Project Mortgage Neutral Begins

ajmoney

Hmm, just got off the phone to the doctor and it turns out my recovery from whatever is going on could be even longer than I had thought.  Apparently it can take up to 3 months to see any improvement to ferittin levels which is a little upsetting. I guess I just need to wait it out and hope my energy levels imrpove before we start working normally.

Suffolk_lass

Did the doctor suggest you could boost your dietary iron while you are waiting for your ferritin levels to restore? Going back to my old housecraft book from school (as I do from time to time for certain recipes) the page fell open on iron-rich foods and talked about boosting these prior to pregnancy (as many suffer with pregnancy caused anaemia) I don't know if the science has updated in 50 years but the foods are the same - I have two good recipes for liver (calves or lamb) and braised lambs hearts - both excellent iron-rich sources. Do shout if you want to try them

ajmoney

Suffolk_lass said:

Did the doctor suggest you could boost your dietary iron while you are waiting for your ferritin levels to restore? Going back to my old housecraft book from school (as I do from time to time for certain recipes) the page fell open on iron-rich foods and talked about boosting these prior to pregnancy (as many suffer with pregnancy caused anaemia) I don't know if the science has updated in 50 years but the foods are the same - I have two good recipes for liver (calves or lamb) and braised lambs hearts - both excellent iron-rich sources. Do shout if you want to try them

I really don't like liver, I have tried it again as an adult in case it was how my mum cooked it! I have been eating other iron rich foods where possible although I guess it wouldn't hurt to try some other recipes so yes please.
I read that tea, milk and grains can affect the absorption of iron so not to have too many but it is tough, I am leaving an hour after the tablet to have my breakfast so hopefully that is enough. 

Darpett

You are right to take iron on an empty stomach but if it's due in part to a ferritin shortage (I had this when quite young due to partying a little lot too hard....) I was told to eat red/orange fruits and veg (not carrots), as well as the leafy greens as they contain more of the 'stuff' that helps with iron absorption and that still seems to be the advice. I know you've probably heard it before but if you are not so keen on some of the 'meat' options even a glass of orange or apple juice with a fortified cereal will help increase your iron uptake.

Sorry if it's teaching a granny how to suck eggs.

I recovered after about a month or so but did make sure I was eating plenty of apricots, peppers etc and being young probably helped speed things up. I have been careful ever since as my iron levels became so low I am still not allowed to donate blood - just in case!!

ajmoney

Darpett said:

You are right to take iron on an empty stomach but if it's due in part to a ferritin shortage (I had this when quite young due to partying a little lot too hard....) I was told to eat red/orange fruits and veg (not carrots), as well as the leafy greens as they contain more of the 'stuff' that helps with iron absorption and that still seems to be the advice. I know you've probably heard it before but if you are not so keen on some of the 'meat' options even a glass of orange or apple juice with a fortified cereal will help increase your iron uptake.

Sorry if it's teaching a granny how to suck eggs.

I recovered after about a month or so but did make sure I was eating plenty of apricots, peppers etc and being young probably helped speed things up. I have been careful ever since as my iron levels became so low I am still not allowed to donate blood - just in case!!

I am going to mix things up a bit and take the tablets in the evening as I don't normally drink tea, have milk or too many grains then.  I will take it an hour before dinner and then carry on as I have been. 

Suffolk_lass

If you don't like liver this recipe for calves liver might work for you (not like Mums made) - you can use lambs liver but calves liver is nicer. If it is lambs, cut it into very thin slices. I season by rubbing in a little olive oil on both sides and some flake salt, black pepper and thyme (no stalks if possible). You can dip them in seasoned flour if you want a crust but I don't with calves liver

Melt a bigger than you think knob of butter (mix) in a little olive oil to stop it burning in a shallow pan (mine are cast iron) that a lid fits over. Fry off a finely chopped shallot or red onion (prefer these as flavour is milder than standard brown onions) and don't let it go brown. Then pop the slices (2 small per person here) of liver in the pan and put a lid on. After the spattering noise reduces, remove the pan from the heat and turn the liver over). I put the covered pan in a warm oven at this point while I cook the veg - for us, this works best with mash (I start the potatoes at the same time as the pan for the liver) and a bag of spinach, and a bit of finely shredded cabbage (savoy works best). When the veg is about 2-3 minutes away, check the liver and if there is blood coming from it, pop it back on the heat for 20 seconds, flip it and then put it on the plate. Add a splash of red wine to the pan and deglaze it. add a little slurry of gravy mix or cornflour in water to slightly thicken and pour it over the liver and eat it immediately!

My other recipe is a variation on my Mum's stuffed lamb's hearts. You might have to ask the butcher - they are rarely out on display and round here they come frozen as demand is quite low.
One large or two small each person
Wash the hearts and cut off the flaps without cutting through the side wall. If you turn them inside out you can see the gristly bits. Pop them in a bowl of salted water while you make the stuffing.

The stuffing is a teacup of breadcrumbs, a finely chopped small onion an optional tablespoon of suet (I don't) grated zest of a lemon half a teaspoon of herbs (she uses mixed, I use thyme, oregano, basil and mint as a ready mix), salt and pepper, maybe a few chilli flakes (optional) and a little beaten egg (less than a medium one) to bind it together.

Dry the hearts inside and out , fill the cavities with the stuffing and push the top together with a skewer (or sew them!). Pop in a covered dish (mine is a small le creuset type dish or a  tin with melted dripping (I use oil) with greased paper over and cook for 2 hours at 165c. When they are done I add a spoonful of seasoned flour to the pan and slacken with the veg water and occasionally a half teaspoon of marmite, to make a thickish sauce.

As I wrote marmite I realised that is a good source of iron too (and tasteless if you add it to mashed potatoes instead of salt seasoning).

ajmoney

I ended up having dinner out at my bubble house and didn't have my tablets so have just taken it now I am home, not a great start to my new regime but I haven't eaten anything that should counteract it so all is ok.

ajmoney

Currently sitting putting together a micro teach session for my mental health first aid instructor course in a couple of weeks so I can have a couple of practice runs with colleagues next week, 10 minutes really isn't very long at all!

ajmoney

I moved into my house 2 years ago, I started with a mortgage of £107506 and today it stands at £85592.14; I am more than happy with that.  The garden is being nurtured but I am still putting off the house stuff so I would like to push forward with this.  I had a bad night's sleep last night and ended up thinking over the last couple of years, I am still sure this was the right decision. It hasn't been the easiest time to gauge when we have had over a year being unable to do anything but I am doing so much that I probably wouldn't have thought of if I had stayed where I was.  I still have a lot of developing to do myself before I will be wholly comfortable with the situation I am in but every day I am sure I am getting a step closer.

ajmoney

I am currently trying to put together a 10-minute micro teach session for my course next week, why oh why do I over analyse everything?!?!  The guidance even says it is merely an opportunity for them to assess our presentation skills but still I am obsessing over getting it right.