r/irondeficiency

Ferritin started at 7. In 4 months of talking Thorne ferrasorbe it only jumped to 18. What made your guys iron go up faster? (1 pill, twice daily. Total of 72mg)

After seeing that I switched to three arrows heme iron. (2 pills twice daily, 80mg total.)

The low ferritin has been a driver of my OCD symptoms so I’m looking to get it higher as fast as possible without an infusion.

I’m in my early 30s and constantly dealing with low energy, brain fog, getting out of breath after basic things, and horrible fatigue during periods. I’ve tried random iron syrups + multivitamins prescribed by my GP before but either they upset my stomach or I saw zero difference, so I’d stop after a few days..
has anything worked long term?? Need tried and tested solutions pls 😭😭

Hi folks, my ferritin levels are at 9ng/mL and the hair loss is real. I've been trying to figure out the best foods for iron absorption and prefer to stay away from red meat if I can. The recommendations online are throwing me off a bit. Specifically I've been comparing canned clams, mussels, oysters, chicken liver, and beef liver but the numbers online conflict. Some sources rank canned clams as the #1 food for iron (~24mg per 3oz), while others put them far lower (~2-3mg per 100g). The USDA database itself seems to have inconsistencies, and I've come across studies suggesting clam iron values may be unreliable, with measured values ranging anywhere from under 1mg to nearly 60mg per 100g depending on the product.

So if I want to raise my iron levels (other than pairing it with vitamin C rich foods), should I be focusing on canned clams? Or would oysters, or muscles, or a type of liver give me a better bang for my buck? (I'm slowly trying to increase my calorie intake as well, so ideally something that has high iron levels on a per calorie amount)

And more broadly, is there a good source of truth in the nutrition community to understand the correct levels of micronutrients across food for me to be able to make these decisions a bit better?

Just got confirmed iron deficiency without anemia, ferritin 7, iron 5. And I have literally been thinking this whole time that I have burnout/exhaustion syndrome.. damn maybe I can finally actually treat the real cause.

Current symptoms: zero motivation, constantly tired, brain fog, some anxiety, no feeling for socialize, can’t concentrate and I just feel.. dumb?? Me, who’s always been so sharp.

After bloodwork came out, doctor directly booked an iron infusion for next Tuesday. Really really hoping my life can go back to how it used to be.

Little background:

I think I’ve had low iron and ferritin for like many many years tbh. Already 10 years ago when I tried to donate blood they rejected me bc of my low iron. I’ve always just been tired – that was kind of my “normal” I guess.

I’ve gone through two periods of burnout. Both times: brain fog, exhaustion, anxiety, couldn’t concentrate, didn’t wanna see anyone. Recovered after a few months (sick leave from work). Each time I just couldn’t understand why recovery felt so slow and so hard. Second burnout now, 3 months in now and still feeling worse than expected. So I pushed my doctor to do bloodwork. Results came back: ferritin 7, iron 5.

And suddenly so many things started making sense.

Iron’s role in all of this:

iron is actually directly involved in producing several key neurotransmitters:

Dopamine: tyrosine hydroxylase, the enzyme that makes dopamine, literally needs iron to function. No iron = severely reduced dopamine. Dopamine controls motivation, reward, joy, cognitive sharpness.. basically everything I’ve been missing.

Serotonin: same thing, tryptophan hydroxylase which produces serotonin is also iron-dependent. Affects mood, sleep quality and feeling socially okay.

Noradrenaline: produced from dopamine via another iron-dependent enzyme. Controls focus, energy and stress regulation.

With ferritin at 7 and iron at 5, these systems have probably been running at like half capacity or worse for years. No wonder I’ve felt the way I have.

I don’t know if it’s “just” iron deficiency or if there’s been real burnout too – probably both honestly, the iron deficiency making me more vulnerable and just.. stopping proper recovery from happening. But this is the first time it actually feels like i found a real, treatable cause.

We’ll see what happens after the infusion. Hoping so bad for a brighter life quality. Will definetly give you an update.

But wondering if anyone else been through something similar – iron deficiency hiding behind what looked like burnout or depression?

I had an iron infusion 3 weeks ago.
1000mg Ferinject. It was fine, no side effects.

I’m still feeling the same as before. I’ve had a few odd days where I feel slightly energised, but most days I’m fatigued, unmotivated, unable to focus on tasks, and still experiencing headaches.

I believe it’s too early to retest my blood.
For context my serum iron was 5, ferritin 30. HG was normal, as was vit D.

Has anybody else experienced this? Is it normal to take so long to improve?
My doctor said “a couple of weeks” and I’d be back to normal.

Lately I’ve been dealing with some ongoing symptoms that I can’t quite figure out, and I’m just looking to share in case anyone else has experienced something similar or has insight.

