Blood donors are good people (of course, I am one, so I’m biased when I say that ).
Lotsa fluids, something to eat, and stay relaxed.
I’m on the bone marrow registry down here - the initial typing in Australia is done by blood test; they only go to the next level if they find an initial match.
And, incidentally, I’ve always donated from the same arm - no problems for me either. It has to be that arm - the veins in the other one are beyond shy and won’t come out to play. Right arm or nothing as far as I’m concerned.
I haven’t donated blood for a while now. But I’m gonna go back, after reading this thread.
I stopped donating after I suffered a nasty fainting incident while taking a friggn’ blood test. I had to fast for the test (I think it was for cholesterol) and ended up passing out while I was chatting to the nurse. It made me oogy for a long time to even think about someone sticking a needle in me.
Funnily enough, the last time I gave blood, the boyfriend of one of my friends fainted. Funny since she was the only one with the needle in her arm; he was simply sitting by her side holding her hand! We hassled him for a long time after that.
You mentioned that you took the Metro last time, but in case you were going to change your travel arrangements – don’t. Some people get lightheaded and faint after they donate, and you won’t know if you are one until you’ve done it, so plan to not drive for at least a few hours after your first donation. (After you’ve got a couple pints under your belt you’ll know better if you can handle a car or not afterwards.)
I donate blood every six weeks, the allowed amount of time between donations. It is a good way to give back to the community, and I want to do whatever I can.
I am lucky…it never seems to impact me physically. I don’t get woozy, or even really notice anything at all afterward. But then, I drink a LOT of water anyway, so maybe that helps.
Oh, and BTW…I am a thin-skinned redhead sort of lady, and I scar easily. I have NO scars from donating blood. I have never run into a “technician” who was clumsy enough to cause harm to that extent.
Now, falling out of trees…getting bit by spiders…running into things and slicing my appendages…THOSE things I have scars from. But then, no technicians were supervising those mishaps.
Yes, I rode Metro to the donation clinic, and rode it from the clinic to College Park, Md. No plans to do otherwise. I don’t live anywhere near work, so I always have to take the train into town, anyway. However, the time from the clinic to the station where my car is parked is a little under an hour, and I will have to drive home from there. But by then I’ll have rested a little on the train (that is, not actively moving; don’t mean I’d be asleep!), so that should help.
All vital signs were fine (my temp was 99, pulse was down to 80), so I did the deed. Heck, didn’t take too long, either. Got to guzzle orange juice and munch some Famous Amos cookies.
Well worth the time, and I’ll be back there in 53 days.
Your blood could help up to four people. It might go to a tiny newborn baby, or someone fighting cancer, or someone who has had a terrible accident. Or all three.
A few years ago I coordinated a blood drive for a volunteer organization. I asked around to see if anyone had any blood donation stories to share, to help pump up people for signing up. I asked them to bring photos and tell the story. In the end, we had a BUNCH of people standing up, showing pictures of babies, grandfathers, brothers, sisters, moms, and telling how blood had saved the lives of their loved ones. It was amazing how common the need for blood was. It was so touching; a lot of us bawled. Previous to this, I thought blood just went to people who’d been in terrible car crashes.
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