How many ways can men be heroes? Brittni Brown examines the masculinity behind donating blood, and what it means to those it is given to.
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For many men, the highest pinnacle of manliness involves being the hero in someone’s life. By setting this lofty goal, sometimes men fail to realize that being a hero doesn’t always have a direct path, nor does it involve a series of Herculean efforts to prove worth such as diving into oncoming traffic to save a kitten or donating a life savings to cancer research. Actually, being someone’s hero is frequently much simpler than that.
It is easy to overlook the simple things that can make monumental differences in people’s lives, for instance, we forget that a simple smile can change the course of a stranger’s day. Rather than looking for sweeping ways to establish yourself as a hero, try something simple. A frequently overlooked heroic effort is blood donation.
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One Pint Can Save Three Lives
Every day more than 43,000 pints of donated blood are used in hospitals – someone is in need every two seconds. Because blood cannot be manufactured, all of these people are fully dependent upon blood donations to receive the help they need to survive. Although they may never know exactly whose blood saved them, anyone in need of a transfusion is forever grateful to the volunteers giving blood at designated donation clinics.
Donating blood may actually be the single most effective way to reach hero status and save lives regularly. A single pint of blood (which can be donated every two months) can save up to three people. Sitting down in a reclining chair and sipping on a juice box for half an hour may not feel very brave or heroic, but in reality it is far more effective than throwing around cars while dressed in tights like Hollywood portrays most fictional superheroes.
Chronic Shortages
Unfortunately, even though roughly 38 percent of the population is eligible to donate blood every two months, only about 10 percent actually do. Furthermore, donated blood cannot be saved for very long and must be used within approximately 42 days. This creates a severe chronic shortage of blood throughout the nation.
It can also be exceptionally difficult to encourage people that have been deferred once to come back and donate at a later time. According to research by faculty in the University of Cincinnati’s Medical Laboratory Science program, those receiving a temporary deferral for something like low iron or recent travel restrictions can significantly lower the likelihood of someone returning to donate when they are eligible again. Temporary deferrals lasting longer than a year can decrease return rates by upwards of 50 percent.
Become a Hero Today
If donating seems like a viable option for becoming a hero, it is usually relatively easy to find a donation center. Most large hospitals have centers within them, and a number of nonprofits such as the Red Cross also regularly have blood donation days. Although there are certainly a few restrictions that apply to donors, once accepted donating is generally an easy and (mostly) painless process.
Making the decision to donate blood regularly might be the manliest thing you do all year. Doing so helps to fill a chronic need within the medical realm. Furthermore, it offers the chance to save lives regularly within the community. If that isn’t heroic, who knows what is?
Source: 30dB.com – Blood Donation
Photo Credit: Valve/Flickr
Unfortunately, gay and bisexual men can’t be heroic (technically, no man who has had sex with a man since 1977 can be heroic), although the FDA is considering changing this to, “Sure you can, after one year of celibacy.” Oh, and if you do break the celibacy oath at, say, 14 months? Yep, the clock starts over. So, in conclusion, if you are a dude who likes dudes, no matter how safe or careful you are, find some other way to be a hero. Your blood just isn’t good enough.
“Furthermore, donated blood cannot be saved for very long and must be used within approximately 42 days…”
That limited shelf life should be emphasized more often – I was unaware of it, even with several family members in various medical professions.