When will I quit being tired!? - Anemia Message Board

legalrun · 11-04-2009, 01:57 PM

I've been taking iron supplements for 4 weeks now, and a low thyroid medication for 3 weeks. The doc told me my iron level was 16, and should be between 100 and 150.

I'm a commuting college student, and no matter how much I sleep at night, I always get tired. And it hits hard, kind of like a low-sugar coma or something. Its hard to stay awake to drive, sit in class, work, study, watch tv, anything!

When am I gonna quit feeling tired all the time!?

Audrey-B · 11-05-2009, 01:35 AM

I also had very low ferritin at one point and was hypothyroid with Hashimoto's but didn't know it at that point. It took me close to 3 years to get my levels up into the 70's. It can be very slow going, especially when you have a thyroid condition as the stomach/digestive system is affected by being hypothyroid. Low iron levels or difficult to raise iron levels are very common with thyroid sufferers.

Which thyroid medication are you on? for your T4 or T3? Thyroid meds can take weeks to kick in. I think it's anywhere from 4 - 6 weeks so it can take a little while to begin feeling better.

If you are on meds for your T4 thyroid hormone you should be taking your iron supplement well away from your T4 med's eg: 4 hours either side of taking your thyroid med. If you are on T3 medication then it doesn't matter.

Good luck

legalrun · 11-05-2009, 08:54 PM

I had a Free T3 test, so I'm assuming the med is for T3. I don't know a whole lot about all of this. I take it once a day, and the iron twice a day with calcium. The doc said it'd be about a year before my level was back where it needed to be. I have everything retested Tuesday.