Today, I made my 40th whole blood donation for the state of Washington. 40 pints works out to 5 gallons!
If an average-sized male has 12 pints of blood in their body, that means I’ve completely replaced mine 3 times in the last 9+ years. I didn’t even count the 2 donations I did in California in 2014-2015. My blood is toddler fresh!
Will I get my 10-gallon pin by 2030? We will see.
John
Feb 4, 2020 — 8:41 pm
That’s awesome, congrats!
I tried to start following in your footsteps, but I’m not happy with the Red Cross. My second donation didn’t go well. The main issue was they couldn’t get blood to come out of my left arm in spite of having prominent enough veins. They refused to try my right arm, so I had to leave without anything to show for it except a hematoma, a bruise, and an arm that itched for over a week. They weren’t particularly friendly, didn’t say thanks, or much of anything else. I won’t be going back.
MAS
Feb 5, 2020 — 7:09 am
@John – Sorry things didn’t go well. Perhaps try again in a year or two. The staff at these places change quickly.
I had 2 bad experiences in California (2001-2002) that kept me from donating until 2010. It happens. Today I am more tolerant. In the end, donating blood helps you and of course the person receiving the blood.
Jim
Feb 6, 2020 — 8:14 am
@John.
My blood does not seem to flow well.
i) I used to donate in the morning, but now I donate in the afternoon, and that seems to help. I think it gives me more time to get hydrated. I try to drink an excess amount of water prior to donating, and that seems to help a bit.
ii) Also, I always have to keep squeezing one of those rubber balls for the whole donation period.
iii) Also, maybe there is a different place nearby where you can donate? I donate through a company called Vitalant. They seem to do a good job and are always polite.
MAS
Feb 6, 2020 — 8:57 am
@John – The blood tech told me some people with slow flow squeeze their glutes or other muscles to accelerate the donation. My donation this week was 8 minutes. My record is 5:30.
Jim
Mar 12, 2020 — 5:33 am
Followup comment. Just donated again.
9 minutes for 1 pint of whole blood. I was squeezing a rubber ball.
The woman at the clinic said 3 minutes is the fastest she’s ever seen. The upper limit is 20 minutes. If you don’t get to a pint by then, then they shut it down.