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I need BLOOD

01:28 / 15.02.04

has anyone here ever let blood from themselves?
i would like to remove a small amount of my own blood from my veins, and store it.

i am disease free, and i will not be letting anyone anywhere near the stuff, so what i really need to know from you guys is how to remove it(at least a spoonful, no more than a quarter gill) and how to store it. i dont have access to hosptal equipment except for what is readily available to all, and i dont have any experience of using syringes. although a hypo seems like the obvious option in many ways, i fear i may really hurt myself. am i being daft?

i dont envisage wanting to keep it on tap for much longer than a couple of weeks, and i cant see myself repeating the procedure too often. are there any dangers in blood letting other than anemia from excessive blood loss(yeah, i know it needs to be loads)?

are there any warnings i should heed?

tell me your stories of self harm or medical experience if you think they are relevant, and dont worry about scaring me/telling me i am being really dumb.

I'm Rick Jones, bitch

06:15 / 15.02.04

Why are you doing this?

11:36 / 15.02.04

i'd also ask
a) Why do you want to do this?
B) Why do you need to store it? Surely your blood is stored quite adequately already in your veins and arteries?
C) Why do you want to do this?

11:49 / 15.02.04

has anyone here ever let blood from themselves?

As I diabetic I "let" small amounts of blood from myself several times a day to get blood-sugar readings.

So if you'd be happy with just a bunch of little bits from yr. fingers, I'd suggest finding a diabetic and borrowing their finger pricking thingy, or possibly buying one yourself if you're that serious about it..

And if you're looking for more blood than that, I'd suggest just getting a sharp knife and bloody well getting on with it.. I mean if you're fooling around with blood for "nefarious purposes" you may as well just go for it instead of wimping around with all this hygenic nonsense!

(Er, actually, no, on second thoughts, I'd urge you not to follow that advice, I don't think I was being entirely serious..)

12:19 / 15.02.04

Blood is drawn from a vein, usually from the inside of the elbow or the back of the hand. The puncture site is cleaned with antiseptic, and a tourniquet (an elastic band) or blood pressure cuff is placed around the upper arm to apply pressure and restrict blood flow through the vein. This causes veins below the tourniquet to distend (fill with blood).

A needle is inserted into the vein, and the blood is collected in an air-tight vial or a syringe. During the procedure, the tourniquet is removed to restore circulation. Once the blood has been collected, the needle is removed, and the puncture site is covered to stop any bleeding.

Knock yourself out, dude. Just don't go squirting it at anyone.

When I was at school we nicked scalpels from the Biology labs and sat in Maths lessons drawing pitcures in our blood. Used to freak the shit out of our teacher. A worthwhile endeavour.

12:24 / 15.02.04

As a matter of interest...

James and Cherry: Do we need to know why? There are tons of reasons I'd draw blood from myself (and many times that I have in various ways).

12:26 / 15.02.04

Knock yourself out, dude. Just don't go squirting it at anyone

best line all week

16:08 / 15.02.04

thanks for the help, kids.

a)why do you ask?
i am working on something that needs my blood... i dont really want to go into too much detail, but suffice to say i am not just doing it "to feel something" or "so folks think i am insane"

b)i would like to store it so i dont need to stab myself every time i need a drop, as it aint the best habit to get into. oh, and because it hurts.

c)why do you ask?
does the idea repulse you in some way that you feel rude articulating?

and seth.. i found something soimilar to that googling, but i know from one particularly painful experience that even nurses fuck up vein location and smooth syringing. that worries me, as my medical knowledge is pretty darn limited.

i could skin a rabbit or gut a fish, but i cant find my own veins... that seems wrong for some reason. especially as i am vegetarian.

ONLY NICE THINGS

17:10 / 15.02.04

Bear in mind that if you drink your own blood, you are no longer a vegetarian, although you will be absorbing vital Omega-3 oils.

18:23 / 15.02.04

if i sever my spinal cord first, is that a loophole?

20:17 / 15.02.04

toksik: You're from Glasgow, if I remember correctly? I'm sure there's tons of people there who'd be able to teach you vein location.

20:37 / 15.02.04

Just read the fine-print before you sign...

21:13 / 15.02.04

Veins and needles sounds worse than just taking a knife and making a small cut in your finger or something...I think that's what I (very briefly) did in my gothy-bloody-drinking-days of age 15...

ONLY NICE THINGS

22:21 / 15.02.04

Don't forget to have TCP, wound-cleaning cloths and dressings handy...

22:58 / 15.02.04

i thought about cutting my hand, but it seems to me i'd be temporarily without the use of whatever digit gets the laceration. then i thought about my arm, but that seems foolish to me; i might not stop the bleeding very easily and i would be left with a scar that has a bad story behind it. well, hard to tell to anyone who asks. maybe a leg slice?

an' don' yoo wurry misser t, ahmur a train' furs' aiduhr.

part of me was wondering if it would be junkies rather than medics giving me the goods advice wise, seth... i guess the folks on the lith just arent as mental as i thought.

wassamatta, mcfly? chicken?

03:54 / 16.02.04

Just find a pointy knife or something, sanitize it and start pressing it against your thumb. You don't wanna fuck around with your veins if you just need a little bit. And poking is better than slicing, cuz you're doing it just a lil bit at a time. Add a little bit of pressure, a little bit more. And then when you see red stuff you can just squeeze it out. And if you don't get enough you can just do it again. (most of this experience is from trying to get this pus and stuff out of this infected bug bite on my leg, but while i was trying to squeeze the pus out far more blood came out)

04:17 / 16.02.04

*faints*

06:49 / 16.02.04

I don't know a whole lot about obtaining blood, but once you have it, store it in an airtight pouch/container so you don't have to worry about oxidative damage.

I'm Rick Jones, bitch

06:59 / 16.02.04

Just wait until you get a nosebleed, or just have a good old pick...

09:32 / 16.02.04

It sounds like you're only gonna need a little at a time, but over an extended period. Personally, I'd take it fresh every time.

Mix's Method:

Let your passive hand ["left" if you're a righty] hang by your side for a couple of minutes. This allows gravity to drag blood down into your digits. Now, bind your thumb below the knuckle with a cord or cloth [I use a handkerchief]. Your thumb will now look swollen and darker. The blood inside is now at such pressure, you'll hardly have to break the skin to bleed.

Either stroke a sharp blade [gently] across the knuckle, or pepper the area with pinpricks. Both methods involve very little pain or permanent damage, and squeezing against the binding will speed up the flow. Once you have enough, release the binding and bleeding will stop. If the flow dries up before you are finished, release the binding, let your arm hang, then rebind and repeat. NB, the cut or pinpricks will reopen when you squeeze.

All the best with your endeavour.

Tryphena Absent

13:27 / 16.02.04

Christ, even reading this is turning me bright green.

21:37 / 16.02.04

It's not easy being green.

23:23 / 17.02.04

Good lord. I would vomit doing that. I have a thing about a build-up of blood anywhere; the thought of tying anything round anywhere makes me feel rather ill.

Mix's is probably best. But if it were me, and was bothered about arm-scars like you, I'd cut on the top of my arm- cause I'd imagine you dont wear shorter sleeves than a t-shirt often, right? But yes, it's horrible when people ask. Makes me want to vomit almost as much as mix's method. Blech.