Since I get quite a few searches about donating blood while breastfeeding, I thought maybe I would talk a little more about blood donation. I’ve already written about whether or not blood donation is okay while breastfeeding (for most people, it’s just fine) and why I donate blood. Tonight, I thought I would write a little bit for those people who haven’t donated before and don’t know what to expect.

I know that needles and blood tend to make some people nervous. Also, the unknown can make people worried. Because I believe that donating blood is very important, I thought I’d try to take away a few worries for a few people. Here’s what happens when I go to donate blood. First, I check in with the lady who greets me at the front desk. Then, she gives me some information to read. Then, when they call my name, I go sit in a cubicle with one of the people who draws the blood. She took my temperature, my blood pressure, and pricked my finger. She sticks a couple of drops of blood from my finger prick into a machine. This machine checks your blood for iron. Sometimes, women find out that it’s hard to keep their iron count up high enough to donate.

Then, the questions. Next, there are about 50ish questions about any sort of illness, risky behavior, surgeries, or other issues that might prevent a person from being eligible to donate blood. They used to read all the questions and ask them verbally, but now they are all printed on a paper and I just read them on my own.

Now comes the time for the comfy chair. I tend to have better veins in my right arm, so I just go straight to that one. In order to take your blood, your arm has to be very well cleaned. First, they use an alcohol wipe. Then, they use iodine. Then, comes the prick. Generally, for me, that’s all it is. It’s a prick and a little bit of aching. I usually get some sort of foam ball to squeeze. I tend to be a slow donator, so when Jason and I go at the same time, he donates blood about 5 minutes faster than I do.

After that’s all done, they put a band aid on your arm and feed you! Our blood donation center has juice, donuts, popcorn, and granola bars. Also, if you like the snacks A LOT (like I do), if you schedule your donation at the end of the day, they sometimes offer you two snacks.

So, there you have it. It’s not quite as easy as “one-two-three,” but it’s definitely not as big of a deal or as scary as I’ve heard some people make it out to be.

A while ago, I wrote a post about donating blood while breastfeeding.  Recently, I realized that it had again been a bit too long between donations, and when I mentioned that fact to a friend, she said that it was okay, because I have an excuse (meaning my two boys).  Yes, I do have an excuse for not donating every 8 weeks, and sometimes I use it, but I really don’t feel good about doing that.

When I was 18, I went to a blood drive and wanted to donate.  I had low iron, and I wasn’t able to donate.  I was actually very upset.  I tried again a couple months later, and I had my first successful donation.  When I went off to college, I decided to give it another try.  I found the blood bank at our local hospital, and I made an appointment.  Again, I had low iron and was turned away.  I worked hard to maintain my iron count, and I tried again.  After that point, I was able to donate each time I had an appointment.  In January of 2000, I decided that I wanted to get my naval pierced (yes, this really does relate ).  The reason this was a big deal to me at the time was because after a piercing, I was under the impression that I would not be allowed to donate blood for 12 months.  Although, looking at the Red Cross‘ website for eligibility, it appears that is not always the case.  I’m not sure whether this is a recent change or if it’s always been this way.  This is actually news to me.  So, getting back to my story, I decided to make one last appointment to donate blood before I got the piercing and had to take a year off.

The day after my donation, I was sitting in the university’s dining hall with some friends and acquaintances.  I was wearing my new blood donation t-shirt I had received the day before, and out of (seemingly) nowhere, this guy I didn’t know very well at all says to me, “Thank you.”  I asked him, “What?  Thanks for what?”  He said, “Thank you for saving lives.  Saving lives like mine.”  Still confused, I just looked at him.  He said, “I see you have a blood bank shirt on, and you have a needle mark on your arm.  You just donated blood, didn’t you?”  I answered that I had.  He showed me the back of his hand.  It was marked with several scars.  He then told me that he had a health condition that required him to get numerous blood transfusions to save his life.  I was really taken aback.  I donated blood, because I knew it was a good thing to do, but I had never known anyone to actually need blood in an emergency situation.  He said, “So, anyway, I just wanted you to know that it’s people like you who save my life when I need blood.”  It was a very powerful experience especially since the day that happened was the day I had intended to get my naval pierced.  I chose not to do it that day.  I did, however, do it a year later.  Rereading the story, I feel more than a little bad that that experience affected me only enough to delay my plans for a year.

I continued to donate blood periodically/semi-regularly over the years.  In 2005, I got pregnant, and I again stopped donating blood.  After having K, I was nursing and assumed, instead of checking, that I would continue to be unable to donate.  I got pregnant with A in 2006, and after he was born, I started to do a little research.  The research was prompted by a couple things.  One, I had been a regular donator before my pregnancy and nursing days and I was anxious to get back to it.  The other thing was that a friend of mine had a baby just a month before A was born, and after her baby was born, she had a retained placenta.  Because of this, she lost a significant percentage of her blood, she had several transfusions, she had surgery, and she nearly died.  (Recently, another friend went through this same situation but to a less significant degree.)  Again, hearing the story of someone who had needed donated blood brought to my mind the importance of donating.

I know that not everyone can or should donate blood.  That isn’t the reason for my post.  I don’t want anyone to feel guilty or pushed into doing something that is not healthy for them.  However, if donating blood is something you’ve been interested in doing or something you’ve done in the past but haven’t done for a while, I’d like to think that maybe this post is the little bit of incentive you’ve been waiting for.  As I said before, I’m past due for my donation.  Jason and I had been using blood donation time as a date, but we haven’t been able to work out (grandparent) childcare to do it for a while.  I may have to just get over waiting for the perfect situation to present itself and make it happen.

When I was in college and for the years after before I was pregnant with K, I was a semi-regular blood donator (is that a word?). In fact, Jason’s cousin tried to convince Jason that one time when Jason and I went to donate blood together was actually our first date. It wasn’t by the way. I just didn’t want to go alone.

Anyway, after I had K, I was interested in donating blood again, but I had a hard time finding any information on the subject. Most of the information I found said that it was allowed but it was a mom’s choice whether or not it would work for her. Well, that didn’t help me much. I checked on the La Leche League website and the American Red Cross website although it seems they have changed their layout and that information is no longer available. I found a few specifics, but I didn’t find a hard yes or no answer.

When I had A, I had a fairly significant oversupply of milk after he was born and had to (and still have to) take steps to control my supply to allow him to be able to nurse without getting overwhelmed by the milk. Because of this, I felt more confident in choosing to donate. I thought I would wait until he was 6 months old and taking some solids just in case I did have a dip in supply. Well, he’s now almost 8 months and not taking solids. I just couldn’t wait any longer. In my absence from donating, Jason has caught up to my donations and surpassed me! I need to get donating again.

I made my appointment, and the day I was supposed to go was -38 degrees with a -54 degree windchill. Needless to say, I did not go that day. I just couldn’t justify taking my 2 boys out in that weather for anything other than an emergency. I rescheduled my appointment and went the next week. I really didn’t do much to prepare ahead of time. I made sure that I was drinking extra water and eating well the days before. My appointment went well. When the woman put the needle in to draw blood, she had a little trouble finding the vein. That resulted in me being a bit sore that night and the next day, but it wasn’t anything terrible.

I know that one person’s anecdotal experience doesn’t replace the advice of a doctor or lactation consultant, but I hope it helps at least a little bit if this is a decision you’ve been trying to make for yourself.