How to Give Blood Without Getting Sick

Do you always find yourself getting sick after getting blood taken? Do you pass out, feel cold, change color or get really cold? This is a common problem among people, and is usually attributed to two things: blood sugar levels and/or anxiety. It's important to know from which one you're suffering. Here are both causes and ways to avoid them:

Nausea from a drop in blood sugar usually happens if you fast before blood work. This is because the sudden loss of blood, and therefore sugar, results in very fast decrease in your blood sugar. Most labs have soda and candy, in case you do get sick, but the easiest way to avoid it is to eat before you get your blood taken [unless otherwise directed.] Another way to tell if it's blood sugar related, is by the time of onset; if you get sick a couple moments (usually 15s - 1 min) after the blood has already been drawn, then it's probably related to blood sugar. Laying down, eating high-carb foods beforehand, elevating your legs, and breathing correctly can all help ease the nausea caused by blood work.

Nausea from anxiety should be pretty easy to spot. Most people who suffer from this feel upset to their stomach before the needle is even placed in their arm. Watching the blood get drawn, focusing on the feeling, or thinking too much about it can definitely worsen the effects of anxiety-induced nausea from blood work. The most noticeable differences between this type of nausea and the blood sugar one, is that this one typically happens as the blood is being drawn or even beforehand. Most people with this sort of nausea get sick at just the sight of blood. The best ways to avoid this sort of sickness are to rest well before the blood work, take deep breathes, try to avoid fidgeting, avoid looking at the vials of blood, and asked to be placed in a comfortable chair - wet paper clothes also help in this situation. Using these techniques, you should be able to overcome your fear of getting blood taken.

As a precaution: If you are prone to getting sick after blood work, it is always a good idea to alert the nurses ahead of time, and to make sure you have someone to drive you home afterward. This is especially important if it is because of the blood sugar issue: the drop can cause random cognitive effects and make you drowsy for some 2 hours afterward. This is never a good condition to be in while driving, so always make sure you go with someone if you think you're going to get blood work done. If you didn't bring someone, and then find out you do need to get it done, ask the doctor if you can wait until you can bring someone with you.