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So...

I'm taking a class on Phlebotomy--It's a wonderful way to spend Saturdays!!!

Anywho, for anybody that doesn't know, Phlebotomy is essentially the art of drawing blood...

On the first week of class, we had a lecture, then we got to practice poking fake arms (aka, stuffed nylons) with syringes. We also experimented with the vacutainer assembly.

Most people get their blood drawn with a vacutainer assembly. Basically, you have this holder that you screw a special needle into. This needle is really two needles--one is for venipuncture, and the other is for the vacutainer tubes.

Vacutainer tubes are the tubes that the blood goes into. They have a vacuum inside which pulls the blood into the tube. Though, sometimes, you can get a tube that all the vacuum has already escaped. Of course, you can't tell if the vacuum is gone until you've already mounted the vacutainer onto the holder. But even then, it's difficult to tell if the vacuum is gone--you may have missed the vein instead...

In class today, we got to practice drawing blood from "real" fake arms. It was rather interesting--the teacher wanted everyone to talk to their arms. At one point, I bumped my arm, and it started to roll off the table and I was like, "Come back Bertha! It wont hurt! I promise!"

Then, we got to the really fun part of class: drawing blood from each other!!! Of course, I had never done this before, so I was rather terrified. Luck, it seems, was on my side, because I ended up drawing blood from a girl with huge veins popping out on her arms! (Except, she wanted me to use the biggest vacutainer tube!)

The whole experience was a bit surreal, because, like I said, I was terrified. Especially when I was putting the vacutainer in the holder--you have to poke the patient first, otherwise you lose your vacuum. Then you have to push the vacutainer tube into the holder, which requires some force--I was afraid I was going to push the needle in deeper when I tried to attach the tube. But, the teacher helped me, and all was good. At least until it was my turn to get my blood drawn...

I was okay, at first. But my veins were hard to find, and they were deep. When I was poked, I was still okay, but the girl drawing my blood ended up missing my vein. So, the teacher had her feel my arm until she found my vein again. Then the girl readjusted the needle, and suddenly, I felt really hot, and I couldn't really think straight...

At some point, I heard one of the girls say, "Oh my gosh, her lips are white..." Then the teacher started asking me about working at Burger King (she was trying to distract me) and I think I started saying "yes" to everything, because I remember her asking if we had to wear any protective equipment when making fries, and I remember saying "yes" even though we don't...

Then the teacher was like, "Honey, you're not breathing," and I was thinking, "I'm not breathing!" Then, once I started breathing, I felt a whole lot better. Of course, they gave me some ice water, and I got to sit and be comfy, but I still felt shaky for a while...

I can't wait until next week... eek