We just experienced the results of undiagnosed, severe, long-term iron deficiency in a very scary scenario, so I want to mention some lesser known symptoms of iron deficiency here that may go unrecognized especially in individuals with complex support needs. I am also adding details about how some of these symptoms were expressed in our case verbally or physically.
1) Whooshing in the ears: "My ears are humming."
2) Rapid heart beat: "My heart hurts."
3) Poor sleep: waking up multiple times per night and walking around
4) Poor growth
5) Restless legs: legs drumming on the mattress multiple times per night while asleep
6) Ulcers/cracks in the mouth: "I have sores in my mouth."
7) Sore tongue: moving tongue around the mouth vigorously
8) Brittle nails
9) (Increased) anxiety
10 (Increased) depression
11) (Increased) symptoms of ADHD
12) Itchy skin or rash: "All the clothes are itchy."
13) Poor temperature regulation: "I have a little fever."
We saw multiple specialists to address certain isolated symptoms, but until this week, there was no cohesive interpretation of what may have been underlying a slow physical and mental health deterioration, presenting itself in all 13 symptoms above over time.
In addition, if you take SSRI or SNRIs, please have your doctor do complete blood cell counts with some regularity and test for iron/ferritin levels etc. specifically as well.
