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Sounds like a genuinely decent dude. I really should give blood; I've resisted it all my life because my blood type isn't rare (A+), and I have an extremely st

Sounds like a genuinely decent dude. I really should give blood; I've resisted it all my life because my blood type isn't rare (A+), and I have an extremely strong phobia of needles, where if I see one pricking me I risk vomiting. I can suck it up enough to get a vaccine, and I do get my flu shots and boosters every year, but it has made the prospect of donating blood considerably less enticing. That's pretty selfish though, I should just suck it up and donate it...though I'm definitely not going to do it every two weeks like this guy.

sebmellen 2y ago
It might act as a kind of exposure therapy if you do it regularly!
arp242 2y ago
I donated just a few times, and to be honest I really hated it. I figure that I donated about as much as I'm ever likely to receive, and that's "good enough" for this particular contribution. I seeded to a ratio of 1. Also, as AB+ it's the least useful blood type for donations (can only donate to AB+, about 2% of the population – on the plus side, can receive donations from any type).
- Loughla 2y ago
  AB+ should be donating platelets or plasma. You're a universal donor for that. And if you're a man, you especially should be donating to save Mom's and babies. Source: the red cross hounds me for platelets and plasma.
  - arp242 2y ago
    Yeah dunno, they never asked/offered it as an option.
    - saalweachter 2y ago
      Honestly, if you want to give it another try, beyond donating plasma, I recommend feeling smug about it. No, really; it's not like a lot of work to donate blood, if there's a blood drive at your workplace or somewhere else convenient, it's just a little uncomfortable and maybe you take it easy for a couple of days after. So just reveling in the vainglorious satisfaction of feeling better than all those other selfish people who didn't SAVE ANY LIVES that day can be enough to outweigh the mild discomfort and bit of time you spent on the process, so the next time you see the blood drive you can look forward to the impending smugness rather than dreading the inconvenient obligation.
saalweachter 2y ago
So I _think_ for A+, you're looking at just a straight forward whole blood donation -- this is the easiest sort, and you can only do it every 8 weeks. If you're one of the universal donor types (O and AB), they sometimes prefer to do a double-red or plasma donation, which can be done every 16 or 4 weeks. I believe platelets can be donated every week or two, but I don't know if there's a preferred blood type for those.

sebmellen 2y ago

It might act as a kind of exposure therapy if you do it regularly!

arp242 2y ago

I donated just a few times, and to be honest I really hated it. I figure that I donated about as much as I'm ever likely to receive, and that's "good enough" for this particular contribution. I seeded to a ratio of 1. Also, as AB+ it's the least useful blood type for donations (can only donate to AB+, about 2% of the population – on the plus side, can receive donations from any type).

Loughla 2y ago
AB+ should be donating platelets or plasma. You're a universal donor for that. And if you're a man, you especially should be donating to save Mom's and babies. Source: the red cross hounds me for platelets and plasma.
- arp242 2y ago
  Yeah dunno, they never asked/offered it as an option.
  - saalweachter 2y ago
    Honestly, if you want to give it another try, beyond donating plasma, I recommend feeling smug about it. No, really; it's not like a lot of work to donate blood, if there's a blood drive at your workplace or somewhere else convenient, it's just a little uncomfortable and maybe you take it easy for a couple of days after. So just reveling in the vainglorious satisfaction of feeling better than all those other selfish people who didn't SAVE ANY LIVES that day can be enough to outweigh the mild discomfort and bit of time you spent on the process, so the next time you see the blood drive you can look forward to the impending smugness rather than dreading the inconvenient obligation.

saalweachter 2y ago

So I _think_ for A+, you're looking at just a straight forward whole blood donation -- this is the easiest sort, and you can only do it every 8 weeks. If you're one of the universal donor types (O and AB), they sometimes prefer to do a double-red or plasma donation, which can be done every 16 or 4 weeks. I believe platelets can be donated every week or two, but I don't know if there's a preferred blood type for those.