When Fatigue Isn’t Just Stress: My Journey With Iron Deficiency

For a long time, I thought my constant tiredness, mood swings, and lack of energy were just the result of stress. Like many women, I carry a lot — household responsibilities, family, work — and it seemed natural to blame everything on being overextended.

But as it turns out, I was wrong.

After months of brushing off my symptoms, I began noticing small signs that didn’t feel “normal.” I was craving foods like lentils and beans, almost as if my body was sending me a message. Climbing the stairs to the second floor suddenly felt like a challenge. Even though I’ve always been an active person, with a steady yoga routine, my energy felt drained. I lost a couple of kilos (from 52kg to 50kg), which didn’t bother me, but the fatigue did.

When I finally went to the doctor, my blood test showed the real issue: my ferritin level was only 5. For context, the normal level is around 50. That means my iron stores were almost completely depleted. No wonder I felt so exhausted.

Looking back, I realize I fell into a trap that many women do: assuming that low energy and mood swings are “just stress.” Of course stress plays a role, but sometimes there’s a deeper physical cause — and for me, it was iron deficiency.

Now I’m in the recovery stage. It’s not easy, but I’m taking it one step at a time:

• Supplements to rebuild my iron stores.
• Diet adjustments to include more iron-rich foods.
• Listening to my body more carefully.

After some research (and a good talk with my doctor), I understand that one of the main reasons for my iron deficiency is my heavy periods. My doctor even prescribed me medication to take on the first day of my cycle to help reduce the amount of bleeding.

This journey has been an eye-opener. If you’re a woman struggling with unexplained fatigue, weakness, or mood swings, don’t just assume it’s stress. It might be worth asking your doctor to check your iron levels. Sometimes our bodies whisper to us — in cravings, in tired steps up the stairs — long before we realize what’s really happening.

I’m learning to respect those whispers. And now, I want to share this experience so other women can catch the signs earlier than I did.