Bob Hunkins dot com

Giving Blood

I gave blood for the first time today. This has been one of those things on my list of things to do, especially after suggesting others do so. "Exercise regularly" and "Lose Weight" are on the list, too. One reason I have been reluctant to give blood was I wasn't sure what to really expect, and perhaps reading about my experience today will encourage others to do it.

We had the blood drive today at work, and I went with three other folks from my office. The first thing I had to do was fill out a big form where I answered all sorts of questions like "Have you had sexual relations with someone who has had sexual relations with someone who has AIDS?" (of course the answer was "no".) I sat down at a station with a nurse who asked me more questions similar to the one above, took my blood pressure (128/84), and put two stickers on my shirt saying "Handle with care, First time donor", and "Starve a Mosquito, donate blood".

She took a small blood sample from my finger, and put it into a test tube filled with a blue solution. The nurse said the blood drop needed to sink to show I had enough iron in my blood. The specific gravity of my blood needed to be higher than the solution...That's for those of you who took a science class at some point.

I got up and walked across the room to a row of couches and laid down, with my right arm on a rest. Another nurse came by and gave me some information about what to do after I give blood (drink lots of fluids, eat a good meal afterwards, avoid the heat) and what not to do (no heavy labor or exercise for 24 hours, don't climb ladders or stairs for 12 hours...) She gave me a little yellow nerf ball to squeeze in my right hand, put a tourniquet on my arm and inserted the needle in my arm. I'm not squeamish about it, but I don't like to look at blood coming out of my arm, even if it's through a clear plastic tube that goes to to a bag. I'm sure that blood leaving is generally considered by the intinctual part of my mind to be a bad thing. This bag hung from a hook on a lever below the couch out of my sight. A nurse released the tournquet and told me to squeeze the ball once every 5-10 seconds. The sting from the needle was the most painful part of the experience, but once the blood started flowing, it ceased to hurt. I lay there quietly and patiently doing my thing with the yellow nerf ball, feeling just fine. The nurse came back presently, removed the needle, told me to raise my arm above my head, and had me press a piece of gauze over the wound. Several minutes later I was allowed to lower the arm and I waited there on the couch for a few minutes. I was told I should wait at least 10 minutes before getting up, and I have to admit I didn't look at my watch. I felt good, and after a time, they asked me if I wanted to get up. I did and walked over to the table to get some orange juice, oreo cookies, and a T-shirt. I sat down, drank the OJ and suddenly felt lightheaded. I started to sweat, and my peripheral vision started to disappear.

One of my office mates was next to me asked if I was okay, I said "I'm feeling lightheaded". He later said I looked "really gray". The nurses there asked me if I was ok, I repeated "I'm feeling lightheaded." I put my head down between my legs, and the nurses set up a couch. They put me on it, and placed a cold pack behind my neck, and on my forehead. Other friends stopped by my couch on their way to donate and kidded me slightly, saying things like "They may have to give you your blood back!" and "Good way to lie down on the job..."
I relaxed and felt better after I laid down. After 5 minutes, I sat up slowly, and did exactly what the nurse told me to do. I had more O.J., answered "Yes, I had breakfast his morning." I sat there for a few minutes, but I started to feel lightheaded again. I laid down and waited another few minutes. One of my office mates was still there, so we kept talking. I sat up again after a few minutes, and waited for a few minutes. I had apple juice, and finished my Oreos. I felt pretty good, got off the couch, and sat on the chair. After a few minutes the lighheadedness returned again... I was getting a little frustrated with myself. It was definitely not a smooth quick experience. I got back on the couch, more nurses, more cold packs, more visits from other nurses.. One said "We were watching you after you got up, we thought this might happen, you'll be okay." She also said "Sometimes folks just get lightheaded, it's no problem, take as long as you need. Most folks don't have this kind of thing happen every time, so it probably won't be this way the next time you give blood." Again, I was asked what I had for breakfast - Milk, sausages links, a little cereal. Maybe I should have had some OJ before I donated blood, or perhaps I should have had more water before hand. They took my blood pressure again, it was 110/79. I was feeling better, they had me sit up again, gave me more apple juice and then a sprite. After 10-15 minutes sitting there, I was still okay. They tried taking my blood pressure again, but the machine had malfunctioned. I felt good enough to walk over to a nurse station, slowly. I sat there, finished my sprite and had my BP taken again. 117/78. I still felt okay, and had a friend from the office still there. I was released, and told to drink lots of water, have a good lunch and take it easy... If I got lightheaded again I should call the phone number they gave me. I got back to the office, feeling pretty well, but just a little off... But I've been feeling better as the day has gone on.

Overall it was a positive experience, I recommend it. While it didn't go that smoothly, and it's not what I would call a fun experience, it was definitely worth doing. The blood donation staff was very professional, helpful and friendly. The main thing I would have done differently today would have been to eat a little more for breakfast, skip the coffee, and instead had some sort of juice with breakfast. Plus, drinking some water before going to donate blood would probably have helped. I'm not supposed to lift anything heavy today, nor climb stairs. Folks asked me if I had planned to sail today - Luckily the season's over; I would have been bummed not to be able to sail after giving blood. So if you're going to give blood, remember that it will affect your day. Don't plan to do much exercise or strenuous activity.

I hope that unit of blood I gave will help someone out. In eight weeks I can do it again.

Posted by Bob at October 8, 2003 03:56 PM