In mid-October of 2015, my parents and others were starting to notice that I looked a bit yellow or jaundice in more medical terms. They thought either I was wearing bad make-up or I was tired, so no one thought anything of it. Then I stated to lose weight, was looking paler and way more yellow then I was in October. On the 2nd of February, I went to school feeling so weak and sick to my stomach, I was out of breath just walking from my mother’s car to the bus, but I just got back from a long weekend so I just thought I was tired and needed more rest. I got to school and was just trying to get to my classes without falling over. When I got to my choir period, my music teacher said I was really yellow and I needed to go home, she called my parents who, were either at work or in the city and couldn’t get to me until later. So I carried on to my next class, that teacher and another teacher that was in there said I looked yellow too, so I went to the office to call my dad to come pick up and take me to the doctors to see why I was so yellow. Our family doctor looked at me once and told us to go get a CT scan just because I was so jaundice, after the CT scan, we went to the lab to get some blood work done. After about thirty minutes of waiting and answering so many questions about taking any new medications, which I wasn’t, allergies, which I had none, or any history of anti-immune diseases, which I didn’t, I was told that my hemoglobin count or my blood count, which is supposed to range from 12 to 15 was a four and that I needed blood and maybe even my spleen removed and that I might have to go to OU Children’s Hospital in Oklahoma City. I was stunned, is that why I’ve been out of breath so easy? Is that why I’ve been so pale and yellow? What was causing this? Why, when it could happen to so many people, happen to me? I was so scared that all I wanted to do was crawl in a corner and cry, but I couldn’t I had to stay strong. About twenty minutes later, my doctor came in and told me I had to go to OU Children’s Hospital because they also wanted to know how and why this was happening and I needed to get some blood in me. My father and I arrived at the hospital around seven o’ clock to only wait in a ER emergency waiting room for an hour waiting for them to get my room ready, after they finally did, we were told that I did need at least two units of blood as soon as possible, but my normally A positive blood was so messed up that I really didn’t have a blood type and they were just going to give me some blood to raise my hemoglobin levels. When I was in the middle of my first blood bag, “The Green Team “or a team of blood specialists came in and told me that the reason I was so jaundice and pale was because my immune system was eating my red blood cells and the red blood cells were opening up and that’s why I was yellow. They also said they don’t know how this happened but they know how to stop it, they gave two bags of steroids and another bag of blood, that night after my first bag of steroids were inside me, my hemoglobin count was up to a seven which is still super low but better than a four. The next day they gave me my second dose of steroids and said as soon as they get me a pill version of steroids I could go home and come back every two weeks to see how I was doing and if the pills were working. I was so ecstatic and overwhelmed I was getting better because the blood and the steroids, that afternoon I was sent home with a hemoglobin count of nine and a great attitude. I started the pill steroids that night and was on the highest dose to try to raise my hemoglobin up faster which does come with side – effects such as puffiness, hungriness, and moodiness. Today I’m still taking the steroids and am being affected by these side-effects but I rather be all these things then yellow, pale and tired and my hemoglobin is up to an eleven with a lower dose of steroids. I can’t tell you enough how grateful I am for the two blood transfusions I received that changed and saved my life, without those two bags I would not be sitting here typing this essay. Every time I see or hear that someone gave blood, I thank them and tell them they are helping someone somewhere. Blood transfusions did change my life in many ways and I am so grateful that as soon as I am better and old enough I will give blood to try to help others like me who really did need blood donations to save their life.