For a while now I’ve been feeling off — episodes of dizziness, lightheadedness, and a sort of “foggy” or weak feeling that comes and goes. Sometimes I’ll feel shaky or just not quite right, like my body is a little out of sync. I’ve also noticed occasional chest discomfort or heaviness, especially after activity or even eating sometimes, and moments where I just feel generally fatigued and unlike myself.

I’ve had some basic labs and heart workups done in the past that were normal, which is reassuring, but these symptoms still come and go and are honestly frustrating and a little unsettling.

I’m mostly sharing because I know sometimes others have gone through similar things and it can take time to piece together what’s going on. If anyone has experienced anything like this or has suggestions on things that helped them, I’d really appreciate hearing about it.

Not looking to jump to conclusions—just trying to understand my body better and figure out next steps.

My ferritin was but my hemoglobin was normal at 16

I am back to being anemic again which I know is a big risk factor for PEs. I need to be taking a liquid iron supplement, but they all taste like blood to me and it grosses me out. I super hated Floradix. Do any not taste like that?

I found out I had low ferritin when I went to donate blood in early 2025 and got a letter banning me for a year because I measured at 11. Since then I've been supplementing with Ferrimax and my ferritin has slowly creeped up. I had an iron infusion which almost killed me but I got almost one full bag of iron sucrose out of the three prescribed. Tell me why my ferritin has HALVED since my last blood test!?

Timeline:

May 21 2025: ferritin 18

(Months of inconsistent supplementation)

Nov 19 2025: ferritin 26

(Started supplementing more consistently)

Feb 9 2025: ferritin 41

Feb 27 2025: iron infusion that nearly killed me

Apr 7 2025: ferritin 73 (maybe because of residual infusion iron?)

(rigorous supplementation)

May 5 2025: ferritin 34!?!?!?

Is this a fluke!? I've only had one period (I intentionally skipped most of them with hormonal birth control) since my Feb 9th test and it was last week. My husband and I just started TTC and the last time I had an iron infusion I had a severe hypersensitivity reaction that landed me in the ER so it's not like I can easily do that again, and certainly not while pregnant.

What can cause someone's iron to plummet so severely despite me taking my supplements so consistently!? Yes I already have a doctor's appointment scheduled, I just want to know if anyone else has experienced this or if someone can hypothesize as to what could be going on. I really really don't want to delay our conception planning for this.

EDIT: I should mention that I'm vegetarian and was intentionally on a calorie deficit for the past two years (where I wasn't getting enough dietary iron until very recently), but I haven't donated blood since early 2025. Up until I started my weight loss journey and frequent blood donations I never struggled with anemia.

I (15f) was diagnosed with iron deficiency (WITHOUT anemia) last August (2025) after feeling extremely exhausted all summer, to the point where standing up & walking up a single flight of stairs was too tiring. My ferritin was a 5. I was given iron supplements and denied a blood transfusion bc I wasn’t anemic, but I felt anemic, I passed out often, was short of breath after talking for short periods of time, tunnel vision, etc. I went from running ~4 miles 6 days per week from not being able to run down my street. I supplemented for months, on and off due to the gastrointestinal effects but since December 2025 I have been taking liquid iron 2ml 65mg daily, haven’t missed a day. In November 2025 my ferritin went up to 36. I got labs yesterday and my ferritin went back down to a 16 despite supplementing for months? I still feel extremely exhausted and since September-now I have developed many more symptoms

- chronic headaches / migraines (headaches EVERY day, migraines 3-4 days per week)
- nerve pain (shooting stabbing pains in my fingers that shoot up my arms, numbness in my legs)
- heart palpitations
- brain fog
- muscle twitching / spasms / locking joints (all temporary)

I have been to chronic fatigue, they said I was fine bc I still go to school (keep in mind I FORCE myself to go to school, it is extremely painful to write & remembering things is so hard). Cardiology did an EKG & said my heart is healthy. Neurology gave me amitriptyline for my headaches & it has done absolutely nothing (I’ve been on it since March). I got an MRI & all they found was a small cyst that they said I was likely born with & is not harmful. No one takes me seriously, I am crippling pain every single day and these doctors seem to think I’m just tired and have a little headache. If anyone sees any correlation between these symptoms or has any sort of input or advice, PLEASE tell me bc I am in so much pain and I have gotten almost zero answers. Everyone looks at me like I’m fine and there’s nothing wrong but there has to be something wrong, this is unbearable.

Hi everyone,

I’m wondering if anyone with low ferritin has experienced symptoms similar to mine, especially around heart rate and palpitations.

For years, I’ve had low ferritin (my haemoglobin is usually within normal range), but it’s never really been properly resolved. I’ve been prescribed iron tablets multiple times, but my levels don’t seem to improve much or stay up.

