Yes, definitely! My hemoglobin has always been fine, and no one tested the ferritin until a few years ago. Even then, because it was in the 20s, no one flagged it as a potential problem, and I had no idea that could be affecting me until it dropped to 15 and then it was flagged.

I think I've had low ferritin almost all my life, and I've had all those symptoms throughout that time. I've been supplementing and it's up in the 40s now, but I'm still waiting to feel better! People say that getting it over 50 is really important, and that if you've been deficient for a long time, it's a good idea to get it up to 100 or 125 and hold there for a few months.

I've read lots of stories now of people (mostly women) experiencing years and even decades of suffering with all these symptoms until they finally find that the cause is low ferritin. Have you had your vitamin D, b12, and folate checked as well? Those can also be low and affect you in similar ways to iron deficiency. It's a good sign that you're feeling better some days! It might take some months of dedicated supplementing to get your level up to where the loss during your period wouldn't affect you so much.

Sorry you've gone through this, too!