Are you a blood donor? And if so...

I can't donate. They don't let you if you have lives overseas for more than like 6 months and I did for 6 years. I tried in HS and they turned me away.

Thank you for donating--all of you who do. I have an autoimmune disease and require a specific component of blood to be infused every month. Each treatment of mine requires the donation of 10,000 donors so each drop is like liquid gold. I really appreciate all who have donated and will donate in the future.

Cally

I donated once when I was in my 20's. Since then, I've been too severely anemic to donate. They haven't figured out the cause of the anemia. I don't think I'd know what it feels like to be not tired!

I can't donate... I don't weigh enough! I tried getting out of class way back in highschool but the teacher told me you had to weigh I think 110 pounds... So no blood from me

Well, I guess that I will weigh in on platelet donation - something that I have been doing about once a month since 2001. I go to the Red Cross center, so I must say that my experience has generally been a positive one. I always think of it as "me" time - I get to lay down in a very comfortable chair, all bundled up, and watch my choice of DVD's. I get very good care andfeel like I am doing something really worth while. I have never worried about anything contaminated coming back into my body - I think that would be difficult. Maybe one of the nurses or techs can explain why that would be. As I understand it, the blood comes out and goes through a machine where the platalets are removed and then the blood is pumped back into your arm. I will say, that sometimes the needle is slightly uncomfortable, but I always think that the good that I am doing, out-weighs any unpleasantness. I think that when you donate platelets, you can do so more frequently than blood, because you get your blood back. I would strongly encourage anyone who can take a couple hours a month to do this. There are so many people who need platelets because of their illness or the treatments that they may be receiving!

Originally Posted by CarolPetunia

I understand... when I first started donating, I lived in Austin, and the organization that did it there used a tiny jab of anesthetic so the BIG needle wouldn't hurt. I got used to that, and then I moved up here where they just come at you with the big one right up front! AUGH!

It took some getting used to, but I find it helps to watch while they do it. That way you know exactly what's happening and when.

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I've had blood drawn a couple times lately from at the local hospital. Both times I've had a really polite and friendly technician, she's also very quick and doesn't leave me with a horrible bruise. In fact the last time I didn't even feel the shunt (believe that's what the larger needle is called?). So the person working there makes a big difference.
However... I don't look. I know I'll tense up and that will make it worse.


I have a feeling that I'll never be allowed to donate.
I have an appointment in August with a rheumatologist and depending on what she finds, I may end up on several medications.

I'm afraid of needles, too, but I work for a medical association and I'm very, very aware of the need for blood. So last January I decided to buck up and donate anyway. It really wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. The blood service in our area is LifeSource, and their phlebotomists were flat-out wonderful. I can sometimes be tough to draw blood from (my veins roll and collapse if they don't do it just right and I end up with ridiculously large bruises), but they were experts and had no problem. They were also very understanding of my fears. I'm just the opposite of you, though, Carol...I CAN'T watch them do it, and I can't look at the needle under my skin. It just freaks me out. It made me feel so good to know I was helping that I made another donation in April. I imagine I'll become a regular. I've been thinking about trying to give platelets, but I think we'll take it one step at a time.

I have given blood only twice. All the other times I`ve been they said my haemoglobin levels weren`t high enough
The only problem I had when they took blood was they were literally squeezing it out of my arm to fill the bag up in time. No problems otherwise.

Would love to give blood again especially as I received 4 pints a few years ago, but I`m not allowed now because I have to take medication every day.

I will always be grateful to those who do give

Gosh, I'm glad I brought this up! We have so many people here who are doing what they can, and maybe this thread will help remind us all to keep donating regularly.

Someone mentioned that the platelet donation process has changed, and that's true -- it's much simpler now, just one arm and it only takes an hour, they tell me. If I can find a place where I have more faith in the technicians, I really have no excuse for not doing it.

Several people have said they can't donate because of having lived overseas or low hemoglobin or medications... and I wanted to mention that the prerequisites seem to change fairly often, as research reveals what is and is not a concern.

I take four daily medications myself, but none of them is a problem -- it's only specific meds that preclude donation.

I lived overseas as a child and traveled there several years ago, but the locations and lengths of time are such that it's no problem... and they also consider how long it's been since you spent time there, so again, it's not necessarily a permanent exclusion.

And most of us are lucky enough to be able to boost our hemoglobin sufficiently with a bit of supplemental iron, or even just by eating well for a day or two and avoiding caffeine. So even if you've been told in the past that you can't donate, it's possible you might be able to now, depending on what the issue was.

Cally, I'm so sorry you're sick -- it's people like you who made me start donating in the first place, long ago. It makes me feel great that such a small act on my part can provide such great benefit to you!

Inbandcats, thank you for your insight... and StrangeWings, I hope your rheumatologist finds good news for you.

Tari, that's great, I'm glad you're going to be a regular donor!

Jaffacake, I had a problem like that once myself -- it just seemed to take forever, and they told me it was because I was a little dehydrated. Since then, I've made sure to drink enough water on the day I'm going to donate, and I've had no trouble.

Thank you to everyone for your input on this... I do feel better about doing the platelets now, and goodness knows there's a huge need to fill.

Originally Posted by CarolPetunia

Duchess, my gosh, you've been exposed to Mad Cow? Or Creuzfeld-Jakov? You're okay, though, right?

