donate a gallon of blood

So I am very close to doing this I think. I have donated blood at least five times, five pints, and there are 8 pints in a gallon.
Ahhh…3 more times! But I would have already had this done, but I got a tattoo and so I had to wait a year from when I got the tattoo. 1 year in June! Yes!

So soon for me.

I get invited to a special “VIP Donor Recognition Event” if I donate a total of 6 times this year. That’s 4 more times for me, and I can just make it if I donate the first day possible and come back from my Christmas trip home before New Year’s. It’s worth the effort.

Right now, I’m just trying not to pass out every time I stand up thanks to dehydration, which is what happened last time I donated when it was hot.

I’m going to have to start hydrating better or something, this is the second time in a row that I’ve needed ice packs afterwards.

I did get a nifty t-shirt that says “Jazz Up a Life” on the back, and free pineapple juice and goldfish crackers.

Just as it is not a good idea to donate blood on a 95* day while dehydrated and then not eat for 4 hours afterwards unless you enjoy near-fainting for the next 24 hours, it is also not a good idea to donate blood when you’re half-asleep and in a warm room.

I came very close to passing out and/or throwing up today, except for cold packs and getting my feet raised. Lesson learned. I feel much better now.

You can donate every 8 weeks, which puts the next day I can donate squarely on Mardi Gras. Hmmm, looks like I’ll have to wait a day or two.

It is apparently not a good idea to give blood on a 95* day after a run so you’re thoroughly dehydrated, then have barely anything to drink and nothing to eat for 4+ hours. It’s the only way I could do it, though, since my classes are over dinnertime and the permanent donation sites are all the way across town.

It was worth it, just not the almost fainting every time I stood up for the next 24 hours part. I did get a(n unofficial) Saints shirt as a thank-you which I have been coveting ever since I got here.

Apparently I’m CMV negative, which is relatively rare. That means my blood can be used by premature babies and others with compromised immune systems. It also means I got a special “Baby Brigade” pin.

I need to watch my hydration if I want to donate when it’s hot though. That, and I need to follow their directions about eating one hour before donating. I forgot, and I keep almost blacking out whenever I stand up. That’s my fault though, so don’t let that scare you away from donating. That’s never happened to me before, so I think that I just didn’t drink enough beforehand.

Once again on the first day I was eligible to donate, once again at the donor center where they were very efficient. I’m now enjoying my post-donation Famous Amos cookies and drinking lots of water and hoping I can run some semblance of a speed workout on Wednesday.

Next day I’m eligible is May 21st. You know where I’ll be.

EDIT: Since I’m moving to New Orleans in August for school, I checked on the national Red Cross website for blood donor information down there. Apparently there’s no blood services region for the area, and no blood donation information on the local chapter’s website. I hope I can still donate once I get to New Orleans.

Today was the first day I could donate again and there wasn’t a blood drive scheduled in my area, so I drove an hour out to Frederick and went to the donor center. I was in and out of there in an hour, they were that efficient.

I could have waited 2 days and gone to a blood drive closer to home, but I want to be fully recovered by the time I do my long run Saturday. Plus, today was the first day I could donate again and I want to donate as often as I possibly can.

6 more to go!

I gave blood for the first time about a month ago. It turns out that that I’m type B negative, which is one of the more rare types of blood. Also, right now there is a critical shortage of my blood type, just a half a day’s supply. I’ll donate the next day I’m able, on January 29th.

http://www.my-redcross.org/bloodsupply.asp