Please donate blood!

I gave blood many years ago but in the 1980s when, as the result of the AIDS epedemic, the Transfusion Service began to tighten up their criteria, I was asked if I had allergies and when I said I was allergic to penicillin, I was offered tea and biscuit without donating and later got a formal letter telling me I could no longer donate blood because of this allergy.

I know i couldnt give blood now at my age,but it was when i was in my fifties ,but couldnt because of the iron, im sure it could have been filtered or something,and if other countries do it there must be a way

It is so important to donate blood if you can unfortunately DH and I are on too many meds and are both immunocompromised.

You can't become a new blood donor if you are over 66. My husband had to give up being a blood donor due to medical conditions and I can't give blood because I was given a transfusion myself back in the 90s. My daughter stopped going to donate as she was refused several times due to 'time of the month' or because they were simply too busy!

My DD has a gold award for donating blood . She has a very rare blood type as did her late father (who was also a donor) and her blood can be "spun"
To give to newborns ( not sure what this means ) she often gets calls asking her if she will come to the hospital that day as they are desperate.

I offered to donate blood, but because i have Haemochromatosis, [too much iron] i was told i couldnt, seems a shame, as i have to have blood taken when m,y ferritin gets too high
I believe it can be donated in Canada, not sure about America

My sister used to do this every couple of weeks, wildswan. She has a particularly useful blood group which I'm glad I don't share!

I have always given blood about twice a year but had to stop a couple of years ago due to my own health.

My son gives platelets every couple of months. It is done by a different machine and takes about 90 minutes each time. The blood is extracted, platelets removed and then the remainder pumped back in. Platelets only last about 5 days so cannot be stored long term like blood so donors are always very welcomed.

Good to hear your partner's doing well, mumski. It must have been a worrying time for you.

I've given blood since I was 18. I've done a lot of griping about it lately - our nearest collection centre was closed down, we were given appointments on bank holidays, etc. Your post reminds me why I do it, and I appreciate it. All the best to you.

Ah, I'm glad your man is on the mend, mumski. I haven't given blood for a good few years, but i'll have to find out about doing it again. Someone in my family has had numerous transfusions in the last couple of weeks.