A Gallon of Blood

I donated blood again today. This was my tenth donation, so I got a special “thank you” pin. Technically speaking, I should have gotten the pin on my eighth donation, since eight pints is a gallon of blood. I’m well on my way toward the two gallon mark, now!

I donated whole blood today, as opposed to apheresis, so the process was quick and painless. The Red Cross loves me, for several reasons:

• I have O Negative blood, which makes me the universal donor. The nurse today informed me that O- blood is most often given to babies. For some reason they respond better to it when receiving blood than they do their own blood type.
• I have easy to tap veins. The nurses always remark on how easy it is to locate my veins.
• I am a fast bleeder. I always tell the nurses this, and they never believe me. They settle in to busy themselves with whatever it is they do while their patients bleed, and then exclaim in surprise "You're halfway done!" just a few moments later.

I actually enjoy giving blood, and it makes me feel good to know that I can help people by doing such an easy thing. I felt particularly good today after learning that my donations had most likely gone to help babies in need.