GreenGal77--I was like you and was not able to tolerate iron such as Ferris Sulfate. I became so ill (ended up in the ER) from it that they took me off iron completely for a while. Then I was prescribed Poly Iron 150 twice daily=300mgs of elemental iron for 1 year. My Hgb was 8.5 with a 2 ferritin when I was diagnosed. The Poly Iron tha I currently take is a completely different form, no ~iron salts~ that are very harsh and probably your problem. You can ask your pharmacist if they carry this, It's worth a call. It also had Vit-C in it for absorption. I feel that it saved me because the only alternative at the time was IV iron therapy and the doctors backed out of that decision for me to have this because I was extremely ill.
I have not heard of a great deal of success with iron injections, my Hematologist wouldn't consider it. But I will tell you from my own experience to try more types of iron. I couldn't believe it when the Hematologist told me to go back on the oral iron supplements. But I did it, and it worked to my amazement!
If you can find iron that you can tolerate, it should only take 2-3 months of high dose iron to get your Hgb to normal range = non anemic state. Then you will have to stay on iron for a long time at least 6 months to rebuild iron stores.
You need rest (so that you don't have heart problems, your Hgb is very low), multivitamin and iron supplements. To be safe you should also have your B-12 and folate checked, this can cause anemia as well. Sometimes it gets missed if not tested for. You are not going to fix your problem though by taking iron supplements or IV therapy if you decide to do that. You must fix the bleeding source or you will never get well and you may not be able to build your numbers. I had to have an endometrial ablation to stop my heavy bleeding before I could get my numbers up. Good luck to you and keep us posted. FLFLOWERGIRL
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