WIS, WWA | Am I still anemic?
Hello, hello! I'm late again, I know.
I got off my last night shift yesterday morning. I was so tired, I didn't manage to put together a post for today. And then this morning I had to go get my blood rechecked to see if my iron levels have improved at all.
Am I still anemic? I should find out tomorrow.
(My best guess: yes. I think this is gonna take more than a month of iron pills.)
Sooo, here I am. Better late than never.
Also, I did update yesterday's post with an actual thankful list. 😉
What I Spent
I spent:
- $105 at Aldi
- $8 at Safeway
- $20 on takeout
So, $133.
Honestly, I'm giving myself a pat on the back for making it through this string of night shifts while mostly making all my meals. WHEW.
What We Ate
Saturday
I was still recovering from the first set of night shifts, so I made a very easy dinner for us.
Grilled cheese sandwiches:
A fruit salad:
And the last of the kale salad:
Sunday
I went to a baby shower for my niece, wearing my trusty black clearance dress:
So I wasn't hungry when I got home around dinnertime. And I have zero recollection of what Zoe ate!
Monday
I made a big batch of this chipotle chicken, and ate it as a salad before work.
And then for my overnight meal, I packed some peanut butter protein overnight oats (so appropriate, right??).
Tuesday
I ate a tuna sandwich before my shift; a can of tuna plus a slice of Swiss cheese plus the bread equals 40 grams of protein. And that's not a shabby way to send oneself into a night shift.
For my overnight meal, I packed a chipotle chicken salad.
Wednesday
A repeat of Tuesday because a tired overnight nurse can't be bothered with creativity.
Annnnd my overnight meal was another chipotle chicken salad. Again: prioritizing surviving over creativity. 😉
I did get a Starbucks coffee on my way to work, but I used a gift card for it (from my car insurance rewards program), so that was $0 out of pocket.
Thursday
I came home from work in the morning, napped for a few hours, and proceeded to mostly sleepwalk through the rest of my day. I picked up Firehouse for Zoe and me.
Friday
Today, I feel a little more like myself, so I will cook some dinner. But I need to rummage through the fridge first and see what needs to be prioritized!
Happy Friday, Kristen!
WIS: About $80, if I remember correctly, at four local stores.
WWA: Sweet chili chicken and veggies. Salad. Italian meat loaf with more salad. Chocolate pudding for dessert.
I accidentally dropped the grocery bag containing the eggs and cracked four, so I had a huge omelet on toast yesterday. That was very filling!
Oh man, that stinks when the bag you drop is the egg bag!
Spent: $119 ($40 of that was just 2 roast…that were on sale! Ugh the beef prices are painful).
Saturday: chuck roast, potatoes, carrots, rolls
Sunday: we were busy between church and then working on our sunroom project all day. I bought subs from the grocery deli and chips and called it a day.
Monday: shrimp and grits/salad
Tuesday: beef pot pie with the leftover roast
Wednesday: leftovers
Thursday: fish, oven baked fries, coleslaw
Friday: we are grilling pizza
Ugh, Kristen, I've been anemic and it's no fun. I hpoe you continue to feel better and see positive results.
Oddly, I haven't had many symptoms of being anemic, which is surprising to both my doctor and me. Either that, or I have been anemic for a while and I'm just used to it? I don't know!
But maybe I will feel REALLY good once my iron levels are up. Ha.
Saturday: I took my daughter to her classmate's birthday party over an hour away, so I delegated dinner to my husband. He made omelets. I got home just in time for dinner, so I added leftover macaroni and cheese and carrot sticks to the omelets for a slightly more balanced meal. He doesn't bother with that. 🙂
Sunday: Chicken-fried pork chops with milk gravy, rice, green salad with vinaigrette, pots de creme
Monday: I had made a chicken/bacon/tomato/corn chowder (there was a lot going on in that pot) on Saturday, but we didn't end up eating it until this night. As I had made the garlic bread I served with it the day before, it was just a re-heat meal. I also added cheese--just slices of cheddar--on the side, and then ice cream for dessert.
Tuesday: One package of jalapeno/cheddar sausages, one of mozzarella/basil sausages, a few previously made and frozen meatballs baked in barbecue sauce, and then leftover rice, mashed potatoes, and chowder, according to preference and how much of everything I had. I do a lot of assigning of different things to different family members to use up leftovers. My children have learned not to complain if they don't get what someone else has. Well, they don't complain much. 🙂 Also green grapes, and fresh bread with butter later after the bread that came out of the oven just after dinner had cooled a bit.
