an article on anemia and poor conversion ()

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

Re: the 3rd link you mention here..... I would be interested in seeing this if

you have it

on hand. My ferritin was low at 18 but my Hgb was just over the top of the high

range. I would appreciate it! :-)

I've also noted from your posts that you work nights. As I work toward getting

back

to work, I'm concerned about working nights in relation to TD and adrenal

issues.

Would you share with me how you keep yourself healthy while " pulling the night

shift? " I've worked as a nurse on straight nights for several years now. I

tried very

hard to switch to days, but getting up at 5am just doesn't work for me. Never

has.

Besides, the stress level of nights is A LOT less than the day shift and that is

extra

important to me right now. Any ideas, thoughts, recommendations would be

wonderful! If you'd like, you can certainly email me privately: whitecap89 at

yahoo.

Thank you!

Janet

> Jamy

>

> I posted some links on anemia, but I don't know whether these are what you are

looking for. They talk about all the forms of anemia with ANY chronic disease

(causes), including thyroid disease.

>

> http://www.columbia.edu/~am430/anemia.htm

>

> http://web2.airmail.net/uthman/nutritional_anemia/nutritional_anemia.html

>

> Ther is a third link I kept, but, to me, it is very contradictory and

confusing, when

they are talking about the blood cell size being enlarged (macrocytosis) with

the

hemoglobin being INcreased. Every other link I've read says that in

macrocytosis,

which is common to B12 anemia, Folic Acid anemia, and B6 anemia, the hemoglobin

is DEcreased, so it looks more like a typo to me. MICROcytosis seems to be more

involved with iron deficiency anemia, which I definitely do not have.

>

>

> Tx

[Guest guest]

Well, I had all I could take of a day shift in this profession quite some

time back. One of the main reasons that I changed to nights though, is the

fact that I wasn't as healthy as I had been. Obviously, I'm not healthy

now, not until my thyroid or whatever else is involved here is totally

" fixed " . I have given the thing about adrenal problems and working nights

serious thought. After all, there is a natural circadian rhythm that we are

supposed to have, and, of course, it mainly revolves around cortisol,

melatonin (the pineal gland), and the thyroid hormones, plus differences in

what our body or brain does with sugar, when we keep ourselves awake at

night. Really, I've been a night animal since I hit my mid thirties, which

I assume is hormoneal also, but I just am. All my senses have been alive at

night since I can remember. I won't say that night is any less exciting, at

times, since there are always going to be people with " sundowners " , those

who do not know the time of day (climbing bedrails, wanting to leave,

etc...lol!). I found myself unable to contend with repeated lifting, and

the tough physical routine of the day hrs any longer. I did that for around

8 yrs or so and had more energy and physical strength, etc....I still do

lifting, but it is not a matter of lifting a dozen people or more, at times.

Nursing homes are notroiously short staffed, at times, so at this age, I

don't think I'm going to be clamoring for the two earlier shifts. I've even

found, however, that I can actually speak to my patients at night and have

conversations with them that I couldn't during the day. In this profession,

the night shift is the one for stressed adrenals, more than likely. I know

many people, though, who cannot understand why anyone would want to be awake

after the sun goes down. Their lives are totally during the day! There's

no explaining it, I don't guess. Janet, what were your red and white blood

counts like?

an article on anemia and poor

conversion ()

> Hi ,

>

> Re: the 3rd link you mention here..... I would be interested in seeing

this if you have it

> on hand. My ferritin was low at 18 but my Hgb was just over the top of

the high

> range. I would appreciate it! :-)

>

> I've also noted from your posts that you work nights. As I work toward

getting back

> to work, I'm concerned about working nights in relation to TD and adrenal

issues.

> Would you share with me how you keep yourself healthy while " pulling the

night

> shift? " I've worked as a nurse on straight nights for several years now.

I tried very

> hard to switch to days, but getting up at 5am just doesn't work for me.

Never has.

> Besides, the stress level of nights is A LOT less than the day shift and

that is extra

> important to me right now. Any ideas, thoughts, recommendations would be

> wonderful! If you'd like, you can certainly email me privately:

whitecap89 at yahoo.

>

> Thank you!

> Janet

[Guest guest]

Thanks for replying, .

I'm not sure what my RBCs were (forgot to ask for the copies when I was in there

yesterday -- gee.... imagine forgetting that!!) but I know my Hgb & Hct were

just

above the high of the normal range. My WBCs were about 9.2 but I had been on

antibiotics for a bad tooth for a little over a week. Prior to that, in late

January, they

were 13.2 or so, just slightly elevated. What are you thinking re: all this?

Were you able to locate the link to that article you mentioned? If not, don't

worry

about it. Just thought it would be interesting reading.

Also, do you do anything special to keep yourself as healthy as possible since

you're

working nights, too?

Thanks so much, !

