Giving blood

[alycat27]

Ok, this is how bad Emets can be. I was having a blood test done and the vein was so small that they needed to use a small needle. It drained my blood very slow. I immediatly became cold all over and got that familiar"oh my god, am I about to get sick?" feeling. Then I slowly started to realize I was getting a NEW feeling, it was that"I'm going to pass out" feeling and had just never felt it before. How sick is it that I was thinking "Oh thank god, i'm just going to pass out and go to sleep, not throw up"? [img]smileys/smilies_10.gif[/img]

I didn't pass out though either, they had me lie down and they started a needle in my other arm instead and it worked out fine.

[cashcarstar]

I have had to have lots of blood tests recently. I have had times when my vein was too small. I am very used to them though so i don't feel n* (usually) and I have never fainted.

[jezebel89]

Oh! I totally know what you are talking about!!!

I job-shadowed a vet in high school, and didn't realize that the smell of the chemicals of some procedure they were doing really irritated me... (or something, I know I'm not afraid of blood or surgery - I also have seen human procedures done in person too and never had any problems). I don't remember a whole lot, but I remember feeling really odd, and suddenly was like, I NEED TO GO OUTSIDE (I am terrified of getting sick inside, I'd rather be outdoors). I remember running to the doors and then I woke up in a chair and they were shoving food in my face.

I don't know if it will help any, but next time try to look away from the needle and/or blood. I remember feeling light-headed once when I was watching the nurse get ready, I'm not sure if it was anxiety or what, but I've never had a problem since.

[andee]

Oftentimes you do feel n* before you faint, so that is totally normal. And sometimes drawing the blood out can cause fainting...

[gertruth]

Getting blood taken is horrible. I did it about two years ago and right after it was done, I got a strep test.
Immediately afterwards I was very hot, felt n*, and my head hurt. All I wanted to do was lay down. It was winter and I walked outside without a coat and I wasn't cold. I lied down in the car and about three minutes later I was fine.
Last Apirl they took my blood again after getting a shot and I was fine. Maybe it was the strep test and being nervous that set me off.

[alycat27]

It's funny because I have no fear of needles or blood. When I was pregnnat I had blood taken quite a bit, and alot more than they took this past time. It was just very odd, I think it was the combo of the SLOW blood drain and the fact that they tied that rubber band so damn tight around my arm that my fingers were numb by the time they poked me with the needle. So maybe it was lack of circulatiion as well.

[mxw08]

Oh yeah I totally know how you feel! I felt WAY sick yesterday, I posted a thing about it to anyone who read that terrified rant... haha (thanks to everyone who replied by the way, I feel much better.) And after a bit I realized I felt really light headed and was seeing spots and I was SO relieved that maybe I would just pass out, not throw up. Haha! I have a friend who's TERRIFIED of passing out but doesn't fear throwing up at all, so it's kind of funny to see both ways...

[mxw08]

And I'm not afraid of needles at all either, but the last time I had a blood test I was so terrified I was going to get nauseous that the doctor just assumed I was shaking because of a needle phobia. Haha! He was like "It's in now, it's okay." I was like "Great, that's the part I wasn't worried about..." Haha!

[alycat27]

It's the same with the dentist for me. I don't mind the drill(well I mean I don't LIKE it but I can deal with it) or the novacane needles but when they shove those cardboard squares in my small mouth to do xrays I gag horribly and it's enough to make me NOT want to go.

[mxw08]

Yup, I'm a legend at my dentist's office. When I was little I actually punched the dentist in the face and ran out of the office completely (on two separate occasions,) rather than deal with the gagging fiascos. I hate the x-rays... and the dentist in general of course because of all the gag potential.

[wallflower]

Changing the subject slightly (sorry)....is it true that a lot of people v* after they've fainted? My friend told me she did in primary school and now I just assume that everyone does, every time they faint. So I'm scared of fainting, which means I'm scared of giving blood because I might faint afterwards...and then v*. Thankfully I'm 0.5kg below the limit for being allowed to give blood.[img]smileys/smilies_04.gif[/img]

[happyteacher]

I hate bloodwork! I'll do it, but I hate it! I have fainted so many times from it and I have never v* from fainting.

Fainting is scary enough!

[sage]

I've never heard of anyone vomiting from fainting. Unless maybe the "fainting" is some sort of illness on its own that also causes vomiting. But the two are not generally related.

