Surprising Symptoms of Anemia

About a year ago, I discovered that I have pretty severe anemia. I confess that when I was first diagnosed, I didn’t know much about the condition; I was surprised to learn that the fatigue and dizziness I’d been experiencing were probably due to anemia. 

Since my diagnosis, I’ve had two iron infusions and have learned more about anemia. I learned that some of the symptoms I’d been experiencing – many of which I wrote off as weird ticks, all of which I wrote off as unrelated – might have actually been connected to my anemia. Let’s talk about some of these surprising symptoms of anemia that I’ve experienced.

Mental Health

I’ve been experiencing bouts of depression and anxiety for most of my life. I suspect that these would be issues in my life with or without anemia. 

But did you know that there is a possible connection between anemia and mental health conditions?

In hindsight, I believe that I experienced a worsening of my depression and anxiety symptoms around the time my iron levels started dropping.

Irritability / Mood Swings

This might go along with the mental health stuff, but I can be irritable at times: things that shouldn’t be a big deal would make me mad.

According to Johns Hopkins, irritability can be a symptom of iron deficiency anemia (which is the kind of anemia I have).

Itchy Skin

I have what I would describe as sensitive skin. Various skin care products can cause me to break out in eczema. I can’t have my eyebrows waxed without my skin turning bright red and getting scabs around my eyebrows. 

So whenever I developed itchy skin, I wrote it off as my coming into contact with something I’m allergic to (probably a fragrance) in whatever product I’m using. 

But there is something called anemia rash – which can be defined as itchy skin that becomes red, bumpy and sore when scratched.

So now I’m wondering if this is part of what was happening to me.

Eye Twitching

Occasionally, I experience twitching around my eyes. This was one of those things where I thought it was just a strange thing that happens. I didn’t think anything  of it. 

This might be connected to anemia.

Whooshing Sounds in My Ears

I don’t know how else to explain it, but if you’ve experienced it, maybe you know what I mean. 

Also called tinnitus, this can be a symptom of anemia. To be clear, there are other possible causes of tinnitus, so just because you have it doesn’t mean you’re also anemic.

Conclusion

Those are just some of the surprising symptoms of anemia that I’ve experienced. Obviously, just because you have any of these symptoms doesn’t automatically mean you’re anemic. Again, I urge you to talk to your doctor or health care provider if you have any questions or concerns.

Updated: May 15, 2025 @ 5:08 am