okay for like those people who might wanna donate blood, but is afraid of doing so coz it's seemingly scary and stuff, im just gonna share my virgin experience (and you might change your mind about saving lives after reading? LOL!)
there're 6 simple steps for the blood donation process
1. Form filling
2. Registration
3. Medical screening
4. Haemoglobin check
5. The donation
6. Rest and refreshment (my favourite!!)
okay apparently, i was really excited before going into HSA to donate blood. like seriously. it was my virgin experience and i had never had a jab ever since like, primary 6. and so i was a little apprehensive despite being all ready for it.
and when we went in, apparently we all had to take temperature before filling in the form and doing a short questionaire and declaration about our health status as well as our... sexual history (nil for me hor).
btw i finished the questionaire and everything much earlier den weijie and boonping (mathew havent even arrived lor). and so, i got to see the doctor first.
and the doctor damn insensitive lor... damnnnnn....
doctor: so you good health?
me: urh ya?
doctor: *looks through form*
doctor: oh... you never got paid or pay anyone to have sex hor? confirm hor??
me: uh.. ya..
doctor: *takes blood pressure* tight not?
me: ya very. for what ah? see whether i too fat or i have fatty arteries is it?
doctor: *stares at the machine* uh. what's your weight?
me: T.T very heavy. _ _ . _kg.
doctor: LOL!!! confirm can donate la. 450ml.
me: T.T!!!!
uh btw on a side note, people who are of weight 45kg to 50kg can donate only 350ml of blood while... pathetically heavy and fat people like me got alot of blood to donate T.T
and after the doctor consultation, i had to go to this counter to test my blood haemoglobin level. and the nurse was extremely niceeee.... but as the chinese saying goes, xiao li cang dao, which can be literally translated as 'smile inside hide knife'. for my case it's 'smile inside hide needle' lor!
the nurse was like friendly and stuff, and she was like, okay! give me your finger! *smiles*
and me, being the usual stupid kuku bird, bravely and happily held our my hand.
and that nurse held this papery thing near my finger and even before i could say anything, SHE PRICKED MY FINGER!!!
wahlau!!! under that paper got needle one lor!!!
and there was like this drop of blood that surfaced from the tip of my finger which she wiped off. and just when i thought that was about it, she S.Q.U.E.E.Z.E.D my finger and blood flowed out which she collected using this capillary tube.
i was stunned lor!
and she dripped my blood into this blue solution (looks like Cu2+ solution). and my blood totally solidified and sank to the bottom of the solution.
turned out that im extremely suitable for blood donation coz... since my blood sank, it means i have enough iron in my blood. and i got directed immediately into the ward where my blood was taken.
btw at this point of time, mathew haven't arrived yet, and weijie and boonping are still not done with their doctor checkup and registration.
and when i went into the ward, there's like elavated sofas all around, and this nurse came to attend to me. and the nurse was seriously damn nice and patient with me. and i was madly freaking out although i vaguely remembered trying to act calm if not i'll get suanned for the rest of my life.
and then initially the nurse tried various methods to see the veins on my left arm. but i guess i was too fat, and she totally couldn't find my veins. LOL!
and after like 10mins of strugging with my left arm, she gave up and proceeded to my right arm. and the veins surfaced after a while, and she left me there to feel freaked out, and there was this guy beside me who was about to donate blood too, and his nurse was poking in the needle for him, and i was gleefully sniggering at him coz i thought to myself how freaking chicken he is lor.poke only mah! like how scary can it get.
but it is damn scary!!! like after awhile (when i was still waiting for the nurse to come to poke me), i started imagining the pain and stuff, and i was 70% tempted to chicken out, but was scared for being suanned by jq boonping weijie and mat for like, the rest of my life, and so, i chose face over fear, and decided to stay put.
after awhile the very nice nurse (vnn) came and struck a convo with me to distract me while she poke me.
vnn: so how was your day today?
me: *attempts to see what she was preparing* er.. okay lor. school..
vnn: okay.. now i going to wipe your hand with the antiseptic ah.
me: oh okay.
vnn: *wipes and look at the outcome* uh. i think i need to wipe again..
me: my arm very dirty meh?
vnn: abit ah. today you do sports ah?
me: no la. nua whole day.
vnn: oh okay...
i bet she was secretly thinking, 'wahlau! never do sports still so dirty! this girl got bathe one or not?!?!'
eh cannot blame me for being dirty lor!!! 8pm leh!! no joke hor. more den 20hrs nv bathe confirm dirty what!!
vnn: okay ah. now i going to inject you with the local anaestatic ah.
me: HUH? got apply one or not?
vnn: dun have la. this one like those dental type one. abit like ant bite la.
me: T.T big ant?
vnn: ya ya. those very very very big ant type.
me: *smacks forehead*
and the injection was... seriously not as pain as i expected it to be. it's abit like, kena pinched by someone. totally not like ant bite (not that i've gotten them before). if i had to rate the pain, like 1 to 10, 1 being least painful while 10 being excruciating pain, i'll probably rate it a 3?