Wednesday: We had a guest with us for dinner who I know eats a lot, so I made a big pork shoulder, baked beans with pintos, butter-swim biscuits, maple carrots, pickles, and rice pudding.
Thursday: Pulled pork sandwiches with the leftover pork, leftover baked beans, carrot sticks
Tonight: Depends. Middle son is leaving today for an overnight FFA trip. If my husband and eldest son go hunting and I only have the two youngest home with me, I might make the cottage cheese pancakes you linked to here. I like those and make them for my lunches sometimes when I'm home alone, but I think my younger kids would like them, too, and I have some cottage cheese that should be used promptly. If the hunters don't leave until tomorrow, I have a skillet of potatoes and leftover sausage I made yesterday, thinking they could take it with them, but they could also eat it tonight. That would be too spicy for my daughter and me. I would probably have a salad, and she would be happy with just leftover baked beans and bread and butter. We shall see.
Monday: isn't it so nice to have a pot of soup already made? The luxury!
@Kristen, in my fantasy life--the one where I'm tall, rich and have hair that always looks good--a chef comes to my house once a week and makes a big pot of soup for me.
@Darlene Too, How interesting! In my fantasy life, my house always looks good and a chef comes over and gets my picky eater daughter to eat vegetables (then they clean my kitchen)! I'm not giving up hope. It could happen.
@CrunchyCake, and Darlene Too, in my fantasy life I'm able to accomplish my healthy eating goals, so my heavier and possibly meat-centered meal would be at lunch, and for supper I would have a different vegetable-based soup every night with homemade whole grain bread. I would prepare these soups at my leisure and then freeze them in suitable portion sizes. What a dream!
@kristin @ going country,
Do you post recipes on your blog? I would love to have your milk gravy recipe and the recipe for the pinto baked beans! Hopefully~
😉
@Laurae, I don't really follow recipes, so I can't give real ones. The milk gravy is just liquid in the pan after frying meat to scrape up the stuff on the bottom--stock is best, water is okay--then cornstarch dissolved in milk to thicken. I usually add more salt and pepper, garlic or onion powder, sometimes diced onion if I have some. Baked beans is cooked beans (I most commonly use pintos as that is what I have on hand most frequently), bacon, onion, ketchup, mustard, vinegar, molasses, maple syrup or brown sugar, salt, in proportions that taste good to you. Heavier on the ketchup than anything else.
Saturday - We had hot dogs, chips, cookies, and cider at my church's Fall Fest.
Sunday - Beef roast, potatoes, carrots, and broccoli with cheese
Monday - Burgers, pasta salad, and grapes
Tuesday - My 11yo wanted to make dinner and she made her favorite: cool ranch crunchwraps. We had guac, pico, and chips on the side.
Wednesday - White chicken chili with potato rolls
Thursday - Freezer meal! Hawaiian roll sliders. Baked beans and pineapple on the side.
Friday - I have a couple of chicken breasts that need to be used up. I might make southwest chicken alfredo because my kids really like it and I want them to eat a solid dinner before we head to the Homecoming football game that will have a bake sale treats.
@Ruth T, oh I have really been craving a roast lately! And I haven't had broccoli with cheese in a loooong time.
I was about to comment on yesterday’s post: “girl, you still in bed?” 😉
I spent all the money on groceries this week because I was just relishing being in the grocery store. My son commented, “Mama, you buy a LOT more things than Daddy does!” Accurate.
WWA:
Fri: focaccia and salad.
Sat: salmon, jasmine rice, sweet potatoes, tomatoes over greens and garlic toast.
Sun: pasta with sliced breakfast sausages, cannellini beans and pumpkin chipotle sauce topped with fresh Parmesan and turkey bacon pieces; broccoli and leftover sweet potatoes.
Mon: chicken fried rice and a fruit salad made with grapes, apple pieces, orange pieces, bananas and yogurt.
Tue: Brussel sprouts and what I am calling Italian sub bialys. Basically, my son put a tomato slice, some cheddar cheese and a dill pickle slice in homemade bialy dough. It would have been good with cold cuts too. Next time…
Wed: we got home very late from u-picking and my grocery shopping spree, so we just had leftover fried rice.