Janet

> Well, I had all I could take of a day shift in this profession quite some

> time back. One of the main reasons that I changed to nights though, is the

> fact that I wasn't as healthy as I had been. Obviously, I'm not healthy

> now, not until my thyroid or whatever else is involved here is totally

> " fixed " . I have given the thing about adrenal problems and working nights

> serious thought. After all, there is a natural circadian rhythm that we are

> supposed to have, and, of course, it mainly revolves around cortisol,

> melatonin (the pineal gland), and the thyroid hormones, plus differences in

> what our body or brain does with sugar, when we keep ourselves awake at

> night. Really, I've been a night animal since I hit my mid thirties, which

> I assume is hormoneal also, but I just am. All my senses have been alive at

> night since I can remember. I won't say that night is any less exciting, at

> times, since there are always going to be people with " sundowners " , those

> who do not know the time of day (climbing bedrails, wanting to leave,

> etc...lol!). I found myself unable to contend with repeated lifting, and

> the tough physical routine of the day hrs any longer. I did that for around

> 8 yrs or so and had more energy and physical strength, etc....I still do

> lifting, but it is not a matter of lifting a dozen people or more, at times.

> Nursing homes are notroiously short staffed, at times, so at this age, I

> don't think I'm going to be clamoring for the two earlier shifts. I've even

> found, however, that I can actually speak to my patients at night and have

> conversations with them that I couldn't during the day. In this profession,

> the night shift is the one for stressed adrenals, more than likely. I know

> many people, though, who cannot understand why anyone would want to be awake

> after the sun goes down. Their lives are totally during the day! There's

> no explaining it, I don't guess. Janet, what were your red and white blood

> counts like?

>

>

>

>

> an article on anemia and poor

> conversion ()

>

>

> > Hi ,

> >

> > Re: the 3rd link you mention here..... I would be interested in seeing

> this if you have it

> > on hand. My ferritin was low at 18 but my Hgb was just over the top of

> the high

> > range. I would appreciate it! :-)

> >

> > I've also noted from your posts that you work nights. As I work toward

> getting back

> > to work, I'm concerned about working nights in relation to TD and adrenal

> issues.

> > Would you share with me how you keep yourself healthy while " pulling the

> night

> > shift? " I've worked as a nurse on straight nights for several years now.

> I tried very

> > hard to switch to days, but getting up at 5am just doesn't work for me.

> Never has.

> > Besides, the stress level of nights is A LOT less than the day shift and

> that is extra

> > important to me right now. Any ideas, thoughts, recommendations would be

> > wonderful! If you'd like, you can certainly email me privately:

> whitecap89 at yahoo.

> >

> > Thank you!

> > Janet

[Guest guest]

I've looked around and can't find the link in question. It could be that i

didn't save that one, but I just remember it being a little contradictory.

Because I seem to be anemic (according to the last CBCs I had drawn on March

6th), I went looking for a lot of info on this sbjct. Mine is one (if not

lab error and a specimen that could have sat up too long---I have my

suspicions about that, since they made an error and didn't do the CBCs

within the lab package that they were supposed to at my local hospital) of

macrocytosis and slight anisocytosis. In looking at all my messed up

results for the MCV, MCHC, RBC count, and hemoglobin quality and quantity,

plus the fact that my Ferritin is a very normal 63 and serum Iron (those two

were done on the first round of tests, withing the initial part of the pckg)

is very normal (didn't do a transferritin in that package), my anemia would

not be one of iron shortage, rather, either one of B12 or Folic Acid, one or

the other. Everything pointed to that, so I had a B12 serum level done,

and, guess what, it was very normal. I have NOT had the serum Folate nor

the Red Cell Folates done, so I'm just guessing on this one, but I would

say, in my case, the Folate would be the most likely one. Therefore, I got

busy on finding a liquid form of the B vitamins, B12 included, plus I'm

taking Folic Acid in another well-rounded general total vitamin supplement

tablet. I don't like the big hard tablets because I feel like they are not

as well absorbed as the liquid form, so this is why I got an extra liquid

form for these particular vitamins. I know that what authorities are saying

about malabsorption in the hard forms of supplements is true because when I

see medications and supplements given to my patients in their stools, still

almost whole, I know that this is true, as a matter of seeing it for myself.

Putting this together with the fact that I have an ongoing, long-lasting

hypothyroidism (chronic disease), that is taking forever to adjust over this

last year, I know that it is likely that I'm not metabolizing some of these

things properly, the folic acid, B12, and B6 being the most likely,

according to ALL sources that I have read, not just in one opinion, but over

and over. I do NOT have MICROcytosis, so the iron is out, unless it

displays at some future date. I do NOT have any nucleated cells, which, if

a person has even one nucleated cell, that means they had better get busy on

finding out why. Sick, undernourished cells are one thing, but destruction

of red blood cells is another more critical ballgame.

In your case, it may just be a quirk. I have read that people can have

small quirks in their blood counts during given periods of time, and there

may be less serious reasons, as the one you mentioned about the antibiotics,

for the white cell counts. I think that they said that chronic use of

NSAIDS, including aspirin and ibuprophen, histamine II inhibitors (stomach

meds such as Pepsid, Axid, the newer ones such as Prilosec and the ones I

can't think of), with chronic use, can display red blood counts such as

these. However, there is also possibility of Polycythemia, when this

becomes a more exaggerated, chronic thing, to see very repeat episodes of

red blood cell counts that are always over-shot, above the normal, so it

wouldn't hurt to have them re-run, just to make sure and talk to your doctor

about it.

