Donating blood, be careful

[EricJ123]

The past 4 months I have had debilitating fatigue. Not the I'm tired and feel crappy fatigue, the don't leave your house for days at a time fatigue. The you can hardly make a first and your shaky fatigue. Brain fog so bad I didn't trust myself to drive some days. After 3 months of not getting better I broke down and ran labs for everything Full CBC, lipids, kidneys, vitamins, thyroid, liver, hormones, the works. Everything came back normal...... Except my Crit was 53 so I did what I usually do and donated blood like I did a couple moths prior. After reviewing the blood panel with my Dr. he had no concerns of anemia or iron deficiency as my Hemoglobin was on the high end of normal and CBC was fine.

In desperation I order a comprehensive Iron/anemic panel myself of privatemdlabs.com
Well holy fucking shit.... Ferritin 13. Iron Saturation 8% Total Iron 31. For reference this isn't just kinda low, its really low. I immediately starting supplementing with Oral Iron and eating more iron rich foods. After two weeks and not much improvement today I had an Iron Transfusion. Dr wants me to re-test levels in a month.

I share this as a caution. Its easily overlooked when trying to find out why fatigue is hitting you so hard. If you donate blood don't just run a CBC get a comprehensive iron analysis as well that tests your ferritin.

I still feel wrecked. Too weak and shaky to train with barbells, too tired to work more than a couple hours a day, I've lost my whole summer. The kicker of it all is I donated blood while trying to figure out what was wrong.

Take care of you health my friends, its the greatest asset you have.

 

[cage99]

Im assuming you went to your GP? Doesn’t surprise me that they failed to dive in further when your basic blood work didn’t set off alarms. It’s a shame! Glad you were smart enough to do your own labs. Hopefully things improve for you soon.

Cage

 

[01dragonslayer]

G

The past 4 months I have had debilitating fatigue. Not the I'm tired and feel crappy fatigue, the don't leave your house for days at a time fatigue. The you can hardly make a first and your shaky fatigue. Brain fog so bad I didn't trust myself to drive some days. After 3 months of not getting better I broke down and ran labs for everything Full CBC, lipids, kidneys, vitamins, thyroid, liver, hormones, the works. Everything came back normal...... Except my Crit was 53 so I did what I usually do and donated blood like I did a couple moths prior. After reviewing the blood panel with my Dr. he had no concerns of anemia or iron deficiency as my Hemoglobin was on the high end of normal and CBC was fine.

In desperation I order a comprehensive Iron/anemic panel myself of privatemdlabs.com
Well holy fucking shit.... Ferritin 13. Iron Saturation 8% Total Iron 31. For reference this isn't just kinda low, its really low. I immediately starting supplementing with Oral Iron and eating more iron rich foods. After two weeks and not much improvement today I had an Iron Transfusion. Dr wants me to re-test levels in a month.

I share this as a caution. Its easily overlooked when trying to find out why fatigue is hitting you so hard. If you donate blood don't just run a CBC get a comprehensive iron analysis as well that tests your ferritin.

I still feel wrecked. Too weak and shaky to train with barbells, too tired to work more than a couple hours a day, I've lost my whole summer. The kicker of it all is I donated blood while trying to figure out what was wrong.

Take care of you health my friends, its the greatest asset you have.

Great words of advise. I donate regularly but luckily I have never had any issues. Years ago I did have some problems being iron deficient but that was an easy fix.

Thanks for posting.

 

[danieltx]

I say this every now and then but nobody listens - regular blood donation is one of the great disservices done to bodybuilders over the last 15 years.

If your platelets are in range and you don't have genetics clotting issues, high hematocrit by itself is almost always a non-issue.

We're seeing more stories like yours lately and I hope that convinces guys to stop donating so often.

 

[EricJ123]

I say this every now and then but nobody listens - regular blood donation is one of the great disservices done to bodybuilders over the last 15 years.

If your platelets are in range and you don't have genetics clotting issues, high hematocrit by itself is almost always a non-issue.

We're seeing more stories like yours lately and I hope that convinces guys to stop donating so often.

Yes... The only reason I'd donate is thats what was hammered into me from forums about keeping crit down. I also thought hemoglobin=Iron. My hemoglobin was always on the high end when I donate so I thought I was fine. I now know they are two very different things.

I now focus on lower doses, managing blood pressure, and I take a baby aspirin just to be extra safe.

 

[jeroendebleser]

I say this every now and then but nobody listens - regular blood donation is one of the great disservices done to bodybuilders over the last 15 years.

If your platelets are in range and you don't have genetics clotting issues, high hematocrit by itself is almost always a non-issue.

We're seeing more stories like yours lately and I hope that convinces guys to stop donating so often.

