platelets.

So I tried to donate platelets yesterday after a two month hiatus. It was the first time in a very long time (I'm talking years here- like three or four years) that I was able to check off "no" to the question "in the past 8 weeks, have you donated blood, platelets or plasma?" In all honesty, it made me a little sad. But what matters now is that I'm back, and will still be able to make the limit of 24 donations in a year. Apparently my veins weren't happy about the 2 month break either, and weren't as cooperative as they could have been. My return line went in like butter (if there's a problem, it's usually with the return) but the draw line wasn't so cooperative. The first person to try missed, and tried to dig around a little for the vein. Then she handed it off to the woman who got my return line. She couldn't find it either. They finally called in bev- one of my fail-safe techs. She moved, twisted, pushed in, and drew back the needle, and finally got some return. They started to run the machine, but couldn't get enough access pressure, and eventually had to pull out and move me to another machine (you can't attach another draw needle and keep it all sterile, so they have to chuck the entire kit (which runs them about $125)). I have another good vein in my draw arm, so lisa went for that one, and although she picked it up easily, there wasn't great pressure either, and it kept pausing the machine. After poking and twisting and repositioning that one, they eventually pulled it out too and called it a day. Despite all the poking and prodding, there only seemed like there would be one place where I'd have a little bruise. Last night I was noticing that my arm was sore, and just wrote it off to the rough day it had. But when I looked closer, it looked swollen, and looked like there was a bruise down my arm along the inside vein. When I woke up this morning, it was definitely bruised, but in a strange pattern. Kind of all along a vein in an area that wasn't really messed around with. Now it's all the way down my arm about two inches away from my palm. It's still swollen, and makes a hollow sound when I scratch any part of my inside arm. I'm no stranger to bruises, and consider them par for the course, but this one worries me a little more then normal. I guess I'll have to keep up with my every two week schedule from now on so my veins cooperate more. Little stinkers.