Did you know that in as little as 10 minutes, you can save three lives by donating blood. Rachel from Houchin Community Blood Bank brought Kern Living along to show how easy the donating process is.
Thank you guys for being brave to donate your blood you saved my life I was on my deathbed I was in nemia my blood level was so low I had no iron in my body they gave me blood transfusions and it actually saved me from dying I really think you guys God bless you🥰🥰🥰🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾
I'm very anxious about donating for the first time soon, so I'm watching footage of the process in action to help relieve my fears. Thank you for this video!
People of all ages and sizes donate, there is no age limit to donate and older people donate as well. Being a little scared is normal but you'll see it isn't nearly anything you'd think you need to be scared of. The phlebotomists are usually skilled and can make inserting the needle in your arm nearly painless, once its in you'll either have no pain or very little and as they said it only takes maybe 10 minutes to donate your actual blood. Don't be scared there are 5-6 million people in the U.S. that donate blood each year.
You're very right! I got past my fears, and since the time I commented I've been donating whole blood regularly and made several platelet and plasma donations as well. :) @@DylansPen
I'm going to be giving on tuesday at school. I want to do it, and I am, I just need to know whay happens so I don't panic. So this is really helping, even if I am still a bit scared I could save someone who could have problems.
I just donated for the first time yesterday. Usually you just need to sign up and sign a form and then you go wherever they want you to go. After that they check you in and they might give you a sticker and something to drink such as water or Gatorade. Then you will fill out forms, asking you various questions. Then they will interview you a little bit, check your blood pressure, and prick your finger. The pricking didn’t hurt at all for me. Upon reviewing your info, if you are eligible, they will then take you over to the bed. You will usually sit on a reclining cot. They will be a little armrest where you put the arm that they are taking the blood from. They will tie a tourniquet around your arm to find a vein. They will mark around the vein and clean your arm with a sponge. Then they will place the needle. They need a little bit thicker than your average needle but it is virtually painless. Apart from the one second it takes to place it you will not feel anything. They might have to move around the needle, but that doesn’t feel any worse than getting your arm touched. They will fill up two bags, the test bag and the donation bag. The test bag will be distributed in vials to test your blood. Your blood might clot and your arm might bruise. They might give you an ice pack to ice your arm with if it bruises. You will probably have to sit for a few minutes afterwards. They will likely give you some sort of food to eat afterwards. Usually a small snack. They might give you some sort of gift like in our school they gave us T-shirts. They might not. You will have to sit down for a few minutes afterwards. It will likely take maybe 30 minutes to an hour or more. It’s a pretty easy process. Just make sure that your iron is good and that you don’t eat fatty foods and drink at least 4 cups of water before you go. The blood will clot if you don’t have enough water. That’s what happened to me. If your iron is low, they won’t let you donate.
It's a lot easier, simpler and less painful than one might think, it benefits you and others as well, and if that wasn't enough, you get free drinks, biscuits and crisps here in the UK 🇬🇧❤
@@Zolega89 exposure therapy helps. I used to have a phobia of spiders, and once I learned more about spiders and expose myself to them purposely fully, I lost the phobia completely, and instead started to really like spiders instead. But if you are nervous, don’t make it discourage you from getting blood. You will barely feel it. Just don’t look.
@@resonantdeer9365 It was really easy. I came in and filled in a questionnaire, they took my blood pressure and tested my iron levels. Then the blood was drawn. It took about 10 minutes. Afterwards they gave me cookies and juice and I relaxed for a couple of minutes while eating. Really quick and easy and it saves lives. I recommend donating blood ❤
8 to 10 minutes seems like a long time for somebody who is anxious and nervous, such as myself, not being a fan of needles, and or sitting or laying down for that long!
The needles freak me out a bit too, and it does hurt a bit going in, but for me, it felt like someone was pinching my arm during the donation, and it was fairly easy for me to pretend that someone was just pinching my arm. You can also hold a stuffed animal if that helps. Thats what I did, and it helped me.
It’s a bandage to keep pressure on the site where the needle went into the blood vessel. So she doesn’t bleed and her blood can clot to make a scab so in an hour or 2 she can take it off.
@@Ray2822 Thank you. So it's just a regular bandage that the nurse applied? I was hoping it was some smart, elastic thing I could buy and put on my insertion site so that I don't need to apply pressure manually. Also, is it important to keep applying pressure on the site for a long time afterwards, and for how long? I've been told only the first 5 minutes or so.
@@jn2655 anytime!! Yup, the same bandage as when you get blood drawn from the lab in the doctors office. It looks different in the video then a wrap but it serves same purpose. Your actually right, after you get a blood draw they’ll wrap the bandage around your arm kinda tight to keep pressure on the site! You heard right! You can put pressure on it for 3 to 5 minutes after your blood been taken. But I don’t take the bandage off till like 30 minutes to an hour, to let that blood vessel clot and scab over so it doesn’t bleed out. At least that’s what my doctors wants me do. Some may make others keep it on longer or shorter. 😊
@@Ray2822 Thank you! I actually don't get a bandage put on me afterwards. Instead, I just get a sort of band aid. Yeah, I've been told I only need to apply pressure for about 5 minutes afterwards. I was just wondering if it's good to have pressure for longer, so if the point of that bandage was primarily for causing pressure on the site, it was news to me. Wish you a good day :)
They check your hemoglobin to see if you have anemia (low iron). If your hemoglobin is low your iron levels are low. So she is dumbing down her response because most people do not understand how blood works inside the body.
They will usually ask you a few dozen questions. All of them are to make sure that your blood will be OK and that you will be OK in the process. They will ask you if you sex related questions like if you are sexually active, if you use protection, or if you know of having any STDs. They will also ask you your weight if you’re pregnant if you’re afraid of needles, what vaccinations you have gotten, what medicine do you take if you’ve gotten tattoos or piercings within a certain time. If you’ve come in contact with other peoples blood. And then general things like where you live your name, how old you are, etc. They will also ask you some oddly, specific questions, like if you went to a certain country within a certain time.
They check your hemoglobin to see if you have anemia (low iron). If your hemoglobin is low your iron levels are low. So she is dumbing down her response because most people do not understand how blood works inside the body.
@@Melissa-eo4zu OR she's just plain uneducated. First how is hemoglobin "short" for iron, it's literally longer. 😂Second, anemia has more potential etiologies than low iron such as infection, so even the "dumbed down" version would be wrong. She could have just as well said "we measure hemoglobin to rule out anemia" instead of misinforming the public.
I've never donated blood and never will nor would I want anyone else's. You don't know what diseases they have. I've even took myself off the donor register.
If you need a life saving surgery your tune will change quickly about accepting someone elses blood. Of course no one wants to be in a position to need to take someone elses blood. But if its between that and dying then you need to do it. If people don't donate blood then almost no major surgery is possible.
I would gladly give blood but like everything else the government wants to know everything a person does, so you have to give them your SS number which is why a lot of people do not donate.
All the questions are just to make sure that your blood is safe. The government doesn’t use that information against you. If any of that information is used in an unjustified way then whoever used it that way will get punished. It’s really nothing to worry about.
@@blackqweenmars Don't they test the blood they take out of people? And why would it be any of the government's business when you give blood. By requiring your SS number I would be more inclined to believe they are collecting and cataloging DNA samples. I hope you are not one of the people that think the government is on your side, and would never cheat or lie to get what they want.