Thu: salmon and fried rice noodles over a bed of spinach, topped with red pepper rings and spicy pumpkin seeds. We had sautéed green beans on the side and chocolate mousse cups for dessert.
Tonight: focach, of course! And a salad because the fridge is bursting and needs veggie liposuction…
Have a great weekend, everyone!!!
Welllll, I did sleep for over ten hours last night. And honestly, I might do the same again tonight. After that I probably will be ok.
I doubt any of us will blame you for not posting first thing this morning!
WIS: Including two farm orders, I spent right at $168.00 for two weeks.
WIA: Fish fillet with zucchini and something else I forget.
Venison roast with roasted beets, cut up potatoes and broccoli, then I had venison again with sweet potato, komatsuna greens from the garden and yellow summer squash.
Tuna salad made with carrots, onions, celery and raisins, with cucumbers, grapes and a tangerine on the side, then tuna salad again with cherry tomatoes and strawberries on the side
Bacon and summer squash with onions, and komatsuna greens on the side. Both the squash n’ onions and the greens were cooked in a little of the bacon fat, of course.
Tonight is anyone's guess. This is my off week for shopping and we leave early on Fridays, so I will either take time to make something more complicated when I get home, or just have something quick and easy so I can get started on the housework. Time will tell.
I think I spent around $60, plus 2 mystery shops at grocery stores.
Sat: partner out, I ate leftovers
Sun: chili rellenos
Mon: mystery shop at a restaurant. Cost $5 out-of-pocket
Tues: baked cusk with mustard and panko; roasted potato peels and cauliflower; sauteed spinach
Wed: grilled porkchops with lemongrass and nuoc cham; grilled peppers and broccoli, rice; radish & carrot matchsticks in nuoc cham
Thur: pasta with cauliflower and capers (https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/pasta-roasted-cauliflower-and-crispy-capers)
Fri: kale salad and hamburgers? leftovers?
I had to google to find out what cusk was! I have never seen that at my stores.
@Kristen, (this sounds bougie, which it kind of is....): during Covid, we started getting a local fish delivery once a week. I just returned to it, as we are trying to increase our fish consumption, and while I LOVE my low cost grocery store [shout out to Market Basket!], the fish makes me squeamish. The fish delivery has less expensive option for the "fish of the day" whereby you have no idea what kind of fish you will get any particular week, so that is what I order. Cusk is from the cod family and is mostly like a cross between cod and halibut, but I can see why some people suggest it has a chewier texture more akin to lobster. We've had it a number of times through our fish delivery but I've never seen it at a grocery store.
Oh, that is such an interesting food delivery concept!
Glad you get a break from the night shifts!
I had a chance to meal prep over the weekend, and that worked out well.
Friday - chicken noodle soup & sourdough bread
Saturday - potato soup & salad
Sunday - a bean & sausage dish that's easy & delicious
Monday - leftover bean dish for DH, soup for me
Tuesday - chicken curry & rice
Wednesday - Ravioli & meatballs
Thursday -leftover chicken curry & rice
Friday - DH & DS19 will be dining on their own. I'm flying to Portland, and eating at my sister's house. I think we're having low carb zuppa toscana soup + salad.
It's a very soup kind of week, apparently!
I can remember coming home Tuesday and Wednesday mornings and fixing a piece of bacon, half a potato in wedges and shishito peppers in the air fryer. The bacon is so thick, one slice is enough. And that was my main meal for those days. Oh, and working on a cantaloupe which by today, is past it's prime. Last night I fixed a turkey/almond salad melt on Aldi Everything Sourdough. That was early in the evening. Later, I had some leftover apple crisp (warmed up) with some vanilla ice cream. Tuesday night, I had packed some cottage cheese and broccoli cauliflower salad for "lunch."
Today, I'm determined to make some broccoli cauliflower potato soup and cornbread casserole (it has shredded zucchini and some onion and maybe cheese, if I decide to add it). That will also be my packed "lunches" for work this weekend.
I also have apples to cook down into apple butter. I bought a bushel, and have made two crisps, but they are softening beyond hope rapidly. I can eat and give the apple butter away which is more likely to be consumed than applesauce.
Congratulations on making it through night shift Kristen-glad you’re back on your normal schedule, and that your shifts are more spaced out. I loved working three days in a row and then having the rest of the week off. It was like crossing work off first thing in the week!
My kiddo and I (the last one at home) love ‘food in bowls’ and we’ve made a little game out of eating ‘bowls’ for the week.
