ferrous Sulphate or Ferrous Fumerate as they take the lining off my stomach, however I take Ferrous Gluconate and I tolerate them fine. Apparently they cost more to prescribe, so GP's always give you the cheaper ones. I have had all the exploritory procedures and my anaemia is due to heavy periods. I have always been heavy so never really thought anything of it! They ahev told me I have too much oestrogen, which make the lining of my womb very thick and therefore I lose loads of blood every month.

Hang in there, the iron will sort you out and once the levels get back to a healthy level you will feel human again.

Take care

:D

[Daisybun]

Hi I had anaemia last year, they checked everything and it was heavy periods. After a course of iron supplements, I am now taking something to reduce the bleeding each month and my iron levels are back to normal.