milestone
Since the office shut early, I decided to try and donate blood again. My previous attempts were scuttled by my not weighing more than 45kg.
Well, after drinking A LOT of water and keeping my shoes on, I registered as 48kg.
That hurdle cleared, there then began the ritual that must be followed any time someone tries to take blood out of me. It goes thus:
Me: I know you must hear this a lot, but it's pretty hard to find a vein on me...
Nurse: *cheerfully* Oh, I'll be fine! *prods* Hmm, we'll just pop a heat pack on you... *prods* Uh... *prods* This might be a tiny one here... *prods* Um, I'll just go get !
What I don't like is when two or three of them gather around before they get the head nurse and one tells the original nurse to just give it a shot and then the original nurse hesitates. I do not want to be poked by a hesitater. I don't dread needles like I used to, but no-one wants to be a pin cushion. ;p
But thanks to lunch and all that water and a steady brave hand by one nurse, the blood flowed at an almost-normal rate. Woohoo!
Unfortunately, due to all the complications and the fact that my blood pressure is very low, I'm always flagged as a high fainting risk (though I've never fainted my whole life). Which means they make you sit around for ages and ages. There's no point in arguing. And if I'm not in a hurry, sitting around for their own peace of mind isn't too much trouble. Though today they made me drink another half litre of water which I really had to force down as I already felt like a waterbed. ;p
(There is a goading part of me daring me to lose 3kg. But it is not nearly as powerful as it used to be and is being given no ground. Plus I've become too much of a foodie for that to ever happen. ;p )
Well, after drinking A LOT of water and keeping my shoes on, I registered as 48kg.
That hurdle cleared, there then began the ritual that must be followed any time someone tries to take blood out of me. It goes thus:
Me: I know you must hear this a lot, but it's pretty hard to find a vein on me...
Nurse: *cheerfully* Oh, I'll be fine! *prods* Hmm, we'll just pop a heat pack on you... *prods* Uh... *prods* This might be a tiny one here... *prods* Um, I'll just go get !
What I don't like is when two or three of them gather around before they get the head nurse and one tells the original nurse to just give it a shot and then the original nurse hesitates. I do not want to be poked by a hesitater. I don't dread needles like I used to, but no-one wants to be a pin cushion. ;p
But thanks to lunch and all that water and a steady brave hand by one nurse, the blood flowed at an almost-normal rate. Woohoo!
Unfortunately, due to all the complications and the fact that my blood pressure is very low, I'm always flagged as a high fainting risk (though I've never fainted my whole life). Which means they make you sit around for ages and ages. There's no point in arguing. And if I'm not in a hurry, sitting around for their own peace of mind isn't too much trouble. Though today they made me drink another half litre of water which I really had to force down as I already felt like a waterbed. ;p
(There is a goading part of me daring me to lose 3kg. But it is not nearly as powerful as it used to be and is being given no ground. Plus I've become too much of a foodie for that to ever happen. ;p )