13yo dd - Could she be anaemic ?

[Tillyboo]

DD is feeling cold even in warm weather , looks pale (she's usually quite pale) and her appetite is not great. Just wondering if she could be anaemic ? She has had 4 periods. She'd be terrified of having a blood test so any advice on this aspect would be great too ?

Yes, I was at that age.

Heavy periods and was vegetarian probably main culprits.

Symptoms were that I was tired,,dizzy often when I stood up. Got to the point where I was fainting before doctor did blood tests and prescribed iron, but I would recommend spatone instead.

A lot of GP surgeries send children to Children's Outpatients at local hospitals for blood tests. They have staff trained to take blood from children and play staff to distract them, plus numbing cream so they won't feel it.

In the meantime DH who is very anaemic always improves with Feroglobin liquid, Spatone and Floradix are also good so worth a try.

Had this with my own daughter exactly as you describe at similar age. Always cold, pale and appetite all over the place.

Her blood count was so low they told us she was 'moments' away from hospital admission and blood transfusion.

She was prescribed iron supplements and now at 19, there doesn't appear to be a problem, that we are aware of, but as you can imagine I always keep a careful eye on her.

Possibility but the only way to properly tell is a fbc. When my iron levels get low and when I had a PPH after giving birth and my iron levels had dropped very low. I got very pale, tired, dizzy to the point I almost faint (I have never been a fainter until the day I gave birth) and dark circles round my eyes like panda eyes and my appetite just disappears, cold might also be one but I'm always cold I think it's just female hormones that do that though. I'm 22 and have been on iron supplements on and off since 17. If she doesn't like blood tests try getting some numbing cream and talk to her whilst it's happening and make sure she's looking away from the arm it's being done in

Get some iron into her. Iron supplements are not great, and have side effects, like really bad constipation. Get some floradix, it's an iron supplement that is very easily absorbed and body friendly. Health food shop or chemist.

I was around 12 or 13 when my anemia was picked up so I'd say it's a possibility. Between that & my endo diagnosis I was feeling fairly human again by 14. My levels seemed to pick up again during my late teens & I've only had 1 bout when I was about 6 months pp with dc3.

Re not liking needles/blood tests just tell her not to look & tell the phlebotomist not to say what she's doing & talk about something mindless. I was awful with needles until falling pregnant with dc1 when I decided it wasn't about me but about the baby so I'd have to suck it up. I'm still not great with them but looking away/not knowing what's happening works for me.