Everyone with Iron Deficiency Anemia knows it can get exhausting. On the outside we look fine (uh…most of the time) and we’re able to carry on with our day-to-day lives with the help of our good friends iron and vitamin C.
But some days are definitely worse than others. This is for those days when our iron stores aren’t what they’re supposed to be, and all we want to do is curl up with a piece of red meat and sleep.
Here’s to all my Spoonies with IDA — I dedicate this post to you, my fellow iron fighters.
1. When there’s steak and your primal instinct kicks in
GIF courtesy of bestanimations.com
Stand clear of the line of fire. And by fire I mean my path to the steak. Give me the bloodiest cut of beef you have. Rare isn’t even a question, I’m teetering on the line of undercooked. YOLO.
2. No one ever sees your cute summer clothes because they’re covered by a sweatshirt
GIF courtesy of blog.roomates.com
“Is that a new shirt?” Nope. You walk by a sale rack of tank tops and laugh, knowing it’s a lost cause. You can either be warm and comfy or cold and cute. Pick one.
3. When you cross your legs and get a leg cramp that trumps all cramps
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BRB just crumpling towards the ground while my foot slowly contorts into abnormal shapes. Thank you, iron deficiency.
4. Accidentally bumping into something and getting a bruise the size of Texas
GIF courtesy of bustle.com
Bruises on bruises. Bruises in the morning. Bruises in the evening. Bruises be like “started from the bottom now we here.” We get them because of low vitamin C levels, which help our bodies absorb iron, but WHERE THEY CAME FROM IS ALWAYS A MYSTERY.
5. A good day is your legs DON’T feel like cannons about to explode
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I feel like skipping! Stairs are no match for me! Swollen joints are common with IDA, especially when there’s not enough vitamin C to help absorb the iron. Woah, look out — speed walker, coming through!
6. You accidentally cut yourself shaving and suddenly the bathroom looks like the scene of a heinous crime
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I promise to never buy white towels again.
7. You freak out over B.O.G.O. iron and vitamin C supplements
Photo by Ellen Gibbs
GRAB ALL THE BOTTLES OF VITAMIN C. And not those chalky ones that are hard to swallow.
8. You try to make small talk during blood tests
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“So, what are you studying?”
9. An hour after you wake up you take a nap
GIF courtesy of blog.coop.com.au
After nine hours of decent sleep, your body decides to crash at 10 IN THE MORNING because there aren’t enough red blood cells to carry oxygen through the body. Oh, and those bags under my eyes? They’re designer.
10. You start to feel sluggish after a few days with no red meat
Photo by Ellen Gibbs
Seriously — where’s the beef? Chicken won’t cut it. Pork chops — maybe. In the words of her holiness Selena Gomez, the heart want what it wants (steak, that is).
11. Your friends don’t understand your giddiness around red meat
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It’s going to make me feel SO much stronger though. Gimme that iron.
12. Most of the time you don’t even notice half of these because you’re too busy being a blood-battling BADA$$
GIF courtesy of mtv.com
Just call me the next Ironman/woman: I stand for justice, peace, and equal iron levels for all.