My Experience

I needed to get a blood test as part of a physical. My doctor was checking for lipids, iron, liver function and metabolic functioning. It was a fasting test, so I couldn’t eat anything before it. I scheduled the test for the morning so I just didn’t eat anything after dinner or for breakfast. I was allowed to drink water.

The technician who gave me the test was amazing: I didn’t feel a thing. I sometimes faint during blood tests, so I knew to look away when she drew the blood and think about something else. I was particularly worried because of low blood sugar from not having had anything to eat. She put on the tourniquet so I knew she was about to poke a vein but I didn’t feel anything. I heard her change vials, so I knew she was getting blood, but not only was it painless but I didn’t even feel the needle (it’s the needle feeling that bothers me as there is generally no pain aside from a momentary pinch).

She was finished, put a band-aid over the skin, and I was relieved. I complemented her on her technique and asked her what she had done. She said “nothing special,” and attributed the ease to a sharp needle, but I think she did something unique. Maybe pulling the skin a bit before putting in the needle, maybe being really good at finding the perfect part of the vein.