Reason for blood transfusion?

Whats the cause for having a blood transfusion? Do you loose alot during surgery? Or were you anemic going into surgery?
TVH 19-8-07

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Originally Posted by twobtrue Whats the cause for having a blood transfusion? Do you loose alot during surgery? Or were you anemic going into surgery? TVH 19-8-07

In my case, I was anemic going in, and the blood loss during surgery just compounded the problem...

My doctor started me on Iron tabs. last week. I will be taking one tablet twice daily. I'm surprised he didn't see you were anemic with the blood tests before surgery.

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Originally Posted by twobtrue My doctor started me on Iron tabs. last week. I will be taking one tablet twice daily. I'm surprised he didn't see you were anemic with the blood tests before surgery.

I don't tolerate iron well, so she had me on a women's multi vitamin w/ iron. Apparently, that just wasn't enough.

I know what you mean about Iron supplements. I have been on them off and on nearly 2 years now and they're not fun. This time I have tried to take them and eat foods high in fiber. That seems to be helping . How long was your surgery. Did you have a complete TVH. Surgery date for me is in about 2 weeks. If it wasn't for this site I would be totally out of it.

That's good - combining w/ a high fiber diet. You'll do well, I'm sure. In hindsight, I should have bitten the bullet and done the same.

I had a TAH (due to the size of my uterus) - it took between 1.5 and 2 hours. My recovery has been much smoother than I expected. I had never had surgery, so I was scared to death and prepared for the worst. My worries were definitely overblown. The worst part was definitely the wait.

Be prepared for ups and downs. For example, today, even at 4 weeks out, I'm having annoying abdominal pain. So, I'm taking it easy. Earlier in the week, I felt fabulous. I'm not a patient person, so the 'two steps forward, one back' is a little difficult to adjust to. Overall, though, I'd have to say I feel TONS better - even on the worst day - than I did before surgery. I don't think I realized just how miserable and weak I was. I feel like I've been given a whole new start!

I wish you the same success!!