LOW IRON

[millyskye3]

Advice and reassurance please!!

I am 3 months post partum and had low iron post c section. I took iron tablets for a couple of weeks but left it as that as life got very busy being a new mum of two and I felt ok.
For the last 7 days I have had a constant dull headache which doesn’t go away with paracetamol. I am constantly dizzy/woozy (feel drunk) and lightheaded and get episodes of vertigo at times. I just feel completely out of sorts, low in mood and lacking in energy. I feel slightly better first thing in the morning but by the evening I am shattered beyond belief and have to lay out on the sofa

Seen by GP yesterday who did all of the neurological tests but it was only last night that I thought that iron may be the culprit and I’m booked in next week for a blood test which I feel I ideally need now.

Panicking massively and so scared it could be something else.

If your iron was already low and you didn’t supplement long enough to increase it (generally retest bloods after 3 months of supplementation) then it’s likely that is what the issue is so try not to worry -although low iron also causes anxiety so that might be easier said than done!

Thankyou! Would you have said it was normally to feel SO lightheaded. As thought I’m floating. The constant headache feels like I’m de hydrated. I am
breastfeeding and eating/drinking well.

Iron stores take months, not weeks to build up.

And yes a low ferritin can make you feel dreadful and even worse if it so bad you are anaemic.

I started feeling symptoms like you have mentioned, back in October. I took a home blood test which said I was low in iron so I started to take some supplements and improved my diet (I wasn't eating enough cereals or greens). I started to feel better and stopped taking them. The issues returned and now I am back on Floradix twice per day with my iron boosting diet and smoothies. As many have said, it can be a long road when trying to build your iron back up, it can take three months or more but you have to keep taking your iron pills/supplements with vitamin c and improving your diet with more greens and beetroot. I'm better than I was but I get tired in the afternoons/evenings too. I try to rest as much as I can but I'm keeping up with the lifestyle changes. Always have iron in your diet and don't stop taking things, even when you feel well cause issues will return. I hope you feel better soon, you're not alone. Much love x

Thankyou so much for this lovely reply! Just what I needed to see this morning. Yes I probably don’t eat enough of a iron rich diet. Your advice is really helpful. Just hoping this is what’s causing my symptoms but considering I was low in iron post partum with my eldest and I haven’t taken tablets for long enough this time around. I just feel as though something is off. It’s the constant dull headache that’s worrying me as I never get headaches. I’ll have a look into Floradix and give it a go! Again, really appreciate this so thankyou x

i read you should avoid tea, so i leave an hour between lunch and a cup of tea, also orange juice helps with uptake of iron.
i took my iron tablet before bed, as you can take them an hour after eating. so i found that helpful.

If you are actually iron deficient, Floradix or similar supplements won't be enough. You need ferrous fumerate 210, 3x daily. You can get it on prescription or from the chemist but behind the counter. Floradix etc is OK for maintenance once you've got your levels up.

Floradix will not be good enough to resolve a serious iron deficiency. You will need prescribed tablets

Thankyou! Do you experience headaches with low iron?

Anaemia causes headaches, yes. Mine was a sort of skull ache - not sure how else to describe it! And my head felt so heavy and foggy. You've had a baby and major surgery so your body will be going through all sorts anyway. Add in breastfeeding and low iron and I'm not at all surprised you're feeling like this. Try not to worry. Get the blood test, get the prescription strength iron, and you could be feeling completely different in a month or two.

Get some Feroglobin capsules - 3 for 2 packs at Boots or H&B. Not too expensive. Take one or two a day. They keep your iron levels well topped up but without the unpleasant side effects of constipation etc that NHS issue tablets give you.

If you need a very quick iron boost - Floradix tonic is excellent. I remember feeling as though energy was flowing back into my body the first time I took it when I was anaemic after a miscarriage. It's expensive and doesn't taste great but well worth it.

Yes mine are like that, a dull skull type ache almost as though I’m dehydrated by I’m not. I also get aches behind me eyes like a tension type headache. My hair has also been falling out and I wouldn’t just say it was pp loss and brittle nails that split when cause on things or knocked. Thankyou for your reply.

i didnt get constipation with ferrous sulphate