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I haven't literally been exposed to it. I lived in Europe during a time period that they were having problems with mad cow disease and contaminated beef that may have been imported into certain countries were of concern. Although, it's been 16 years...you'd think I'd know by now if I was exposed to it! I would never trade those years I lived there!

Just went and checked on Blood Donors website and you have to answer a few questions, so I did.
Didn`t even get to a question about medication! It said I couldn`t after I ticked 'Yes' for having recieved a blood transfusion after 1981 ( or 1980, can`t remember). That`s disappointing. I always presumed I wouldn`t be able to because of my meds!

I expect it`s different there but heres the questionaire
http://www.blood.co.uk/pages/flash_questions.html

Ooo, I got sick all of the three times I donated blood when I was in my early 20s. I had a couple of autoimmune diseases I didn't know about, including pernicious anemia. It took me too long to recover, and I was told not to donate, and now I couldn't if I wanted because of the meds in me.

I've been a regular donor for years; I go every 8 weeks like clock-work, altho' once or twice a year they send me home because my iron level is too low. I take iron tablets, and they don't really seem to help much. Besides raisins, sunflower kernels are supposed to be high in iron. The only thing that really seems to help my iron is to eat beef for a few days before I donate.

I can't donate blood due to megaloblastic anemia. I think anyone who donates blood is a very good person.

I used to donate at least twice per year but since I had cancer in 1972 they don't want my blood anymore.

Originally Posted by CarolPetunia

...What type of donation do you do? I've been doing whole blood donation every eight weeks like clockwork for almost thirty years. It doesn't worry me much, because nothing comes back into my body.

But last year, when they had a desperate need here for my type (A+), I went ahead and started doing "double red" donations, because that helps several more patients than a straight whole blood donation. In double red, they separate the elements of your blood and return some of them to you, along with some anticoagulant medication... and I don't like the idea of anything coming back in, because of course that opens the possibility of trouble, some kind of contamination in the anticoagulant, who knows... but I've been doing it anyway.

Now they want me to start doing platelet donation. As I understand it, that involves the return of parts of your own blood, plus the anticoagulant, plus some additional fluids of some kind -- and instead of waiting four months to become eligible to donate again, you can donate every two weeks.

Obviously, that would benefit many more patients than I can help now, and that would be great. But it would also drastically increase my exposure to potential problems, and I'm just plain scared of it.

So my questions are...

1. Does anyone have experience with blood donation, either as a donor or as a blood draw technician? I'd love to know what you think about the process and its safety.

2. If you've ever worked in a draw center or a blood lab, what is your feeling about the sterility and safety procedures involved? At the place I go to here in Plano, I often feel extremely doubtful of the very young, very cavalier technicians they hire. They're usually too involved in their personal conversations, or in the soap operas on TV, to even make eye contact with me. I'd feel a lot better if they concentrated on what they're doing, but... am I just being oversensitive?

3. Does anyone know of any cases of infection or trouble of any kind related to blood donation?

Thanks for any insight you can provide...

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I cannot tell you all of the information you want but I did want to take this time to tell you what a great person you are. (Not just because you live in Plano, either.) You will note that I have a sole ribbon and that is for prostate cancer. I like you, gave blood as often as I possibly could (whole blood) until that time. After five years, I was allowed to start giving blood again and soon came down with melanoma. So I cannot give any blood once again but I admire highly all those that do including my DW, who knows how important it is. So I just want to tell you and everybody else reading this that

YOU ARE A HERO!

I wouldn't mind donating -but i can not. I have severe Vertigo and any amount of blood loss like that can make me very very ill. My veins are also AWEFUL!! They roll very badly- when my doctors/nurses try to get blood from me just for a simple test they often have to stick me multiple times-it's horrid!! My blood type is O+ I am however an organ donor so hopefully someday someone will benifit from that.

Colin however donates every few months I think he's O+ too.

Originally Posted by Bonnie1965

I have tried to donate but every time they tell me my veins are too narrow. Not sure what that means exactly.

So glad you can - thank you for being a lifesaver

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That's my problem. It takes them 5 minutes to get a small vial when they do a blood test on me. I've tried to donate blood a few times and they always reject me because they can't get the blood out quick enough and it probably take me hours to give a pint.

I'm A-, so my blood would be very useful. How does one make your veins grow anyway? I've tried drinking a lot of water before hand and it hasn't helped.

Originally Posted by libby74

I've been a regular donor for years; I go every 8 weeks like clock-work, altho' once or twice a year they send me home because my iron level is too low. I take iron tablets, and they don't really seem to help much. Besides raisins, sunflower kernels are supposed to be high in iron. The only thing that really seems to help my iron is to eat beef for a few days before I donate.

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Eat raisins right before you go to donate, that is what I always do. And this past week, my blood even sank after they pricked my finger. They usually hafta do something else to see if my iron is ok.

I've done both whole blood and platelet donations (I'm 0+). I found I have WAY fewer side effects with platelet. No light headedness (sp) that I get for a couple days after whole blood, but I do rotate back and forth. Also, with platelets, you can donate more frequently than with whole. For now, I've back off on donating, b/c I may be a match as a kidney donor for my bro-in-law. Need to keep my blood for now until I know if I'll be a match or not.