A BLOODY PROBLEM

 

The last time I donated blood, the nurse was unable to draw any from my left arm. I could feel the needle moving under my flesh. They were forced to stick me in the other one. This has happened before. 

Only this time, the blood from my other one stopped flowing. It’s as if my body was refusing to give it up! And I could see blue veins surfacing all the way down my arm.

“This is strange,” the nurse remarked. Then she complained about having to sit there the whole time urging my blood to flow.

“I always have problems with her!” another responded.

Geez! Just because I have a needle in my arm doesn’t mean I’ve gone deaf. I was startled to hear this! I had no idea I was always considered a problem.

And the nurses were now reacting like I was doing this on purpose, -- as if I had that kind of control! In fact, mentally I was saying: flow, flow, flow! I want to get out of here; I’ve errands to run!

That month, the free gift was another T-shirt. I wear those. They’re perfect for grocery shopping & dentist/doctor visits. Just add a coordinating pair of slacks and I’m dressed, without being dressy.

This time, I wasn’t offered one and had to ask! I was told there were none left in my size. All they had was large. I said, “Give me one of those, I know how to shrink them.”

This is easy with that material. Just throw it into the washer, set on hot & then toss into the dryer. And magically you get a smaller size! Keep doing this until you get the right fit.

As to the ones already my size, those need to be hand-washed in cold water, then dried flat.

I was given one but almost had to twist the nurse’s arm to get it.

As I was leaving, I noticed they seemed relieved to be rid of me. -- I should have grabbed even more free bags of Doritos from the snack station before I left!

Several months before, I hired a young tech guy to help me with a computer issue. He informed me that he too had been a frequent blood donor. But discontinued when he developed unsightly bumps in the area where the needle was inserted.

I had no idea then what he was talking about!

But after my last donation, these bumps appeared! I’ve got a big one on the arm where the blood stopped flowing!  And a smaller one on the other arm. Plus, the skin is all messed-up and looks terrible. And I doubt it’s going to bounce back at my age.

No more blood donations for me, at least not any time soon.

I don’t want this to discourage anyone from donating, -- although I’m probably doing exactly that! This is so important; all types of blood are desperately needed!  Lives are at stake! And there must be a way around this.

Perhaps if I’d spaced out my donations longer, this could have been avoided. Instead of donating every 8 weeks, I should have waited 16 or longer. However, being on a fixed income, I really needed that $20 (often more) coupon for groceries, and I will miss it.

I feel awful about this all the way around!