Glyph
13-01-14, 04:56
So, I was wondering if perhaps there were some people out there who might be able to help me with something
I am booked in tomorrow (well, today given that it's currently 4:45 am :unsure:) to donate blood at a local hotel. I signed up because I feel it's something I should do but now I'm terrified.
It's not so much pain I am worried about, although that is a concern, it's that my health anxiety is trying to convince me anything could go wrong.
I'm worried about, for example, them taking too much blood. Or them taking a perfectly typical amount and killing me anyway because of some odd reason I brought on myself or another. Or of contracting something horrible. Or... Well, the list goes on, but those are the important bits.
I'm very small (5"2), and my diet for years has been pretty bad. I hardly eat, and don't ever seem to have more than one meal a day. Not because I'm TRYING not to eat, I simply seen to have gotten into bad habits over the last few years. I am somehow still hovering at 8 stone. I really am not sure how that works on my diet. I'm going over and over the stuff that could go wrong in my head, genuinely scared of dying, but I don't want to deny somebody blood they may seriously need.
I am aware it is entirely possible they'll do a blood prick test when I get there and realise my iron levels or whatever are no good for donating, but since I'll probably feel just as bad when that happens for not being able to donate it hardly helps! I'm still afraid and my choice seems to be between guilt and fear.
Are there any regular donors here who might be able to explain things to me? Is there any real danger from a donation like that? I watched the NHS videos, of course, but they don't seem to have told me anything I hadn't already guessed.
I am booked in tomorrow (well, today given that it's currently 4:45 am :unsure:) to donate blood at a local hotel. I signed up because I feel it's something I should do but now I'm terrified.
It's not so much pain I am worried about, although that is a concern, it's that my health anxiety is trying to convince me anything could go wrong.
I'm worried about, for example, them taking too much blood. Or them taking a perfectly typical amount and killing me anyway because of some odd reason I brought on myself or another. Or of contracting something horrible. Or... Well, the list goes on, but those are the important bits.
I'm very small (5"2), and my diet for years has been pretty bad. I hardly eat, and don't ever seem to have more than one meal a day. Not because I'm TRYING not to eat, I simply seen to have gotten into bad habits over the last few years. I am somehow still hovering at 8 stone. I really am not sure how that works on my diet. I'm going over and over the stuff that could go wrong in my head, genuinely scared of dying, but I don't want to deny somebody blood they may seriously need.
I am aware it is entirely possible they'll do a blood prick test when I get there and realise my iron levels or whatever are no good for donating, but since I'll probably feel just as bad when that happens for not being able to donate it hardly helps! I'm still afraid and my choice seems to be between guilt and fear.
Are there any regular donors here who might be able to explain things to me? Is there any real danger from a donation like that? I watched the NHS videos, of course, but they don't seem to have told me anything I hadn't already guessed.