u/DuckInternational910

I'll start by saying that I take almost no PTO. I took two days off this whole summer and then last time I took a week off was a year and a half ago. In the past five years I've literally adjusted my PTO on multiple requests in order to accommodate for projects. I've even out right been denied a couple days even though I give ample time on requests.

This last one got me mad though. They aren't out right saying I can't take it but my supervisor is taking it up to a management meeting to discuss the request. I outright told them I have no flexibility with these dates. I've been flexible in the past and I'm not budging on this. It's not a staffing issue at all, I'm just a single point of failure if I'm gone, and in the past we need to get contractors to help out for a day or two that I'm out. My supervisor tried to reem me out and remind me that requests are never a solid yes. But I'm not bending over this time.

Am I right to be mad here that this is like pulling teeth? Im always flexible and rarely take time off but now I'm getting mad that they aren't just willing to let this work out and let me come up with a plan for when I'll be out in TWO MONTHS. Mind you I'm not rolling in the dough it's taken me 5 years to get up to 60k a year. And literally no other benefits. I'm just lucky my husband has good benefits

Petite lady here with beefy calves. Recently dealt with patella subluxation on my left knee.

Doc recommended DonJoy. I measured 18 inches at the thigh, 14 inches around the center of my kneecap and 15 inches at the calf. Based on DonJoy’s chart, my thigh fits a Small while my calf fits a Medium. I’ve already had this problem with another sleeve brace from Scheels that was recommended—the Medium was painfully tight around my calf, but the Large was too loose around my thigh even when tightened.

Has anyone had any luck with a fully wraparound patellar-stabilizing brace that can be adjusted independently at the thigh and calf? Or anywhere that creates custom sizing?

I shared a post a couple weeks ago that I'm successfully bringing up my ferritin which was very low for who knows how long. In 2024, it was 33 then dropped to 19. For about a year went undiagnosed with low iron/Ferritin and then after my own research, I was able to get it up to 57.

In that time.. the fatigue, low mood, worsened PMS symptoms, stress intolerance was shocking. I thought it was my new normal. I felt absolutely horrible and exhausted. I'm happy to say that after just a few months of supplementing I feel SHOCKINGLY different. Better energy, stabilized mood, way less PMS symptoms, way less hair shedding, better tolerance for exercise, and any previous stress/anxiety has easily been cut down by about 90%. Also worth noting I've bumped up my vitamin D a ton too and I think that's helped a lot.

I'm here to say that one thing that stuck out was that while I've been on this health journey, I also decided to try out therapy to talk through things. Mostly about the stressors of life, looking for coping skills, etc. I did clarify that I was in the middle of trying to figure out some health issues.

After about three sessions, I stopped going. It was hard to listen/trust to myself, but I felt like she was gas lighting me. I told her about the stress I was dealing with, low mood, PMS symptoms etc and she pressured me every single time that she thinks I needed to be on an SSRI, BC and that it appears that I have some kind of mood disorder or maybe bi polar. I emphasized to her that these were all relatively new feelings and that this wasn't my normal self from a couple years ago. AND, I'm not sure that she is technically allowed to try and diagnose me and recommend meds as she's not a psyhiatrist.

This is just my personal experience- but I'm glad I didn't listen to her. I'm not hating on SSRIs but I also understand that's no joke of a medication. I'm also not dogging on therapists, infact I switched to different talk therapist and she's great. I'm grateful to be feeling so much better and another reminder it's so good for us to do our own research and be our own best advocates. Sometimes professionals don't always have the right answers, and it kinda freaks me out that she was trying to push her opinions so hard.

I'm curious if anyone else dealing with anemia or low iron has had experiences like this? Like gaslighting or doctors saying it's anxiety or depression or all in our heads?

I definitely don't want to over think this- but I feel like my cousin and my friend are being very rude after receiving gifts that I gave them.

