Views of No Other

Did you know that only* 37% of people are eligible to give blood in the United States and only 6% of those people actually give blood? Also, did you know that with a person’s single pint of blood, you could save more than one life. I for one have given blood twice and plan to for the rest of my life as much as i can.Most people are deathly scared of giving blood, because of the needle. There are also many misconceptions to the idea of giving blood that even i thought were true before even giving blood. 

1. If you have sex can you still give blood?  Yes you can, as long as you do not have an STD/HIV or have had sex with a person who has that or have had sex with a man who has had sex with another man
2. If i have taken pain killers can i still give blood? It depends when you have last taken these pills. They will ask you in a confidential interview about your sexual past and the medication you are on and many other questions. 42 to be exact.
3. Does the needle hurt? That again depends. If you have an irrational fear of giving blood, than it may, but to most people the needle honestly feels like a mosquito bite no matter the size of the needle.

And with that, here is my first experience…

It was sixth hour and it had been time for me to walk down the into depth that were unknown to me. The walk felt like it could have gone on forever and my heart was racing, which i knew was not good. I first walked into the gymnasium and of course it was freezing, but only to keep the blood flowing. I went to a desk where they checked me in and i gave them my papers. They had given me a booklet to read about why you should give blood, if you are taking any medications, which kind, and if you can give blood, if you do drugs, sexual activity, and if and how long you have been out of the country. 

After reading this (skimming, because it is long) you then sit in a kine of chairs and wait your turn for you to be pulled into a room to have a personal meeting with one of the workers. They ask you your birth date, where you live, name, and phone number. There they check your blood pressure and prick your finger quickly to check your hemoglobin levels, or iron levels. If you are good, then you must fill out a series of 42 questions mentioned before on their computer. Once you are done you must wait a while so the workers can look over your answers. They ask you if you did not understand any of the questions, considering there are questions that you must answer if you were the opposite sex-just skip them.

You are then taken to what looks like a hospital bed and laid down. They check which arm they will give blood in and mark it with an X. The worker then saves on some yellow stuff to clean your arm from bacteria. You can look away, but this is where the place the needle in  and that is it. Although, they give you a stress ball to roll and squeeze in your hand to keep the blood flowing in that hand. After the pack for your blood is filled, then they will take the needle out, ask you how you are feeling, and see if you are dizzy and remember your name and date of birth.

You will be sat up right and if you are dizzy or light headed/very pale in the face, then you be asked to lay down for a few minutes. With my first time this had happened and i had to be escorted to places for a while. Some people are not even close to fainting and quickly recover and are ready to go like i was my second time. You must then sit somewhere for fifteen minutes and eat some sugary foods. 

I hope this had shined a little light on the giving blood process and i hope that you may give blood in the future. You will feel very rewarded and good about yourself in the end.

Before you begin to think about cheating on your loved one…think about how it would be to lose that person so dear to you.