Blood transfusions in the UK - safe or scary?

[Tinker]

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Can I join the club too? Had two units after DS was born after having lost 1500ml.

I can't give blood anymore either of course and do worry about going mad....or at least madder than I already am!

I refused the first time with DS1 and never got my iron count back Fio2, it's a real strain isn't it

Rhesus Neg needs 3 or 4 shots of a human derivitive haemoglobin to stop baby going funny throughout the pregnancy and just afterwards, Needle-tastic!

Oh suzywong you are so lucky! That sounds right up my street.

A very amusing one I had when dd was about 2 months old, a white cell scan, where they take out loads of blood, whizz it around in some machine, take the white cells out and make them radioactive then infuse it all back into you....

Wasn't allowed to pick dd up for 24hours as was radioactive! Still at least was own blood!

Over the years I have been transfused about 30 times and am still here as everyone says the alternative is that wwe wouldn't be here at all.

it was awful suzywong, and i put on so much weight (mind you i dont know what my excuse is now ) I felkt walking with the pram was a mamoth task, it was a nighmare, took about 6 months or more to get back to normal, then i was aneamice with ds having never had a problem before having dd

ooh we have a new president in Noddy5 - 30 transfusions is pretty impressive

Hail to Noddy 5

I was still a stubborn vegetarian fish eater until 9 months after ds1 when i had an anaemic / thryoid spin out and got DH to take me out for a fillet steak lunch the next day.

Never looked back, bring on that red meat and pack it in to my colon, I say.

Can't believe they could send you home with an iron count of 4.5! I was down to 8.5 after having dd and they suggested a transfusion but it wasn;t mandatory. Iron dropped to 7.1 the next day so still wasn't mandatory but highly recommended! Anything lower than 7 they wouldn't have let me home and would have insisted on the transfusion.

I did end up having 2 units though - very nice midwife put the whole thing into perspective for me - i.e. take iron tablets and feel like crap for a couple months (as a new 'first time' Mum) until your iron levels get back to normal with the tablets or have a transfusion and feel better within a couple of days!

So - can I join the club too please?

Oh - don't tell me I've become a thread killer!!

Yes of course you can join the club!

oh not at all HBA

welcome to the club!

Do you ever think that if we had been giving birth 100 years ago we would be dead? Cheery thought isn't it?

I have had 2 kidney transplants and so was given the transfusions whilst on dialysis to boost my [pathetic levels,then the rest was during opsMust admit always felt great after one and had loads of energy and big red cheeks!

Suzy - we'd be dead by now anyhow!

Oh I would have been dead long before childbirth! If asthma hadn't got me while young then I would have died of crohn's in my early 20's (mind you 100 years ago I would have had 5 kids by then prob!)

Noddy you could market that as an alternative to blusher

"No more messy powders and brushes, simply infuse a pint of blood each morning and you will have a healthy, natural glow all day!"

And you will clean the house top to toe in about half an hour and s**g your dp all night(another side effect which sadly only lasted about 2 days!)

so daily would be good I guess...

Sadly the wires in intensive care got in the way so was unable to try that out

is that why you are called CD, CD? Because of all the blood you've had?

The madness has started

Madness? Started for me way before the transfusion !!

it is true handbagaddiction! I wasnt really that concerned at the time as i didnt realise how bad that actually was. I then met a woman who was intensive care unit nurse and she said anything under 6 and you are at very high risk from a cardiac arrest

yes suzywong - someone on mn christened me that!

What got me was when I had DS & lost 2 pints ( not sure how they measured it! ) - I was asked would I like a transfusion almost in the same way I was asked if I'd like a cup of tea! When I asked did I really need it, I don't think I was given a real answer! I declined, felt like sh*t for a while & had horse size iron tablets !

exactly whizzz, how do they measure the loss? I kept asking DH if they were standing in puddles of it on the operating theatre floor after ds2 (was off my tits on drugs btw)

Suzywong, as far as I know you are not allowed to donate blood in Canada if you have lived in the UK for more than 6m during (near the dates of the mad cow disease crisis). We can't donate bone marrow easily either, donations are tested to see if are free from the disease, I have asked about this once to a bone marrow donnors charity and the woman told me they test. though, if they get a positive they won't tell you, of course