2nd Time Donating Blood

Once a while, Canadian Blood Services would setup blood donor clinic at my workplace.
I've tried to donate blood many times... Yes... TRIED many times!
Finally... Today is my 2nd time donating blood!!! :D
I've actually donated a whole bag of blood!

First time I was there... I didn't drink enough water... My blood was not moving... I only donated 1/3 of a bag... This time, I was well prepared... I had forced myself to drink 1.5 L of water last night and then 1L of water this morning...

Here is the usual process:
1) When we go to the reception desk, we will be given a number and a folder with a few pages to read
2) After that, a nurse will call the number to do a simple blood test... Needle puncture to the middle finger... Ouch!
3) Then, we'll be given a long list of questions.
4) After filling out all required questions, we'll need to see another nurse. This time, blood pressure and body temperature are taken. The nurse will go through the questions with us.

This is the point where I kept getting kicked out... :( One time I had recovered recently from a cold... One time I had visited Thailand within past 12 months... etc... etc...

Today... I finally got past this stage to the final stage... giving blood...
I guess the nurse noticed that I was very nervous. She gave me a first time donor sticker even though this is my 2nd time. :P

My heart was beating very fast when I lie down on bed waiting for the needle. I hate needles! :(

It took 14 mins to fill the whole bag (approx. 1/2 L in size) with blood. It did seems longer to me... The nurse said I had a big heart but small veins. I asked her to see whether I have a problem, but she told me that it's normal. I only had a glimpse of the puffy blood bag before the nurse took it away. I wonder what it feels like holding that bag. Does it feel like a warm water bottle? ;)

I had to wait 10 mins. (I think I had to wait an extra 5 mins because my hand was cold.) After that, I was taken to the cookies and juice table for goodies. :D

Even though the actual blood donation part only took 14 mins, but the whole process took approx. 1 hour and 45 mins. There was a lot of waiting in between steps. :(