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Wednesday, February 12, 2025

The gift of blood: Saving lives, one donor at a time 

HANNA RAUWORTH
HANNA RAUWORTH
Hanna Rauworth is the Health & Environmental Reporter for the Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper, where she covers topics at the intersection of public health, environmental issues, and community impact. With a commitment to storytelling that informs and empowers, she strives to highlight the challenges and solutions shaping the well-being of Indianapolis residents.

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woman smiling at flower
Lena Harvey struggles with sickle cell, a disease that requires blood transfusions and can be painful without them. (Photos/Lena Harvey)

Living with sickle cell disease has been a lifelong challenge for Lena Harvey, 39.  

Blood transfusions have been critical in managing her condition, offering relief from debilitating pain and life-threatening complications. As a Versiti Beacon of Hope, Lena is determined to raise awareness about the importance of blood donation.

In this Q&A, Harvey sits down with the Indianapolis Recorder to share her experiences navigating sickle cell disease, her gratitude for blood donors and her mission to inspire others to join the cause for national blood donation month. Her journey highlights the urgent need for diverse blood donations and the resilience of those living with chronic illnesses. 

Please tell me about your journey with sickle cell and being a sickle cell warrior. 

Harvey: When it comes to living with sickle cell and becoming a sickle cell warrior, it’s all about resilience. Imagine going through your life every day and having aspirations and wanting to do the things that are perceived as normal. Going to college, graduating, getting your first job, creating a long-standing career for yourself. All those things are impacted by sickle cell disease on a daily basis. Constantly there’s some sort of symptom that pops up and interrupts your life. 

Over the years, I have had many a sickle cell crisis where my body feels like it’s being beat up from the very inside and from the bones out and it causes a lot of disruption and pain. It’s very unpredictable, which means that not only do I have to be resilient, but I have to constantly pick up the pieces of my life after a hospitalization or after a period of being ill and having to isolate myself so that I can get better. 

woman struggling in hospital
Lena Harvey struggles with sickle cell, a disease that requires blood transfusions and can be painful without them. (Photos/Lena Harvey)

So, I would say the main thing about being a warrior to me is going through the rigors of a severe blood disorder and bouncing back, finding a way to lift yourself back up again, of course, with the help of many people. Not only the team of doctors, but home, family, caregivers, friends and supporters. It takes quite a village to support just one sickle cell patient like myself.  

Can you share your story of being a blood donor recipient? 

Harvey: Blood donation, to me, is the number one thing on my list that we can do for one another as humans to show compassion and to actively help someone who is in need of life-saving measures.  

As a sickle cell patient, there are times when I have had to have blood transfusion because my normal red blood cell levels have gotten so low that I have had trouble with simple things like staying fully awake and alert. 

I remember the last time that I needed a blood transfusion. It was a couple of years ago and I had gotten really, really fatigued and I was having quite a bit of pain. I was unable to do just normal, regular things around my house. 

I went in to see my doctors, and they determined that I definitely needed a blood transfusion. The next step was, of course, waiting. You have to wait for a blood match. You have to wait for the blood to be available and you have to wait for it to be delivered.  

When you’re watching your mom and your husband sit at your bedside and wait and pray with you for essentially a life-saving blood donation, it feels scary. If I had not received that donation and several of the ones I’ve received in the past, I do not see that my life would have progressed in a healthy way. I certainly would have continued to deteriorate from the inside out. 

When the blood arrived, every single time I received a blood donation, I have felt immensely blessed by a person, persons unknown to me. All I’ve ever wanted to do was thank them.  

How would you encourage someone to donate who may be apprehensive about the process? 

woman struggling in hospital
Lena Harvey struggles with sickle cell, a disease that requires blood transfusions and can be painful without them. (Photos/Lena Harvey)

Harvey: Donating blood makes you an instant lifesaver. In real life, not in a comic book, not in a movie, it makes you an actual real-life lifesaver. 

A lot of the times, because of the nature of blood donation, it makes you a lifesaver possibly up to three times with this one donation. I just want people to know, possible donors to know, that you will never feel as accomplished and useful as you do once you donate blood and save a life and save three lives with just one donation. I encourage people to consider that every single day, people are waiting for a life-saving blood donation. 

How can people help beyond blood donation if they are unable to donate? 

Harvey: If you’re truly unable to donate blood, make it personal. Find someone like me who has a need for blood donation or has a current need for blood donation and introduce them to someone that you know can donate blood and say, ‘Will you please donate to my friend Lena for me since I cannot?’ Whether it’s blood donation or something else, just pick something that you care about and be about that, you know? 

woman smiling at camera
Lena Harvey struggles with sickle cell, a disease that requires blood transfusions and can be painful without them. (Photos/Lena Harvey)

To schedule an appointment to donate blood with Versiti, call 317-916-5150 or visit versiti.org to find a donor center or community blood drive. Walk-in donors are also accepted. 

This reporting is made possible by a grant from the Indianapolis African-American Quality of Life Initiative, empowering our community with essential health insights. https://iaaqli.org/ 

To read more health stories, click here.

Contact Health & Environmental Reporter Hanna Rauworth at 317-762-7854 or follow her on Instagram at @hanna.rauworth. 

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