Donating blood, be careful

[specter]

i talked with Dr.Michael scally about this and he told me to take iron supps eod not ed because when you get high iron in your blood you release a blocking protein that inhibits iron uptake for about 24 hours, so last time i had low iron i tried eod and it came back way faster then when takin it ed. He also sent me a study about the method.

 

[beastmode121]

When you say your CBC came back normal; what is normal?

A hemoglobin of 8 is normal but it’s on the very low side.. so what was your hct and hgb?

 

[jcc80]

Hmm. I've read about this before but not paid too close attention. I think it was a matter of associating high hematocrit with high iron.

I just looked at my last couple years' worth of blood tests, and I see that was never checked. Good stuff here, I'm going to have to look into this.

 

[EricJ123]

When you say your CBC came back normal; what is normal?

A hemoglobin of 8 is normal but it’s on the very low side.. so what was your hct and hgb?

Hemoglobin 16.5 HCT 50.9

 

[EricJ123]

Hmm. I've read about this before but not paid too close attention. I think it was a matter of associating high hematocrit with high iron.

I just looked at my last couple years' worth of blood tests, and I see that was never checked. Good stuff here, I'm going to have to look into this.

Yea I always assumed my iron was high because my crit and hemoglobin usually run on the higher side and I eat lots of red meat. I didn't realize you can be iron deficient while having high hemohlobin and Crit.

Its not a fun feeling. Very slow process on getting better for me so far.

 

[pickapeck]

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

Never new that! Thanks!

 

[Crazy_jay]

Hemoglobin 16.5 HCT 50.9

But your cbc wasn't normal, rdw is high. High rdw is a sign of iron deficiency, along with low mch and mchc. Mch and mchc aren't low but they borderline.

Rdw, mch, and mchc are how I learned I was iron deficient. Confirmed with additional bloodwork. Ferritin was at 14. Hemoglobin and hematocrit were still high. I learned the hard way like you. I was doing double reds, only took a couple donations.

 

[beastmode121]

Hemoglobin 16.5 HCT 50.9

That’s crazy that’s your iron is low

 

[MouthBreather1982]

Beverly ultra 40 i actual beef liver with the ft removed and has slick coating, its known for making iron sky rocket with with vitamin C. I bet you a few with each meal with be noticeable fast with C. sorry key board is broken

 

[jcc80]

That is REALLY interesting. My MCH and MCHC were 27.1 and 32.8 respectively. Right on the borderline, and then I donated blood since then. RDW was 13.7.

I feel pretty good overall but I always feel like there is room for improvement. My heart rate is higher than I would like it to be despite running low doses and doing a lot of cardio. I read that low iron can raise the heart rate.

But your cbc wasn't normal, rdw is high. High rdw is a sign of iron deficiency, along with low mch and mchc. Mch and mchc aren't low but they borderline.

Rdw, mch, and mchc are how I learned I was iron deficient. Confirmed with additional bloodwork. Ferritin was at 14. Hemoglobin and hematocrit were still high. I learned the hard way like you. I was doing double reds, only took a couple donations.

 

[hogg]

Thanks for the heads up, been having my wife draw blood and dump it into a gallon jug. Then do a double donation when the blood drive comes around. I’ve been hammered about donating blood as well.

Higher the RBC the more risk of creating clots, which then leads to an issue no one wants to live with.

 

[specter]

That’s crazy that’s your iron is low

i have done the exact same thing, tanked my iron while i had a hematocrit of 53.

 

[specter]

That is REALLY interesting. My MCH and MCHC were 27.1 and 32.8 respectively. Right on the borderline, and then I donated blood since then. RDW was 13.7.

I feel pretty good overall but I always feel like there is room for improvement. My heart rate is higher than I would like it to be despite running low doses and doing a lot of cardio. I read that low iron can raise the heart rate.

Low iron really pushed my resting heart rate up and i was out off air alot.

 

[alfresco]

I will share some numbers that my wife had, you will be amazed.

 

[jcc80]

I am curious, did you use supplements, diet, or both to recover? And how long did it take? This goes for anyone who posted having this issue.

Low iron really pushed my resting heart rate up and i was out off air alot.

 

[EricJ123]

I am curious, did you use supplements, diet, or both to recover? And how long did it take? This goes for anyone who posted having this issue.

I've been eating red meat twice a day and supplementing with iron 2x/day. I take vitamin C with my iron every time. I'm taking both HEME and NON HEME iron supplements for about 3 weeks now. I also had an Iron + Vitamin C transfusion 3 days ago. Its been a slow recovery for me. Still struggling with fatigue and weakness but I'm very slowly starting to feel better. I'll retest my blood levels in about 2 weeks.

I'm done donating blood.

I'd rather be dead than live like I have the past 4 months. I've also started using a CPAP to help manage crit instead of donating blood. I think I was being over paranoid with my crit being over 50. It usually hangs around 50-54. As long as my Red blood cell levels don't go above seven and I keep my blood pressure in a healthy range I don't need to be overly worried about crit.

The sad thing is I thought I was being responsible and doing the right thing and nothing has every fucked me up so hard.

 

[specter]

I am curious, did you use supplements, diet, or both to recover? And how long did it take? This goes for anyone who posted having this issue.

I supplemented with iron tabs 25mg eod with vitamin c for extra iron uptake, it took about 2 weeks before i started to feel the effects.

 

[pistonpump]

What are your stats age height weight etc?

I've been eating red meat twice a day and supplementing with iron 2x/day. I take vitamin C with my iron every time. I'm taking both HEME and NON HEME iron supplements for about 3 weeks now. I also had an Iron + Vitamin C transfusion 3 days ago. Its been a slow recovery for me. Still struggling with fatigue and weakness but I'm very slowly starting to feel better. I'll retest my blood levels in about 2 weeks.

I'm done donating blood.

I'd rather be dead than live like I have the past 4 months. I've also started using a CPAP to help manage crit instead of donating blood. I think I was being over paranoid with my crit being over 50. It usually hangs around 50-54. As long as my Red blood cell levels don't go above seven and I keep my blood pressure in a healthy range I don't need to be overly worried about crit.

The sad thing is I thought I was being responsible and doing the right thing and nothing has every fucked me up so hard.

 

[EricJ123]

What are your stats age height weight etc?

5'10 205 6-8% bodyfat. 32 male.

 

[Crazy_jay]

I am curious, did you use supplements, diet, or both to recover? And how long did it take? This goes for anyone who posted having this issue.

I supplemented iron. Brand I found on Amazon. Heme iron from liver fractions. Body absorbs less than 10% of the iron in non heme iron supplements(ferrous sulfate most common). Cooking with cast iron also helps. It took me about a year to recover my ferritin levels but I continued donating at the same time, thinking that's what I needed to do. Supplementing iron will cause hemoglobin and hematocrit to rise faster.