Injection rooms?

Test strips and needles are free for people on insulin, as you know. Yes there is a cost to the NHS, but we all cost the NHS (and the environment - think of the manufacturing needed for all this stuff) far more than the average, I hate to think how much we cost per year. The needles will be a tiny contribution this, test strips, insulin, amputations, treatment for ketoacidosis, treatment for hypos, treatment for eye damage etc etc will come to far far more.

Hi ,
I've had GPs in the past try to restrict the amount of test strip prescriptions, In fact a GP in my distant past only gave his type-1s 1 pack of 50 per month- this is still a a problem for many people: unfortunately, and blamed on cost.
I've gone right off topic, but I agree that us diabetic's cost the NHS a lot, but I wouldn't mind the BM144s if they were still available. I remember the days when pen-needles weren't available on prescription, although syringes were. Diabetes is a huge industry, and I sincerely hope that doesn't hinder a future cure, but that's for another discussion.
Jus

Hmm.
I just wanted to lend my support to those on here who have been brave enough to say they inject through clothes. I was actually told to do this (in a whisper in case a doctor heard us) by a Diabetes Specialist Nurse who had had diabetes for 25 years (I was fairly newly diagnosed and having a terrible time adjusting). It made a huge difference to my life, because it meant I could streamline my injections into my lifestyle and not have to run off to restaurant toilets or feel like some kind of freak. I've met others too who when going through that horrible teenage identity/diabetes crisis time have chosen to avoid injecting at all because they'd been given strict instructions never to inject through clothes, and they didn't want to identify themselves as that weirdo who has to go to the toilet before meals. IMO far better for them to break the 'rules' but keep their overall health and sanity.
So - I would say that it's one way of handling the practicalities of this disease. I'd have a rant about the lack of evidence about infection risk but that would probably get me chucked off the forum for being a bad diabetic. Let's just say I've never had any infection, or anything that even looked as if it might turn out to be an infection, from this terrible "bad habit". Nor has anyone else I've met who does it. No I know that isn't scientific. I'm just saying.

Pef

My mum was insulin dependant for 40 years, (she died of cancer 4 years ago) and would never go to the toilets to inject, she always did it discretely at the restaurant table no matter what the occasion was.

She was often so discrete that even those of us who knew she was doing it would miss it. Sadly I don't know how she did it all of the time, I never though to ask her it was just part of her meal. At home she would just lift her skirt and inject into her thigh.

She always wore a skirt and blouse with tights, and ok trousers may be more of an issue, I suspect she did it sometimes through her clothes and sometimes lifted the edge of her blouse and injected into her stomach. But I don't see any reason for anybody to inject in a toilet, and if anybody else objects to needles then it is their fault not yours.

noblehead said:

Just don't use toilets at all Pef, they are filthy dirty places to inject insulin and no-one should feel the need to hide away in a public loo to inject.

Nigel

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Unless you are gnna pull your pants down in public to inject into your leg.. best keep that one to the bogs. *i say from experience*.. just kidding... but seriously... lol.

Plus... I think it's ok to do them in the toilets.. Just have common sense not to do a big poo then inject after without cleaning your hands.. same goes for a oui oui.

Let's think of a rhyme for doing injections in toilets..

"Just think clean when doing insul..eeen."

P.S, I apologise for the tone of this post... Unfortuantely I can't blame it on being low :S lol

Jimmy a lot of the germs are airborne, and lets not forget that when you are closing the toilet door you are touching the lock that the previous person used just after using the toilet, door handles and locks are riddled in germs and I for one wouldn't wish to use my insulin pen afterwards.

Nigel

Good call noblehead

Thank goodness i'm ok

noblehead said:

Jimmy a lot of the germs are airborne, and lets not forget that when you are closing the toilet door you are touching the lock that the previous person used just after using the toilet, door handles and locks are riddled in germs and I for one wouldn't wish to use my insulin pen afterwards.

Nigel

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Good points Nigel.

Never ceases to amaze me why anybody would want to do a procedure such as injecting in any toilet. I suppose we must all have different ideas about basic hygiene........

When I was a kid it was the proper syringe and bottle of insulin. I would refuse to go into the loo to do my injection, I thought I’ve got to do it so I’ll do it here (wherever I was). I used to hold the bottle up really high to make sure people could see. I thought if people were going to look I might as well give them something to look at.

Now I’m older I still don't hide what I’m doing but I’m a little more discreet now... most of the time!
:roll:

squeakist said:

When I was a kid it was the proper syringe and bottle of insulin.

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Remember those days well, wasn't it a pain drawing up both insulin's and trying not to get air bubbles in the syringe, don't think I ever got the proper dose as I would waste half the insulin trying to rid the syringe of air................happy days?............no way!!!!!

