QuestionRobert,
I'm not on any medications that could affect my BP, and I always eat and drink before donating blood. But I was wondering if there is any way I can avoid the psychological componet of the faint - in other words, it often seems that it is just the very thought of the needle, the blood, the iodine on my skin - that trigger a faint. Also - if you are not scared of or upset by something, then why would it cause you to faint? I have also almost fainted in other situations - like getting sutures, where the blood loss is minimal, so it doesn't seem like the loss of blood is the cuprit.
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Followup To
Question -
I was wondering if you have any advice on what to do about a very frustrating problem - I am a chronic fainter! Generally I try and avoid situations that might cause fainting, but I am also a regular blood donor and it seems like every third time I donate I get all dizzy, sweaty and nauseous and almost pass out. I even almost fainted when I was fitted with contact lenses years ago! The last time I gave blood I nearly fainted twice - once during the donation and then as they were finishing up on me - one time I did it when they were only cleansing my arm and hadn't even brandished the needle!. I don't want to quit giving blood, so I tried a technique I read about that fighter pilots use to keep from blacking out under high G forces: they keep squeezing the muscles in their legs over and over to try and force blood into the upper body. I tried that for about 10 minutes the last time but even that could not stave off a faint. I have done other things - like try and focus mentally on what's on the radio, or TV if they have one, other peoples' conversations, but nothing seems to work. It just comes creeping over me like a sneeze or a yawn - you try and stifle it but it's futile. This is really aggravating. I'm not afraid of needles (I'm not fond of them either, but have no qualms about getting shots, blood tests, etc) or blood - but I really want to get over this fainting problem. It feels awful to want to hurl your lunch and you sweat like it's 105 degrees in the room, your eye lids flicker and your head spins...
Do you have any advice on how to avoid fainting? Is there anything I can do to reverse a faint or make it less miserable?
Answer -
The first thing is to make sure there isn't a medical problem. I assume if you pass the screening tests for donating, then there aren't, but make sure you aren't anemic or don't have other problems like thyroid disease. The avoidance has to do with healthy
habits... make sure you go into the donation area well hydrated... plenty of fluids. make sure you haven't overdone it on caffeine, etc. Also, make sure you have eaten so that low blood sugar isn't the cause of the faint.
Then, assuming all those have been covered, fainting is a chain reaction where the body releases some hormones that slow the heart and lower the blood pressure. You may not be able to do anything about release of the hormones, but those are metabolized quickly, so waiting it out will help. That means, after donation, lay there an extra 3 minutes or so until the fainting hormones have started to clear.
Sorry there isn't a quick and easy fix. I assumed you aren't on any meds, like BP meds, etc. that can lead to low blood pressure and fainting.
AnswerThere are "conditioning" tricks to help in situations like that... if the sight of the needle is what does it, etc. Basically, practice with whatever sets it off, meaning if it is the needle, have one, handle it, repeatedly look at it, think about it, and there is the potential to minimize or reduce your automatic fainting response to it. The other trick is to concentrate on another subject whenever the situation arises.
