Part one. When I get there, I ask the guy what I need to do inorder to do the double-draining thing. He asks if I have ever given blood before and dispite my 'yes, many times' preseads to tell me how to go through the normal process and that I don't have to do anything special. What's the big deal with that, you ask...well, nothing really, it's just kinda annoying to be talked down to...
Part two. They've finally written on my little number that I wanna do the double donating thing, so I wait to check-in. The whole process went smoothly, except for the part where she pricked my finger...that hurt! It also wouldn't stop beading, which is really weird for me, but oh well. My iron was good, but she never said whether it was high enough for the extra draining. When it seemed like we were done and she hadn't said anything, I asked. She never even looked at the number. After a few minutes with the boss, and about 30 sorry's, it was all straightened out and I was ready to be pumped dry and rehydrated with salt...
Part three. They're still setting up the contraption, so they send me over to the food & juice table to wait. I didn't have to sit in the normal-donator's chairs...they treat you special before they suck your blood out (just like the vampires). After a couple of minutes, they call me over cause there's a problem: there's a guy who made an appointment for it and they only have one machine. I got the choice to do the normal donation then, or go back in about an hour for the double mint version. I had plenty to do at the student center, so I said I'd see them in an hour and went to the APO office to work.
Part four. An hour later I'm back for more (torture that is). They sit me down on the big comfy table/bed to hook me up to the mechanical vampire. After looking at my vains, they tell me that I don't have good vains for the sucker...it would take my blood just fine, but they're probably too deep for the replacement process to work right. So, if I'm still willing, they'll do the normal blood-taking process...
Part five. After redoing the paperwork again, they start the sticking process. I'm stuck! Aah! Ew, needles...anyway...she keeps poking (with her finger, not the needle) me because it's only drizzling out (that was her word, I swear!). She can't get it to flow, so she calls over another nurse, who can't get it either. They call another nurse who pokes some more and still can't get it, so she calls it a day and wraps me up and sends me to the table.
The whole experience was a big, fat fail! As it turned out that the blood clotted right at the needle, so there wasn't anything they could've done to make it happy...
The worst part. They took just enough so that I can't donate for 2 months, but not enough to do anything with!
Now I have:
a bruised finger (yes, it bruised!)
an iodined & sore inner elbow
too much blood
And no warm-fuzzy feeling!
*tear*
<3 Liz!
Oh well, back to work!
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