Despite all this, my husband still gives blood. He knows it helps someone like me, someone who relies on strangers’ kindness to have enough strength to face another day.
The Quiet Hero in My House: A Story About Blood Donation
17 June 2025
Why Blood Donation Means So Much to Me
Over ten years ago, my husband decided to start giving blood. He did it for me, indirectly, he does it for so many others too.
You never really know when you might need that life-saving gift of donated blood. It could be because of:
- an accident
- giving birth
- major surgery
- cancer treatment
- or living with certain blood conditions like red cell anaemias
People with conditions like Sickle Cell Anaemia or Thalassaemia major depend on kind-hearted strangers rolling up their sleeves and giving a bit of their beautiful red juice.
If you’re well and healthy, could I ask you to pause for just a moment and think about the blood rushing through your body?
You probably don’t give it much thought as you go about your day, but your very life relies on that pump keeping you going.
Now, imagine having to rely on other people for that precious juice — just to get up and function at some level of ‘normal’.
I know this all too well. I have both Sickle Cell Anaemia and Beta Thalassaemia. I’m one of the lucky ones in that I don’t need regular blood transfusions to survive day to day. But in certain situations, I have needed that precious gift from others.
The not-so-lucky part?
During my first pregnancy, my body reacted badly to a transfusion. Something in that blood didn’t get along with my immune system — instead of helping me boost my haemoglobin levels, my body attacked the foreign blood and killed it off.
Quite Problematic
Ever since, I’ve developed multiple antibodies that make finding a safe blood match incredibly tricky.
Every transfusion I’ve had since has caused more complications than I needed, very traumatic events where you fear for your life. Now I do all I can to avoid needing blood altogether, while waiting and hoping for advances in medicine to offer an alternative one day.
Giving blood really doesn’t take long.
They take about a pint, and for most healthy people, you barely notice it’s gone. You won’t be told who gets your blood, but rest assured — it goes to where it’s needed most. Some is even used for research to improve treatments for people like me.
This month, my husband gave blood again and a week later received a text to say it was used at the Whittington Hospital in London. I was over the moon! That’s my hospital — the one that’s looked after me since childhood, and home to the thalassaemia unit where people just like me go for transfusions.
It’s unlikely I’d ever get his actual blood, but just knowing it went to help someone in ‘my world’ is a feeling I can’t quite put into words.
So, if you’ve read this far — thank you. And if you’re healthy and able, please consider giving a bit of your golden juice.
It might take just an hour of your day, but you could save a life. Maybe even mine, one day.
Here are some useful links for you to investigate more about giving blood in the UK:
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