I am going to have mine re-run around mid May, depending on when I get my

paperwork back from HealthCheck. If I see these strange blood counts here

again, then I'm going to do a doctor visit, hopefully. When it starts

getting into something that my instincts tell me that I should not be

managing, then, believe me, I'm going to be looking at a doctor. Trouble

is, which one around here, because the doctors in my community have NO

understanding of thyroid disease, and this has got to be a major part of

what is going on. Never in my life, even through my pregnancies, and during

the former yrs of hypothyroidism, did I ever have ANY form of anemia.

However, B12 amd Folate anemias can take as long as 20 yrs or so to display,

when there was already a problem present and on the edge, so to speak. The

problem can be going on in the blood cells, but it won't display in the

serum counts until it is late into the anemia. Then, you had better move

fast to do something about it. I eat a well-balanced diet, though NOT an

extremely low carb one. I never added green veggies to my diet until I was

20 something yrs old (I'm 52 now), and I never touched a raw veggie til I

was in my 30s, so go figure. I believe, in my case, that it is the Folate.

I do have a hard time consuming that many leafy greens because I only like

very few of them, and I had stopped consuming orange juice, which is very

high in folic acid---mainly because of heart burn, when I drank it. I have

started drinking it again in the last several weeks, the type that has the

calcium and d in it. Also, sleep is VERY important. I do NOT accept double

shifts, only extra time now and then, and no matter what ANYone says, women

need more sleep in this society, 7-8 hrs, at the very least. I know very

few women who feel good, ongoing, during their lives, who only get 4-6 hrs

sleep in their night time, when ever that is. When I come in from work, I

wind down, not much light, and I assimilate night in my bedroom, with the

window totaly blacked out and door closed. We cannot make melatonin if we

have light shining on us, and this is our way to have a deep uninterrupted

sleep. My oldest daughter and 3 yr old grandchild live with me, so this

can, at times, be a problem, but most of the time is not.

Re: an article on anemia and poor

conversion ()

> Thanks for replying, .

> I'm not sure what my RBCs were (forgot to ask for the copies when I was in

there

> yesterday -- gee.... imagine forgetting that!!) but I know my Hgb & Hct

were just

> above the high of the normal range. My WBCs were about 9.2 but I had been

on

> antibiotics for a bad tooth for a little over a week. Prior to that, in

late January, they

> were 13.2 or so, just slightly elevated. What are you thinking re: all

this?

>

> Were you able to locate the link to that article you mentioned? If not,

don't worry

> about it. Just thought it would be interesting reading.

>

> Also, do you do anything special to keep yourself as healthy as possible

since you're

> working nights, too?

>

> Thanks so much, !

> Janet

[Guest guest]

Thanks so much, , for your time on this.

I believe my low ferritin level was due to a lot of things. I had just had 3

heavy 6-7

day periods in a roughly 90 day time span. Periods had been getting heavier

over the

last several months in general as I'm aging and as the hypo was getting more

severe.

Diet was also poor. Too many carbs and rare was it that I ate any meat. In the

summer, when there's plenty of fresh veggies (never have been big into fruit), I

could

easily be vegetarian without actually calling myself one. Never big into milk,

but like

cheese -- although had to limit that too due to the constipation factor. Love

eggs

but didn't want to overdo those due to the elevated cholesterol I had before I

started

thyroid treatment. (Now at 170!) I also believe I have some absorption issues.

Plus,

when I was working the 12 hour shifts, who has time to eat. No breakfast, 10-15

minutes for whatever food I'd eat while at work and maybe a light snack before

bed in

the morning. Days off were spent " recovering " from the 12 hour shifts and diet

wasn't much better NO WONDER!! I shudder to think of the abuse I've done to my

body.

Ever since I started working nights, I've made my bedroom dark. Darkening shade

plus a dark colored drape. I also use a white noise machine to block out any

noise

that may awaken me. So it looks like I'm doing what I can.

The day I had the blood drawn for ferritin, hemoglobin and hematocrit, it hadn't

eaten

anything yet as I wanted to be fasting for some of the tests I had done. Water

intake

wasn't real great either and it was early in my day. So I suspect I was a

little on the

dehydrated side and that could have easily put the H & H on the higher side.

Now

that I think back to that day, yes, I was a little dry. My veins weren't as

prominent as

they normally can be and the lab tech and I made a comment about it. Will be

getting

the ferritin checked again in a couple of weeks, just to see how things are

going with

the iron supps. I hope it's come up SOME!! I also need to get the copies of

those last

labs so I can see what the other blood component levels were at. Forgot when I

was

there on Thursday -- imagine that!!

Again, thanks for your time!

Janet

> I've looked around and can't find the link in question. It could be that i

> didn't save that one, but I just remember it being a little contradictory.

> Because I seem to be anemic (according to the last CBCs I had drawn on March

> 6th), I went looking for a lot of info on this sbjct. Mine is one (if not

> lab error and a specimen that could have sat up too long---I have my