Monday-gnocchi with chicken sausage, salad and bread. (This ‘could’ have been a bowl but with the salad, we ate it on plates)
Tuesday - cheeseburger bowls (more like a salad really, because we use greens as a base)
Wednesday- mashed potato bowls with chicken sausage, broccoli and corn. Super quick and easy since I had to pick up kiddo late. They are in a very busy after school activity, and most days I don’t pick them up until 530 or later.
Also shout out to Kristen for mashed potato bowl inspiration - so easy and so good! Kiddo loves them!
Thursday- eggroll in a bowl
Tonight - we may go out to eat after kiddo’s done with school/activities as a treat after a big week for them. They will get to pick! My prediction - more ‘bowl’ food!
YES for mashed potato bowls!!
I was anemic because of fibroids and super heavy cycles. I took Floradix and it helped me so much (it doesn't have the same side effects that iron pills come with!). I am so incredibly thankful for my hysterectomy which gave me my life back.
@Tammy,
Same here, Tammy. I don't miss the constant pain, either.
@JD, Absolutely. So much pain. I wished I'd gotten it done sooner.
@Tammy, @JD the tide is turning as in some states, doctors aren't so "anti" hysterectomy when it comes to fibroids (and possibly polyps - they too are not a cake walk).
Happy Friday, everyone! We spent $101 ($60 at Target and $41 at Fresh Thyme).
- Salad (x2)
- Butternut squash soup
- Broccoli-mushroom-brown rice casserole
- Restaurant meal: Beet Citrus Panzanella salad (so delicious!)
- Brown rice, roasted cauliflower and sauteed peppers
- Popcorn and fruit
If it is alright I'll record my attempts at less food waste:
1. I was out of coffee this morning, so I opened up three pods of random coffee from when I used pods. I poured them in my backpackers coffee filter and had my morning Joe. I will use up a random bag of Keto Matcha Latte before I buy more coffee. ( Huge sacrifice.)
2. I found two old backpacker's breakfasts and will eat them.
3. I have several Anderson Soup house fixings that I buy at a discount on Black Friday. I am going to plan one a week. It is soup season again.
4. I ate up random fish fillets from the freezers.
5. I am planning a smoothie a day to finish up odds and ends of frozen bits.
Congrats on making it through a tough week!
We didn't do great around here. A couple nights my husband was hungry early so he went out and grabbed something and the girls wanted in too. Easy for me, but not great for our frugality!
Saturday: Salmon, Salad, Rice, and sweet potatoes. I used my stainless steel pan for the salmon and it didn't stick! I've been working at losing my habit of just cranking up the heat out of lack of patience. I can now also make eggs that slide right out of the pan. I know it's super basic for others, but for me, it's real progress!
Sunday: Ordered Domino's so that we'd have leftovers for daughter's lunchbox; had the rest of a salad I had made earlier.
Monday: Taquitos, burritos, guac and melon
Tuesday: They all tried a korean place and I had a salad and maybe a veggie burger?
Wednesday: They all got Olive Garden takeout and I had...something from the refrigerator but I don't recall what...
Thursday: Gyoza, fruit, sauteed snow peas, garlic bok choy. I skipped the gyoza and had some soy chorizo sauteed with onions over the bok choy with some snow peas. Kinda weird but also tasty and nutritionally balanced.
Friday: I have some broccoli I need to use up but other than that, I'm not sure. Maybe we'll do some nourish bowls.
WIS : $32 @ Costco, $18 @scratch & dent, $12 restaurant supply for 1 gal of molasses.
Sun - I worked, stayed in Portland ate a Made at home/Greek pasta salad &fresh grapes off my host family's arbor.
Mon - because of bad wrecks on freeway home, arrived 3 hrs later than normal. I ate cheesy toast, apple with peanut butter.
Tuesday - grilled salmon, kale salad with hot bacon dressing, corn on the cob.
Wed - salmon patties, noodles with pesto and walnuts, delicata squash
Thurs - elk stroganoff, mashed potatoes, green beans
Fri - white bean chicken chili, cornbread waffles and hot honey.
Saturday - invited a few neighbors for soup. big pot of beef and veggie soup, fresh artisan sd bread and berry cobbler.
Have a great weekend!
I am not sure that I could stay up all night anymore. I know that I couldn't be productive. You have successfully crossed another hurdle. Well done, Kristin!
WIS - I don't know. I have not tallied my receipts. I suspect it has been too much.
