Has anyone had an iron infusion before?

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Has anyone had an iron infusion?

I’ve had low iron pretty much my whole adult life, I’m 43 now. Ferritin has never really been higher than 19, even when supplementing.

Every now and then my symptoms get so bad (heart tightness, palpitations, dizziness, tiredness etc) so I try taking iron supplements, but the constipation that it causes is beyond miserable.

I’ve tried several different iron supplements, liquid & tablets, but it always results in the same problem.

Today I read about Iron infusions directly into the blood?…

Has anyone had one and can share their experience, positive or negative?

Yes, I have them semi-regularly.

I sometimes have a dodgy reaction - feverish, flu-ish for a day or two after, but not always. It’s not the miracle worker you’d think, but it is restorative and vital to keep me upright.

I hear they aren’t easily obtained for a lot of people, I’ve never had any issue getting them - but I was hospitalised at times over low iron, so I’m possibly an outlier. I know a lot of doctors prefer supplements.

A close friend has had a couple after losing a lot of blood during childbirth. She has had a nasty complication following the last one but I'm sure it is very rare. I won't say what happened as legal action is involved. Another friend had them regulalry and always felt a lot better after the infusion.

Yes I had 2 infusions after a lot of symptoms when ferritin dropped to 7 (after tablets didn't work). Quick, painless & had a speedy effect. Go for it! x

When pregnant with DS2 I was at the GP’s for a check up and I passed out. He had just got the results of a blood test and realised I was very anaemic. He immediately got out what looked like a horse-sized hypodermic and shot a load of iron into my bum.
He said I needed a few weeks of this and he would send the nurse round to administer. Those were the days, home visits!

I was badly bruised and discoloured from the injections but my God! I felt absolutely fantastic and energised.

If it is in offer go for it. Magic!

I had a couple of infusions to get my levels up so I could have surgery. Each one took about 40 mins administered through a drip and I had 2 weeks between them. I had no side effects and did feel better. I was then well enough for surgery to sort out the problem making me anaemic and haven’t looked back. I would recommend.

My mum had one recently. It hasn't made any difference to her.

My ferritin levels were similar to yours and I struggled to tolerate the tablets given by the gp.

Then I came across iron bisglycinate with vit c. It's brilliant! I take it at night with no ill effect, and at that time it's unlikely anything in my stomach will inhibit absorption.

I feel so much better after 3 months on it, more energy, my hair is growing back very well, and I feel normal for the first time in a long time.

I will take it for 6 months which will top up my reserves.

You should only take an iron supplement every other day as your body blocks absorption if you take it every day to prevent iron build up. You can Google it for more information.

@Crazydogmumma Can I ask what was the problem that was making you anaemic? I suffer from low iron quite regularly and don't really know why but am investigating!

@Alittlebitofthebauble - I had very very heavy periods - Drs decided the best way to manage them was to do a small op, think it was called a ‘resection’- think they burned the lining of the womb- meaning any future periods would be very very light. This is only suitable if you do not plan to have any more children. My iron levels were too low to safely operate (below 10) despite 3 months of intense supplements (which could not make up for the regular blood loss)- hence why I had the 2 infusions. Think this bought my levels up from 7 to 10.2. After the op my levels gradually increased and within 6 months are normal. I wish I had the op sooner as I spent years severely anaemic.

I’ve had several. They were not all the same. Some were over many hours, some were different formulations and fairly quick.

I am prone to allergic reactions so got iv antihistamines with the first couple of mine, but that isn’t standard.

with the first one I was so sick before I got it I could barely walk across a room. It was the hardest to recover from. I just slept and slept for a couple of days afterwards.

the subsequent ones have been easier. I have taken a day to rest, but if I needed to push through I could have managed.

it’s absolutely worth doing if you qualify

Dd had an iron infusion privately. It was nothing short of a miracle for her physical and mental health.

I've had 3. No problems with the first 2 but some pain with the last one which was eased by the nurse slowing the IV down.

Thanks everyone this is really helpful

I had two during/after cancer treatment. Both times they caused my phosphate levels to drop to zero and I had to have urgent phosphate infusions, and lots of other ongoing side effects. It's a reasonably common side effect particularly if you have Ferinject and have low vitamin d. Lots of info on this if you google but Drs and even haematology consultants are annoyingly ill informed.

My iron is still low but I'm using an oral iron spray which bypasses digestive side effects, that's working well for me for now

I hadn't realised vitamin D levels were related to the low phosphate reaction. I wonder if it's worth supplementing beforehand. I've got an iron infusion coming up but not for a couple of months, so I'd have time. I used to take vitamin D in the winter, but not for several months now as I hoped the sun would help, but actually don't know what my levels are. Mine will be monofer though.