it's in you to give.

My friend Cory and I headed over to Canadian Blood Services at 888 Dunsmuir St, Vancouver, the other day. We'd been chatting about giving blood, and he decided he wanted to give it a shot. I am a big advocate for donating, and it gets my blood pumping (sorry... bad joke) when I can recruit friends to come along.

Blood donations are desperately needed, all the time. Check out this chart from the Canadian Blood Services website:



To quote the website, one donation can save up to three lives.

The donation itself takes ten minutes, tops. The paperwork and all that jazz will leave you there for a maximum of an hour, though I've never been that long unless I was busy visiting. That can tend to happen, as the staff and people donating are so incredibly friendly. I will almost guarantee, that you will walk out of there with a smile.

To ensure a positive experience, make sure you do the following:

- Eat something healthy prior to donating. If your blood sugar or iron levels are too low, they will not allow you to donate for the day, or for the next 56 days, for that matter.
- Avoid smoking directly after donating. It's a good chance you'll feel woozy. Try to wait it out for about 30 minutes, you crazy chimneys.
- Try to not drink coffee before going. It can make your blood pressure skyrocket, which can also lead to you having to wait to donate.

If you are frustrated by eating healthy/no caffiene, don't fret - you will be loaded with the opposite immediately after your donation. I'm talking Timbits, Cookies, Coffee and Juice. Go crazy, kid!

So, what's left to be scared of?

Oh right, the needle. The nurses will cover your arm with a paper towel, if you are really freaked out by the sight of being poked. Also, I promise, it doesn't hurt very much at all. My recommendation is to go with a friend - that way, you'll be side by side in your comfy seats, and can talk eachother through it.

We're privileged if we can say we're healthy, but there's a lot of people that aren't. This has to be one of the easiest ways to help a brother out, so... Get into it.

PHONE NUMBER: 1.888.TO.DONATE (1.888.236.6283)