Exactly

 

[fitnessmuscle]

Ya b

I say this every now and then but nobody listens - regular blood donation is one of the great disservices done to bodybuilders over the last 15 years.

If your platelets are in range and you don't have genetics clotting issues, high hematocrit by itself is almost always a non-issue.

We're seeing more stories like yours lately and I hope that convinces guys to stop donating so often. Go

I say this every now and then but nobody listens - regular blood donation is one of the great disservices done to bodybuilders over the last 15 years.

If your platelets are in range and you don't have genetics clotting issues, high hematocrit by itself is almost always a non-issue.

We're seeing more stories like yours lately and I hope that convinces guys to stop donating so often.

yes bro, I tested and had a hemocrit level of 59 and my hemoglobin was 20.1 ,but my platelets where in the low normal range , so your saying I had nothing to worry about? Scared me enough to come off completely for months ,retested and was hemoglobin 15.5 , hemotocrit dropped 17 points 59 to 42 , but jumped back on now but haven’t retested yet , what’s your advice in my situation , btw never donated blood ever

 

[fitnessmuscle]

I say this every now and then but nobody listens - regular blood donation is one of the great disservices done to bodybuilders over the last 15 years.

If your platelets are in range and you don't have genetics clotting issues, high hematocrit by itself is almost always a non-issue.

We're seeing more stories like yours lately and I hope that convinces guys to stop donating so often.

Yes bro ,when I was on I had a hemotocrit of 59.0 and a hemoglobin of 20.1 but my platelets were in the low normal range, so your saying I had nothing to worry about blood clot wise ? Well scared me enough to come off completely for months, no trt,absolutely nothing,retested and my hemoglobin was 15.5 and hemotocrit dropped 17 points from 59 to 42 , back on now and haven’t retested yet , what’s your advice for my situation? btw never donated blood in my life

 

[pickapeck]

I say this every now and then but nobody listens - regular blood donation is one of the great disservices done to bodybuilders over the last 15 years.

If your platelets are in range and you don't have genetics clotting issues, high hematocrit by itself is almost always a non-issue.

We're seeing more stories like yours lately and I hope that convinces guys to stop donating so often.

I agree in part but disagree in part. Eventually if many if not most guys stay on some level of AAS the hemetocrit will climb and especially so as we age. Walking around with hematocrit close to 60 is not a good thing. That is more blood volume and at higher viscocity placing more stress on the cardiovascular system over years. Blood donation can be a problem as you describe and I have brought this issue up many times over the years. There is a proper way to keep hematocrit under control whilst maintaining healthy levels of iron. Taking time OFF AAS will bring it back down. Maintaining a TRT within normal range and not topped out will keep it in normal or close to normal range. The problem is nobody wants to come off anymore. Everyone wants a quick fix or pill to fix every problem, and nobody wants to be uncomfortable for a couple months.

 

[headtrainer]

I have learned I do best donating blood only twice a year—every six months before I do blood work for my endocrinologist. After donating blood to lower hematocrit levels, I take iron every day for 2 weeks to rapidly replenish my ferritin levels. I continue to take iron 1-2 times per week to prevent anemia because I rarely eat red meat these days.

 

[ALPHALIFEFITNESS]

Bodybuilders on gear should donate Double RBC. If your hemoglobin is high with high RBC count, you should donate double red cells through a apheresis machine that returns your plasma, platelets and saline so your hydrated and leave with the same fluid volume you go in with.

 

[danieltx]

I agree in part but disagree in part. Eventually if many if not most guys stay on some level of AAS the hemetocrit will climb and especially so as we age. Walking around with hematocrit close to 60 is not a good thing. That is more blood volume and at higher viscocity placing more stress on the cardiovascular system over years. Blood donation can be a problem as you describe and I have brought this issue up many times over the years. There is a proper way to keep hematocrit under control whilst maintaining healthy levels of iron. Taking time OFF AAS will bring it back down. Maintaining a TRT within normal range and not topped out will keep it in normal or close to normal range. The problem is nobody wants to come off anymore. Everyone wants a quick fix or pill to fix every problem, and nobody wants to be uncomfortable for a couple months.

I agree with your thoughts.

Personally, it hasn't been an issue for me and I probably run higher doses for longer than most members here. I attribute managing mine to always staying well-hydrated (at 285lbs. last year I added up all my fluids for a day - 2.8 gallons) and always using my CPAP. I think sleep apnea is greatly underestimated, particularly in our community, for how it impacts hematocrit and with so many guys either not caring or non-compliant with treatment I'm not surprised that many struggle with hematocrit.

Bodybuilders on gear should donate Double RBC. If your hemoglobin is high with high RBC count, you should donate double red cells through a apheresis machine that returns your plasma, platelets and saline so your hydrated and leave with the same fluid volume you go in with.

