I have it but it's related to another health issue I have. I don't do iron supplements because they are hard on my stomach, so I just try to get more iron through foods, like cereal fortified with iron and other foods. Also some people cook in cast iron skillets.

I do. Not to be overly personal but are you still within "child bearing age"? After scopes and blood tests and 3 months of exhaustion we finally came to the conclusion I was losing too much blood monthly because of the warfarin. Every time I would get close to normal range I would have another 8 day period and have to start all over again.

My doctor and I settled on a Mirena IUD to get the flow under control. He says the risks of clotting on one of those is extremely low and since I am already on coumadin it's safe. I told him I would give it six months and if I hated it he has to take it out and do an ablation. So far, it's not too bad, and as long as my periods keep getting shorter I will be keeping it.

Yes, at least I think I am. Men - look away details of women's thing coming up! I am spotting throughout the month but not really coming on properly at all. I've had a scan - nothing. I am 40 which seems a bit early for the menopause. I've had numerous miscarriages and problems conceiving. No children so we've given up...so have the doctors as they can't find anything wrong and they won't go any further with helping us because I had a PE. Hey, ho!

You could be experiencing perimenopause. Are you seeing an OBGYN?

I know one of the clotting disorders is related to multiple miscarriages. Have you been tested for clotting disorders?

Well, if you've resolved yourself with not having kids (and you should definitely have the test for that clotting factor done because your history suggests a strong case for it) then you may want to talk to you doc about a more permanent way to end periods.

Also, have you had any tests run to check for internal bleeding? You could be losing blood somewhere else (although it's unlikely) and that would be causing your hemoglobin to stay low. Have told specifically what type of anemia it is? The most common and easiest to take care of would be the iron deficient anemia but if traditional therapy for that isn't working then there is a possibility if could be a different type of anemia.

Yes, I've had all the tests and they say they can't find any link between period/ hormone/ miscarriage issues and clotting...so they want me off the medication. The only reason I am still on it is because of my anxiety. I did eventually come on and had a bleed for 4 days which was very heavy. Now I am having terrible IBS problems with a lot of pain, tiredness, no sleep. The docs have given up with me but I am sure all this is hormone related. I have been told to up my supplements of zinc, iron and folic acid and then repeat blood tests in March...but I do not feel well.

Some doctors really don't take anemia seriously until you are nearly falling over. I was literally holding onto the walls walking into the doctor's office before they did a full blood test and found the low hemoglobin, ferritin, and vitamin D and thought it was worth treating and monitoring. My BP was staying really low and I kept going the ER with shortness of breath because of was scared it was another PE but most of those times it was just because my blood couldn't carry enough oxygen to my lungs. Don't let them give up on helping you get this under control.

Sometimes iron supplementation can make you feel like absolute hell. So I think that's why some doctors don't react to anemia right away and rely on trying to get iron through your diet at first, and it also depends on the cause and where your counts fall. This article discusses diagnosis and what's considered mild anemia, severe anemia, treatments, etc. May be worth discussing this information with your doc if you feel like you're not being treated appropriately.

http://www.umm.edu/patiented/articles/how_anemia_prevented_000057_6.htm

I've had the iron infusion and if you have severe anemia, it does make you feel better but not right away. It can take a couple of months. However, they don't use this in all cases since you can have a severe reaction to it, and you have a certain criteria you need to meet in order to be prescribed this. But this too may be something to discuss with your doc depending on your situation