no, silly! they wanted my blood!
recently i donated blood for the first time! the first time i willingly gave blood was in high school when i was tested for Dor Yesharim. when i heard there was going to be a blood drive i was kinda nervous about donating. im not squeamish with blood but the thought of someone sticking me with a needle and taking a pint (!) of blood out of me really made me nervous. in the end, thanks to (the good kind of) peer pressure, i decided to give blood.
B"H i was totally fine, though i actually saw my friend faint in front of my eyes! (but that's a different story) it took about fifteen minutes, maybe less, and then it was all over. and i feel so great about giving the gift of life! you know, they say 60% of people in my region are eligible to give blood and only 2% do. every 2 seconds someone else in the world needs blood. it's a major thing to be able to give. so if you're eligible... do it! you'll feel so great afterwards (okay... maybe two hours later, after the weakness and lightheadedness has gone away :)
one of the girls i was with said something really amazing that got me thinking. she said that we're at an age now where we will do something to willingly hurt ourselves because we know something good will come out of it. think about it...
when i was younger like 10 years old, no way would i allow myself to get hurt if i had the choice. why have to suffer willingly? but now, as a 20-year-old, i understand that it may hurt for a second or maybe for 15 minutes will im being pinched with a needle stuck in my vein drawing out my blood, but afterwards i'll be ok and i'll be able to save someone's life.
it's a really amazing idea if you think about it. the more i think about the concept of taking my blood to give to someone else, the more amazing i realize it is. my blood going into someone else's body is pretty cool. and the whole thing about different blood types is cool too. i can't wait to find out what type i am! lol
fyi here are some facts about giving blood:
1. one pint of blood can save up to three lives
2. the average adult body contains 10 pints of blood
3. 500,000 Americans donated blood in the days following September 11th, 2001
4. A newborn baby has about one cup of blood in his body
5. there is no substitute for human blood.
JUST DO IT!
4 comments:
That is a really special thing to do - to give of your time, energy and comfort too, for someone else!
i do it all the time. and its healthy too!
"we will do something to willingly hurt ourselves because we know something good will come out of it."
reminds me of my post about helping others. Even according to Singer, you don't have to cause harm to yourself. But I guess this kind of harm isn't dangerous so its okay.
But yes, that's great you donated blood! Kudos to you. I also get queasy with needles. When I went to the doctor after my fainting experience, he wanted to take blood, and I let, and was surprised how easy it went, but that wasn't for donating though, just for tests.
Tomorrow I'm gonna post about a topic of self authorship, where you decide what to do. and the ethic of care, which girls mainly have, and your reaction is a perfect example of it, I'll have to link you.
ive planned to give blood a few times, but for some reason each time it didnt work out... one day i will!
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