No they shouldn't. Blanket statements like this are exactly what I'm referring to by 'disservices done to bodybuilders' because 99% of guys will read this, do no research, start donating blood regularly, and harm themselves in the process.

Yes bro ,when I was on I had a hemotocrit of 59.0 and a hemoglobin of 20.1 but my platelets were in the low normal range, so your saying I had nothing to worry about blood clot wise ? Well scared me enough to come off completely for months, no trt,absolutely nothing,retested and my hemoglobin was 15.5 and hemotocrit dropped 17 points from 59 to 42 , back on now and haven’t retested yet , what’s your advice for my situation? btw never donated blood in my life

Stop donating unless you have a genetic clotting disorder, high platelets, irregular blood markers, or some kind of disease that warrants it.

 

[pothole]

Bodybuilders on gear should donate Double RBC. If your hemoglobin is high with high RBC count, you should donate double red cells through a apheresis machine that returns your plasma, platelets and saline so your hydrated and leave with the same fluid volume you go in with.

wouldn't this just compound the issue 2 fold?

 

[Kr0m]

this is why ive never donated and never will

 

[qbkilla]

So the donation caused all these issues or you had an underlying issue and it made it worse? Why can some people donate blood every weeks and have no problem yet some do?

 

[alfresco]

My iron / ferritin tanked due to years of giving blood due to rising hematocrit. Still donate but not as regularly. All good now. I tried all the iron / ferritin supps to zero effect.

My wife gets iron infusions. Despite all the tests, scoped up one end and down the other, they can’t figure out where it is going. Could just be an absorption issue, but no doctor will commit. Hence the infusions. She just had one. If I thought she was Superwoman before, just add iron and get out of the way. I think she got down to single digit before she could get anybody, doctor, to intervene. Really sad. Then it was trying to get the insurance to pay. It’s very expensive! (It is all about the wording.) They finally did. She gets blood tests every month or so so she can see the lows coming and get infused before it becomes a quality of life issue. The infusions are magic but it takes a bit for it to kick in.

Hope the best for you.

 

[alfresco]

wouldn't this just compound the issue 2 fold?

Good question.

Am not sure this will resolve any high hematocrit (long term?) problems.
Intuitively, yes, but me thinks this warrants further investigation with a
bigger brain than mine (easy).

 

[11sh11]

I donate every 3 mos, with positive results. As someone who has a tendency towards anemia, I pay attention to foods that contain iron, am conscientious about bloodwork, and never find anything off. Backstrap molasses is a great source of highly absorbable iron, btw. Pay attention to gut health and enzyme levels, to make sure your absorption is optimal

 

[Bio]

The past 4 months I have had debilitating fatigue. Not the I'm tired and feel crappy fatigue, the don't leave your house for days at a time fatigue. The you can hardly make a first and your shaky fatigue. Brain fog so bad I didn't trust myself to drive some days. After 3 months of not getting better I broke down and ran labs for everything Full CBC, lipids, kidneys, vitamins, thyroid, liver, hormones, the works. Everything came back normal...... Except my Crit was 53 so I did what I usually do and donated blood like I did a couple moths prior. After reviewing the blood panel with my Dr. he had no concerns of anemia or iron deficiency as my Hemoglobin was on the high end of normal and CBC was fine.

In desperation I order a comprehensive Iron/anemic panel myself of privatemdlabs.com
Well holy fucking shit.... Ferritin 13. Iron Saturation 8% Total Iron 31. For reference this isn't just kinda low, its really low. I immediately starting supplementing with Oral Iron and eating more iron rich foods. After two weeks and not much improvement today I had an Iron Transfusion. Dr wants me to re-test levels in a month.

I share this as a caution. Its easily overlooked when trying to find out why fatigue is hitting you so hard. If you donate blood don't just run a CBC get a comprehensive iron analysis as well that tests your ferritin.

I still feel wrecked. Too weak and shaky to train with barbells, too tired to work more than a couple hours a day, I've lost my whole summer. The kicker of it all is I donated blood while trying to figure out what was wrong.

Take care of you health my friends, its the greatest asset you have.

This issue isn't new. Be sure to do a search for any information that may be of help to you!

 

[nothuman]

I say this every now and then but nobody listens - regular blood donation is one of the great disservices done to bodybuilders over the last 15 years.

If your platelets are in range and you don't have genetics clotting issues, high hematocrit by itself is almost always a non-issue.

We're seeing more stories like yours lately and I hope that convinces guys to stop donating so often.

You are of course, 100% correct.

Unfortunately, this thread will become old and new threads will pop up about the same thing and users will reply advising people with my hematocrit to get blood donations.

The cycle repeats itself.