In Part 7 “My First Attempt to Donate Plasma” I almost lost consciousness, but with the help of a cold compress and some kind fan I was stabbed.
Inherent
The medical tech took my plasma container to the lab area where it would be stored and refrigerated for a period of time before being transported to the ZLB Plasma lab headquarters in Knoxville, Tennessee.
The medical tech placed a white rectangle of fabric over my arm where the needle was still sticking out of my vein. She told me to gently hold the glasses in place. She removed the needle from my arm. I pressed the glass to stop the bleeding. The tech then wrapped the WEB tightly around my arm.
She handed me a small card with a pin number printed on it. She instructed me to enter my PIN and then my date of birth into the ATM machine near the lobby.
Money machine
I slowly got up from the vinyl bed where I had been laying for the last hour. I felt fine – no dizziness at all. I walked past other donors lying on their beds, still attached to their plasma machines.
I entered my bank account number and my date of birth into the bank account machine. The machine dispensed two $20 bills. I took $40 and stuffed the bills in my pockets. I deserved it.
As I walked out of the plasma center and into the hot sun, I realized it was almost 6:00 in the afternoon. I was in the plasma center for about five hours.
Drive home
It was a little more difficult to drive home because the bend in the right arm was tied so tightly. My arm is now very sore, especially when I tried to bend my arm. Fortunately, the car has an automatic transmission. As I was able to drive home the most, I was able to keep my right arm extended, avoiding the increased stiffness caused by having to bend the arm.
What should I do?
My arm remained sore for a few days. A few days later a bruise appeared, which looked much worse than it felt. I wondered if people could see the needle-rubbed area of my inner arm and concluded that I was a heroin addict. Even though it was August and the temperature was well into the 90s, I wore a sleeved shirt to a friend’s party. after a few days
On Saturday morning, two days after the first plasma donation, I got up early and had a nice breakfast of scrambled eggs and toast. I drank a lot of water. Then I went to the plasma center to offer my arm for a second plasma donation.
