Well, recently I gave blood for the first time, having intended to do so ever since I became old enough. The only thing that had really held me up was that there were no open sessions near me whenever I was available. Everything was always either fully booked or clashed with a time when I was working or in a lecture.

However, finally, the national blood service ran a session at my university and as they were open during the gap between my lectures, I decided now that was the time I was finally going to do my bit.

Even this session full of students was very busy! Those who had booked appointments had to wait after their appointment times and those who hadn't (including me) were waiting in some cases in excess of 2 hours. I was reassured however, this was not a typical case. They had by no means expected the sheer volume of people to turn up that actually did - guess that goes to show us students aren't all bad! Fortunately the staff were very open and clear to us about this in the first place, so when you arrived you know how long you may be there and it was your choice whether to wait or not, which was much appreciated.

I was given a form to fill in and a leaflet to read going through any reasons why you might not be able to donate and the form was a simple tick box run of questions that was easy enough to fill in. There was also a very helpful nurse present in the waiting area there to clarify anything if you weren't sure about what exactly was being asked.

Once the long wait was over, there was a quick assessment by another nurse, who went over the form with me to clarify any issues raised by the form, then a finger prick test to check that giving blood was not likely to make me ill. Once that was done, it was over to the donation table!

The process was very simple, admittedly it took the nurse a while to find a vein but that's not from their inexperience - more because it's always been a problem with me! That is what I'd say was the most uncomfortable part for me, as the band on my arm to help my vein come up led to me getting pins and needles and cramp after a while, but once that was done; the slight scratch of the needle was nothing!

Once you're attached they take a small amount of the blood to run blood tests with to ensure your donation is safe to give to those who may need to receive it and then you fill up the pint (470ml) bag. For me this didn't take very long at all, maybe 5 minutes I would guess! My only complaint would be that once this was done, it was quite a while before any nurse came and detached me from all the equipment which left me feeling rather uncomfortable. I understand they were very busy, but it would seem logical to me to deal with the person who's finished rather than start someone new when both occur at the same time!

After that - a sit down with drinks and biscuits and then it's done! It's a simple enough procedure and I would recommend anyone who can donate to do so. You never know who may need a blood transfusion at some point, if someone you knew needed one, you'd sure hope there was someone who'd donated the blood for them, so why not be the one who does so? It was a good experience and one I intend to repeat (minus the long wait hopefully!) so what more is there to say other than - give blood!