My vision was blurred. I couldn’t feel my legs or the rest of my body. My head was pounding  incessantly. I thought I was going to throw up but the sensation passes. Out of nowhere, everything goes black. I passed out.

It all started last fall when I tried to donate blood at Park’s annual blood drive. The day of, I could not hold in my excitement as I walked to the old gym with my I.D. all ready in my hand. I took a seat in the waiting area, my heart pounding in my ears and my legs shaking. The nurse called my name.

She takes me back to her cubicle and starts filling information into the computer based off of my I.D. Then, one of the test she performed was the finger prick to check my blood and see if I was able to donate. I was not able to. The nurse proceeded to tell me that my hemoglobin was too low to donate that day. She suggested I eat more red meats or leafy greens – basically a diet containing more iron. I walked back to my class feeling like a failure, feeling hopeful for the next blood drive. That should have been a clue.

Fast forward to last spring, when I started to experience weird symptoms. It was early May and the weather was starting to heat up, not too hot but not too cold. One Saturday, my friend texted me and asked if I wanted to grab something to eat at My Burger by Lake Calhoun, and I said yes. The only problem was that we would be biking. I bike all the time but I hadn’t ridden my bike since the previous summer so I was a little out of shape.

I live close to the bike trail leading to Calhoun, so I thought I could handle the ride. I could not handle it. We had to stop multiple times just so that I could take breathing breaks. Once we got inside My Burger, I started to experience some symptoms that I have never felt before — blurry vision, numbness in my body, the pounding in my head, vomiting sensation, then blackness. I was passed out for almost a minute and when I regained consciousness, everyone in the restaurant was staring at me. Another clue.

Later in May, the Blood Drive came back to the school again. Taking into consideration the nurse’s advice from last time, I ate spaghetti with meat sauce the night before in an attempt to raise my hemoglobin levels. When I got on the Bloodmobile I instantly felt uneasy about donating, but I still continued into the nurse’s cubicle for evaluation.

I passed the blood test — my hemoglobin levels were high enough to donate. Sitting on the cot with a needle in my arm, I felt at ease but there was something off. My body was trying to tell me something but I continued to ignore that feeling so I could donate blood.

My happiness soon turned into fear. The next morning after donating blood, I woke up not feeling well. After getting out of the shower, the symptoms started up again. Laying on my bed in my white and blue striped robe, on the verge of passing out, my mom with a panicked look on her face says she is going to call my doctor and make an appointment as soon as possible.

I had no idea what was wrong with me, but I was scared. I didn’t want it to get to the point where I was passing out more frequently, I didn’t want whatever I had to disrupt my life. At my appointment, they drew blood so they could test it. Two days later the doctor’s office called with my results.

I’m anemic, which means I have low blood cell levels due to low iron levels. Who knows how long I have been anemic but it’s a good thing I know now. To regulate my iron levels, I have to take two iron pills every day for the rest of my life. I’m grateful that I found what was wrong with me but I should have taken action sooner. It could have been a serious illness that could have killed me but fortunately for me it can be cured by pills. Don’t ever take your health lightly, it can be life or death.