if you're wondering what's my pain tolerance level, i'll probably rate a blister at like, 5? so it's really not very pain.
and after that, the injected area kinda swelled up and i was extremely scared that the anaestatic might not have taken effect, and that nurse was kinda ready to poke me with the huge needle. and i didn't dare to look (so much for sniggering at that guy beside me). i peeked at the needle and it's... HUGE. and THICK. it was so big, you can see the hole CLEARLY at the tip of the needle.
okay initially i took my handphone along with me so that i can record down the whole process, but i was so freaked out that i totally got stunned dumb and didn't do anything.
and if you guys are thinking that with the anaestatic, i wouldn't feel anything at all.
which is totally not true!!
i didn't feel any pain. but you can totally feel the needle poking through. like duh?! the needle is like, 5mm or something in diameter leh! you think 5mm damn small is it?!?!? poke something 5mm through your skin into your veins la!!
and yes, the thing was inside my poor veins, and i was totally engulfed in self-pity. like seriously, coz i was having abit of problems.
like for normal people, the nurse just need to use the tape to tape the needle to the patient and then go do their own stuff and let the patient's blood slowly flow into the packet thingy.
for me, it was an entirely different thing lor!!
i have no idea whether it was because i was too tensed, vnn was having quite a hard time with me coz according to her, my veins were spasming. O.o
WTF? veins can spasm one meh?!?! omg!
and my veins were spasming so vigorously that the needle was freaking moving around my arm near the joint lor! wth. and vnn had to keep holding the needle in place.
for normal people, they would have this stressball which they have to squeeze during the blood donation process. for me, i had to squeeze upon their commands coz of how uncoorperative my vein was. idiotic veins. make me feel so troubled.
and vnn was trying to make me feel calm despite... telling me how chialat my veins were spasming.. and i was freaking out like mad despite acting cool and calm.
honestly i think i would have died and foamed in my mouth there and then if it wasn't for rt who happened to be messaging me at that time and freaking out together with me. LOL!
oh btw if you're wondering how it feels, seriously, no feeling.
but my arm was very tired from keeping still.
and i have no idea whether it's just a psychological thing, but my arm felt weak after donating. like didn't wanna squeeze the stressball anymore. and i just totally nua there and let my blood flow.
and after like 25mins or so, it was done, and the nurse took the needle out of my arm. and again, it wasn't painful, but you can feel it being pulled out of your skin.
oh btw before the nurse pulled the needle out of me, JQ came in and i think he was half tempted to snigger at me when he saw my pathetic state lor!
JQ: eh. boonping and weijie done very long already you still not finished yet ah?
me: HUH?! SO FAST?!?!?! *shocks*
JQ: yalor. they went in much later den you somemore leh!
me: mathew leh?
JQ: still donating but about to finish already.
me: *shocks*
VNN to JQ: your friend ah... need sayang den blood will flow one.
me: *paisae-ness*
uh btw VNN was stroking my arm the whole time coz of my stubborn spasming veins lol.
and i was like o.o!! when i saw the packet of my blood!!
HOW CAN I HAVE SO MUCH BLOOD!!?!?!?
ya lah call me ignorant or whatever. i know each person have like 5litres of blood in their body and they're only taking out 450ml.. but still!! normally you get cut den you see blood trickling and you'll already feel damn sorry for yourself. the blood that flows is like probably 5ml? or something like that.
HELLO?!?! 5ml you freak out. how about 450ml manz?!!
and i had to hold onto my wound for like, 15mins or so coz i was still bleeding.
and i could see boonping weijie and JQ sitting outside the ward waiting for me and boonping making stupid faces and sniggering at me whenever my ward door opened. Lol. stupid chicken. :P
and when i was finally done, the nurse reminded me about the bruise that might occur (okay it did), and that i shouldn't stand too long coz i might faint coz of the blood donation and stuff. seriously that nurse was damn nice.
but she didn't give me the stressball )):
and yes, i came out the same time as mathew despite him reaching about 30mins after me LOL!!!!
oh and the best part!!!
they gave us free vouchers for the cafe! (even jq got although he never donate blood lor!)
and we could order ANYTHING we wanted from the cafe without having paid a single cent (: cool!
and after that we went to have cold dessert at chinatown before shopping for abit around chinatown and tapau-ing food before i went back with laoqiang.
but HONESTLY, it wouldn't be as bad an experience if it wasn't for my spasming veins, probably caused from my anxiousness.
but coming to think of it, despite complaining about the process, it was seriously, to me, a worthwhile effort.
like seriously, it's a really nice feeling lor. like you know someone will benefit from that little effort of mine... which is a really fuzzy and nice warm feeling. it's hardly any pain, except the pricking part, and someone (or as they say, 3 person) can be saved. like really lor. it's really worth it.
and yes, i think i would be willing to go again (:
i'll be able to save 6 people then (:
call me an angel ;D
p/s: btw although i didn't get the stressball, mathew got it and gave it to me!
THANKS SUBORDINATE ANG CHENG LONG ;D