A Not-So-Random Act of Kindness
Blood lillies image from Canva

A Not-So-Random Act of Kindness

I missed a very important day yesterday. June 14 was World Blood Donor Day, a day that celebrates not-so-random acts of kindness. ??


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World Health Organization


When I gave birth to my twins almost ten years ago, the bleeding was constant and unrelenting. My husband, who witnessed everything and is still haunted by the memory, had to call the alarm for help for his unconscious wife... while tending to our two freshly-born infants. (Thankfully, the twins were healthy despite being born five weeks early). I awoke in the ICU after five days, shocked to see my weary-looking parents by my bedside and forced to incredulously ask my relieved-looking spouse, "What happened to me?!". ??


What happened was that I lost nearly all the blood in my body. As a result, my organs began failing and my prognosis was grim. It took months to rebuild my strength and years to regain my health. ??


My fate that day turned on two things:

  1. the skills of the Karolinska doctors and nurses and
  2. the seriously massive number of units of O+ donated blood I received. ??


Every person counts... and keeps counting

Receiving donated blood is an exercise of eternal and compounding humility... and of course, gratitude. ??


My husband, my children, my parents, my brother, my extended family, my friends, my colleagues, (and I, presume, my cat) are extraordinarily appreciative that I am still on this earth. There are other mothers and families who are not so lucky. And, I am especially reminded of this every year on October 18th, my children's birthday. ??


Pick a day and get started. Do it for a loved one. Do it for yourself. Do it for humanity. Your act of kindness, after all, may well be rewarded by someone else's. ??


Be kind. Give blood. ?? ??

Sverige: https://geblod.nu/

United States: https://www.redcrossblood.org/



Lydia Smeds

Senior Marketing Director Colour Cosmetics & Accessories p? Oriflame Cosmetics

1 年

We are so grateful that everything turned out fine??Thank you for sharing your personal moving story??

Frida ?str?m

Hj?lper skolor till st?rre urval av studenter | Digitalmarknadsf?ring | Keystone Education Group - Studentum.se: Sveriges st?rsta utbildningsplattform

1 年

?? thank you for sharing, and hopefully will encourage other to become ’blodgivare’ ??

Niklas Lundgren

Hj?lper utbildningsf?retag att ?ka sin synlighet och digitala n?rvaro ??????

1 年

Thank you for sharing Rama Eriksson

Tai Mei Gordon

Transformational Talent Management Leader | Specializing in Learning, Development, and Performance Solutions for Large Organizations | Former Hospitality Sales Leader

1 年

Thank you for sharing this, Rama. I, too, am grateful you are still here. I pray all will take heed and donate today.

Daniela Barrera Pacheco

Data Engineer with a background in project management | Problem-solver by nature | Film, music and travel enthusiast | Raising trilingual girls

1 年

I am most definitely one of those that are grateful to still have you with us. And one that will most definitely commit to donate blood ??

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