Recovery after donating blood

**thejym** · 09-26-2009, 02:42 PM

Hey guys, so last week I decided to donate a pint of blood to the Red Cross because there was a blood drive at my school. Today, I did some running and footwork and noticed that my endurance/stamina is maybe half of what it was earlier in the month (I just got back from a month of training in China). It seems it only takes 48 hours for the fluid lost to be replaced after donation, but it takes 6-8 weeks for the hemoglobin to return to normal levels.

Any ideas what I can do to speed up the process? I don't think I'm in the right condition to compete because I now suddenly feel like I get winded and can't recover my breath.

**Danstevens** · 09-26-2009, 03:39 PM

I'm not an expert on this at all but maybe eating some extra protein would help?

**Fidget** · 09-26-2009, 07:00 PM

Usually a blood donation does not take your hemoglobin below "normal levels" in the first place. If you happened to be anemic already before the donation, they wouldn't have taken your blood.

So entertain the possibility that your fatigue is from another cause. Might be a good idea to visit your doc.

If your loss of stamina is indeed from low hemoglobin, then you could take an iron supplement. (eg. ferrous sulphate 300mg two to three times a day).

Best of luck.

**Dzgdz** · 10-08-2009, 09:17 AM

I donated blood several times, but usually after one day I did not see any difference.

Once I even given almost a full liter, because lady operating the machine concentrated on a girl who felt bad during the donation. I remember that day I was in poor condition during the training, but after a day or two it was OK.

Once I even donated the blood (or rather plasma) on Friday and on Saturday I was playing in the tournament – no problem.

My suggestion is to eat chocolate – massive amounts. Sometimes they give you after the donation a lot of them. Once I eaten 10 bars just after the donation.

Good luck and I am sure that you will shortly recover.

**Fidget** · 10-08-2009, 07:37 PM

Originally Posted by Dzgdz

Once I even given almost a full liter...

I admire your generosity.

Originally Posted by Dzgdz

My suggestion is to eat chocolate – massive amounts. Sometimes they give you after the donation a lot of them. Once I eaten 10 bars just after the donation.

I admire your pancreas.

**cooler** · 10-08-2009, 07:57 PM

Originally Posted by Fidget

I admire your generosity.

I admire your pancreas.

i admire his spleen

**Shifty** · 10-09-2009, 12:34 AM

Different people react to donating blood differently. I remember when I donated blood last year. I'm was small, skinny 1.75cm student, and I felt fine after donating the required amount. Even got a bunch of cookies

But our PE teacher, who completed the Iron Man challenge (big thing in New Zealand) and was a rugby player with lots of muscle, around 1.89m had to lie down and felt really faint afterwards

**thejym** · 10-09-2009, 09:40 PM

Thanks for the comments guys. It has only been two weeks but I'm starting to feel better already. I was probably just not getting enough sleep and food for that first week, or was feeling tired from some other reason. I don't know if I will become a frequent donor, but maybe I will donate a few more times in the future.

**Botanica** · 10-09-2009, 11:11 PM

Originally Posted by Fidget

I admire your generosity.

I admire your pancreas.

Hahaha..that just made my morning..

I have never donated blood before but from what I've asked around, one shouldn't be too physically affected. Then again, i guess it varies from person to person.

**Shifty** · 10-09-2009, 11:21 PM

Originally Posted by thejym

Thanks for the comments guys. It has only been two weeks but I'm starting to feel better already. I was probably just not getting enough sleep and food for that first week, or was feeling tired from some other reason. I don't know if I will become a frequent donor, but maybe I will donate a few more times in the future.

Yeah, sometimes your body is really strange. Just today, I felt really lethargic on court. My legs were dead, although I had plenty of sleep and food. Sometimes, it just is