by I got a SMS from a friend who needed blood donor urgently, for the surgery of his family member. Ok lah, my cholesterol level was high so that’s a good way to decrease its level by giving it to someone else. Just kidding. In fact, I consider my blood as high grade coz I don’t smoke, beer beer, and eat oily food. To make sure my blood was full of energy and nutrition, I ate until I nearly puked, before the donation. Who knows it might help the receiver. If he informed me earlier, I would eat bird nest, ginseng, abalone, lingzhi etc. Of course I will send him the bill.
Even though I have donated blood more than 4 times, every time my feeling is still like a first timer and I will never enjoy it. No… it is not painful. The whole process is like a mosquito bite. I also didn’t dare to look at my finger and arm when they took my blood (so coward!). Hopefully my hot blood will turn the receiver into a blogger like me, to make my suffering worthy.
1. Fill up form
The first step is to answer some questions to check if you are a potential carrier of AIDS, STD, Hepatitis and other sickness. My only sex partner is Miss 5, so I shall be safe. My English is poor so I asked the nurse what is Fits / Sawan. She also didn’t know how to explain it in English, so she tried to show me the symptom. She is such a great actor…
2. Body Check
A nurse checked my blood pressure and it appeared to be normal. You need to be heavier than 45kg to qualify. Even the blind can see that I am fat (63kg), so no need weighting lah. I remember many years ago, I was so embarrassed coz they rejected to take my blood. That time I was less than 45kg. So malu… She also asked my blood group. “I am B positive,” I answered. She said, “Are you sure?” I guess she may have watched the Korean movie “My Boyfriend is Type B”, so she couldn’t believe the nice and handsome guy in front of her is type B. I haven’t watched that movie yet. From what I heard, it pictured Type B guy as a jerk, and this caused the “market value” of Type B men dropped badly.
3. Hemoglobin Test
She took a drop of blood from my finger. “Your blood flows so fast. You just had your lunch?” She quickly used cotton to wipe away the excess blood. Heheh… no lah, more than one hour already, probably the lunch was too heavy that all my blood cells are taking a walk now. My blood droplet sinked like a rock, to the bottom of chemical liquid below, passed. If the blood floats on top or in middle, that means the iron in your blood is low.
4. Donating Blood
Finally, the slaughter moment. The artery of my left arm is too small, so they have to take it from my right arm. Another reason I dislike donation coz it will make my right arm sour. The nurse injected pain killer first, so I didn’t even feel that he has inserted the tube (didn’t dare to look). Within 15 minutes, my 450ml blood bag was full. Happily I snapped a picture. They advised me to rest on the bed for a while, so I wouldn’t pass out.
I heard that someone was awarded the Datuk title coz he had been donating blood for over 20 years. Now I am one step closer to be a Datuk. Show respect to Smoke Head, OK. You think this is funny? If blood donation is not an ACHIEVEMENT, then why some of you send in your Blood Donation Certificate with your resume, in your job application? Sometimes I even got job applicants who submitted their Certificate of Conquering Mount Kinabalu.
My most unforgettable blood donation experience is the campaign in Centre Point Sabah. There were so many donors and beds. During the donation, they simply put my blood bag on the floor. And there were many people busy walking around my bed. I could not imagine what would happen if they accidentally stepped on my blood bag and the blood flew backward (vomit blood?). So far, I never experienced any bad side-effect after blood donation. The only problem is – you will become so sleepy and hungry that you can’t decide to eat first, or to sleep first, my eyelids are so heavy now… bye.., b.y..e…. Zzzz…. (Well, my body has made the choice)
Photos taken in Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia Borneo
