blood donation

Howdy,

I just donated blood on Wednesday. I don't know of any way to indicate that in MFP, I just sort of winged it that day. I did eat extra calories that day, mostly so that I wouldn't feel sick after donating. I ate at 6:00am and 10:00am, then donated at 10:30...worked great, I felt fine afterwards.

I wouldn't worry about messing up your calorie count for one day. I went over that day (including a shredded beef tostada that I made my husband get me since I was craving meat), and the next day I actually weighed 1 pound less. Go figure! They recommend not exercising for 24 hours afterward, so be sure to do your workout earlier in the day.

Good luck, and thanks for helping save lives!!

If you donate on a regular basis, you NEED to take an iron supplement and have your iron levels tested through bloodwork your doc orders, and NOT rely on the hemoglobin test they do before they let you donate. I got myself into some major trouble because I was donating regularly and my hemoglobin somehow stayed over their limit while I was depleting all of my iron stores in my blood and bones. I ended up in a position where I was so bad off that I got out of breath *moving an area rug in my house*...and I don't mean rolling it up and lifting it, I mean adjusting it on the floor. It took a long time of cramming as many iron pills in me a day as I could stand to get back to a point where I felt human again. (They are very constipating, sorry for TMI.)

So donating blood is very noble, just make sure you take care of yourself while you do it. :happy:

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I really appreciate it. I'm a total chicken. This is the first time I am donating blood, but I hope it won't be my last. I will remember not to exercise for 24 after and to make sure I have enough iron.

they give you a list of things not to do and to do after you donate. They're usually very nice, just let them know its your first time...
And toensure you have proper iron levels before going in... All dark leafy veggies are good, cream of wheat (if you like it), take a multivitamin, and or (this is my usual) drink a protien shake that morning. Of course, there's the usual eat meat thing the night before as well.

Oh and hydrate.... if you get dehydrated your blood will stop flowing, i had that happen once.. they had to switch arms to get the testing stuff... so make sure you drink lots and lots of water.