newly diagnosed

Hello everyone.  I have just been diagnosed with Thalassemia minor this past week.  All my life I have been anemic but they could never get to the bottom of why.  Finally, the answer. 

I have been told by a friend who also has Thal Minor that symptoms are also that we are often tired and need more sleep than others.  Also that we get easily winded when running.  These are all things that I have experienced my whole life but just never knew why.  I am very active, extremely active, although I am always tired.

I am wondering, what other things might Thal Minors experience that I do not know about yet or may have been dealing with symptoms of for a long time but never knew that this was the cause? 

Doctors also believe my oldest son has Thal Minor and he is getting ready to be tested.  He is a teenager and has always suffered from very frequent nosebleeds.

Thank you for your help.  I appreciate answers anyone can give me.

Blessings

Welcome to the site you have come to the right place

I think its safe to say they all of us with Thal minor do experience mainly the same symptoms..this site has helped me alot to educate myself to live better with the thal minor trait

Hello DeannaS,

 

Thal minors do have symptoms,you are right,most of us get tired easily,need a bit more sleep sometimes,i also some times experience heart palpitations and head aches,what else did you experience and thought that you didn't know the cause?

The great thing about all this is,there are a lot of supplements that can help you a lot,i for one am a big example of it,supplements have helped me a lot,it wasn't long time ago that i used to wish that what id days were of 6 hours instead of 12 hours  because i used to get so tired by noon,that after that i had to drag myself through out the day,then i started a B-Complex and felt a big change in my energy levels.

One more thing that you can try to boost our energy levels  is wheat grass,either if you can take fresh wheat grass juice or super shots which are available at www.drwheatgrass.com,my daughter is a transfusion dependent intermedia and i have seen a big difference in her energy levels after she started wheat grass super shots.

Last but not the least a miracle vitamin,well it did work miraculously for me,is vitamin D,i'll be posting my experience about it in another thread,i don't know where you live and how much sunshine you get,Vitamin D is very crucial in many bodily functions and most of us usually are deficient,two of us three moderators here along with our administrator were found deficient in vitamin D when tested,my daughter was also deficient although she is just 8 years old and takes her vitamin D daily,i'd suggest you read through our Diet,Nutrition and supplements section,especially this thread.

http://www.thalassemiapatientsandfriends.com/index.php?topic=2923.0

What is important here is that now that you have confirmed you are a thal minor,you should get your partner tested too,so if you ever plan to have a baby again  in future,it would be safe to know that your partner does not have thal minor,because when both partners are minor there is a 25% chance in every pregnancy that baby can have thal major,its also necessary that you get you kids tested for it,whether you think they have symptoms or not,because thal minor can be asymptomatic too,so that when they grow up and plan to have a family,they'll know that they have to get their partner tested for thal.

Hope this helps,please feel free to ask any questions you have in mind.

Zaini.

Thanks for your replies.

As far as other symptoms I bruise extremely easily and also have headaches.

I won't be having any more kids as we are definitely done (both husband and I are "fixed") :-)   We have three kids and plan on getting them tested. 

I am going to try the vitamins you suggested.   I really appreciate your suggestions.  Thanks for taking the time to help me.

Blessings

Other symptoms I forgot to add are:  anemia, tiredness, numbness, depression. 

I have gone to the Doctor's for all of these over the past 42 years.  Only now am I realizing why...

 

Deanna,

All the symptoms you mention are commonly reported by thal minors and also tend to worsen as one gets older. We have many discussions about the value of supplements to thal minors who do experience symptoms. If possible, ask your doctor to test your vitamin D level. It is commonly low and causes tiredness and muscle soreness, along with depression, which can all add to the tiredness and problems that thal minors often already have. Vitamins C, D, E, B-complex and L-carntine can all help with the long term health of minors.