Health Update: The Missing Mineral
By now, you’d think I’d be done collecting diagnoses like Pokémon cards — but here we are. Another month, another plot twist in the ongoing saga of trying to figure out why my body has been running on fumes for over a decade.
Back in June, my ferritin was 9 ng/mL — basically nonexistent. After a round of summer iron infusions, my labs finally jumped: 167 ng/mL in September, 161 ng/mL in October, and yes… already drifting downward because of course they are. The drop isn’t shocking — ferritin always falls after infusions — but it still feels like watching progress slip through my fingers.
And then came the hematology appointment.
That morning, I walked in expecting another round of “everything looks fine.”
Instead, I walked out with something I never saw coming:
A confirmed copper deficiency. This came after I requested testing for a copper deficiency based on my own research and observations. My primary care physician initially questioned the need, but after I explained my reasoning, she agreed to order the test. Yet again, a reminder that in our reactive sick-care system, patients often have to advocate for themselves because providers aren’t trained to look beyond the obvious.
I know. Copper. Of all things.
Here’s the wild part: copper isn’t just some minor trace mineral they talk about in nutrition class. It’s the thing that allows iron to actually work. Copper-dependent enzymes (ceruloplasmin, hephaestin) act like the bridge that moves iron out of storage, loads it onto transferrin, and helps your bone marrow build healthy red blood cells.
So if copper is low?
That bridge collapses.
Iron gets stuck.
Ferritin climbs and falls but never stabilizes.
And despite the infusions, your hemoglobin, RBC, and hematocrit stay low — which is exactly what has been happening to me for over ten years.
My hematologist looked at my history — including my gastric sleeve surgery in 2016 — and said she’s seen copper deficiencies in other gastric sleeve patients more than once. So now we’re here:
Was it the surgery? Was it the zinc? Was it both?
I honestly don’t know.
What I do know is that somewhere along the way, my body ended up depleted of a mineral no one was checking — and I’m the one living with the fallout.
Because here’s the kicker:
I might have unknowingly made it worse.
Zinc and copper compete.
High zinc intake can tank copper levels.
And although my zinc came from the Function Health supplement plan, it’s not their fault — because I didn’t test copper through them. Copper wasn’t included in their panel, so zinc got added to support other markers… and, well… here we are.
This is why I keep saying Functional Medicine and conventional labs need to talk to each other — because sometimes the thing you don’t test ends up being the thing that matters most.
So my hematologist told me to stop all zinc immediately and start Copper Gluconate 2 mg daily until my follow-up in January. Finally — a direction. A theory that actually matches the mess my body has been giving me. A deficiency that explains the cognitive fog, the slow red-cell production, the fatigue that never matches the labs.
But of course, nothing is ever simple.
I also completed my full Function Health retest on November 10th — another $449 later — and now I’ve got a new list of “Hi, we need to talk” biomarkers.
Some things improved.
Some didn’t budge.
And shockingly, my biological age got worse.
So, you know… fun.
Do I regret using Function Health? No.
Do I think it works for everyone? Also no.
For some people, it’s a phenomenal tool. For me, it’s been a mixed bag — some clarity, some noise, and a reminder that root-cause healing isn’t one-size-fits-all.
And meanwhile, I’m still tired.
Still foggy.
Still dealing with a body that refuses to follow the script.
Supplements are still hit-or-miss for me. I’ve taken breaks. I’ve restarted. I’ve adjusted. But if my copper truly dropped because of some combination of surgery, long-term depletion, and added zinc, then no supplement on earth was ever going to fix what was happening upstream.
That realization is both validating and infuriating.
Because this much I know:
Being told “that’s just normal for you” is not medicine — it’s dismissal.
And I’ve had a decade of dismissal.
So here’s where things stand as 2025 closes:
Ferritin is up but unreliable.
Red blood cells are low because copper was low.
I’m on Copper Gluconate 2 mg daily until January.
Function Health gave me data, but not answers.
My body still feels off even when the labs pretend everything’s improving.
And yes, I’m still fighting for myself because no one else is going to.
Maybe I’ll never get the neat, satisfying answer I’ve been chasing for years.
Maybe the truth is more complicated — minerals, enzymes, inflammation, nutrient competition, absorption issues, genetics, trauma, stress — a whole ecosystem, not a single villain.
But maybe — just maybe — I’m finally on the right path.
And if you’ve ever been stuck in this same cycle…
pouring money, energy, and hope into your health…
trying to convince doctors something is wrong when the labs look “fine”…
feeling like your body is a mystery no one is interested in solving…
You’re not alone.
With heart,
Rebecca
FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. NOT MEDICAL ADVICE.