I sent a gift to my cousin (who I'm pretty close with) two weeks ago. She definitely got the package, and hasn't said a thing to me. And- I sent her a text a couple days ago asking and she never got back to me. Honestly she's done something similar in the past but it just feels so rude. I was brought up to thank some one directly as soon as I received a gift.

AND then.. my friend who I see frequently. We've been friends for almost two years now, and I decided it would be nice to get her a little birthday gift. She organized a birthday dinner for me, and since she was out of town for her birthday I wanted to do something nice for her. It's nothing over the top- just a fun gift going off of an inside joke. Cost me about $30 dollars. I saw her in person at the gym two days ago- and I gave her the gift. She said thank you- but didn't open it on the spot (which idc of course). But for the past two days she has said NOTHING about opening the gift or about what it is! Did she even open it? Is she mad I got her a gift? Is she mad because she thinks it's expensive? It feels confusing. Again- I was raised to give personal thank you's for any gift I've ever received.

I speculate my ferritin/iron stores have just been slowly plummeting for years due to menstruation, high intensity exercise, and a MAJOR lack of heme and non heme iron in my diet. Honestly, my doctor was unaware of what low ferritin truly is and never even flagged it. Two doctors, actually the past three years.

In November of 2024 my ferritin was at 33 ng/mL. Not great not awful, I had started supplementing due to fatigue and easy bruising, but then my doctor told me to stop because she decided it was unnecessary based on my overall Iron panel results seeming normal.

July 2025 - after 6 months of trying to amp up my level of exercise (running 3-5 miles 2-3x a week, martial arts and lifting) I was feeling NOT good. Hitting walls with workouts, crashing out after hard exercise, shaky, dizzy. I had to nap all the time, suddenly had anxiety and mood issues. Iron panel was done but nothing was flagged.

February 2026 - new doctor still didn't flag the low ferritin. I started to notice I was shedding way more hair than usual. Honestly.. saw a post on IG from a doctor saying ferritin should NOT be lower than 30 for feeling and being optimal. Thriving vs surviving. I frantically checked my previous levels from the past summer- my ferritin was at a 19. Had dropped from 33 the previous fall to 19.

April 2026 - talked to my doctor, sent her some articles on ideal ferritin levels, she listened, she was very supportive and said she was glad to have this newer information. Came up with a game plan. Retested and my ferritin was at a 22. Appears it had stabilized but not in a very good place.

I started supplementing 60mg of Iron Bisglycinate with 500mg of vitamin C on an empty stomach in the morning, every other day. Avoid taking on days of more intense exercise- but I took about 3 months to just do maintenance work outs and not push myself to try and see if that helps stabilize my iron stores. I also made sure to incorporate red meat once a week and more non heme iron (legumes, veggies, cereals). We also tested for celiacs to make sure it's not an absorption issue. Tested negative. Since ferritin stabilized over the course of a year in 2025-26 with no supplementing (and also decreased exercise dramatically to low impact and walks) my doc didn't speculate internal loss of blood, any GI issues. Planned to retest in a couple months and reassess.

July 2026 - Guys, my ferritin is at a 57! The past two months I've been feeling so good. Slowly ramping up work outs, nothing crazy but I feel so much better like my body can handle more. My hair shedding the last month has slowed down dramatically. Wish I could have taken a before and after photo. My fatigue is so much better, and my mood has totally gone back to normal, not feeling low as frequently as I did. Anxiety creep has gone down significantly. I feel more well rested each morning and my napping has stopped almost entirely. I'll also note- my vitamin D was pretty low too. Got it from 31 to 40 and I speculate that is also helping with energy and mood. AND pms! My last two cycles have felt way more balanced. No breast pain, way less fatigue.

I know everyone is different.. and each body is very different, but I just thought I'd share my story. As mentioned above, I think years of exercise, lack of iron in my diet, and cycles slowly depleted me and left me running on empty, on top of some doctors not keeping up with research. Feels good to know I'm seeing a difference and feeling the difference.

TLDR, got my Ferritin from 22 to 57 in about three months