Typically, the blood collection unit will offer you
some light refreshment, especially liquid. As a sincere token of our
appreciation and gratitude on behalf of the recipients, we issue a
'Thank You Superstar!' certificate.
You are advised to rest for a very short time. For the rest of the day, avoid
- Using the hand to lift heavy objects
- Taking hot water bath
Meanwhile, this is what happens inside your body immediately after you donate blood.
Your body immediately senses it has lost red cells.
Special cells called peritubular cells start secreting erythropoietin, a
protein that will pass through the bloodstream and reach the bone
marrow. Erythropoietin instructs the stem cells to develop into red
blood cells.
Slowly, everything is restored and you are your own
self again! (In case you were wondering, your body makes about 2 million
new red cells every second, so the whole mechanism doesn't take too
long!).
The volume of blood you donated is replenished in
your body in 24 hours, though some of the key constituents may take a
little longer to get replaced.