OK, So I'm Anemic. But what a way to find out!!!

D_Fish
on 8/2/07 12:05 am - Kissimmee, FL

So, 2 weeks ago I go to bed about 11:45PM. Short of breath. Felt kinda weird. Come to find out i had a MASSIVE G.I. bleed. I'll spare y'all the details but suffice it to say, I was in shock, I was unresponsive until EMS showed up at the house, I ruined the carpet and pad in my bedroom and had to throw away the clothes I was wearing. Yeah, a G.I. bleed is something you don't ever want to experience or smell. So, we go to the E.R., I get admitted with a hemoglobin level of 11. From what I learned, 18 is minimal normal. After massive fluid infusion including potassium, ( Interrupt the story here with this tidbit.... I any of you fine, young cannibals ever gets an I.V. potassium infusion, make sure it's on an I.V. pump. The lovely Mrs. Fish, an E.R. nurse, walked into my hospital room and promptly had a cow. Turns out, my I.V. { with potassium } was running wide open with nothing slowing it down. For those of you who did not know this, that can kill you. That WILL kill you. In other words, had my wife not walked into my room when I did, there is a distinct possibility I would be worm food right now. Ah, the medical profession!! Back to the story...) and even 2 units of blood. The G.I. doc insists on doing an endosopy ( camera and laser down my throat ), a colonoscopy ( camera up the rear-end ), and a barium swallow test. 3 procedures over 3 days, 2 units of blood, a gallon of Golytely (nasty crap that you have to drink a whole gallon in 5 hours to clean out your system for a colonoscopy) and the doctors tell me they can't find anything wrong with me but an old ulcer that may or may not have caused the massive G.I. bleed. And oh, BTW.... I left the hospital with a hemoglobin of 8. Anyone have any thoughts on ways to improve my hemoglobin count and get rid of this anemia? It really sucks. I have no energy. I feel drained. Everything is an effort. Iron supplements constipate me really badly but i'm still takin em. I had to ease off the raw, green leafies for a while and REALLY watch what I eat to give this ulcer time to properly heal. Anemia sucks.

Dx E
on 8/2/07 12:41 am - Northern, MS

RNY on 07/03/03

Call your doc for some help with this one. There are prescription iron supplements That don’t cause the constipation, And an Iron infusion may be in order. Iron is a "slow go" to bring back up to normal range Once your levels have dropped. Many get an Iron Infusion or a series of Iron Infusions. An Iron Sucrose (like Venofer®) Infusion To go for the "do-it-yourself-home remedy?" Get Ferrous Fumarate NOT- Ferric Sulfate- That’s the one that is hardest to absorb and will leave your constipated as a rat! The FERRIC supplements need the stomach acids to Make them absorbable. So find some Ferrous Fumarate and take it with something with vitamin C in it. OR- Better yet- ask the pharmacist (or ask the doc to call in a script for- (POLY-IRON) The Generic Name: iron polysaccharide Also comes in the Brand names- Fe-Tinic 150, Hytinic, Niferex, and Nu-Iron 150. Won’t cause constipation and Most WLS patients tolerate this form of iron better than the iron salts. For foods? Hit a seafood place and order the clams… Very high in iron. Also Iron Fortified Cereals are a good source. Check out- FoodsHigh in Iron (BTW, they can play ‘fast and loose’ with the potassium. I had an IV full bag of potassium infiltrate and blow through a vein. It ran the full bag out into my arm before they caught it. Burned a 3" diameter hole from the inside out And dissolved my ‘ulnar-nerve’ in my right hand. I still have little to no feeling in my thumb and fore-finger there. Gotta watch ‘em like a hawk! Thank heavens when I screw up on my job, the repercussions are minimal.) Hope you got a fix for the ulcer while they had you there. Best Wishes- Dx

Capricious; Impulsive, Semi-Predictable