to judge people that don't Give Blood?

[PersonalClown]

Right..now I've lured you all in!!

Just a little nudge to remind people to give blood if you can.
Stocks are still incredibly low, you get to feel good about yourself and you get a lie down and a afterwards.

Don't make me set Misdee on you!!

I have tried so hard to be because of a congenital heart defect I can't! Shame as I have quite a rare blood group.

There is a time limit on transfusions but can't remember what it is - think if you had one before 1980 or 1981 you are ok. I had one shortly after birth in 1979 so they will take my blood but i know the date of my transfusion was close to the cut off date.

The thread title is obviously a joke but that doesn't really excuse how callous it is. I mentioned up thread that I feel guilty about not giving blood even though the rational part of my brain knows full well that if I tried it would:

a) be a wasted appointment because there isn't a hope in hell they'd get a pint out of me

b) possibly damage the one vein they can get blood from which would cause problems in the future when I need a blood test or the next time I need an IV drip (having a load of IV fluids end up in the tissue rather than the vein because they couldn't get the needle in properly is rather painful IME)

Yes it would be good if everyone gave blood who was physically able to, not excluded for various reasons or not needlephobic. I think all this thread has done is make the people who can't give blood feel guilty about it. I feel guilty enough every time my housemate gets his reminder letter through the post, at least he has stopped badgering me to give blood after I explained for the 10th time that they have enough problems trying to get enough blood out of me for a couple of blood tests and even if I went every day for a week they probably still wouldn't manage to get a pint out of me.

Giving blood is a wonderful thing and I am very grateful to the people who do give blood even though nobody close to me has ever needed a transfusion. I do think though that some people who give blood forget that not everyone can and should be a little more tactful and understanding with their efforts to get others to donate. From what I've read on this thread I'm not the only one who feels guilty about not being able to give blood. I'd love to have veins good enough for giving blood, it would make my life much easier since I've had far more IVs and blood tests than most people. Being poked at with a needle for 20 mins only to be told to come back the next day to potentially have the same thing happen again is not fun. I have a doctors appointment tomorrow and I was going to ask him to check my thyroid function but I've just been reminded how horrendous blood tests are for me so I'll probably not bother now. Thanks OP.

Sorry, should have made it clear that if you're physically capable, you should donate, confuddled

Nickelbabe, losing an entire pint of blood in one go puts your system under a fair amount of stress, so it seems logical that your body would prioritise itself and be less likely to successfully conceive and retain a pg. Dunno the stats, but I certainly wouldn't donate while TTC, much like I wouldn't start training for a marathon.

The gay men thing is controversial, but essentially they're just playing the odds - if you turn away all sex workers, men who've had sex with men, Africans and drug injectors then you've got rid of the vast majority of the UK HIV pool in return for losing about (guessing) 10% of your donor population.

If you turned away anyone who'd ever had any sex at all then you'd eliminate an extra few percent of HIV cases in return for losing 90% of your donors. They're planning to twitch the criteria a bit, in response to (very reasonable) pressure from Peter Tatchell, but from the NHS's point of view there's not really the need - they're not all that desperate and they'd only gain a very few extra donors. The rules do need tidying up IMO, because ATM you can give blood 12 months after sex with someone you knew to be HIV+, whilst there's still a life ban after any gay male sex - which is a bit strange.

QS, please don't feel guilty. I can't give blood for the same reasons - the blood service have actually asked me not to waste their time donate. There is enough donated blood, so they don't need to bother with people like you and me. But publicising the need for people to continue donating, so that there continues to be enough blood, is important. I'd understand some guilt if you couldn't be bothered to donate, but why feel guilty that you physically can't do something?

Re blood tests, I insist that I am sent to the hospital for blood tests. No point letting midwives/practice nurses mess about trying to get a vein, especially when they start thinking that vein in the back of my hand is a good one (it's not, it just sits there to fool people). The blood people in hospital are much more skilled and tend to get one first time about 9 times in 10 (much better than the blood service ever used to do with their big fat scar inducing needles, btw). Worth a thought re your thyroid test?

I'm with QS and MC on the difficult veins front, and the needlephobia as a result doesn't help... the one time I tried I went white and they assumed I was about to faint. The phlebotomists at the hospital told me I wasn't worth the blood service's while, as it's hard enough to get a vial out of me, let alone a pint.
I'm also on the "may not" list due to having a less than 9 month old baby.

