My First Time Donating Blood Didn't Go as Planned, But You Shouldn't Let That Stop You

As embarrassing as it is to admit, the story of me passing out in the middle of the blood drive center is actually really funny. I had all the confidence in the world that I would be able to walk out of the donation center with zero complications but unfortunately, that is not what happened. My goal was to show how easy and fulfilling the donation process can be and while I can’t say that my first time was a breeze, I can say that I don’t regret the opportunity to help someone out.

The week before, I had decided that I wanted to do it and immediately booked my appointment. I had never donated before and was very excited to give it a shot. I had gotten blood work done in the past and figured donating would be somewhat similar. Booking the appointment was quick and easy, I just made an account at the American Red Cross blood donation website and booked a time and place. I filled out the rapid pass that the Red Cross emailed to me, and I was able to read the educational materials and answer the questionnaire ahead of time.

When I got to the center the kind people at the Red Cross got me sorted out and everything was going smoothly. I answered some background questions, they took my blood pressure and hemoglobin levels, which involved just a prick of the finger, and we were golden. Finally, it was time to get up on the table and a very kind nurse started talking me through the process. She asked me if I had eaten well and drank enough water which is when the red flag came. I realized I probably didn’t drink enough water and that the part of the confirmation email where it says to drink an additional 16 ounces of water was not just a ballpark suggestion. The nurse informed me that next time I should start hydrating the night before so that my blood could flow quicker, and I could reduce the risk of fainting. Little did we all know.

The moment came for her to put the needle in my arm, and I can honestly say it didn’t hurt whatsoever. For those of you that are afraid of needles, a tiny little splinter hurt more. It took about 6 minutes for my blood to fill up the bag and the whole time the nurse was checking in with me and asking if I was feeling alright. I was doing great the entire time; not once did I get woozy. When we were all done, the nurse thanked me for my donation, and I got up to go enjoy some snacks at the recovery table. This is where things took a turn.

Tweeted moments before I passed out. It was true, the donation was a success at that point.

It all happened so fast, one second, I was eating my pretzels the next I was wondering who turned the lights off. It was exactly like a movie when the protagonist is waking up and everything is blurry, and you hear voices off in the distance. Finally, when I snapped out of it I realized what had just happened and felt a combination of embarrassment, guilt and annoyance. Embarrassed because everyone in the room had just watched me hit the floor harder than a sack of potatoes, guilt because I should have known this was going to happen and annoyed because this had definitely derailed my plans for the rest of the day. The staff jumped in quickly to help me and reassured me that fainting wasn’t anything to be embarrassed about. They made sure I wasn’t injured, even though the only thing that hurt was my ego. After some apple juice and pretzels, I was back up and running again.

Although my first-time donating didn’t happen how I imagined it would, I’m still glad I went through with the experience. I know that the possibility of fainting can be enough to scare a person into never donating blood but use my story as a prime example of how not to prepare for a blood donation. If I had drank enough water, I probably would not have found myself in that situation, and as simple as it is, preparing your body with a little extra water, food and sleep is really all you have to do to have a smooth donation. Fainting and all, I’m so glad that I was able to donate if it meant a few other people would be able to get the blood they needed. During a time when the need for blood is continuous and the Red Cross is constantly looking for healthy volunteers, donating your blood can make all the difference to the people who depend on it. So, if you find yourself wanting to donate, just make sure you hydrate accordingly, and if you are one of the people who received my blood, the pleasure was all mine.