Posts by Jose Miller3

Look, you're being malicious here—just so you know, there's a moderator lurking in these threads who reads everything, and they read it *very* carefully.

Don't even try to claim you weren't warned that any potential rudeness is going to land you a ban...

Raymond James said:In my opinion, it would be better if they just flagged you in the system once something shows up in your bloodwork—then they stop taking from you. But while you're able and willing to give, just keep giving.

Oh sure, go ahead and try explaining that to someone who ended up HIV-positive because they couldn't bring themselves to be honest about their lifestyle on an American Red Cross form!

Yeah, obviously you can't give a 100% diagnosis for Hashimoto's without checking for those antibodies first 🙄—I mean, I really have to question the doctor who actually made that call...

Raymond James said:Plus, don't you think it’s just plain stupid that if you've ever had a relationship with someone of the same sex, you're basically barred from donating blood for the rest of your life!!!

I feel bad about it, but I don't really see it that way...

since there's no actual legal liability for what you sign when you're standing there in front of the doctor, I wouldn't call it stupid, per se...

Seriously, did none of you even bother to click the link I posted? 🤔

Why am I even trying here?...

the Red Cross said:Permanent Donor Deferral:
1. Permanent deferral applies to anyone who has suffered or is currently suffering from serious chronic conditions involving the respiratory or digestive systems, cardiovascular disease, malignant diseases, liver disease, AIDS, diabetes, or neurological and mental health disorders.
2. Permanent deferral also applies to individuals engaging in high-risk behaviors:
- alcohol or drug dependency,
- men who have had sexual contact with other men,
- men or women who have had sexual contact with sex workers,
- individuals with multiple sexual partners,
- anyone who has used drugs intravenously,
- people treated for sexually transmitted infections (like syphilis or gonorrhea),
- HIV-positive individuals,
- sexual partners of the individuals mentioned above.

Temporary Donor Deferral:
Blood donation will be temporarily postponed for those:
- experiencing mild acute illnesses (colds, digestive issues, low iron levels, etc.),
- following surgical procedures,
- after receiving blood transfusions or certain vaccinations,
- with minor blood pressure fluctuations, and
- women during menstruation, pregnancy, or breastfeeding.

I think it’s pretty obvious—all those categories you guys brought up are clearly listed as people who ARE NOT allowed to donate.

Still, as unpopular as it might sound... I think the list is fine.

Have you guys actually seen an endocrinologist yet?

I'm pretty sure there’s some specialist out there who focuses specifically on kids—honestly, I wouldn't just take a pediatrician's word for it when we're talking about a diagnosis this serious...

Get a second opinion, honey...

please 😘

it’s really not as bad as it seems—I know you're freaking out, but there's no need to be... (trust me, I wouldn't lie to you 😁)

Justin Gonzalez87 said:Okay, please elaborate on this just a little bit...😘

Alright, let me break it down (using a woman in her 40s as an example)

The symptoms are honestly pretty "elusive." We're talking fatigue, constant sleepiness, crazy weight fluctuations, hair thinning, anxiety, and just this general sense of physical weakness. You know what a total mess those symptoms are—especially when they start hitting right at the same time menopause kicks in?

It took almost three months for my mom to finally get her bloodwork done for T3, T4, and TSH (plus the antibodies). Once that was finished, within two weeks, it was crystal clear it was Hashimoto's. But man, it’s not easy explaining to doctors that "nothing specifically hurts, but you feel like you got jumped by a truck," or that you "lost 10 pounds and then suddenly gained 15 without even changing what you eat." Plus, you already know you're going through menopause...🙄

After the diagnosis and getting through that initial "titration phase" with her meds (you know, that period where they figure out your exact hormone dosage), Mom didn't have a single issue with her thyroid for the next ten years...😁

Seriously, don't even start panicking.

Hashimoto's is a total jerk when you first get the diagnosis, but once you're past that initial shock, it’s actually one of the more manageable chronic things you can deal with...😁

I mean, you just take your pill every single day and honestly, life goes on without much of a hitch. I swear, I've seen cases where even a 3-year-old kid handles it fine...

