Follow up on labs for vitamin levels

Hi everyone...   I posted a couple of weeks ago a concern about my surgeons office not checking vitamin levels for a year after surgery. I was not comfortable with that and I want to thank everyone who encouraged me to go ahead and have my primary care physician check my vitamin levels. I had an appointment today and got the results back, and both my vitamin D  and my iron stores were "dangerously low". I'm on track now with the supplements that I need to bring those levels back up and I'm so glad that I went ahead and had the testing done. Everything else was OK, so I feel good about that but I'm grateful that I know what's happening and have a chance to correct those deficits before they become a problem. Thanks again everybody who commented and gave me your good advice. I so appreciate everyone on this forum. And this just goes to show you that you know your body better than anyone else and you need to go with your gut and follow your own instincts when it comes to your health! Blessings, gretchen

So glad you got that done! The best lesson we can follow is to be our own advocates.

I also struggle with Ferritin and D (everything else is fine) and I have had to be a BEAST about getting that iron # up! My surgeon and doctor told me that 1 iron pill a day would be fine, and refused me an iron infusion, but I knew my levels were tanking and I would have to take it into my own hands.

For 6 months, I started taking more orally (up to 4 iron pills a day). Still no rise in levels (it went from 9 to 7 in that period). So I started the Vitamin Patches (still also taking the 4 iron pills orally) and I finally had a big jump. I am up to 29! I also take a D patch and that went right up to normal.

I know some people say the vitamin patches don't work for them, but they have been life savers for me! 

Good LUCK!

This site's been great for me vitamin-wise as well.  My iron level had tanked despite taking supplements, so I switched over to Sundown Perfect Iron (a carbonyl iron) since a lot of folks on here have had luck with it.  Ta da!  It did the trick - my iron levels are back up to normal!

Hi, I am having trouble with my ferritin tanking, how many perfect iron pills did you take a day and how long did it take to notice the levels going up?  Not sure what your ferritin level was at, mine is at 9.... trying to get infusions soon however found out my insurance will not cover until deductible is met which is $4,500!  thanks!

I had my tests six months apart.  My ferritin level was already high (231) and went even higher (314), so they had me cut back on the iron supplements.  My iron was low, though - 37 six months ago, now a  normal 68.

I take three Perfect Iron tablets a day, but I was told after the last set of labs to cut back to 4-5 times a week.  

I just re-read your score and checked the average ranges for ferritin.  According to average ranges, your level is low, but not super low.  But then, it might be too low for *you*, I don't know. Might want to talk to a hematologist as I'm not sure at what point you're going to need infusions rather than more oral supplements.

I'm glad you got some labs done. Be sure to track them yourself. Put them in a spreadsheet. The trends over time are just as important as the individual results, and doctors lose track of them all the time.

The more I read here, the more blessed I feel to have chosen my surgeon.  We sit at every appt and go over my labs as well as trends (he shows me the line graph at every appt) and we make adjustments as needed.  I agree it's important to not only track your numbers, but understand what they mean so you can ask intelligent questions.  We need to be accountable for our own health!