be nice to me...

i gave blood today!

i am a blood donor virgin no more.

this week is life safety week at our building and one of the activities was donating blood. the blood centers of the pacific where there to accept blood donations so i signed up to donate. it's for a good cause and it doesn't me cost a dime, so why not?

i ate a good lunch because i've been told that skipping a meal or donating blood on an empty stomach will make you pass out. so ron and i shared a patty melt from taylor's and some onion rings. delish!

after i filled out a long form and they asked a series of questions about the time i've spent out of the country in the last 12 months (where and how long ), i was set to donate blood. i sucked up any anxiety i had and told myself, 'there's a first time for everything!' takot kasi ako sa dugo. so this is a big step for me. so i lay on the bed and donated blood. i felt like my time took longer that the other donors...yun pala i had to squeeze the ball the gave me every few seconds to encourage blood flow.

after donating, they give you snacks and you have to stay in the facility for at least 15 minutes, just in case you pass out. i was feelin' good. feelin' cocky. in my head i was saying, 'yes! hindi ako hinimatay!' so i was eating peanuts, drinking water, waiting for my 15 minutes to be up. when out of the blue, i started feeling weird, the room started to get dark and i felt like i was spinning. there was a lady sitting next to me and i said, 'uhm, i think i need to lie down.' she stood up immediately and informed the nurse. the nurse told me to move my legs a little while i was lying down so blood will continue to circulate. so much for my confidence! after two minutes, i sat back up feeling much better. the nurse asked my how come i knew what to do when i get that feeling...i told her, 'it always happens to me when i accidentally cut myself and the wound starts to bleed.' so sanay na ako!

the needle is bigger than your vaccination needle. it is a bit painful and uncomfortable, the small wound is still bleeding so i have to keep it covered maybe until tomorrow. i think it will bruise, too. i wont forget the feeling of that warm blood flowing through the tube down to the bag below, the needle pulsating with the flow. freaky!

i will donate blood again. the nurse said that the blood volume with be replenished by the body in about 5 days, but the red blood cell levels wont be the same until after 55 days or so which means no donating for at least that long...not that i'm in a rush to do this all over again. i'll definitely try my best to donate every year.

i really feel this is something worth doing. i know deep inside we all want to do something good for others and i think this is one of the easiest ways to reach out and save a life.