I want my blood back

On Friday, my job did it's regular blood drive with the Red Cross. We find out about these well in advance, and I was a good little drone and signed up. Unfortunately, I still forgot about it. It was not the best time I've ever had, that's for sure. However, I did learn some very valuable information.

1. Drink LOTS of water the day before you give blood. Something about it makes you feel less bad afterwards, and your blood leaves you quicker (I guess that last part's a good thing.. I know that I bragged about beating my friend Luke, 7 minutes to his 8. )
2. Apparently, if you're female, your red blood count goes down right before your cycle starts. So.. if you're borderline anemic, it's not the best time to be giving blood.
3. If you're borderline diabetic, you should have extra sugar before giving blood. This should not be in the form of two Mountain Dews like I did, but instead they suggested a candy bar.
4. Also, if you have somewhat low blood pressure, be careful. And cough a lot. Apparently, this makes your lungs shake your heart, and your blood will flow better, which is good when you're passing out.

So yeah, I apparently did everything wrong that I possibly could yesterday. I was laying there, squeezing my ball, totally cool. It wasn't until after I was done that I suddenly felt as if I was falling. My vision started clouding fast, and there's a possibility I was starting to pant (it's hard to remember). Next thing I know, the nurse is laying down the stretcher and telling me to breathe. I'm also fairly certain she giggled when she said "yes, that's just your body saying 'oh no, i'm bleeding to death!'". Mind you, I was still quite sure I was about to die. Giggling was not exactly what I wanted to hear.

Several glasses of juice later, I was escorted to the cookie table, where I was instructed to eat and drink. I had a few cookies, lots more juice, and decided I had too much work to do to be sitting there like a baby. I got up, the nurse asked if I was sure I was okay, and before I could even finish saying yes, I was falling again. I was back on a stretcher before I knew what was happening.

When I got home, I was feeling quite a bit better. Winston and I were snuggling, and he took an interest in the bandaid where they had pricked my finger before I gave blood. Forgetting his habit of chewing on anything that doesn't belong on me (like my wedding ring for instance), I didn't pay much attention when he was licking the bandaid. That was a mistake. Next thing I know, his bottom fang is stuck in my finger. I'm pretty sure he hit bone. I lost a lot of blood, and nearly passed out again.

The point of this story? Had I known that my cat was a blood sucking vampire, I wouldn't have given blood. It looks like I need all I can get. Geez...