I'm now officially a first time doner. I gave blood today at around 4:00 today. They pinched my finger to test my blood I guess (which hurt). Then I laid on the bed and they stuck that needle in me. That hurt for about 5 seconds, and then the pain started dying off. It looks scarey to me to see how much blood they actually take. I had no idea it took that long either. Some friends had to get a picture of my facial expression when I was lying down because I looked pretty nervous. It was my first time after all, so I had good reason to feel nervous.
I'm glad I gave blood, but I can't say I liked it. My finger still hurts, and I don't feel like I have quite as much energy as I normally would. The best part about it is I possibly saved three lives today by donating my blood. It makes me feel a little less selfish and a little more giving like the "giver" I always claim I am to people.
2 comments:
Cool. I'm a gallon donor, meaning I've donated 8 times. You get used to it and it really doesn't hurt much once you know what to expect. I think the hardest thing is bringing yourself to donate a second time. After that it's a breeze.
Just don't do that new donation method where they take twice as many red blood cells and pump the plasma back in. I did it once and I would advise against it if they try to get you to. It takes forever, feels really weird, and seems like it could be potentially dangerous (they make you sign your life away beforehand).
I used to donate while I was at university, and for a year or two after I left uni. I haven't donated for the past 4 years. I may start to do so again.
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