Anemia exhaustion vs Post Hysterectomy exhaustion

Hello,

Just wondering if someone with anemia and severe fatigue can tell me if post hysterectomy exhaustion I keep reading about is any different. I have been very anemic for quite some time and always exhausted (even with iron supplements and iron rich foods). Just want to know if this exhaustion will be worse or the same or better after hysterectomy (if that makes sense). If it is the same or better, I can do that. If it will be worse...yikes!

Thanks for any input

Mine is about the same at the moment but I guess it's still early days, I'm hoping it will start to improve soon

I can handle the same (been handling it for a long time) Thanks for giving me hope

I wasn't anemic at the time of my hysterectomy, but I had been through a spell of anemia some years before. The exhaustion I felt at that time was all encompassing, affecting both my body and my mind. I didn't realize it was due to anemia. I live with chronic depression and thought I was sinking into an active depressive episode. I didn't find out it was anemia until I went to my doc to ask for an increase in my anti-depressant dosage and he suggested doing a few blood tests.

Any exhaustion or fatigue I felt after my hysterectomy had nothing on the anemia exhaustion. It was just a body thing. My body was using a great deal of energy to heal, so it got tired more quickly than usual. I took things easy physically and took naps as needed. For me, it was no big deal.

I should mention, though, that I was already post-menopausal at the time of my surgery and didn't experience any hormone fluctuation symptoms afterwards. Even if you keep your ovaries, it's quite likely that your hormones will be thrown for a loop in the weeks following surgery. This can contribute to feelings of fatigue or depression.

Thank you so much Surprised! I can deal with it longer (even with potential hormone issues). Just want to know that it shouldn't be worse and that there is light at the end of the tunnel.

My anemia also is all encompassing (mind and body) and I just want it to end. Thanks for giving me hope. Hoping that 6 months from now, I will finally start to feel better. This will all be worth it if that is the case. Hoping 6 months is realistic.

I haven't had my surgery yet - but I was severely anemic and I don't think any exhaustion can be worse than that. There were days I'd go into the bathroom and cry at work because I was so physically tired I didn't know how to make it through the afternoon. Months and months of coming home and falling asleep as soon as I walked in the door and only being woken by my husband so I could change into jammies and get ready for bed.

Anemic exhaustion is being terribly thirsty but not getting up to walk to the water cooler or kitchen because it's in another room and just being too tired to make the trip.

What are your doctors doing to make sure your levels are high enough for surgery? I had iron infusions (Venofer - once a week for 8 weeks) and while I'm still anemic I'm up in the safe zone for surgery and I feel so much better. Not great, but much better and the muscle pain from anemia has abated with having higher ferritin and hemoglobin levels.

I don't know what other doctors criteria are for surgery - but when my hemoglobin was at 7.9 and ferritin at 3 none of mine would have cleared me for surgery...but now that I'm 11.1 and ferritin is 10 they want me to get it done before the heavy bleeding drops me back in the danger zone again.

Sigh, I hear you Pink! Same thing here. Barely make it through work, come home, instantly fall asleep, get up and run kids to things.

My ferritin level is 7 and no one seems to concerned about it at this point. I don't go to pre-op exam until 30 days before my surgery (Dec 10th)..so hoping they figure out something then. Just stocking up on the iron and seeing very slight improvement. Maybe my 7 is enough? I think my hemoglobin was in the very lowest level of "normal" last check. Just worry because I have 4 more onslaughts of hemmorhaging before then I can't even imagine how you function at 3! The mental fog and exhaustion are bad at 7!

Thanks for the insight. I will definitely look into this. I cannot push this off any further.

Pink, I would love to hear how everything works out with you if that's ok. We look to be having the same type of procedure. You look to be about a month before me.

To be honest, I don't know that there is a heck of a lot of difference between 7 and 3 ...once you're that low you're just fighting to get through the day. After the infusions my hematologist was hoping I'd be up around 100 and said I'd really start feeling better when I got over 75. Well I went from 3 to 10 - whoopie...although considering all the blood loss (I had an ablation in June - it did nothing) I should be glad it's up at all.

And absolutely I'll let you know - I'm chatty and it's helped SO MUCH reading about other women having gone through this before. And anemia does add another wrinkle for some of us.

That's the whole reason I'm doing this. I've had horrible periods since my first one at 14 - and although they've gotten much worse the last couple of years (I'm 46 now) I'd just deal until menopause if my anemia wasn't so bad I can't function like this...and my hematologist said I'm lucky I don't already have organ damage at this point and I want to avoid that. Some people think anemia is just this mild thing, no big deal...I've been anemic since I was 14 and that's what I've always thought. But it gets to a point where it can damage your heart, liver, kidneys...I wish I had taken it seriously a lot earlier.

I don't even know why I have all this heavy bleeding. They only saw one tiny fibroid on the ultrasound, which they don't think would cause any problem. It may be adenomyosis but they won't know until they get it out. All I know is I can't control my anemia until I stop the near constant blood loss.

Yep I think anemia is over all worse. Think how long it took our bodies to get that way.....I used to sit and close my eyes on the potty and almost fall asleep just to rest my eyes.