Rachel's Diaries: Bucket List | Why I'm A Blood Donor

Wow, I can't believe we're almost at the end of yet another month, where is this year going?? As you know, I've decided to get back into setting some goals and trying my best to achieve them. Also known as my Bucket List I did a couple of posts about it here and here.

Today I wanted to talk about why I decided to sign up and become a blood donor and why it's important you should. My dad has been a blood donor for years and he's always talking about why it's so important. I'll be honest I never really thought about it and always told him I'd have a look into it when I got chance and I never did.

It wasn't until I had my son that I really started to think about it seriously, As a first time parent the worry about something bad ever happening to your child never really leaves you even as they grow up. So why should we donate??

Giving blood saves lives, The blood you donate is a lifeline in an emergency an of course for people that need long-term treatment. The NHS need over 6,000 blood donations each day to treat patients in need, that's just across England. Think how many more are needed to cover the whole of the UK.

Each year they need 200,000 new blood donors, as some donors can no longer donate. Most people between the ages 17-65 are able to donate. Half of the current donors are over 45. The NHS are in need of younger people (17 year olds) to start giving blood, so they can make sure there's enough blood for the future.

It takes a couple of minutes to sign up, then all you have to do is book your appointment turn up, answer some screening questions and you're good to go. Giving blood only takes 10minutes of your time. I'll be the first to admit that I don't like the whole needle process but I'm getting used to it. The nurses are all lovely and always make sure you feel comfortable and at ease. It's not as painful as it looks.

After you've donated you get to enjoy a hot or cold drink and biscuit or crisps, if that doesn't tempt you then I don't know what else will.

I can feel at ease knowing I could be saving someone's life. Think about it?! If you do one great thing this month, why not give blood? You make one donation every 3 months.

If you're in the UK you can sign up or find out more about donating on the links below.

I really hope this post encourages a few people to do something amazing and register as a blood donor. I'm just asking you to think about it.