WIA
Saturday - We attended an out-of-town wedding and partook in the delicious dinner buffet provided.
Sunday - We stop and bought a rotisserie chicken after our long drive home from the wedding. I made a quick pot of rice and one of lima beans. I also slice some tomatoes. This is my husband's absolute favorite meal.
Monday - ? I really cannot remember.
Tuesday - We had a birthday dinner at my favorite restaurant. I had red snapper, mashed potatoes and sauté green beans. I also had salad and oysters. I brought half of it home, because it was just way too much food for me. They also insisted I bring home a piece of gluten-free, flourless, chocolate cake.
Wednesday - Wr ate the previous night leftovers.
Thursday - I had Book Club, so DH made a low country-boil (shrimp, smoked sausage, corn on the cob, potatoes, and carrots.) I ate before the meeting.
Friday - once again, there was too much food on Thursday night. DH will have leftovers tonight. I am going to happy hour with some friends that I haven't seen in a while at the local Mexican restaurant. I'll probably have a taco and a mocktail margarita.
Bon appétit have a great weekend.
Always an interesting post! Thank you. I wanted to ask about the iron pills. Do you feel differently while taking them? Do you have and digestion issues related to them? And lastly, my hubby just started them after his hemoglobin dropped to 9.3 and he is so tired all the time. Is having another blood draw the only way to know if they make a difference at all?
My main issue with the iron pills is that they cause constipation, and this is despite me drinking water and eating plenty of whole grains and fruits and vegetables.
As far as I know, there's no good solid way to check iron levels without a blood draw; the blood test checks iron levels along with other things like ferritin levels, and it really gives a nice picture of what's going on.
On the other hand, if his iron levels are going up, he should start to feel a little less tired.
@Kristen,
When I was diagnosed with low iron years ago, I tried adult iron supplements and found they caused me to have tummy/GI issues. I switched to children's vitamins with iron (Flintstones or a store brand) and am still taking them with much success 20+ years later. Obviously your mileage may vary.
Hi Kristen,
I am a pescatarian and used to be horribly anemic. I had heavy periods, which definitely didn't help. Now that I'm in perimenopause, with no period in 10 months (whoo hoo!), I'm no longer anemic. So there is definitely hope in the future for combatting anemia without having to take anything once you hit your perimenopause/menopause stage.
The iron pills made me sick to my stomach, so I switched to Mary Ruth's liquid iron. I bought it online. It didn't taste great, but it was palatable. Maybe give that a try if you don't like taking the iron pills.
I would recommend not donating blood for a while (sorry). It might help. The last time I was able to donate blood was 2001. I might give it a try again now that I'm "older."
Yupppp, I'm quite sure periods are the culprit here. Sigh.
And yes, no blood donation for me for now. If I am successful at getting to normal levels and then some, perhaps I can donate again one day in the future!
@Kristen, I hope your iron levels improve quickly. Please keep us updated.
I think you will feel your energy levels improve. I find I need less naps now.
Friday: My son attended his first ever Homecoming football game! He invited two friends to stay the night and they came home with him on the bus from school. I took the boys to McDonalds for a pre-game meal and made them a frozen pizza after the game. I also made a batch of chocolate chip cookies for late night snacking. My husband and I had leftovers (much tastier than McDonalds).
Saturday: My husband was out with friends so I made Sriracha Salmon Bowls for my son and me.
Sunday: I had craft night at a friend’s house. She made chicken enchiladas, another friend made guac, and I brought apple bread pudding. My son and husband had Dude Night and made hamburgers.
Monday: Our family went to a local restaurant because all profits from Monday went to Annunciation School as they continue to heal from last month’s school shooting. It’s not always easy to find ways to help but going out for dinner seemed like an easy option. We enjoyed tacos, fajitas, and a smoked meat sandwich.
Tuesday: Sheet Pan Dinner - sausage, cauliflower, potatoes, sweet potatoes, mini bell peppers. Leftover bread pudding for dessert.
Wednesday: My dad offered to bring over two rotisserie chickens. I made a side of mashed potatoes, sauteed cabbage, and garlic bread from our bread odds and ends.
Thursday: Leftover night! I pureed the roasted veggies from Tuesday into a delicious soup which we paired with the leftover smoked meat from Monday, sausage from Tuesday, and chicken on Wednesday.
