Weight and anemia symptoms?

[Elizabeth]

Hi,
I'm a 21-year-old female and I recently began feeling very tired and weak. My symptoms escalated quickly, and I ended up in the emergency room because I was lightheaded, had no appetite, experienced breathlessness and palpitations with only a little exertion, and experienced major fatigue, some slight joint pain, and anxiety attacks. At the emergency room, they did an EKG (which was fine) and took a urine sample, and they said they could find nothing seriously wrong. I then went to my primary care doctor, who diagnosed with me a "very mild anemia." (I have not yet been given a prescription.) Since my doctor's visit, I have continued to be extremely tired with even slight exertion (especially in the hot weather) and I have had some mild chest pains and sleeping problems. I eat regularly, but my appetite is not fantastic, and I'm missing work because of all these symptoms.
I know that these symptoms are characteristic of anemia, but my doctor did say that it was "very mild." I have always had a very low body weight, and I currently weigh only 90 pounds (not as a result of any medical condition, but simply because of genetics). Could it be possible that my low body weight is making me especially sensitive and causing a mild case of anemia to feel much worse?
Thank you!

[Teresa]

Hi, I'm also anemic and I'd have a lot of the same problems you have. Always tired, hard to gain weight and I always look thin and pale. I definitely think that having a low body weight makes things much worse. If you don't eat enough, the body starts to use your muscles for energy and that could be dangerous.

The other reason you could feeling tired is that maybe you caught a virus and you're body is telling you its not hungry because of it. Hang in there, rest up. Good luck

[Timmy South Africa]

Hi Guys, i am a 28 year old mother of to and i have what doctor call "light anemia"for the past 15year of my life.I have had a headache (severe, enough to want to pull your hair out everyday) for the last year. I have every other symptom you guys have maybe worse i weigh 56KG which is a medium built my joints hurt like hell, i have even drop my 2 year old due to pain in my hands, i have gone to every doctor drank every tablet known to man for this and i still have the same result, should i be worried?

[carolyn]

I am 64. Ferratin is 15. Hair is falling out like crazy in shedding pattern. I have heard need Ferritin level of 70 to begin regrowing hair. I cannot build it up high enough with iron pills 325 mg 1x day. Drs think its bcause I used Advil to treat body aches and headaches and made stomach bleed. Stopped Advil but cannot get it up high enough to regrow hair. Thank you
I weigh plenty thanks to no energy..5'4" and 162

[Amanda]

I've had the same symptoms as you - my hair falling out in bunches. After a shower, my tub is full of hair. I take two iron pills/daily - 325mg. Have you asked your doctor about upping your dosage? I have more energy than I did before and my shortness of breath has greatly improved. Do you have any idea how long it takes for iron levels to increase? I have been on iron supplements for 3 months now and have heard it can take as long as a year to build up, but didn't know if this were true.

[Stacy]

I have anemia, 19 years old, and am 5'5 120Lbs. I was thinking that if my blood count goes up, will I possibly be able to gain weight much easier???

[Lisa in Canada]

Timmy
see another doctor. If possible find a doctor that is trained in Integrative Medicine who will look deeper into your symptoms to find better treatments that you can incorporate into your life. As a mother myself I know very well our own nutrition falls away when we're looking after our kids. You must learn to commit to a nutritionally rich program for yourself that supports your individual body and its needs. I have been borderline anemic for years and the only time I feel better is when I take iron supplements and eat red meat and avacadoes - you need to find what your body needs and feed it well and ensure there are no other conditions that are being missed.
Be well
Lisa

Timmy South Africa wrote:

Hi Guys, i am a 28 year old mother of to and i have what doctor call "light anemia"for the past 15year of my life.I have had a headache (severe, enough to want to pull your hair out everyday) for the last year. I have every other symptom you guys have maybe worse i weigh 56KG which is a medium built my joints hurt like hell, i have even drop my 2 year old due to pain in my hands, i have gone to every doctor drank every tablet known to man for this and i still have the same result, should i be worried?

[Kimmie]

Ok i have blood in urine,but funny thing is when I had a fall last month to where I broke a bone in my wrist.... I was on my period too... 2 days after my peeriod was over I noticed blood in my urine, then they were gone.... Now they came back & I am on antibiotics which doesn't seem to be working,found out also that I am slight anemic 2.....So would it be something else?

[john]

am 30 this year ,never really looked after my teeth and now experience bleeding gums,now not as bad as before due to prescribed mouthwash,but the past 18 months i am feeling so bad,tired all the time,pains in joints ,legs,and extremely mild chest pain ,my veins sometimes bulge on my hands,i have read that my veins are looking for something when they do that,is this anaemia,i have an extremely busy lifestyle and find it very hard to loose weight