Often I have people ask me "Kylie what can I do to help you?" and usually I do not have an answer for this question because I try to manage my ITP (Immune Thrombocytopenia) condition on my own. For the most part it's not overly complicated to manage. However in actual fact there is something people can do that could make a whole world of difference for someone with ITP and that is donating blood.
For those who are not aware ITP (Immune Thrombocytopenia) is a condition where ones blood has trouble clotting due to lack of platelets. The reason for this is that the immune system is attacking itself and therefore destroying the platelets in the body. The less platelets in the body the more trouble the blood has with clotting and the more risk there is of bleeding.
One of the scariest scenarios of Immune Thrombocytopenia is when an ITP patients levels get below 10,000. When their levels drop this low it can lead to spontaneous bleeding. Meaning for no apparent reason their insides could start bleeding and they wouldn’t even know the bleeding had begun. We also have to live with fear once our levels are 60,000 or below of bleeding from cuts or trauma. Simple things like going to dentist or playing sports can be a problem.
I hope you can see why a blood donation could make a huge difference to an ITP patients life. Whilst there are other forms of treatment for us (which some also require blood donations to create), their is yet a cure - meaning our last resort when things get bad is a blood transfusion.
In Australia one in three people will need blood or a blood product within their lifetime yet only 3% of Australian's actually donate blood. For a country that usually bands together to help those in need and embodies mateship in their everyday life, I find these stats a little disappointing. You may ask who am I to judge? have I donated blood? and in actual fact before contracting ITP yes I did donate blood. I did it not because I knew anyone who was sick and needed it, I did it because I wanted to help others in need. I also did it because I did not earn enough to donate money to the many charities out there therefore I decided to donate something more valuable - that being my blood.
Obviously now I am unable to donate as I do not wish to pass on my condition to others. However I now ask my friends, family and strangers to do what I can no longer do. Donate Blood.
I understand that the blood you donate may not even go to your loved ones, you may not even be the same blood type and I understand it is a bit on an inconvenience to have to go give blood however let's think about the big picture - an hour or so of your life could potentially save 3.
So if you actually do want to help and are not just saying it to be nice then what you really need to do is go donate some blood, take a selfie whilst it's done and post it on social media to encourage others to do the same.
To find out if you are eligible to donate and to make an appointment go to https://www.donateblood.com.au/