The first time I noticed that something was off I was at the gym when I was doing squats.
All of a sudden, I felt extremely dizzy, light-headed and nearly collapsed on the floor, if it wasn’t for the safety bars that I put in place.
I was able to rest the barbell on it and drop my butt on the floor, just feeling awkward but luckily uninjured.
It wasn’t even that heavy and yet I nearly passed out.
I realized in that embarrassing moment sitting on the floor that something was wrong with me.
A few days later I had an appointment to donate some blood.
(Ever since my then partner had cancer, I started donating my blood to blood banks. And particularly the one that works with the oncology department of the hospital that miraculously saved her life.
Donating blood has become an extremely important part of my life.
My blood type is A-, which is fairly rare. I try to donate a double unit of red cells every four months or so.)
Back to the story. So, I went to the Blood Drive.
They set up mini-triage in place. You fill up a questionnaire, they ask you a few questions, register you, and take your temperature, blood pressure, and some blood from your finger.
The nurse told me my iron is low. It was 11. She drew more blood from another finger to confirm.
Same thing. Just about 0.5 higher than the other reading.
She called her supervisor and they told me I cannot donate a double unit of red cells today. The reading is way too low.
I got very upset.
But on the bright side, I was very happy that they allowed me to donate whole blood. Which is better than nothing.
After I was done, I called my primary care doctor and scheduled some blood tests.
My hemoglobin level was 10.1 in comparison to two years ago, which was 15.
As I was told by my physician that’s a pretty substantial blood loss in the given period of time.
I did more tests, and the results were not looking great.
My serum iron was 3. The normal one for men is between 65 to 176 µg/dL.
So the diagnosis my doctor gave me— fairly severe Iron deficiency anemia.
It took them about 2 months of testing, going back and forth with doctors to confirm the diagnosis. In the meantime, I was getting worse.
I developed more symptoms:
- Extreme fatigue and weakness, even though I was getting a sufficient amount of rest, sleep, and staying hydrated.
- Pale skin. For the first time in 30 years, I could see blue veins on my wrist
- Fast and irregular heartbeat. Shortness of breath, all the time.
- A headache, dizziness, and lightheadedness
- Cold hands and feet. I feel cold all the time. Which again, usually it’s the opposite
- Unusual cravings for ice and starch
- 115/42 Blood pressure
I am not complaining about the symptoms though. Even though It sucks, by no means it comes even close to the severity of the symptoms that I get from my severe allergies.
Having a perspective of this sort, I think is important. Since it allows you to stay happy despite the given circumstances. Which is great I think. “New” bad thing is not as bad or worse as the “old” thing. GREAT! Every cloud has a silver lining?:)
However, I am still very upset that I cannot donate blood until the issue is resolved.
A simple knowledge of the importance to take Iron Supplement could have made all the difference in my life – I would have been able to donate blood two times by now. 🙁
That’s at least four people missing out on my donation. (Every donation is a double unit of red cells that goes to two people)
My favorite Blood Drive that I go to, doesn’t share medical information with the clinic where I get my allergy shots. I’m considering donating without telling my doctor.
Which is a ridiculously dumb idea, now that I come to think about it. It turns out, thinking is good for you. I wish I did more of that in my early 20s so that I can realize how important taking care of your health is.
I am taking an Iron supplement and re-adjusting the food I eat. Therefore, I’m going to wait for to see if my symptoms are getting better.
What triggers me the most, is not that I have anemia. Or that I am upset with the doctors.
No. It’s that I am not gonna be able to donate for quite a while now. I wasn’t aware that frequent blood donors MUST take IRON supplements to replenish it in the body.
I didn’t know that red cells, hemoglobin and iron are connected to one another. In some “science” way. By the way, “Is math related to science?” 🙂
I’ve read many internet forums since I had developed the symptoms.
It seems that this is something that happens all the time.
Blood bank guy is one of the websites that was very helpful to me, to educate my dumb-self on the topic.
There, they explain really well what happens when you donate, and the importance of taking supplements.
Check it out. There is a ton of helpful information on the topic of blood donations.
I had donated double red cells 10ish times before, and this was the very first time I failed this stupid blood test.
But the irony of life though…all this time I’ve been donating red cells, and now I am the one whose life depends on getting them. Life is funny that way.
The symptoms are “annoying”…
I was in Starbucks today and there was one flight of stairs. It’s 5 steps.
Literally, 5 tiny steps… THAT activity literally took me 5 minutes to catch my breath. Oh, boy. that’s truly something…
Extreme fatigue lasts 24/7, always exhausted—complete lack of energy.
Very often I need to take a very deep breath just sitting down, doing absolutely nothing. Out of nowhere, there is this feeling that you need to catch your breath. Annoying.
Always dizzy, always light-headed. It sucks. The only awesome thing is which I am grateful for is that I am not in any pain.
I decided not to go to the gym and only stick with biking for some time until I resolve the dizziness issue. I gotta focus on what I gotta eat more lean beef, beets, greens, and beans.
None of that is in my regular diet. As of today, it is going to be, though.
PS:
If you are a frequent blood donor, please make sure to do your bloodwork regularly to check the levels of iron/hemoglobin, take an iron supplement to replenish the loss, and adjust your diet to make it iron-rich.
Anemia sucks balls.
Don’t go there. Always, take care of yourself, so you can take good care of others.
EDITED: Have I mentioned that I had a bike accident on the road. I crushed my bike full speed into a parked car, did a semi-front flip over the handlebar and flew about 12-15 feet forward.
I hit the ground hurting my back, butt, elbows and my head. If it weren’t for my fully stuffed backpack and helmet, I’d be seriously injured or worse.
I got away with scratches and light bleeding, and a warning not to ride a bike having anemia. I was very dizzy, and in my defense, It looked like the car was moving. It wasn’t. It was dumb and reckless of me.
Safety first. Wear a helmet.
