The nurse stuck me once and got a little blood. Then I stopped bleeding.
She tried again in a different vein and came up dry.
A second nurse came in and stuck me in the other arm. Nothing. She tried on the top of my hand. Nothing. They gave me a bottle of water to drink, and I drained it.
A phlebotomist from the office next door came over and tried again on the first arm. Nada. They gave me another bottle of water and I downed it. She stuck me on my wrist. Zilch.
So they said I'd have to come back next week to try again. And I left looking like this:
And by Friday night the bruises had started to show up.
So the next time I'm going in to get bloodwork done and they tell me NPO after midnight, I won't eat anything but I'll sure as heck be well hydrated by the time I get there.
Being stuck eight times with no results is for the birds.
And did I mention OUCH?
2 comments:
Oh, my! You were dehydrated! I had blood drawn this week, too. The phlebotomist tried the right arm & couldn't even find a vein. I told her to use the left arm. She was so fast at it that I didn't even know she had stuck me. (there's a lot of fat to get through!)
Beckie in Brentwood, TN
That has happened to me my whole life, and many nurses have told me I have "small veins." That sounds kind of bogus to me. However, I do know that every time I have to get blood drawn or an IV put in, they have to stick me more than once. Usually, third time's a charm
I warn nurses beforehand now before I get stuck that they may have trouble finding a vein, much like I warn new hairdressers before they have to comb out my hair for the first time. Tangliest hair ever.
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