[lyndsayanne]

Personally iprefer the small needles but i have really bad veins and it usally takes a good few attempts to get my blood which i have to have done weekly at the moment as I have had a transplant and also am having issuse with my kidneys about the fainting thing though i often feel faint or faint after bad d* or if I have v* when i asked about this in hospital i was told it can be jut shock caused by a sudden loss of bodily fluids dropping your blod pressure and is acttually fairly common and also i think panic to certain degree can make you feel dizzy and faint because you are over breathing

lyndsayanne

[lianna]

I've never heard of anyone vomiting from fainting. Unless maybe the "fainting" is some sort of illness on its own that also causes vomiting. But the two are not generally related.

Me neither. I consider myself something of an "expert" at fainting, since I have suffered from low blood pressure since childhood and I faint at the drop of a hat. There are lots of things that can make me faint - not drinking enough on a hot day (or even on a cold one), getting up too quickly after sleeping, running a fever, etc.

So, if you worried about fainting, wallflower, let me reassure you that it's completely harmless (well, unless it's a symptom of some horrible disease). I've done it dozens of times in my life and never been sick; as a matter of fact it now seems perfectly normal to me [img]smileys/smilies_04.gif[/img].

The funny thing is, the first time it ever happened to me slowly enough to feel nauseous first I felt *exactly* like alycat. I went to a drugstore for some meds and since I was running a fever I already felt kinda shaky. So while the woman behind the counter explains to me how often to take the pills, I suddenly start to feel nauseous and I'm like "OMG, this is getting bad, OMG I'm going to throw up right in front of her, OMG I'm not going to make it to the exit it's getting worse...oh wait...ah, this almost feels like fainting...oh, please let it be fainting, let me faint, letmefaintletmefaint" *faints*.

[xmdslatx]

The last time I had blood tests I didn't have emetophobia (YEARS AGO) but I am so scared to get it done now.

If I sit still and get that uneasy feeling I feel like I am going to either v* or pass out.

It kinda sucks because I want to donate blood to help others but can't because of this. [img]smileys/smilies_06.gif[/img]

[kyle1989]

i don't think there related either, its something to do with the blood test, did you have an empty stomach?

i had one very recently, *i used to be afraid of needles, but im fine with blood tests now*

or it could be another thing, how many tubes of blood did they take? they took 3 tubes of blood from me, and during the 3rd, or mid or late of the 2nd one, i began to feel faint,and light headed, then nauseas, i was scared i was gonna be sick, i was gonna tell the man to stop, or tell him i think im gonna faint, but i just went through it, got outside after asap for air, and after about one or two minutes of feeling faint and nauseas, it began to suddenly disappear, and i was relieved.

im not sure why it happened, iv had blood tests befor, and im sure thats the first time i felt that way.

all i can think of in particular, is that i had the test about 10 or 11 am, i hadn't eaten anything, just a little bit of a cup of tea, and the guy took 3 tubes of blood from my arm.

is any of this identical to your blood test of when u fell faint?

thought i might add, that the reason i had this test was because i went to the doctors last week to tell him i had emetophobia, he hasn't heard of it, and he made me have one to see if its anything iv got that's causing nausea etc. he obviously didn't understand my explanation of emetophobia!

has anyone got any tips they could pm me about what i should say and explain to my doctor about this emetophobia?Edited by: kyle1989

[xmdslatx]

i don't think there related either, its something to do with the blood test, did you have an empty stomach?

i had one very recently, *i used to be afraid of needles, but im fine with blood tests now*

or it could be another thing, how many tubes of blood did they take? they took 3 tubes of blood from me, and during the 3rd, or mid or late of the 2nd one, i began to feel faint,and light headed, then nauseas, i was scared i was gonna be sick, i was gonna tell the man to stop, or tell him i think im gonna faint, but i just went through it, got outside after asap for air, and after about one or two minutes of feeling faint and nauseas, it began to suddenly disappear, and i was relieved.

im not sure why it happened, iv had blood tests befor, and im sure thats the first time i felt that way.

all i can think of in particular, is that i had the test about 10 or 11 am, i hadn't eaten anything, just a little bit of a cup of tea, and the guy took 3 tubes of blood from my arm.

is any of this identical to your blood test of when u fell faint?

thought i might add, that the reason i had this test was because i went to the doctors last week to tell him i had emetophobia, he hasn't heard of it, and he made me have one to see if its anything iv got that's causing nausea etc. he obviously didn't understand my explanation of emetophobia!

has anyone got any tips they could pm me about what i should say and explain to my doctor about this emetophobia?

