NationStates Jolt Archive

So, I go to the local blood donation session. Firstly, I get told my veins are small (thanks to my mum, she got turned away for that reason) and that the donation may take a while (15 minutes). Then after its over, I'm lying on the bed and feel all sleepy, close my eyes, and next time I open my eyes there's 5+ people standing around me, moving me into a recovery position and asking me what my name is (which I didn't remember at first). Apparently, I fainted, but also went all rigid and white, they called it some kind of seizure as all the blood to the brain had momentarily cut off.

Anyone else had blood donation incidents? Or other general medical incidents?

Never had any problem. Never had problem with needles, or anything of the like.

I did fainted a few times when I was a kid, but never after donating blood. Nowadays, after donating, I feel like I could run a marathon. No effect on me whatsoever.

Anyone else had blood donation incidents? Or other general medical incidents?
The only blood donation incident I've ever had was an argument about cricket after the last time I donated...

Give Blood! It saves lives!


...Possibly at the expense of your own.

First time, had to get poked twice, and they did such a poor quality job the second time the needle bit into the side of the vein or something and stopped sucking blood, and I almost fainted.

Second time, i got a bad flu right afterwards and had to call them and tell them not to use the blood.

Give Blood! It saves lives!


...Possibly at the expense of your own.

Yes! Think of the vampires!


I don't donate, but I probably will start once I'm a tad older.

First time I gave blood, my vein collapsed. Instead of pulling the needle out of my arm and sticking it into a new vein, they just pulled it out of the vein, twisted it inside my arm, and jabbed it into the new vein. Had a bruise from the middle of my forearm to my shoulder for 6 weeks.

Refused to give blood for years after that. Finally convinced to give after 9/11. After waiting 3 hours in line at the Pentagon, I got the form and started reading. Found out that I am banned from donation now - I lived in England for too long during the mad cow years. From what the doc told me, I'll probably be banned for life...

Give Blood whenever and as often as possible! Better yet take part in apheresis where you donate white cells (takes longer but well worth the time)! Due to recent skin cancer I can't donate for 5 yrs but I will again as soon as I'm cleared:fluffle:

First time I gave blood, my vein collapsed. Instead of pulling the needle out of my arm and sticking it into a new vein, they just pulled it out of the vein, twisted it inside my arm, and jabbed it into the new vein. Had a bruise from the middle of my forearm to my shoulder for 6 weeks.

Refused to give blood for years after that. Finally convinced to give after 9/11. After waiting 3 hours in line at the Pentagon, I got the form and started reading. Found out that I am banned from donation now - I lived in England for too long during the mad cow years. From what the doc told me, I'll probably be banned for life...
Solution: move to England. :)

Not a blood donation incident per say, but when I was being tested to see if I was able to donate my kidney I had to do what they called a "fasting sugar test". Basically no food for 24 hours then they do a blood draw, make me drink some glucose, wait an hour (I think it was) and draw more blood. While I was there for the first blood draw they said "Hey, we've got to draw blood for some other tests, why don't we just do that now . . .". After they finished drawing a metric fuck load of my blood (remember I haven't eaten for 24 hours at this point) there was a really bad smell and funny blurry shapes started making noises at me. After about a minute I figured out they were asking me if I was alright, shortly after I realized the bad smell was smelling salts and the people were blurry because my glasses fell off when I passed out. They nearly ruined the fasting sugar test by trying to get me to drink some juice instead of the glucose . . .

Found out that I am banned from donation now - I lived in England for too long during the mad cow years. From what the doc told me, I'll probably be banned for life...

This one always amused me... in England, we are open about stuff like BSE. In America it happens, but is hushed up. So - it is perceived that England was more dangerous for a few years..

The only time I gave blood, everything seemed to go well. I even did a little dance when it was done. They said I needed to drink some coke and for some reason I passed out when doing that. I didn't fell it coming. My brother thought I was joking. They needed to put me on a chair-bed thing. When the blackness finally started to clear, a doctor started smacking me.

My other brother laughs at me for this, which isn't fair, because he doesn't even dare to give blood. Bah. :p

A few years ago I went to donate blood but was turned away because within the last year I had visited Ecuador-a hotspot for Malaria. I asked the screener (just out of curiosity) why it was a whole year. he said it was because the disease could be dormant for that long. Shocked, I asked him if I could, in theory, contract Malaria at any time within that year and he said basically, yes.

:eek:

[the OP]


Pretty much the exact same thing happened to me once - with the going white and rigid and the passing out. I reckon it was brought on by not having eaten enough before I gave blood. The solution: eat more! To be on the safe side, eat more even on days when you are not giving blood.

First time I gave blood, my vein collapsed. Instead of pulling the needle out of my arm and sticking it into a new vein, they just pulled it out of the vein, twisted it inside my arm, and jabbed it into the new vein. Had a bruise from the middle of my forearm to my shoulder for 6 weeks.

Refused to give blood for years after that. Finally convinced to give after 9/11. After waiting 3 hours in line at the Pentagon, I got the form and started reading. Found out that I am banned from donation now - I lived in England for too long during the mad cow years. From what the doc told me, I'll probably be banned for life...

probably not...we don't know the incubation time of BSE, nor is there a way to test for it or treat it...so yeah.


I've never had anything fun. But I can fill the bag in just under 2 minutes :)

The first time I gave blood, I was 16 and horrendously nervous.
So, I'm sitting there, on that chair, all tense. They slip the needle into my vein. and then, for about a tenth of a second, blood starts spurting out of my vein and onto my shirt. I start laughing manically.

Not a blood donation incident per say, but when I was being tested to see if I was able to donate my kidney I had to do what they called a "fasting sugar test". Basically no food for 24 hours then they do a blood draw, make me drink some glucose, wait an hour (I think it was) and draw more blood. While I was there for the first blood draw they said "Hey, we've got to draw blood for some other tests, why don't we just do that now . . .". After they finished drawing a metric fuck load of my blood (remember I haven't eaten for 24 hours at this point) there was a really bad smell and funny blurry shapes started making noises at me. After about a minute I figured out they were asking me if I was alright, shortly after I realized the bad smell was smelling salts and the people were blurry because my glasses fell off when I passed out. They nearly ruined the fasting sugar test by trying to get me to drink some juice instead of the glucose . . .
had that when I was pregnant, had to not eat for 12 hours, then take my blood, then drink the glucose (which is disgusting in itself, add on being sick from not eating and also morning sickness.....bleh) then they made me wait an hour, and took more blood, then they made me wait another hour and took more blood, then they let me eat, only I passed out on the way to the restaurant and woke up in premature labor, with my doctor (you know the idiot who ordered the test) yelling at me about "you have to eat every few hours, you can't just not eat, you are carrying a child"

no.fucking.duh. :mad:

I thought my husband was going to hit him. :p

I've never had anything fun. But I can fill the bag in just under 2 minutes :)Nice to know whose heart would pump itself to death in an accident.

I seem to remember that when I went to get my blood tested, to see if some vacinations had worked, my vein collapsed before the nurse had even collected 20ml or something tiny like that.