My skin has been getting increasingly paler - I have had trouble finding make-up light enough to work with my skin. Well, not uncommon since I do have anemia/thalassemia. I didn't think much of it though - I figured it could have just been because it's winter.

What I am worried about right now is that it looks like I have blood pooling up behind my knees and in my toes. It's hard to explain... behind my knees especially there are purplish-blobs that could almost be bruises with red dots. I know there is a name for it, I can't be arsed to find it. This is a new symptom. I would think I had been a klutze and not noticed but I can't think of what I would have done to cause this kind of bruising behind my knees. Odd place for bruises.

I have every symptom of severe anemia. I am so tired I could sleep for 18 hours and still feel like I haven't slept. I am always freezing cold, I have started to need to use a heater and four comforters at night and during the day I am always in multiple sets of fleece workout suits. This is abnormal - during the winter I usually sleep with my window open because I like the cold.

I didn't even know this was a symptom until tonight, but my lips are cracked weird in the corners of my mouth and have been for a couple weeks. They bleed off and on.

I cut my finger at work and it was like a paper cut but bled for a couple hours. I had to get it written up at work because they were worried about getting sued it was bleeding that badly.

And this is probably the scariest part; I thought I pulled a muscle in my chest the other day because out of nowhere it felt like I had fifty pound blocks on my chest. I thought it was anxiety but I wasn't anxious so I asumed it was a pulled muscle. My heart was racing out of control but I just thought I was panicking over the pain. I had a hard time standing up straight and I couldn't stop sweating. I didn't think anything of it after it passed.

I am only piecing it together now because of my knee bruises. I shaved my legs for the first time in god knows how long tonight and realised they were there.

My family doctor retired so if I need medical attention I have to go to the ER. I don't want to go if I don't have to, and I don't even want to think about needing a transfusion. I take iron supplements daily, the maximum dosage prescribable.

Anyways, any help is appreciated. I guess I am looking for advice on where to go with this. Does it sound like I am going to need a transfusion? It was something my doctor went over when I was diagnosed with thalassemia but because I am only a carrier, or I have thalassemia minor not major, it wasn't something that my doctor thought I would ever require.

Sarah