For example:
- My ferritin has been as low as 7, and after 3 months of 322mg iron tablets it only went up to 18
- More recently, it was 11 and again only rose to 18 after another 3 months of supplements

So on multiple occasions, it’s never increased enough for me to know if my symptoms would improve with proper levels.

Over the last 4 years, I’ve been dealing with:
- Heart palpitations
- Higher heart rate doing minimal or normal day-to-day activities
- Heart rate increasing a lot when I stand up from sitting or lying
- Feeling like my heart is racing even with light activity or walking
- Finding exercise harder because of this

I also experience:
- Fatigue / low energy
- Dizziness or lightheadedness at times
- Brain fog

I’ve read a bit about Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS), and some of it sounds similar, but I’m unsure if this could all be related to my ferritin being consistently low.

I’ve had a resting ECG and chest X-ray which were normal, but these symptoms have been ongoing for years and are affecting my daily life.

I’d really like to hear from anyone who’s had low ferritin:
- Did you experience high heart rates or palpitations?
- How high would your heart rate go?
- Did it increase when standing or with normal daily activities?
- Did you struggle with exercise because of it?
Does anyone also find heat doesn’t help you suffer extreme high heart rate in heat.
I also feel like at times I can just feel my blood flow doesn’t flow I can’t describe properly

I’m trying to understand whether this could be strongly linked to low ferritin, or if I should keep pushing further with my GP for other causes.

Any experiences would really help, thank you

Hey all! Does anyone feel worse from taking an iron supplement? I have been trying to figure out why I feel so off and not well , and yesterday I didn't take my iron supplement and I felt a lot better .. I'm wondering if that's it ??

Hey guys can you looks at my iron history?

I was almost vegan for 2/3 years but I back eating 100g fish and 100g turkey breast daily (no other animal products) in the beggining of this year.

18/06/2025:

Ferritin: 159 ng/mL

Iron: 135 µg/dL

20/02/2026:

Ferritin: 83 ng/mL

Iron: 101 µg/dL

Start iron supplement: 20 mg, 3 times a week for 2 or 3 weeks

24/03/2026:

Ferritin: 160 µg/L

Iron: 81.5 µg/dL

Stopped supplement

30/04/2026:

Ferritin: 109 µg/L

Iron: 29 µg/dL

I don't have any new noticable symtom.

My blood panel is normal.

My b12 was low as well in the beggining of the year and I took supplement. 1000 mcg every other day for 10 weeks. I stop it 1 month ago.

What do you think about this? What is going on!?

Thanks!

Around spring 2022, my life slowly started turning into a nightmare. It began with tingling in my feet, frequent urination, and difficulty focusing my vision. By August, I developed sharp pain on the right side of my body. In November, I became ill with what seemed like a sinus infection, along with ringing in my right ear that soon affected both ears. My vision also changed, with floaters and visual snow–like symptoms.
During that same period, I started experiencing muscle twitching in my left arm and legs, and the neuropathy gradually spread toward my torso. From 2023 to now (2026), my symptoms have continued to worsen. I now have a persistently dry mouth, diarrhea, widespread muscle spasms, and neuropathy affecting my face.
At the moment, I’m also experiencing hypnic jerks in my limbs while at rest. I had this earlier on, it went away for a while, but has now returned strongly for the past six months.
Despite many medical tests, no cause has been found. I’ve read that low iron can cause neurological problems and Some of my symptoms seem to match, but unlike others, I don’t experience periods of improvement—only steady worsening.
Male, 33. Are there others with a similar story?

I feel like I probably already know the answer to this but I just need validation so I feel less crazy. I have been battling low iron/ferritin since August and have been stubborn and refusing IV iron (please don't debate me or shame me, I know its ridiculous but I am too scared of possible severe reactions and side effects so no amount of convincing is going to help unless my ferritin becomes to low I am forced to do it). Thankfully I did finally find a supplement which i can tolerate, and my last labs were the best looking since I started taking supplements. I am finally out of the anemic range too. My feet were constantly just ice cold, even with thick socks and slippers on or boots etc. I am finally noticing that my feet are no longer freezing in this way. However I still have very bad days just feeling weak and shaky. My ferritin is only a 17 so I know i have a long way to go. Is it normal to have a few days or even a week where you feel better, more energy, and then a bad day here and there? Also my anxiety seems to just fluctuate where I feel good some days and really bad others. I just feel like i am losing my mind, and hoping this all improves some day.

If I take Thorne iron glycinate 25 every other day will it be helpful or hinder this schedule to eat fortified cereal on the days off? I have heard that Hepcidin spikes in the larger iron supplement doses above 60 and the amount of non heme iron in total cereal is not enough to raise hepcidin levels to interfere with absorbtion. I just need an extra boost and my diet is very limited due to other health issues. I can only eat broccoli as my source of vitamin C (cannot tolerate vitamin c supplements or citrus foods )so I do combine broccoli with the supplement and cereal...