I have reached 20 appointments scheduled from my virtual blood drive! This will be the last time I boost it, but can you be number 21? Beating the drum because the message is so new to so many: eligibility HAS changed, quite a lot re: travel and sexual behavior. You may be eligible now! - ThreadSky | a Reddit-style client for Bluesky

rahaeli.bsky.social • 411 days ago

I have reached 20 appointments scheduled from my virtual blood drive! This will be the last time I boost it, but can you be number 21? Beating the drum because the message is so new to so many: eligibility HAS changed, quite a lot re: travel and sexual behavior. You may be eligible now!

Reposted from rahaeli

Large portions of the country have under a 24 hour supply of blood right now. Please give if you can. This thread explains recent changes to common restrictions: you may be newly eligible to donate. Visit www.redcrossblood.org to schedule.

Comments

librarian.bsky.social•411 days ago

We have regular blood drives in my small county in Vermont. I have a slightly unusual blood type and it's been a while since I've donated so this is giving me a nudge to stop by the high school gymnasium next time they're in town. Thanks.

rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

Hooray! I will count you as number 21 on the honor system, so don't forget, lol.

librarian.bsky.social•411 days ago

Yay! when I was a kid we lived in a different rural area and my mom had the same blood type as me (AB+) and it was unusual enough that occasionally there would be someone in the hospital who needed her type of blood and they'd call her at our home and she'd go in to donate.

rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

Oh wow, AB+ is really really rare and always in critical need. Good on you and your mom for donating!

nocatsnomasters.bsky.social•411 days ago

Reminds me, my O+ ass needs to go schedule a donation.

nocatsnomasters.bsky.social•411 days ago

And done. Yay for executive function support.

dawnbuggy.bsky.social•411 days ago

I’m signed up for the recurring one a couple of towns over in early February. They’re scheduled ~10 weeks apart and while you’re at the snack table they offer you the signup sheet for the next one. The Red Cross staff don’t tend to repeat but the church volunteers know my husband & me now :)

rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

That's awesome!

rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

The number of people for whom this is news is depressing, because it shows how poorly the message is traveling! You are NO LONGER ineligible to donate blood if you've lived in the UK/EU or if you're queer.

rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

The travel restrictions are almost entirely gone, and the only sexual behavior restrictions remaining are a) it must be 3 months since the last time you had anal sex with someone you're not in a monogamous relationship with and b) you must not be taking PrEP.

rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

There are also some medication based restrictions; review them here: https://www.redcrossblood.org/faq.html#eligibility-medications If you have any questions, call the experts at 866-236-3276 and they will help you figure out if you're eligible.

kareila.bsky.social•411 days ago

There’s a blood mobile that does a circuit around the Walmarts in our area. I’ll see if I can catch it out next week.

rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

That would be awesome!!

mniesphoto.com•411 days ago

YES! There have been a TON of good changes recently, and even our local blood banking service has (finally) rolled them out. I'm looking forward to donating when I'm eligible again in March!

rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

Woohoo!!!

tukulnet.bsky.social•411 days ago

I got rejected last time because I had malaria a few times like 10 years ago

elacordeonachi.bsky.social•411 days ago

I'll be doing another Power Red donation as soon as 1) I'm eligible from my last one, around the end of the month, and 2) when there's a Power Red donation slot available within 50 miles of my house. Usually they are within 30 miles, but I've driven further.

rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

Woohoo! Thank you :D

rszasz.bsky.social•411 days ago

Oh, and look what arrived today

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rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

Hooray!!

funranium.bsky.social•411 days ago

Oh wow. Thank you for doing your part. My body gets VERY MAD when you take the juice away.

nocatsnomasters.bsky.social•411 days ago

I get that from the apheresis type donations, but not whole blood. My vagus reaction will usually tolerate brief insults from smaller needles, but the long spells with the bigger ones are a short trip to hypotension-ville.

rszasz.bsky.social•411 days ago

And that's just since I came up to Oregon and couldn't donate at Stanford

kjcharleswriter.com•411 days ago

Ta for the reminder, I've just made an appt to donate. Hoping it actually happens: they cancelled the last 4 appointments...

rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

You are lucky number 22! Thank you for trying -- I know the UK is having the same shortage we are.

apsalartoll.bsky.social•411 days ago

I already donate every 2 months (I'm O-, they call me as soon as I'm eligible), but thank you for boosting the signal.

rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

Thank you for doing that so regularly! As someone who has received donor blood before, I am very thankful to you and everyone else who donates. (Even if one of my donors taught my immune system about mosquitoes and took away my previous immunity to bites, heh.)

apsalartoll.bsky.social•411 days ago

Stupid mosquitos.

rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

I know, right!? My whole life either mosquitoes ignored me or I didn't react to the bites if they bit me (not certain which). The summer after the surgery I had the transfusion after I was scratching my arm and was like "what the FUCK is that?" My wife, who is mosquito catnip, laughed at me.

elsieyork.bsky.social•411 days ago

So. If it works that way, could your wife (and me, this is really about me) maybe get the ‘mosquitoes ignore me’ from a blood transfusion? (I can be covered head to toe and have DEET and the bastards still get me. And I react.)

rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

Sadly, it seems that it's probably one way.

orcishlaw.bsky.social•411 days ago

I'm unfortunately still only a month out from my last donation, or I'd sign up again.

rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

But thank you for donating a month ago!!

lgbookworm.bsky.social•411 days ago

I’ve just gotten over covid but I’ll set a phone alarm to remind me in a few weeks

rahaeli.bsky.social•411 days ago

Woohoo! I'm glad you're recovering. (It's "14 days from when you test negative again or your symptoms stop", for the record!)