Severe iron deficiency

Hi Alison, so sorry to hear about the iron deficiency, but I'm so glad you have discovered the root cause of your lethargy!

My doc has me take Ferrous Gluconate 325 mg. I only take 1 pill 2 times a week, but here's what Drug.com says about dosing:

Ferrous gluconate Dosing Information

Usual Adult Dose for Iron Deficiency Anemia:

Maintenance: 325 mg orally 3 times a day. Resolution of iron deficiency anemia may require ferrous gluconate supplementation for several weeks or months, depending on the duration and severity of the anemia.

Read more at http://www.drugs.com/mtm/ferrous-gluconate.html#DexTGDZMGQTr Focc.99   Hope that helps a bit. good luck, friend. Hope you are feeling well soon. Big hugs!

What is the does for just normal Sleevers who don;t have iron deficiency?  I have some of these tablets, and they are only 27 mg each.

are all of you people taking a multivitamin since surgery? I have one prescribed for life. Centrum 50+ I was told that this is enough. not sure why you would take iron and b12 on top of that. But if you do I'll ask about it.

I was not told to take additional iron and for the first 18 mo post op, my iron was fine. I have been taking my multi religiously for 2 years with 36 mg of iron per day, but MY body apparently has decided it's not enough. Its important to watch your labs, even with the sleeve. 

b12 is important to take via sublingual tablets post op - my #s barely stay mid range by taking 500mg /day. 

Ive been taking b1 since surgery too but these latest labs show my B1 levels are on the high side so I have to cut back. Vites are all just dependent on our bodies/our labs. I dont think there's a "one size fit all" approach. I just had to learn the hard way. 

I believe the Centrum 50+ has no iron in it. I was told to take a multi *with iron* and watch my iron levels since a small portion of us do have issues with iron.

However, a lot of women have issues with iron even without having WLS so it's  a good idea for us to watch iron levels no matter what.

After months of painful constipation (and trying miralax, benefibre, metamucil, suppositories etc) I switched to a different sort of iron called Floradix. The form of iron in it is ferrous gluconate, and I've gone from almost constant constipation to needing Imodium on occasion - a much less unpleasant situation!

Your pharmacist will have ferrous gluconate behind the counter. I hope it helps.

Good to know - ill definitely look into this!

Hey Allison- Tender Iron always worked well for me (too well, needed to take a year off- I was supplementing when I didn't need to and my ferritin went too high, lesson learned!) 

It never constipated me, but then again- I popped a Mg oxide cap at night and still do, Mg is something normies should supplement just like a daily multi, and it does have the added benefit of keeping things running smooth.. At this point- eating ****pots of veggies does me fine, but I still need the Mg for health- so I've kept at it.

When were your last labs & did you get your D, PTH & Ca checked too? If your iron levels are totally tanked, I'd press hard for a referral to a hemo for an iron infusion then start supplementing to stay in range rather than spinning your wheels while feeling crappy trying to play catch up- you know? You may be supplementing long and hard depending on how low you got to get things back in range where one afternoon could get you topped off.. Just a thought. Iron regardless can mess the guts up- so that may be another way to press for the infusion, then just get a minimal dose here and there to keep it up.. the Tender Iron though worked very, very well with no gut issues.. other than an occasional burp that smelled & tasted like car exhaust.. yummy, not.

D is super low, Ca is borderline low, and PTH is fine. 

Thanks for the info. I will definitely ask about the infusion. I realllllly dont need any more problems with constipation. 

Pop those D's like a mo-fo, that too will make you feel like **** I was taking 7000-10,000 a day for a few months to get mine from the low 30's to high 90's (pre-op lows).. and realized with my last labs, I still need to take 5000mcg 4-5x a week to keep it in range with my sun-avoidance vampire ways.

Good to know that the PTH & Ca are ok, all connected they are.. upping the D will help the Ca, and so long as the PTH is good and low means you got it in time..

Get the infusion, then you'd prob be a-ok with a couple Tenderiron at night a week.. I like to take it before bed- but just be aware of the nasty burps.. ugh. It is a very, very effective form of iron. It gave me the goose-poops though, but you may be ok with that if you are leaning the other way in that department..