Blood Donor

It is past midnight, outside might still be raining and I am trapped in a cold and not so welcoming room in Oxford. I have just finished some slides for Monday, after traveling for 8-9 hours. I drank some Coke to struggle through the slides-making process and now I am a bit afraid that I won’t be able to sleep… but more on this later.

I had some chaotic weeks lately. It seemed like a lot of stuff just had to happen at the same time, leaving me no time to myself. I have also recently discovered one benefit of knowing Danish: the possibility of giving blood.

I attempted to give blood in Romania once, but I have been told I didn’t weigh enough and was sent home. So after some years passed and my weight increased, I arrived in Denmark and I thought to try again. As the whole process goes in Danish, one is required to be able to understand and speak Danish. I first went to the Blood Bank in February, when I answered a long questionnaire on my past and current life and then they took some blood (not too much) for tests. I was supposed to come back after 2 months to have my first tap. For various reasons, I have waited a bit longer and became a donor this Friday.

The nurse that took care of me was very nice and talkative. They were a bit cautious with me when everything was done, probably for two reasons: it was the first time and I didn’t know how I would react (I do know somebody that fainted after giving blood), and I am also rather small and the 500ml they took represents proportionality more for me than others. I had to lie down for 10 minutes after the tapping was done and they also told me to wait 10 more minutes in the waiting room, just to be 100% sure I feel fine.

I did feel fine and I didn’t really seem to be affected by it during the day. I might have been slightly more tired, but I have been that way for the past few weeks. I have to admit that I am a bit proud of myself, because I feel like I am doing something to help others in need. So I will definitely go back in 3 months for the next tap!