Why am I a donor?

I’ve been donating blood plasma since I was 18 years old, which is the age you are allowed to donate blood, blood plasma and platelets in Belgium. I always wanted to donate since I was around 12 years old because my grandpa has been donating since he was old enough to do it. I’ve always looked up to him because he gives something to help other people and that inspired me to do it too.

I go to a donor centre to donate blood or blood plasma and at the moment I’ve donated blood 2 times and blood plasma 14 times. You can donate blood 4 times a year since it takes longer to produce again and you can donate blood plasma every two weeks. My 14 times doesn’t sound much since I’m already 20 years old and I've only donated 14 times, but you are not allowed to donate when you’re sick or when you get a new piercing or tattoo, ... There were a few times that I got sick, so I just went with my grandpa and I also got 2 new ear piercings so I couldn’t donate again.

I love donating with my grandpa, but he sadly got sick this February and now has to take blood thinners. Because of the blood thinners, he cannot donate any more and he’s almost 71 and that’s the age that you need to stop donating. If I am correct, the government wants to change the age and make it higher since people who are 71+ are still healthy and able to donate. I wish that they could lower the age too because I think it’s normal to donate at the age of 16.

Someone at the donor centre asked us if they could take a picture for their Facebook page, and they kindly sent it to me.
When I think about donating, I think about all the lives I could save. I know it may sound stupid but that’s really the main reason why I donate. You can do so much with blood plasma. With plasma donations, you can help people with serious coagulation disorders, newborn babies with severe jaundice, … and they also use blood plasma for medicines. So in short: doctors and scientists can do so much with blood plasma and you can help so many people!

As you can see in the picture, the last time I went to donate, my 2 friends came with me and even donated! I’m so glad that I could convince my friends because even if you don’t always donate, you can still save so many lives. I’m glad to have these amazing friends in my life!

I hope you guys liked this post and perhaps are interested in donating yourself. Feel free to ask me anything, I don’t mind answering your questions at all! I’m really passionate about donating, so I don’t mind talking about it. One day I even want to donate bone marrow, but I need to look up all the details first and see if I may donate.

Do you donate blood, blood plasma or platelets or have you considered donating?

Picture header is from teenatheart.com