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I'm switching my bolus to leg only for a few weeks. Tips needed!

bobneil

Well-Known Member
Messages
55
Location
Alberta, Canada
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
I want to give my belly area a much needed break from being filled with insulin all day, and switch to my legs for a while whenever possible (meaning: I will only use belly if I'm absolutely starving or short on time and need to eat right away)

So far all I've really done is make sure that I'm not injecting into my thighs before or after any sort of exercise or even just a big walk, because I know that'll mess with the absorption rate. I give a 10 to 15 minute head start to the insulin before I eat a meal too.
I try to only use the back side of the legs because the top is filled with too many veins and I've already hit two up there.

What else should I be concerned with?

And, two quick questons:
- when you do your reading 2 hours after a meal, is it supposed to be 2 hours after you finish your last bite or 2 hours after you first inject? Sometimes what I'm eating and doing means the meal itself takes ten minutes to finish.

- is the ideal pattern for the readings (pre meal, post meal, and 2 hours after that [which is usually when the next meal is]) supposed to look like, say, 6.0 -> 10.0 -> 6.0? Sometimes my reading 2 hours after eating is a bit lower than the initial number, so I expect to go low and correct it right there with a tiny bit of carbs.
 
@bobneil I used my legs a lot for injevtions. I'm on a pump now and use my legs for cannulas. I know people say about exercise increasing absorption, etc, but I personally didn't find that a problem.

I'm not sure you should be using the back of your legs. The areas I use are the front and the side. That's what I was told to do. Sit on a chair look down at your thigh and you can use the top or the bit of the side that you can see. Yes, there are blood vessels, but these are usually easily visible so inject in 'clear' spaces.

The post meal reading is two hours from the start of the meal.
 
Interesting question and I am interested about what you find.
I rarely injected in my leg but that was as much about convenience as anything: it's easy to surreptitiously lift your shirt and inject into your belly but pulling down your trousers is a little more obvious!
Ok, I am being a little flippant but there is a serious point: I would not recommend injecting through your trousers as this will blunt your needle and more likely to cause bruising, etc.
On the odd occasion I injected in my leg, I was very aware of exercise increasing absorption. Not sure whether this was due to the intensity of my exercise, less fat in my legs or something else.
 
you should be rotating sites regularly not just using stomach or legs. what about arms also?

there are only capillaries in sub continuous skin, you wont bleed to death if you hit them.
 
bobneil said:
I want to give my belly area a much needed break from being filled with insulin all day, and switch to my legs for a while whenever possible (meaning: I will only use belly if I'm absolutely starving or short on time and need to eat right away)
Click to expand...

Why not use your bum for your basal and legs & arms for your bolus?

bobneil said:
I try to only use the back side of the legs because the top is filled with too many veins and I've already hit two up there.
Click to expand...

The following has a diagram showing where to inject insulin in the legs:



http://www.bd.com/us/diabetes/page.aspx?cat=7001&id=7261

bobneil said:
What else should I be concerned with?
Click to expand...

I think you've got it all covered, there is a slight delay in insulin absorption injecting in the legs compared to the stomach, on MDI I was always mindful about injecting in the legs when I was exercising soon after (as in walking) as the I had tendancy to go low due to the increased blood flow to the area. Good luck @bobneil
 
I used the above sites when injecting, and I basically rotated round them all each meal......

never had any significant absorption differences....
 
noblehead said:
Why not use your bum for your basal and legs & arms for your bolus?
[/USER]
Click to expand...

Back of my arms has been nothing but pain so far... and I don't mean , I mean they will still sting 20 minutes after even with a fresh needle. I'm just too skinny and have no muscle definition there (yet!).
For the last 2 months I've been doing it without pinching though, maybe that's my issue - I dunno, I was told not to, but that might only apply to people who actually have a bit of fat on them.

I do use my cheeks for basal, I mean, at least wherever I can reach - and sometimes a bit of the sides there.
 
pinch up before you inject, wherever you do it, it'll hurt less. you don't want muscle to inject into, that causes faster absorption potentially. What size needle are you using?
 

You could pinch-up and see if it helps, are you using the shortest (4mm) needles @bobneil
 
Hi @bobneil . Regarding injections in the arms.
Firstly. Having muscle definition will not make injections less painful. As someone who has worked out for the past 40 yrs, believe me hitting muscle is not nice at all. Nonetheless I regularly inject in my arms, but I use the outside of my arm. It's easier to get to and for me doesn't affect absorption.
Secondly.A strange question but are you able to inject using both hands? I know some people struggle with this but if you can it enables you to use a lot more areas, especially if you decide to use arms or butt.
Hope you find somewhere pain free to inject.
 
You mean the flexibility required to hold and use it in my non dominant hand? I do. I can switch to arms after a few weeks and try but im so thin there's a good chance I'll run out of room and have to switch again.
 
Next question: is it bad to use the leg if I'm eating carbs that are considered to be fast burning? I can't imagine it is, but if the insulin is still being trickled in after digestion is already finished, would that lead to a lower level than intended?
 

I think you have leg fear : D My leg was my fav place for boluses and I never had any issues whatever the carbs I ate. Obviously you're an individual so you should test to,see how you get in, but the leg works fine Just pinch up, choose an appropriate place free of superficial blood vessels - and off you go I can't think of any carbs I woukdnt inject in the leg for. In fact, my pump cannula is in my leg right now and so I always have my bolus there whatever I eat. No,problems
 
when I was on MDI I used my arms in the morning and afternoon, stomach in the evenings and legs for basal
 
This diagram is a good reminder for me! I tend to bolus in abdomen or arms and basal in legs or buttock. I get great result in buttock but I started my career injecting in the leg and they are much tougher and I have started slipping round to the sides more and wasn't sure just how far I could go! I think looking at the diagrams I have a little further to go yet and am getting good absorption! So thanks!
 
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