From: "Madeleine Yeh" <myeh at wap.org>
Subject: [WSFA] Bad experience giving blood
To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at KeithLynch.net>,<wsfa-forum at yahoogroups.com>
Date: Thu, 23 Apr 2009 16:40:22 -0400
Reply-To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at KeithLynch.net>

Has anyone had an utterly terrible experience giving
blood?

   I went in to the red cross center yesterday and after
an utterly boring wait found myself being sticked with a
needle and tested for iron content.
   After another wait, also boring but I had a book, I
found myself offering up my right arm where I prefer to
sacrifice my left.
    Then this horribly big sharp needle is stuck into my
arm, and no blood comes out.
The technician wiggles it around ( ouch, its sharp ) and
the blood comes into the horrible little tubes.    Then as
I squeeze this rubber ball and get more bored.  I am
firmly instructed to squeeze with my fingers and not just
my thumb as that involves more muscles.
  The pressure cuff is uncomfortably tight and I can feel
my fingers get numb.
   Then the technician notices that my bag is not filling
with blood and comes and wiggles the big sharp needle some
more.    Then she inserts it a little deeper and tightens
the cuff again.  Then another technician comes and
 presses on my arm near the needle with gloved fingers.
Still the blood doesn't pour out.     After a couple of
minutes they give up and take out the needle and bandage
the wound.   I hadn't been able to donate enough blood for
a regular offering and my poor blood goes off with the not
quite adequate pile.
    A couple of bags of cookies and an orange juice later,
I head for home having throughly wasted three hours
without contributing much to society.