CSA veggies used: apples, mini bell peppers, cabbage, celery, carrots, onion, mushrooms
We spent about 300 for groceries: ( and no suppers out).
We ate this week:
Ham with roasted veggies and potato scallop
Pasta with tofu sauce and broccoli ( the sauce is going into our rotation)
Hamburgers( I mixed 1 lb with lentils , an egg and panko crumbs. They were moist and delicious cold, served with salad and coleslaw
Frozen pizza with salad.
Ramen with cabbage, cauliflower, carrots, Mirco greens and topped with a poached egg.
Lunches were leftovers, sandwiches, soups.
Breakfasts were waffles, sourdough, cereal, fruit.
This week was our last CSA box. I'm sad, but I'm also excited for next year!
Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canadians.
Kristen,
I also have low iron and take a supplement. I learned in the past year, if you take your iron supplement with citrus (squeeze 1/2 or whole fresh lemon into a glass of water, take with a glass of OJ, etc), the iron may absorb better. This has been a game changer for me. Hope it works for you / others as well.
When you have a few, I'd suggest you update your profile "I’m currently in nursing school to get my R.N. (I graduate spring 2025)." You've graduated and are now working as a nurse.
I don't know if it's just me, but I've been having trouble with your blog for a while. When I open it to your home page in Firefox, the most recent post is September 2. I thought maybe it was because of my adblocker, but it's not much better in Safari, where I have no adblocker installed--September 18. I enjoy reading your posts, but it's such a pain to have to click through a month of posts to get to the current one. Is anyone else experiencing this?
It is not just you! I’ve been trying to solve this problem and I’m stuck so far. Does this happen on your iPhone? Or also on a computer? So far everyone has been saying it’s from their iPhones.
@Kristen, me too! I'm not 100% sure but I think it's just on the iPhone. In fact I was wondering what's going on this week when there didn't seem to be any new posts multiple days in a row - and then lo and behold, suddenly there were four of them! At least now I know to try and click through to them.
If you clear the last 24 hours of history on your Safari browser on your phone, do all the posts appear? I did this last week, and it fixed the problem. But I am watching to see if it happens again.
Not sure how long you have been anemic, but I had learned it takes 90 days for your blood marrow to produce enough blood cells to completely replace what you currently have— so improvement wouldn’t show up for that long taking supplements or eating more iron rich foods!
Interestingly, as a very young adult, I used to often be told I was a bit anemic, but my energy was always good (as yours seems to be!), and iron supplements seemed to make no difference. I stated this to a new family doctor (where I worked in their clinic as a file clerk while in college), and he was like. “Hmm…are you of Asian or Mediterranean descent?” I was 100% Chinese (he didn’t want to be rude or assume), and he did an additional blood test and I found out I have beta thalassemia, where I have much smaller red blood cells, so a hematocrit always makes me look a bit anemic. I have no symptoms from this, obviously I am heterozygous (one parent’s passed on genes). But if two parent passed on their genes to a child, it could cause genetic issues and usually a miscarriage.
Red blood cells do last for about 90 days, but they are in a persistent process of being replaced. Every day, the blood cells that are around 90 days old are being replaced with new ones, on a rolling basis. So, that means you can see some improvements in just a few weeks of supplementation.
And I am happy to say, my results from yesterday show that I am less anemic already. Yay! I'm not quite out of the "anemic" category, but I am closer.
I heard about thalassemia in nursing school! So interesting that you have this, and I'm so glad it's not causing you any problems.
Congratulations on your niece Kristen!
Nothing like a schedule change to throw a wrench into meal plans, right? The tuna sammie looked delightful, by the way! I can't remember what all I ate this week, except for last night - Tilapia, TJ butternut mac and cheese, leftover zucchini. I only got take-out once this week and stretched it to 2 meals. And I think I spent around $65 on some grocery fillers for the week ahead.
I really should go back to posting menus!
Kudos to the profile/bio update - you worked hard to get their and you should continue to enjoy the results of your hard work and tenacity.
@Selena, ugh there
i remember being anemic for most of my 20s... could never quite get it up; i did have a surgery coming up and needed to get my iron up and just ended up taking iron pills 3x/day with orange juice for 6 weeks. it worked. but never again.
On anemia: my friend’s daughter is a bit anemic, her doc recommended Blood Builder. It’s supposed to be a form of more bio-available iron, paired with vitamins C and B12. Maybe ask your doc, if you’re still showing up as anemic (or just that your iron reserves are low)?