it's essentially the same as donating blood - they just take it out, spin it in a machine to separate the blood cells from the plasma, then put your blood cells back in
I'm giving blood on Monday, if needles don't bother you, it's no biggie. If it's your first time, they probably just take a few tests to see if you have the plague. I originally signed up to see what losing a 1/10 of my blood would feel like, didn't feel a thing, but take it easy the first couple of hours. Drink plenty of non-alcohol before going.
I wouldn't say there's anything to be really scared about, but my experience donating platelets (similar to the plasma donation process, I believe, you're hooked up to a machine) wasn't all that great. The machine kept complaining about my BP so I had to squeeze one of those little foam balls, hard, continuously, to make it stop. Doing this for 2 hours straight made my arm pretty sore. I also got a pretty bad upset stomach afterwards, the type that gives you weird nightmares and other issues, but I figured it could have been something I ate that time, so I did it again. Sure enough, same reaction. And that time the process took about 3 hours. They said it's not common but sometimes people have a negative reaction to the solution the machine uses, and it's not for everybody. So I went back to whole blood donation. I can't donate as often but of course, they will take what they can get. Let us know how it goes.
I did it in college for beer money. The weirdest part is when they add the red blood cells back into you they mix it with saline and it's cold. You can feel it working its way through your system. Definitely just sit back and watch TV or bring a magazine to read.
I had a friend who used to do this. I also heard that its cold. In one desperate moment I went with her, but instantaly walked out when I saw the recovery room and everyone looked all weak or dead. haha I was like 'fuck this. i'll sell something.' i can't give blood either though.
my roommate in college did too. and when he was done donating, he could get shithoused off a beer or two. we used to make such wise decisions..
sorry guys - this idea of taking out my blood, seperating it, then returing it to my veins seems aweful. specially if its cold on the way back in. god I feel sick just thinking of it.
Well, the advantage to it is that you can do it more often, I believe once every couple of weeks. If you donate whole blood, you can only do it once every two months.
Yeah, I have a rule about that, once something has left my body, no way it's getting back in. Do they also offer you beer after a bleeding or is that solely a Scandi thing?
For you guys who dont like blood taken out and put back in then take good care of your kidneys. Once you lose one you have to go twice a week for Kidney dialysis. They setup a tube on one wrist and then it sucks your blood out into a machine to be cleaned and then goes out another tube and back in the other wrist. the thought of doing that creeps me out but that doesnt mean i wont give plasma in the future if the price is right haha. I have been eating old perogies that taste like the back of the freezer all week.
we don't get paid in the UK. Plus they have some very strict/antiquated laws relating to donating blood or plasma.
Sheesh. What a bunch of squeamies. Go to the one on Charleston and Rainbow by the CCSN campus. Go to the website for United Blood Services and look up all the info. It's a painless process. For plasma the only weird feeling is the blood pumping back into you is colder than your body temp, and you may have a tingling sensation on your lips from the anti-coagulant. Oh, and it is funny to see the separated blood looking like foamy beer, but other than that, no problems. Pm me for Vegas info. Chris
LOL i would hope so with the amount of 24 hour boozing that goes on over there, arent bars open 24 hrs now? You would have people selling way too much blood for booze haha. I remember when i was in London there was this sketchy store in Camden that sold beer out of the icecream fridge after the legal hours lol.
Drink Plenty of water before you go, take all the free juice and cookies you can, and constantly wiggle your toes
I had no idea that they paid for plasma or platelets in the USA, either, but tonight I saw it on an episode of Intervention. If it's on TV, it must be true. I've donated whole blood every two months for around seven years now. I go to my local hospital, and they give me a bag of Doritos and a cup of grape juice for my troubles. Someone prorate it for me, how many M1GO vinyls could I have purchased with all that red-red kroovy I thoughtlessly gave away? ;p About a week after September 11, I had to go to the hospital for a blood test on a Saturday. I walked by the blood bank and was surprised to find it open (normally their hours are M-F), but completely empty. The staffers told me that after the attack, they were overwhelmed with people calling to donate in the hopes that their blood would be used at the Trade Center site. To meet "demand," the hospital created a 7 day schedule for the blood bank staff and scheduled everyone that called. Unfortunately, two or three days into things, when these people realized that there were very few injured people being retrieved from the site, they changed their mind and didn't show up for their donations. When they were called and told that their donation was still badly needed for other people, they still declined. Jersey is experiencing a serious blood shortage right now. I wish those people would come out of the woodwork again.
I'm pretty sure you get paid for plasma and not for blood because of the time involved. Taking blood is a fairly quick process, whereas plasma tends to take a good deal of time.
