This week I donated blood for the first time. I work at Nationwide in downtown Columbus and they actually have an American Red Cross Blood Donation Center on-site. It couldn’t be more convenient. I’ve always made donations to the Red Cross and in high school I enjoyed helping run the blood drives, but honestly up until this past year or so, I haven’t met the minimum weight requirement to donate. Even now, I am barely there. But, I really wanted to do it. You never know – your blood donation could ultimately save a life. Selfishly, that feels really good.
So, a bit about my experience. I consider myself tough. I’ve had jaw surgery, dealt with all kinds of pain training, and overall feel I have a decent threshold for pain. But, I was extremely nervous going into this – how bad it would hurt, would I pass out, would I feel the blood leaving my arm. So, I hope you are not laughing at my concerns, but I was really a bit nervous. However, one nice part of the experience was my dad also works at Nationwide and he donated at the same time. He’s a pro – double reds every time! This gave me a bit of confidence.
The staff was wonderful and answered all of my questions. Because it was my first time, they laid me down the entire time. I was also told I have great veins for giving blood – it only took 9 minutes for them to get all the blood that was needed. So, the needle really hurt going in, and it stung a bit the entire time. I did get really hot about 5 minutes in and felt like I was going to pass out, but they gave me a cool cloth and then I felt better. I could barely feel them take the needle out, but I tell ya what, my arm was really sore. It felt extremely bruised and I am so thankful I planned my workouts accordingly, because I couldn’t grip anything for two days. Thank goodness for cardio, core, and leg days! I enjoyed my UMP and grapefruit afterwards along with several bottles of water. I felt really weak and out of it for the rest of the day, but overall it seems I had a great first time experience.
I know people give blood every day. I know it’s really not that big of a deal. For me, I overcame a huge fear of something going wrong, feeling sick, having my vein burst everywhere, and feeling a lot of pain. I couldn’t straighten my arm all the way for a couple days, lost sleep, and felt a bit off, but am so happy I am so healthy and am able to donate. Everyone’s experience is different and I am sure it will only get easier. Half the battle was dealing with internal voice and all of its unneeded worry!
I signed up for my next donation at the end of May. I would encourage anyone who can to go give blood. It really could save a life.
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| They taped me up real good 🙂 |