Just try not to freak out. 😁

rapidwalker7 said:I think people who spent more than three months in the United Kingdom at some point—I'm thinking back to the eighties, I guess—aren't even allowed to donate blood... 🙂

That was mostly because of Mad Cow Disease, but if I recall correctly, they've actually scrapped that rule now...

fadedheron18 said:Honestly, I’d love to just keep tweaking this post, but there's no way—it would be absolute madness trying to re-post everything from scratch.

Well, I can...

Just tell me right here or shoot me a DM with what you want changed (and please, don't make me sit here reading through a whole list of "improvements" I should have made already)

Yeah, it's a no-go.

http://www.redcross.org/index.asp?id=41#1, under the section "Who cannot donate blood" (which is their mistake, not mine), it clearly lays out who's disqualified from donating.

It’s basically just a list... most people whose behavior falls under "high risk" are included there.

I gotta admit—even though I don't love the idea—I actually agree with them, and I totally get where they're coming from.

Like, when that case happened recently where a guy contracted HIV from a transfusion, everyone was freaking out about how that could even happen. It was explained pretty clearly that you can't detect HIV in the blood within that 3-4 month window after exposure... so if a donor gives blood right during that "window" period while they're newly infected, they'll test negative, but they're still infectious. It's scary stuff.

They're basically just trying to shave down that tiny—but real—chance of something like that happening.

Dana Allen3, you're a smart kid, so you should probably realize that figuring out "who is actually healthy" isn't exactly a simple task...

Jack Harris3 said:From what I gather, it’s actually the opposite.
If you sign up to be a donor, you get a donor card—you just keep that on you at all times...
But if you haven't signed anything, your family gets the final say on whether your organs can be used.
Otherwise, they aren't allowed to take them.
If they go ahead and do it anyway without the family knowing—like, say, if you pass away in a hospital setting—I honestly don't know how that works. 😁

it doesn't really work quite like that...

over here is a pretty detailed breakdown of the legal framework within the EU, if anyone's interested...

Scott Allen10 said:"if someone truly doesn't have any close family left and they've signed up as a donor under their own name, I'd definitely push for the organ procurement process to move forward..."

That's awesome!

Some random URLs probably don't even matter in your situation—I mean, nobody is going to go digging through them given how sensitive this whole thing is... (you know, the risk of things being manipulated).

That was just a joke 😁, honestly I'm HOPING nobody actually checks a URL to see if I really meant what I 😉

But I feel like your situation is pretty straightforward—like, there shouldn't be any reason, God forbid, for your wishes to be ignored.

Why "God forbid"? Honestly, I’m hoping my life ends with me getting hit by a subway train or something, rather than lying in some hospital ward waiting for my "inner enemy" to finally win...😢

Walter Myers4 said:Hey, watch your language and cut out the insults—I don't want to have to report this post.

To who? Me?

Look, telling someone their post is "garbage" or they're "acting like a know-it-all"... that's not an insult, it's just being honest...

Look, Walter Myers4, don't do this here, please... you can go anywhere else with this, just not in this thread.

Someone spent three whole pages laying out exactly how this works—explaining the actual procedure and why it doesn't work the way you think—and then you just jump in with this nonsense 🙄

Just do me a favor and actually read the topic before you start replying, okay?

So, tell me something...

I've had my donor card for ages, but the contact person listed on it is, well, deceased. So here's the thing—who actually makes the call if I go? You always hear that they respect the family's wishes, but what happens when I DON'T have a family to speak for me? My closest relative is my brother ( 😘 if he's lurking around here somewhere) and we haven't even spoken or seen each other in 🤔 like 10 years. He honestly shouldn't be the one deciding my stance on organ donation since he doesn't know the first thing about my beliefs... Can I just print this URL on my donor card or something, so people can actually see that I WANT them to take every single last organ I've got??

I think I read somewhere—I'm pretty sure the original piece was out of the Lancaster—about someone who actually passed away because of the donor's cancer.

Tragedy... but it's definitely not just some urban legend.

The organ donor was this young, "healthy" person who died in a car accident, and neither the doctors nor the family even knew they had cancer (where the primary site was, I'm not really sure 😢 ). Her liver was transplanted, and then, despite all those immunosuppressant drugs, the metastases from the donor's liver just spread and ended up killing the recipient.

Such a Tragedy.

Scott Allen10, you’re honestly just an incredibly sharp and kindhearted soul, you know?

😘

I know for a fact that no patient dealing with cancer is ever going to 😢

but my mom... she really wanted that