Two Thursdays ago, I decided to donate blood. It was... interesting. I was very, very scared but I really wanted to donate blood. Some people asked me why I wanted to donate if I was so scared, I donated because I wanted to help. Not enough people donate.
The experience wasn't that bad. They asked me questions... Like what's your weight, while looking at my CA ID, to which I responded ____. The the guy glanced at my ID again and was like you gained some weight haven't you? 
Thanks. The poke on the finger to test if I had anemia, I don't, hurt more than the needle for the blood donation. It was like a pen jab or staple... It was really fast but it hurt/shocked!
I was really scared still. But eventually I psyched myself up enough to do it. It couldn't be that bad... It wasn't. I had to squeeze a ball while the needle was in me. The nurse gave me a magazine so I could keep my mind off of things. It was People magazine and it was... THE HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL 2 SPECIAL EDITION! Neat 
Afterwards, I had some pretzels and grape juice then I rushed to work since I was already 30 mins late.
But then when I was at work, it happened. I was just standing there next to my box, holding some acknowledgement letters and suddenly i felt really weird... My vision felt fuzzy; my ears started feeling hot and plugged, like I was in an airplane. One of my supervisors asked me if I was okay and I was like I feel weird... And then bam! I dropped like a 'piece of shit' onto the floor. Everything turned black for a few moments. Another student assistant, it was her first day too!, helped me into a chair. I felt soooooo horrible!!! It was the most horrible feeling I ever had!
I felt nauseous, hot, cold, headachy, and my fingers/hand couldn't move. The people in my office called the campus police and they asked me questions like what's your name, when is your birthday, and kept telling me to keep talking... LOL Sigh, I could still think, I just didn't want to talk because I felt so horrible. I remember thinking mann... I want to just curl up in bed under my blankets until I feel better....
The head nurse from the blood mobile came and placed some cold towels on the back of my head. Then I said I wanted to throw up so they had a trashcan ready and then I threw up! Well, at least I drank a lot of grape juice so it wasn't all chunky, it came out smoothly.... One of my better vomitting experience and trust, I've had a lot. I have pretty bad motion sickness (airplane, car, cruise ship...) so yea, it was a familiar feeling. The nurse said my symptoms was because my body was 'shutting down' because it wasn't use to so much blood going away. Anyways, after throwing up, they told me to walk to the couch but I already felt all better and was super impatient to get back to work. But they made me lay there for 15 mins and it was soooo boring! Then I had to sit up for another 5 mins before I could walk around... The new student assistant made sure I didn't move. Good thing we knew each other before this, Summer Bridge, or else... I don't know what else... 
So yep, the rest of the day progressed normally. But yea, donate blood! It isn't that bad. The nurse said that sometimes it could happen for first-timers but it isn't the norm.
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I have to say, your story wasn't the most positive recommendation to someone considering donating blood, but the good thing is your experience isn't the norm. Most people don't faint and throw up when they donate blood. Sometimes I feel faint like that when I get out of bed too fast in the morning. It's just because I have low blood pressure. After donating blood, eating, resting, not locking your knees when you're standing, and not getting up to quickly are the best ways to prevent fainting and nausea.
Common sense is as rare as genius. ~Emerson
I gave blood a while ago. My only problem was that I had a headache going in, and I wasn't sure if I could take something for it or not, so I decided not to. Bad idea! The combination of blood loss and no meds made it progress into a horrible migrane. I should really know better by now - I've had these headaches since I was little. If I don't take something within a half hour of my head starting to hurt, it doesn't stop and even gets worse. Fortunately, it was the end of the day, so I could go home and curl up until the ibruprofen that I *finally* took kicked in, which took about 3 hours because the pain was so bad.
You should read the blog I posted (we posted one about the same thing, the same day) It was terrible. People were dropping like flies. Woohoo. Donate people!
Donating is a wonderful thing. I think of the people who donate blood, or anything else from there body to be a hero. There needs to be more heros. Just make sure you eat and drink plenty after you donate to help prevent any side effects such as being dizzy or throwing up or passing out, and take it easy for a while.
~EmI~