Anaemia- any ideas

[PonderingOnThis]

Hi all. Wonder if anyone can help.

Had a baby 6 months ago. Lost 3litres of blood and had a transfusion.

Have always had "funny blood" since puberty. High platelets, low blood pressure and anaemia. I don't absorb iron well. Take a lot of iron but it never seems to do much. Red meat gives me terrible upset stomachs so I avoid it. Trying to make myself eat it over the years has caused incredible discomfort and once hospitalisation from such bad IBS like symptoms.

I eat a lot of leafy greens but it is reaching the point where I'm exhausted all the time. Doctors advice is just take iron but it's doing nothing. Ferritin levels at Xmas were 0.5 and iron 3, they've just been redone and ferritin was the same and iron is now 4.

I'm living on Red Bull. All advice welcome.

Try organic blackstrap molasses - from a health food shop. By the tablespoon if you can! It is very iron rich and easily absorbed. Also full of other minerals that will build you back up and give you energy.

Have you tried Spatone? They are sachets of iron infused water you add to orange juice. I took two a day until I felt noticeably better and now just one a day. Cutting down on tea and coffee also helps a bit. I was very anaemic and none of the tablets helped, I tried spatone after reading a recommendation on here. Hope you get better soon, it's awful.

Sea food has high levels of iron, so mussels are very good and then eat an orange afterwards to assist the iron being absorbed

This is coming from someone who's had pernicious anaemia for 18 months.
Don't know if your GP has tested you, but have you considered celiac disease?
Similar situation to you, had four separate transfusions when I was pregnant and shortly after giving birth, iron levels all over the place. High platelets, low bp etc.
I take it you have had your B12 injections as well? If so, do you have yours regularly for three months or was it just a short one week course?
I take it they tested your thyroid as well?

Got tested after having the relentless tiredness, insomnia, ibs and after ruling out depression and other bowel complaints, tested positive for Celiac disease. Not much of a diet change, just avoid gluten! You could try this yourself for a few weeks to see if that makes any difference?
Stick with the iron tablets, Do you get regular blood testing to check your levels?

Also Red Bull is not going to help your stomach problems, have you tried herbal teas?

Try and see a different GP. Ask can you have iron and complementary vitamin injections and a phalanx of blood tests (including celiac as suggested by others). It can take a long time to build iron up - it took me almost 6 months to get up into the normal range taking 3 ferrous fumerate tablets a day - I feel so much more alert now.

Please lay off the red bull.