Iron Infusion Update

It turns out that I did NOT have an iron infusion on Monday. I drove all the way to Madison, WI with my aunt and uncle (to drive me back if need be.....). I had my movies to watch and my cooler packed. The first stop is the lab where they checked my blood levels. There was a slight improvement from 2 weeks ago, and he thought that we should wait. Although my surgeon's nutritionist said that oral supplements would be a waste of time and money, this doctor (Hematologist/Oncologist) said that it is certainly worth a shot. He did not want to risk the possible bad side effects from the iron and other drugs if it is not absolutely necessary. SOOOOOO, I have a new iron supplement to take 3 times a day (if tolerated---so far, so good) and have my labs drawn again in a month. If the levels are the same, or any lower, THEN I will have an infusion. So there I was, feeling "all dressed up with no place to go". I had worked myself up and was kind of nervous about the whole thing for nothing. We went to Trader Joe's (my FAVORITE) then to New Orleans Take Out (awesome). My aunt and uncle now live in Rockford after being displaced by Katrina. They said the food was just like home. I got back into Rockford in time to go to work for 3 hours. Thanks to all that sent me info and good wishes, I will save them for next month!

So glad to hear everything went ok. Glad to hear you didn't have to have the infusion, huge relief I am sure. As your fellow October sister, MAKE SURE TO TAKE YOUR IRON Just had to throw that in there Molly

Thanks SO much for the encouragement. That is the funny thing......how many of us ARE taking extra iron????? My surgeon never prescribed iron as one of my supplements, except for what is in the multi-vitamin. I wondered about that from the start, but they said it should be fine. NOW, I am wondering what OTHER advise from the surgeon's office is not quite on the mark...... I will be taking them faithfully from now on, you can be sure! Have a lovely day! Dawn

Poor you, Dawn! I have a question - why the iron transfusion - very low iron/anemia? they are having a hard time getting mine up. What prescription iron supp. are you taking? I want to look it up on my insurance plan and check it out. How low is your iron? Thanks for the info. Michelle

Hi Michelle! I was referred to the hemotologist because I was in danger of becoming anemic. My Hemoglobin was low (and dropping) at 10.8 (normal 11.6-15.6) My Iron was low at 33 (normal 40-160) My Saturation was low at 13 (normal 16-50) My Ferritin was low at 20 (normal 20-300) He said the Ferritin was the big one to watch because that shows how the body is storing iron. He took blood and said to come back in 2 weeks for an infusion due to the fact that with the bypass, we do not absorb iron as normal people will. When I went in the other day, he did the labs again and the Ferritin was up to 23.8! I hadn't really done much differently except eat some spinach and liver. I asked him if I could try a supplement, and he said, "Sure, get something over-the counter and take it 3 times a day with vitamin C if you can tolerate it." I think the bottle was $7 or $8 for 2 months worth!!!! I went to Vitamin World at the mall and got 180 capsules of what they call "Easy Iron" that is supposed to be easier absorbed and less harsh on your stomach. Each capsule has 28 mg of iron along with some vitamin C and B-12. I started them Monday night, and so far, no problems (constipation, nausea, cramps)like I had in the past when I took Ferrous Sulfate. I increased my stool softener by 1 per day and added 4 prunes yesterday and everything is "running smoothly" so far. Sorry to be so long-winded, but I hope it helps. Good luck! Dawn