I gave whole blood at school last march and was told that the need for 2rbc and platlets is great. Been giving platlets ever since.
Sorry about caps and punctuation. Posting from phone.
Was wondering how many share my new passion.
I just got my 7 gallon pin. I am also CMV negative, which is unusual, especially for my age and travel history.
I’m CMV negative as well, the Red Cross claims it’s rare which may be why they pester me so often. I’ve been donating platelets to a company called LifeStream.
They won’t take my blood anymore due to a blood disorder which can’t be absolutely diagnosed. I suggest everyone donate, especially the platelets even though that takes a couple of hours to do, the demand is high and platelets have a short shelf life.
Do they still pay platelet and WBC donors? I had a friend in college who did platelet donations a few times, and my sister donated white blood cells too. It took several hours and required needles in both arms, and they got about $30 to $50 for each donation. 
I understand it doesn’t take anywhere near as long now as it did in the early 1990s.
I donated whole blood a few times in my late teens, and then I blacked out on the table and they suggested that I not do it again. 
Fortunately, I also haven’t needed any.
I used to donate whole blood every 8 weeks. A few years ago I started flunking the hemoglobin test so I slowed down to only a couple of donations per year. I donated platelets for the first time this January and received a letter a few weeks later which said that they had done a ferritin test on my blood. The threshold is 26 ng/mL. My ferritin level was 6. I haven’t donated blood or platelets since and don’t expect to be able to donate ever again.
It’s a shame since I was a champion donor. I have huge, easy-to-stick veins and I could fill a pint in 5 minutes. I have more platelets than most people according to a test performed by the Red Cross. It also made me feel like I was doing something good for someone else, which I don’t do often enough.
I got two gallon pins before I started taking sleep medications. I don’t know for a fact that they make me ineligible to donate, but I just assume, so I stopped donating about 15 years ago.
I celebrated my 17th birthday by donating blood, though, because at the time, that was the minimum age to donate. It may still be, I’m not sure.
I’ve donated a dozen pints or so now (probably metric equivalents of pints, I guess). Last couple of times I had to cancel my appointment at the last minute due to illness (just a bad cold, but not worth attempting to give blood)
In any week when I donate, I allow myself to eat as much meat as I want - you know, to make sure I get the iron - although I’ve never had a problem with lack of iron - the droplet pretty much goes clang against the bottom of the vial when they test for iron.
Any excuse to eat black pudding is a good excuse.
It’s been a few years since I donated. I used to do it every 8 weeks. It was so convenient because the blood mobile would show up at work. Now with the company under new ownership, I guess they’ve decided they can’t afford to pay all these people for the half hour that they are sitting with a tube in their arm, so the blood mobile no longer comes around. If I want to donate, I have to go online and find when they are doing blood drives and then remember to go.
I could always tell whether I would pass the test by looking at the drop of blood. The last few times I tried to donate it was a bright red, which is a bad sign. Last Christmas I ate a few pounds of beef in a week (leftover Christmas dinner) and the drop was a nice dark red. I don’t like eating that much beef so it’s not a viable way for me to keep my iron up. I tried taking a supplement but it didn’t help.
I love black pudding. I’m going to try eating a couple of slices every day for a few weeks to see if it helps with my iron deficiency. I would love to be able to donate again.
I’ve done platlets a few times but they don’t ever seem to want them anymore. Or the machine is already booked for the day. Or the machine is broken. So I just go whole.
I was donating pretty regular for a while then I had just one too many “bad sticks” and my whole arm was black & blue and the bag didn’t even finish because the vein clotted too early or some shit.
I finally acquiesced again this February after a 3-year hiatus and the stick went great. So I went back again 60-some days later and have a third scheduled for the end of July where I get a free ticket to Cedar Point 
I need to do my best to be well fed and hydrated, and the people with the needles need to do their best to get it in the right place, and we can all be happy and healthy at the blood drive.
Medication list: Blood Donor Eligibility Criteria | Red Cross Blood Services
I donate as often as I can, usually double-reds, sometimes platelets if I have time. But right now I’m on a year deferment due to travel to a malaria area
I used to donate regularly. And even received my 5 gallon pin. But then I got into scuba diving…and travelling for dive trips. And it seems every place I go to is on the “malaria area” list of our local blood bank (interestingly, their list is not the same as the Red Cross’). So it’s been a few years since I’ve been able to donate, but I plan to start up again once I am able.
Up to 65 pints now, so 8+ gallons. They hold a drive at my office every eight weeks or so. Type O positive, so my blood can be given to most (but not quite all) recipients; when I’ve skipped drives, the Red Cross calls me several times to try to get me to make an appointment.
My veins are prominent, which makes the techs happy. Although at the last donation, she remarked about how “grainy” it felt as she inserted the needle, a symptom of scar tissue buildup from so many previous donations (I favor my right arm).
My sister used to donate when she was young, but after college she found that she didn’t tolerate the donation process well (nausea/fainting after the fact). Happily I have no such issues, so I’m still at it in my 40s.
I try to limit my red meat intake somewhat, but on donation days I always treat myself to a big ol’ cheeseburger.
Used to donate when they came to my hometown (roughly 4 times a year) but then we started having drives at work which are really easy to do. I did doinate recently back in my home town because there was beig enough gap at work.
Recently the ARC has called/emailed me every day. Mostly about platelets but also anything. At some point I’ll look into it. (frakly the more they bug me the less I want to donate…)
Brian
I got my 5 gallon pin just before we moved to Israel 10 years ago.
I’m not allowed to donate here . Apparently, it has to do with the fact that I had a heart attack nearly 20 years ago, and I’m still on blood pressure medication.
I can’t find it in myself to donate, I’ve had so much blood work done recently and I cannot abide needles in my flesh. I don’t know how heroin addicts self-inject. There’s simply no way I could.
I think I’m between 6-7 gallons per their web site. I miss the days when they gave you a pin. They come to my workplace. How much easier can it get? However, they keep scheduling the drives for the first week of the month when I’m at my busiest. I’m A+(second most common). I did win a door prize ($5 card for our convenience store) provided by my company last month though. They stuck my left arm, got a vein but no blood would flow even after much manipulation so they gave up on that and went to my right arm. Luckily, I’m not squeamish. But I figure I deserved the door prize.
I don’t seem to be able to donate. I’ve offered a couple of times, but they can never seem to find a vein that works for them
Honestly I don’t feel too badly done by about this. I’m not fond of needles.