Iron deficiency recovery, but still not feeling normal
Posted , 2 users are following.
hello,
i've been diagnosed with iron defficiency in June 2020. My ferritin levels were on 3, and i was slightly anaemic as well. i have been suffering of dizziness, headaches and sickness for months. I've been put on ferrous gluconate back in June 2020. Since then I did get better, however I was still not feeling good. I then had my blood checked again in December, my ferritin only went up to 7! The process takes so long. My recent blood results show my ferritin on 17, so finally I can see some improvement. But still the ferritin is not back to normal levels, after 10 months of treatment!
The problem is that I still don't feel normal. I still feel sick and I get dizzy. This might sound minor but I'm only 21 and I'm not able to do anything a normal 21 year old would do. I can't drink a single beer or go out for the evening or longer walks, as i start getting dizzy and getting headaches so quickly. I wonder if this will ever go back to normal, as I'm normally a healthy young girl. My doctor doesn't really know what it is. I wonder if anyone had the same experience?
0 likes, 3 replies
amy48937 mars86762
Posted
So sorry to hear you are not feeling well. That is a long time to wait. I wonder about trying a different type of supplement or an iron infusion?
It is not surprising at all that you are still having symptoms at ferritin level of 17, even though the doctor might say that's in the normal range. A few weeks ago I came across this infographic which I think is really helpful. After a lot of searching for good quality information I finally came to realize that it takes a long time to restore ferritin levels and that the normal ranges that laboratories give are not at all sufficient to feel better. (I hope the image comes through. Feel free to send me a private message and I can send it that way if needed).
mars86762 amy48937
Posted
Hi Amy, thank you very much for your kind message. I've been denied an iron infusion unfortunately. I will hopefully be able to increase my ferritin levels more, did it take a long time with you as well? I find that every doctor has a different perception of what's normal. It's difficult when some say that my iron levels are in a good range, because they don't feel normal and it worries me.
Thanks for the graphic also, interesting to see how my levels seem to be still so low, which is causing all these symptoms.
Sending all the best your way!
amy48937 mars86762
Posted
My ferritin went up from 8 to 22 in one month. However, it is hard to be excited about that because I still don't feel well. Some symptoms have gotten worse--like headaches--even though I have noticed some slight improvement in other areas. I really want to believe it's going to get better, but very hard sometimes.