The stuff's all sterile, and all one-use so it's not like they're sticking everyone with the same needles. I sold plasma for years. Cons include getting jabbed with needles, which happens every time. They're big needles too. You might feel faint, or nauseous (happened to me once or twice). If they aren't paying attention when they wrap you up, you may start leaking blood at a fairly alarming rate, that happened to me once and they got right on it when I shrieked. They also test you for various diseases, which is nice until you get a false positive and they tell you you can't donate anymore because you have syphilis (also happened to me once- I got an all-clear from my incredulous doctor who said the test they use can give you a positive if you have a cold). Pros include- you lie there for 2 hours or so, and they give you money. Oh, and helping your fellow man and stuff.

it made me sick as hell, but its just cause i didn't eat. other than that, its totally safe and a good way to earn a few bucks.

just MAKE SURE YOU EAT FOOD.

i turned 10 different shades of white, and i'm already a pale bastard

i haven't done it but i saw a friend hours after she did it and she claimed it was terribly painful.

I did it consistently for a few months, twice a week. I'd highly recommend going to Austin BioMed (I think that's the name) up on Grand Avenue Parkway, way up on 35 near Pflugerville. It's a drive, but they pay more, and they are much more professional, friendly, and clean-seeming. Going to the one by campus (which has now changed to Aventis BioServices or something, so may be different) made me feel like I was being siphoned by some evil underground lab.

If you can deal with the needle (the worst part), then you'll likely be just fine. Some people get dizziness and nausea, but it appears to be somewhat rare. Austin BioMed is a big facility, and I never saw much of anything go wrong. I never personally got any ill effects, other than slight dizziness once or twice. Definitely eat before you go in -- high-protein meals purportedly help prevent nausea.

The only other "danger" that is somewhat common is hematoma. Sounds scary, but it's just a bruise.

$20 for the first time in a given week (defined as Monday - Saturday, closed Sunday I believe) and $30 the second time in a week. You have to have 2 days between the two donations.

Frequently, they put specials in the Daily Texan for an extra $10 with your first donation.

Best bet is to make an appointment for the first time, since there is about 2 hours of intake stuff (medical records, etc). They do drug test, as well as testing your blood for protein levels and some other stuff. After that, you can pretty much come in on your own schedule.

The hours, I'm not sure. Beyond that, it would probably be a good idea to call 'em up and ask. They're friendly.

do you have to weigh a certain amount?


if i wear baggy enough clothes and they don't have a scale i can pass for 110 and give regular blood, but otherwise i'd be fucked

well i only managed to give it once and i didn't really get dizzy

If you're going to donate, you should just donate whole blood. There's no 'putting back in', so the chance of getting something is basically nil. Whole blood also goes farther than plasma; they use it to make plasma, platelets, and something else.

I never heard anything about blood going bad after 9/11, and even if it did, it would only be parts of it. They can freeze the plasma, and I think they can freeze another portion. Generally, I think there's usually at most a 1-2 week supply in any given area, so the odds of it going bad are pretty slim.

don't know how long/often my friend gave plasma, but he has track marks from it. i know what you're thinking, uh huh... sure... from plasma. but honest, he doesn't do/hasn't done drugs, i promise it's from the plasma donations. like i said, i'm not sure how long he donated, or how often, but it's something to think about.