my hematoma

I gave blood yesterday. About half way through it just stopped flowing, so they had to play with the needle to try to get it going again. I know this makes a lot of people squeamish, but I was fine, at least until the 3rd time it stopped and they had to push the needle back in (previously, they had just moved it side to side and out). When she pushed it back up into my already traumatized vein, I could feel it all the way into my toes. It's a feeling that I can't really describe, not a localized pain, but a general internal spasm. I must have flinched because she apologized, promising it would only take a minute, which was about 2 minutes this side of the truth.

When I was done, they warned me that I might bruise and I assured them I wasn't planning on doing any arm modelling in the next few days, so it should be OK. They warned me it might bruise, not that I would collect a pool of blood under my skin that would first cause a lump the size of a golf ball, then slowly disperse across my arm, causing me to look like I had been beaten. Someone better REALLY need that blood!