On the other hand, I have now donated 14 litres of milk to SCBU so I feel less guilty about the lack of blood donated. (shameless plug for milk donation here)

I cant give due to my HB rarely being above 10.5.
I have tried a few times but am always turned down.

I dont understand the gay sex thing either, it seems a very outdated rule. Plenty of heterosexuals contracting HIV and gay men are mostly very good about their sexual health.
If they test all the blood i cant see why they wont allow this

My DP won't give blood because he's bisexual and they won't take blood from a man who has had sex with a man. He has never actually had sex with a man but he doesn't like the seemingly moral judgement put on that once you have had sex with another man you are somehow different to everyone else.

The reasoning behind not allowing blood donation from men who have had sex with other men is that we can only test for viruses that we know about. There is no catch all test to see if someone has a virus - we have to test for the presence of each virus individually. For all we know there is another virus like HIV which is spreading the same way but we haven't spotted it yet. What the blood services are trying to do is reduce the number of people who got ill from a transfusion that contained a virus that we're not aware of yet. It will happen eventually, there will be another virus that starts killing people off and is transmitted the same way as HIV. It might be around in people now, or it's in a monkey or a giraffe or whatever. What the blood service are doing is trying to protect against that unknown virus by not taking blood from the people most likely to contract it first.

I'm trying, I really am. But every time I get the letter I either catch a cold or am waiting for hospital appointments or my asthma is playing up...

They took me off the 'reminder' list last year as I was waiting to see a consultant about my allergies; I was officially back on the list in April, got my invitation letter two weeks ago - and promptly came down with a sore throat and the cold to end all colds.

Can I send my body back for a refund?

My last blood test was straight after the CO2 test and I was feeling a little light headed. Not a drop of blood. She removed it and it didn't bleed. I didn't even get a bruise. My blood had gone "sticky" in response to the test. Fortunately my other arm worked but it took it's time.

Actually jelly I think that's ridiculous. Donations work like amy other- it is nit a basis on which to decide whether or not to save someones life. It's a good way of guilt tripping donations, in the same way charities show footage of abused children/ dogs / donkeys. But it should not determine whether you recieve the benefits- after all you don't donate to the red cross regularly on the off chance you might be in a natural disaster. Most the people who do benefit never donated a penny.

Blood banks rely solely on donations but to say someone who doesn't donate (for any reason, not just because they medically can't) shouldnt recieve transfusions is just bizarre. As I and many other posters pointed out, it's not as though they're even short! Would you try and guilt trip a nursing mother for not donating excess milk?

I donated until I had to receive 2 transfusions myself. I was devastated as my blood group is quite rare and I felt like I was doing my bit for society.

YABU - many want to and can't. My British blood is apparently not good enough for the Yanks, as I was in Europe during the BSE crisis. They won't even take my plasma :(

Can I donate if I am on citalopram?
I looked on the site and if it is medication other than hrt or contraception I need to call a number, does anyone know?

Yes you can grey skull.

I had to have three units of blood after giving birth ,does anyone know how long it is before i can give blood or is it never ?

Ok that is it I here by promise to seek out somewhere and do it in the next month.

I've tried half a dozen times but pass out, sometimes 15 minutes later. Same with epidural when giving birth. I would love to give blood but been told I'm too much hassle.

I do get annoyed at being told it's all in my head and I should stop being selfish and get over it my some donators.

I haven't been able to for years cause I keep getting pregnant. DH is now gloating that he has overtaken me and given more pints than I have. I'm going to get one up on him and go on the bone marrow list!

Never bumpsoon. If you have received a donation since 1980 that is.

I'm not allowed because I used to live in Africa. So, obviously, I have HIV

You can greyskull. I'm on it too and am allowed to donate.

I was turned away earlier this week though due to having just had thrush. Was quite surprised about that one but there you go. Wanted to rebook for the next session (July) but it's already full. The earliest they can fit me in is September

Just also wanted to remind people that donations of a common blood type (like mine: A+) are every bit as important as the rarer types as obviously they use a lot more of it :)

And I also like to state the fact that I am A+ whenever possible. A+ That's got to be the best one, hasn't it?

I have tried to, only to be told I don't weigh enough, which is ridiculous as I am only 4'11" and my weight is in proportion to my height (I'm not exactly skinny!). So I wish I could, but I'm not allowed :(