blood draw

[dayna123]

What are some reasons a blood draw would hurt? The nurse pierced my skin and it hurt very bad. Also, my arms was bleeding a lot at the puncture site. Thanks

[luvie1968]

hi, my name is nan and I suffer from midlife anorexia, I'm 46 years old and a size 8............1 year ago i was size 16 /18. ...now I have become so frightened of food.  I have had lots of trauma and abuse in my life. Its been a non stop roller-coaster , from the day I literally was born..........my childhood was filled with physical illnesses and mental  bulling !     These days... I've become a vegetarian, and an animal-right activist....I also love the almighty creator (god)... I'm spiritual, and have a,  very sensitive intuition, that has been getting  stronger and stronger , especially since 6 months ago...??? I keep and open mind ,but I have no set RELIGION, as I believe a bit from this and a bit from that religion.........I suppose that is my religion... " the no title religion"    LOL .... but i love to listen to Himalayan monks...speaking on alsorts of subjects, regarding our soul...and about karma......Anyway Due to my anorexia, half of my hair has slowly fallen out, I have had to fight many infections, I'm obsessed with having to have  a lot of physical exercise, and am also obsessed, with weighing myself every morning,,,,, if I accidentally miss 1 morning, I just freak out.....I am now suffering from some type of absence seizures, were I seem to fall into a deep daydream state, when stressed or depressed for about 20 sec up to a minute and in 6 hours from now, i have to have a sleep deprived EEG, that's why I'm typing this letter at this time of the morning, I'm not allowed to sleep for this test...I am now beginning to notice me becoming very  slow, in thinking and typing, and I have to use the spell-check on this computer, nearly every 3rd word .............. sorry.......I just had one of those bizarre seizure like moments....... it lasted about 15 seconds........I'm also now getting very cold,....I'm so very sorry, if  you feel that i am wasting your time, writing this long message to you........but I felt the need to tell some-one about my desperate, midlife anorexia crisis.....I live alone with lots of animals....I have no children due to past abuse, i have never gotten married......my family have deserted me long time ago, ( I came to NZ in 1982 with my parents and sister,)  My mother  has mentally and emotionally abused me very badly, and this is on top of all the other abuse that Ive had in my life.... I just seem to snap under the smallest amount of stress or pressure  these days, and feel like wanting to go home to god every day.............See....I don't see life as a gift,,, a gift is suppose to   make  you happy.......that's not me.......I'm here for a reason, but I don't know why??      I am a giver, and  voluntarily, help people and animals if they need something : fixed, or to do there gardens, or just being there as a listening ear...( and yes....I admit, that most of my benefit money, goes towards helping others....I myself, am satisfied enough, with a simple "thank you ,and a smile that I was able to put on their faces".. ,...That's the  kind of spiritual rewarding feeling that money can never give you....its like a    warm bright, light, deep in your soul......I call it: pure essential happiness  LOL....anyway,,,I'm having real trouble focusing and concentrating,right now, and I'm getting colder.......I got to walk to stay warm and awake, my heart is also beginning to palpitate a lot more,,,,,,,,,,,,many thanks for: "JUST LISTENING"  to me...........Warm regards to every-one that reads this, and may god bless you..........nan....O, yes, I am also in a LOT of physical pain when I have to give blood for tests.....I think its something to do with how well or ill you are...as I never use to be  ????????????

[dayna123]

Thanks

[Ger57]

No way. There is NO reason think she reused a needle. Needles are thrown away immediately after use and it would also not explain the pain you experienced.

[dayna123]

Thanks so much for your input.  Do you think it would be impossible for lady to have reused a needle on me?

[dayna123]

Thanks for your input. I am pretty sure she hit something because as soon as she put needle in she said I am sorry.i was making myself crazy because I was thinking what if she reused a needle, but I think that would be very hard to do these days.

[SassyLassie]

Hi Dayna,

I have had painful draws as will. It is usually due to the fact that the phlebotomist missed the vein, was too rough, hit a nerve, or even a dull needle, although seeing that needles are now disposable, that should not be the case.

I use to draw blood, for the most part, most of my patients were very pleased with the lack of pain. As" caregiver" said, it is an art, and like anything else, a person should always strive to do the best they can, no one wants to keep getting "jabbed" Ouch.

[kassen2]

I teach phlebotomy and if an inexperienced tech is drawing your blood, the skin should never be pierced until the tech is 90% sure to get it on the first draw.  If you are a 'hard stick', you usually know the best place to get your blood drawn.  Most likely, she/he hit a nerve, ligament or sclerotic tissue around or in the vein.  If you get frequent draws, your vein will develop scar tissue and will be hard to enter and hurt when doing so.  I advise my students to go either above or below the scarring area or find another site.  Good luck!

[dayna123]

My bruise is gone but arm is still sore

[dayna123]

Thanks! I was in a lot of pain

[EmergencyMed]

The vein could have blown. If this is the case there would be pretty significant bleeding under the skin, known as a hematoma.

[dayna123]

The supervisor said the lady has been drawing blood for years. Also, when she put the needle in my arm she said oh sorry

[caregiver222]

Properly done, a blood draw should be painless.

It is an art and not a science. For some reason some people simply "don't get it". Doctors are the absolute worst! Some believe learning such a skill is beneath them.

Sometimes it is really hard to find a vein.

As a general rule, when I show up at an ER, I tell them to think about what bloods they will need because they will get ONE SHOT at a blood draw. That's all folks. Of course I am really flexible about this, but it gets their attention and they think about what labs they need.

If you don't say this, as a succession of doctors become involved you may end up with four blood draws. I was taught to use the vein you start an IV with to get a blood draw, then connect the IV, but many hospitals prohibit this, and you end up with two sticks.

Unnecessary blood sticks are common for "insurance reasons".

Also, the person drawing your blood may be a trainee in a teaching hospital. It doesn't hurt to ask them: "is this the first time you are doing this?"

[Ger57]

Well, actually it should not hurt or perhaps a little. In some people the veins are more difficult to see and to access however, which increases the chance of "missing" the vein. An experienced nurse almost never misses. Next time better luck!