Blood!

Don’t worry. It’s a more pleasant post than you think. I decide that I should blog about something that might be useful & informative once a while, not just random rants.

Every once in a while, I would donate my blood whenever I can, and since my blood is O-positive, thus I am proud to be known as the universal donor.

Why donate our precious blood?

For one thing, I am a strong believer in Karma, and who knows, one day I might need that pint of blood, and a selfless anonymous donor will save my life.

Anyway, that’s my homeboy Kzee, and he’s an even more special case – our blood types are O’s, but his Rhesus is negative. Yup, that’s right – he’s O-negative. In case you weren’t aware, let me enlighten you with this fact;

a person with a Rhesus of negative can only conceive a child with a mate that has the similar Rhesus of negative

That means, if you're O-negative, you could only mate with someone who is either A-negative, B-negative, AB-negative, or O-negative. If you are among the rare few who has this trait, you would be on the list of possible donors with negative Rhesus, and would be contacted when your rare & precious blood is required for transfusion or whatever.

So, if there’re any single ladies out there who is also share the trait of having Rhesus of negative, holla at me – I’ll hook you up =P

Some people are deathly afraid of needles, but remember this – somebody’s life might depend on it; it could be your family member, your girlfriend/boyfriend, your friends. So, c’mon! When you come across a blood-donation campaign, pay a visit, and donate your precious blood. The medical staffs that actually ‘milks’ your blood are most if not all of the time trained and experienced professionals, and the procedure won’t hurt..much. You can take my word for it – I might potray a macho outlook, but watching Saw 1, 2, 3, & 4 still makes me squeamish. However, when done correctly, the entire procedure of donating blood won’t usually be much of a hellish experience as you might think.

The bottom-line

- You of course must be relatively fit & healthy, and free of diseases in the first place to be able to donate blood. Regardless, all donated blood on-site is regarded as bio-hazard: they would be thoroughly screened at blood testing centres first.

- First, you will register yourself and fill in your particulars on a form. The staff would inquire if you have a red-coloured Blood Donation record book, and if you must bring it along with you to be updated. Note – you can only donate blood once every three months.

- After signing the form, the staff would direct you to a doctor on duty. The doctor would ask of your medical history, and then would check your blood pressure. The doctor would take a sample of your blood to ascertain your blood type, and blood sugar level. This stage is important as if the doctor sees you as fit to donate blood. Else, you would have complications after i.e. queasy, fainting, etc.

- If you pass the stage, you would be directed to a staff that will provide you with the blood-donating kit, which will be passed to a medical staff that will be actually ‘milk’ your blood. I reserve writing the exact details of the process.

- And you shall be donating your life force, and about 10 minutes later, you’re all set. Usually you would only be required to donate not more than a pint of blood, and a sample of it would be taken to be tested for diseases and such. They have a saying -

"no news is good news"

- and it's true in this case, as they will contact you (based on your contact details given in the forms) if they discover if you're infected with anything. Else, you're free to donate more.

- Feel free to indulge on free sugary food like cakes or cookies and juices that the organizers would usually provide to replenish your blood sugar.

Donating blood isn't at all that bad of an experience. Really. So, go ahead. Do your bit of good for the community.