Nigel

'Injection Room'? I wouldn't go there. :roll: I inject in public and always have, usually in my stomach and often through my clothes. I don't check to see whether anyone has noticed and, like other posters have said, this is something I have to do so often, that I'm on autopilot and other people will just have to deal with it - in my experience, it's never a problem. Aren't we lucky that we can inject?

Just to play devil's advocate....

I went out with my boyfriend to a local, well known Italian/New York restaurant chain :wink: earlier this week.
I've adopted a proper, approved and strict insulin/BM regime. This means doing a BM and my insulin prior to eating.
As I got out my pen and started priming it, my boyfriend had a look of horror on his face, and questioned me doing my insulin in public. Now, where we were sat was boothed, and I was positioned in such a way that lowering my jeans slightly and injecting in my stomach probably wasn't noticeable.

As loving as he is, he's never known anyone with diabetes so is new and naive to everything. He was concerned that people would be offended, or even scared of the fact I was publicly injecting. He then compared it to breastfeeding in public. Something that some people don't mind, while other object to strongly.

Now, bearing that comment in mind, would you change where you did your injection for fear of insulting others or even triggering people's phobias of needles (it can happen!)?

It wouldn't effect me, but wondered other people's opinions on this.

I don't go to the bathroom to inject, I do it wherever and whenever I am tbh, I do try to be discreet but if anyone has a problem with it my usual reply is "Your pancreas works, mine doesn't, deal with it.". I occasionally inject through clothes, try to avoid it if I can though. And same with reusing needles, normally I try to use a new one for each injection but I don't have a problem with reusing them once or twice if necessary...e.g. if I've gone out without remembering to take any clean needles with me!
xx

TheSparkyPony said:

He then compared it to breastfeeding in public. Something that some people don't mind, while other object to strongly.

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I'd say it was exactly like breastfeeding, in that it is irrelevant whether people object to it strongly or not, you still have a right to do it in public.
If people have a needle phobia, then they can just look the other way. You'd need to be quite close and looking quite intently to actually see the needle going in, and why would someone stare like that if they had a needle phobia?

I never go to the toilet to take my insulin and I have always been really strongly advised not to do so by my nurses and doctors. I inject in public, no matter where I am. I do it discreetly though and to be honest I've never had anyone stare before, but even if they did I really would not care. I try and inject through my clothes and trousers whenever I can (unless I'm wearing jeans which I feel are a bit too thick, but that might just be me..) and most of the time even the people that know I need to do it don't even notice it.

It's something you have to do and I really think you shouldn't be scared of doing it in public. I am really not embarrassed to say that I'm thinking of my own health rather than other people's feelings. They don't HAVE to look

Just back from a meal out and of course had to jab for it but having done this many times in public I just dont mind my only worry is sitting near to a needle phobic !however I find my hubby worries about it more than me and nobody so far has even noticed what I am doing so just go for it and if you are casual you wont draw attention to yourself anyway. Have a little demon on my shoulder that makes me want to do the big performance ie shoot priming shot into the air than jab with a flourish while making owow noises GIGGLE

Am I the ONLY insulin injecting diabetic with absolutely NO fat on his thighs? I've got plenty of fat on by abdomen but belly little elsewhere. Unfortunately I often bleed after injecting, so injecting through clothes is definitely not a good idea for me. If i did so, I would also be unable to play "dodge the bruises", which is far more fun than blindly injecting straight into a recent bruise.

If I am away from home and am about to eat, I try to inject whilst sitting in the car, though the steering wheel is a bl**dy nuisance (literally!). I must get out of the habit of injecting whilst still driving; or at least avoid doing so on windy country lanes. :shock:

Kansenji said:

injecting through clothes is definitely not a good idea for me.

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It's not a good idea for anyone. I've no idea why anyone does it. Though I'm sure that lots of posts will now follow saying 'it's great to inject through clothes, and reuse needles for days on end, and reuse lancets'.

If you have no fat on your thighs, but you have on your abdomen, why not inject in your abdomen? Also shorter needles might help with the bruising, are you using 4mm ones?

HLW said:

Kansenji said:

injecting through clothes is definitely not a good idea for me.

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. . . Also shorter needles might help with the bruising, are you using 4mm ones?

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Actually the problem was the opposite; I was using 6mm needles, which were too short to pass through the subcutaneous tissue & weren't always reaching the fat. I recently changed to 8mm needles & now bruise much less frequently. (Thanks for the suggestion though).

I do inject into my abdomen; I'd never consider injecting into my thighs because there is no fat there & injecting into muscle is dangerous because the insulin would be absorbed too quickly.