Blood Donors (Random)

O

OFAWB

Spike's Pet
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Black Thorn
Any fellow blood donors here on Buffy Boards?

For me, giving blood is one of the best ways I can help others. I don't have much time or money to give to those in need, but I do have blood, and so I give a pint of it to the American Red Cross when I can. The needles don't bother me, and I actually enjoy the donation process. (Yeah, it's weird. I know. But even if I didn't enjoy the feeling of it, I'd still get cookies and juice afterwards!) I do experience temporary symptoms after donating, and that's normal when losing about 10% - 15% of my blood.

There's a problem, though: I was hoping to have donated a gallon of blood by the end of this calendar year...but the last two times I tried to give, my iron was too low. I started taking a multi-supplement, but that sort of thing usually doesn't absorb very well into the body.

What can I do to increase my iron intake? I already eat some pretty iron-rich foods on a regular basis (oats, beef liver, spinach). What else can be done? I'd like to donate every 8 weeks, which I know is difficult for most females to do. If I can get through it, though, I will.

Any thoughts/suggestions? Or funny blood donation stories, of which I've got a few. 😀
 
I understand what you mean, I try to donate regulary, but often my iron is too low as well, I've been told that taking something high in vitamin C will help the body absorb the iron.

No real stories for me, did nearly faint one time after, so they made me lie down for longer the next time.
 
I'd forgotten about the Vitamin C thing! Thanks for the tip. Next time, I'll have a piece of fruit to go with my liver. 😀

Funny story: One time after donating, I was sitting at the recovery table with my cookies and juice, and suddenly felt lightheaded with the urge to put my head down on the table. I did, and the nurses RAN over to me in three seconds flat, dragged me to a cot, and made me breathe into a paper bag for ten minutes. I was an officer in a student organization at the time, and I ended up being late for our meeting, and the president and all the other officers showed up and were sitting by my cot, waiting for me to not die. LOL!
 
In Canada, there is a restriction that you can only give blood once every 90 days. Add to that the fact that female physiology requires more iron than male physiology and you have a possibility of problems like anemia and light-headedness after a donation. I have also been a blood donor and I felt this light-headedness only the second time I gave blood.

I commend you for your willingness to donate, but you should recognize that there are times when you may not be at your best and you will not have enough iron in your blood to qualify for donation. It takes 90 days for the body to turn over its stock of red blood cells (90 days to do a complete rebuild of the blood supply), so that is probably where the Canadian restriction comes from. Blood is also free in Canada - donors are not paid but recipients do not pay either.
 
I would love to donate blood but I can't because of my tattoos. I understand why they have those rules in place, but those rules still get me mad sometimes because there is a huge shortage of blood but they'll refuse some people that shouldn't be denied, like people that are gay. Someone in my family has been happily living with a man for the past 10 years of so of his life, they are both monogamous and HIV negative and yet, they are still denied giving blood because they are too at risk for HIV yet they've only ever been together (that's much better than a lot of straight couples).

For the iron, the only thing I can think of is making sure not to donate after your period, your iron should be lower at that time.
 
O
OFAWB
Don't get me started on some of the rules they have. Of all populations based on sexual preference, gay women have the LOWEST risk of HIV...Yet they're denied the opportunity to donate. And all the blood is tested anyway, so...
American Red Cross blood donors don't pay or get paid, either. In the United States, the minimum waiting period between whole blood donations is 56 days (8 weeks). Plasma "donors" get paid and don't have to wait as long between donations, but I don't like the idea of giving plasma for money, the sterility of the recycling machine seems questionable to me, and if I donated too often I could damage my veins. I like the suggestions to wait longer. Perhaps every 12 - 14 weeks is a more realistic waiting time?
 
[MENTION=8404]Blaze[/MENTION] but the rule is only for the 6 first months, isn't it? After that you're good to go (unless you get your tattoos every 6 months 😉 )

I only give blood for the cookies and juice... joking 😛
It's the first thing I wanted to do when I turned 18. I think it's very important to help in whatever way I can and giving blood is quite easy. I just don't look when they insert/pull the needle and I'm fine. Plus, my blood seems to like rushing out of my body, cause it takes me about 5 minutes to fill a pint.

As for low iron problems: don't drink coffee/tea before or after you ingest iron (in whatever form) it keeps it from being absorbed in your body. You can try to eat horse meat (which is really good, is low-fat and has a high iron ratio). And sleep 8h a night for the few days before (especially if you plan in advance to be giving on a certain day).
Having your period must not change that much your blood rate, because I was able to give the day after I finished last month.

Oh, and drinking a tall glass of orange juice can easly replace vitamin C. And it's less expensive 😉
 
Vamp Jenny said:
[MENTION=8404]Blaze[/MENTION] but the rule is only for the 6 first months, isn't it? After that you're good to go (unless you get your tattoos every 6 months 😉 )
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It is 😛 Since I've turned 18 I've gotten a tattoo or a piercing about every 6 months lol, I'm a bit addicted to them.
 
I have a family member with Hep C so I can't donate. At least I don't think so (even though it was diagnosed 13 years ago, he received treatment and for a very long time now the virus levels are so low that they are not detectable).
 
VisionGirl said:
I have a family member with Hep C so I can't donate. At least I don't think so (even though it was diagnosed 13 years ago, he received treatment and for a very long time now the virus levels are so low that they are not detectable).
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I wonder what the rule is on this one. My mom got hep C (ironically) from a blood transfusion. She has now been hep C "free" for years, but still can't donate blood, but both my dad and myself can donate with no issues (at least not that I know of, we've never contracted the virus though).
 
Blaze said:
I wonder what the rule is on this one. My mom got hep C (ironically) from a blood transfusion. She has now been hep C "free" for years, but still can't donate blood, but both my dad and myself can donate with no issues (at least not that I know of, we've never contracted the virus though).
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You know I haven't looked into it in a very long time. I just remember that when I was looking into cord blood donation when my 1st son was born (12.5 years ago), I was told that we couldn't donate and that cord blood banks follow the same rules that blood banks do.
 
Blaze
Blaze
interesting, I have a few friends that do blood clinic, if I get the chance I'll ask them
Wow! My mom also had Hepatitis C, which she got from a blood transfusion in the late '70s. She's been cured of it, though, due to a research study. And I tested negative for it (as did both my siblings), so I'm allowed to donate.
 
From the Red Cross website: " If you ever tested positive for hepatitis B or hepatitis C, at any age, you are not eligible to donate, even if you were never sick or jaundiced from the infection.
Hepatitis Exposure
If you live with or have had sexual contact with a person who has hepatitis, you must wait 12 months after the last contact."

http://m.redcrossblood.org/donating...nts/eligibility-criteria-alphabetical-listing

This means my children can't donate either. 🙁
 
I'm sorry. In my opinion, a lot of the restrictions on blood donation are unncessary.
 
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