So giving blood wasn't fun. On the other hand I survived, and managed not to vomit or faint, (well, in the technical sense of the word), so I think we can say it was a success. I was the cliche donor who had to breathe into a paper bag and get walked around by a nurse afterward, but I was told (and I choose to believe it) that this is not unusual for a first time donor. It must be my inner overachiever that's disappointed I didn't sail through like a pro, but all in all, I'm proud of myself that I:a) filled out a survey with numerous embarrassing questions about my sexual history with a woman older than my grandma,
b) stayed in the waiting-to-donate area even after watching a girl faint dead away,
c) did NOT panic, EVEN after hearing my nurse - while inserting the IV into my arm - mutter "Uhoh"
d) downed four cups of the nastiest juice I've ever tasted after feeling quite woozy once they stopped sucking my life force out of me into a baggie.
Now that I've listed it all out, I've changed my mind. Forget wimpy - I deserve some kind of humanitarian award for voluntarily submitting myself to the above. :D (Though I feel compelled to disclose that I did get a free American Red Cross t-shirt for donating. Which, pathetic though it may be, I probably will enjoy more than some boring humanitarian award.) ::shrugs::