I would just print out the emetophobia info from this site and give it to him.

[jkl81]

Yeah I think thats a good idea, however he's following correct protocol to make sure you don't have any underlying serious or minor illness before assuming you have a phobia. That said, your symptoms are so classic there's no doubt in my mind or yours that its emetophobia.

[jkl81]

Oh I too would love to give blood but I faint or get nauseated/sweat/dizzy just from my annual flu shot....scares me to think of anything more than that!

[frankie100588]

I'm terrified of having blood taking now. Because last time I had it done about two years ago. Two minutes after I had It done I went really hot and dizzy and I thought oh god I'm going to v*.
I had to get outside so I ran through the doctors office as soon I got outside I just went all tingly and collapsed to the ground.
It wasn't the fainting that has put me off It was the awful n*. I didn't have a problem with anything like that before though.

[kyle1989]

we'll since were all worried about the blood test, we should consult our doctors / gp's.

maybe they can explain why its happend and tell us how to prevent it, but don't worry too much.

[musicmaam]

I just had a blood test today and felt a bit faint. I hadn't eaten since breakfast - it was only noon or so, but I'm the kind of person who needs to eat very frequently! So I was hungry and thirsty, and as usual they had trouble finding a vein because my veins are so small. But I tried to breathe deeply and not think too much about the digging around in my arm, and I was ok! I did almost pass out once a few months ago though.

It's great that some of you can give blood! I went once to try, but I don't have enough iron and they wouldn't take it.

[kyle1989]

how much blood did they take, tubes wise?

[beachy_keen]

I'm fine with blood tests, I've been prodded so many times over the last few years and had 4 tubes taken at once recently.
I wish I could give blood but I have a tattoo and I've been told they won't take blood from people who have tattoos.

[musicmaam]

Yesterday they only took 2, but once they did 7. :S Thankfully it was when I was younger and had nice big easy veins!!!

[juliab3]

ohmigod. i remember my first time getting my blood test done. i had to get it done becaue i have stomachaches and feel tired a lot. that sound farmiliar to anyone? well anyway i cried the WHOLE time!!!! i was so scared!

[shelovescliche]

I've never given blood at a blood drive or anything, but once I had to get like 8 tubes of blood drawn, and after a minute or two I did start to feel dizzy and n*. After I got outside, though, I started feeling a lot better.

It probably didn't help that the woman drawing the blood (rather untactfully) asked if I was one of those people who faints or v* when they get blood drawn. Way to talk to someone who's already afraid of needles, huh?[img]smileys/smilies_12.gif[/img]

[prncesspnk]

i never used to have a problem with blood work as a kid or as a
teen. as i'm getting older though, my anxiety has become so
horrible, not even just emet-wise. anticipation is a killer for me. i
have horrible panic attacks while waiting in a doctor's waiting room
or while waiting to go somewhere or when i'm too excited about
something. non emet-related attacks always end in fainting for me.
they're different from emet-related attacks, i can't explain. i wasn't
always like this. these horrible attacks and this horrible anxiety only
began about a year ago. before that, my panic attacks were solely
caused by something emet-related. (and yes, i've seen doctors to
make sure that these fainting episodes aren't something more
serious, they've done blood work lol which led to more passing out...
i'm seeing my therapist a lot more lately, but to no avail so far.)
anyway, the anticipation while i'm having blood drawn makes me
pass out each and every time now. and i honestly was never like
this. my anxiety has gotten so intense. i'm doing my best not to get
discouraged, but it's hard, especially when i don't know what's
causing it. it's much easier when i know that my emet is causing an
attack. but i've never v'ed after passing out. in fact i don't know of
anyone who has, unless they were passing out as a result of v'ing or
an illness in the first place.

[alycat27]

When I had mine done it was scheduled for 9 something and I had fasted because I assumed that is what they have you do for most blood tests. My anxiety level was through the roof to so that probably didn't help. I have social anxiety and just sitting there in the waiting room with that big crowd of people was stressng me out. They only took three vials but it was immediatly after they started taking the first that I started to feel that way. I had never had issues before.

I think it had to do with a number of things

One, anxiety.
Two small needle.
Three, they tied that rubber arm band around my arm SO tight that my fingers were starting to go numb from squeezing that ball they give you before they even started to prick me. So maybe It was from the tightness and the numb feeling and having the oxygen cut off in my arm or something.