I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired

reallifemumsite

Aug 3

Hello,

I know I have not written a blog post about myself in a long while. I think I have been feeling uninspired and with very little energy. Since Lockdown happened my life has been sort of a rollercoaster for me, and I have only just doing what I have to do to keep myself afloat. However I am feeling differently now.

You know what they say:

"Put on your own oxygen mask before assisting others." - Randy Pausch

and also:

Take care of yourself so you can care for those you love!

After my second child was born, we went into lockdown and I barely went anywhere whilst I was on maternity leave. I started working from home and the struggle to do it all was real. People assume that when you are working from home you have so many extra hours, but that cant be further from the truth as a mother. It means there is no break between work and family...the lines are very blurred. I lived on autopilot mode. Doing what I had to do and no more.

My health has not been the greatest and have been gaining so much weight too. I have been ignoring it and well it reached a point where I cannot do that any longer. I have very low energy levels an have not felt like my usual self. My doctor ran some tests and my iron levels came back super low...probably the lowest it has been in a long time. Ferritin level 7. The official diagnosis is iron deficiency anemia. Iron deficiency in women especially Indian women is a major health problem. Anemia is caused by deficiency in iron, B12 and folic acid, and all of these are required to make red blood cells.

The problem is absorption, and sometimes many factors can affect that. For now I have started eating better, a more balanced diet and trying to include more iron rich foods like liver, spinach, walnuts, vitamin C rich foods etc. This is not a quick fix, this is a journey to better health.

Food containing natural iron. Fe: Liver, avocado, broccoli, spinach, parsley, beans, nuts.

I have also gone to see an acupuncturist who is a health professional who applies theories of traditional Chinese medicine in the form of acupuncture. The traditional Chinese medicine explains that acupuncture is a technique for balancing the flow of energy or life force — known as chi or qi (chee) which is believed to flow through pathways (meridians) in your body. By inserting needles into specific points along these meridians, acupuncture practitioners believe that your energy flow will re-balance. More and more acupuncture is being used for overall wellness, including stress management and even anemia. I feel like the acupuncture assisted in unblocking my energy flows. I feel energized again and hopefully in time I will feel 100% better.

That's in short where I am right now on the health front. I hope for better days as I am sick and tired of being sick and tired.