curse you tiny veins!!!

only 6 of these bad boys this time

Went for my day 3 blood testing today.  2 technicians, 2 needle sticks and 6 vials later and I’m back at work, and only 45 minutes late.

This is the part of my life I like to call, “This happens to me every time”.

First I have to explain for the billionth time that the first name on my health card is not the name I generally use so yes they have also put the shortened version of it on my file.  Anyone with a foreign sounding name Iike I’ve got will understand this.  It also happens to me even more now that my married name is very Canadian sounding while my maiden name is not.  People see my name and they are expecting a European looking Canadian girl and they get me. Nigerian as can be.  Frustrating sometimes but what can you do.

Second, when they ask me which vein they can use I tell them whichever one they can find because I’ve got tiny, tiny veins.  They don’t believe me (cocky? yes) and then they spend 10 minutes all tying me up with rubber, making fists, bending my arm, poking, pressing, and, what do you know, no vein.  They start on one arm with a regular needle, blow the vein, then try the other arm with the butterfly needle. 2 sticks.  Pros can get it with one.  I usually get to know the technicians after a while and know who to tell right off the bat “you should probably use the butterfly needle on this arm” because I remember what we went through the last time even if they don’t.  Some tech’s don’t like to be told how to do their jobs, but hey, it’s my arm(s) and I don’t like “pro’s” jabbing me with needles all morning long.  Then you start to get the sympathy looks from other infertiles who have veins the size of cannons who can’t help but tell me that they’re lucky and it must really suck for me.  Yes. It does.  Don’t need your pitty today sweetie.

But I digress.  The day 3 blood testing went fine.  Moving on.