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Injection

C

cricketer

Active Member
Messages
27
Hi i am 17 and have just been diagnosed with type 1.
The nurse showed me how to give my injection in my leg, (not on the side like some people) but in the top ie. where the quadriceps muscle is.

Just checking this is ok as I very rarely see anyone do this and wanted just to check to insure I am getting my insulin doing it this way!

Thanks
 
Look at some websites, they show a variety of places where to inject, if you can reach them :lol:
A popular one is the tummy.Essentially you need to go into the fatty layer and not into muscle or blood vessels.
Hana
 
Hi cricketer

I assume that you mean top of leg facing front, yes as long as you injecting into the layer of fat under the skin and not into the muscle..

Other places you may inject are..

Stomach area (but not near the navel around 2inches away)
Buttocks
the fatty bits know as love handles above the hips
The upper arm..

I've personal never tried the buttocks or the hip one (in 21 years)
I started off injecting into my legs, be weary though if you doing sports that use a lot of leg muscle as this can increase the effectivness of the insulin injection..

The important bit about injecting is getting the insulin into the fatty layer under the skin, and also remembering to rota your injections sites, always leave at least an inch or 2 from the previous injection... I use a insulin pump now, but when I injected I would use one side then on the next injection I used the other side, then repeat but using a diferent location within the area...
 
Thanks for the answers guys, just to check how do i know if Im doing it in fatty layer or muscle? It seems to be working so far my gluccose levels are much better
 
If you hit muscle,it hurts if I remember rightly :D and you tend to feel the residence..

with the newer needles hitting muscle isn't so much as a problem as it used to be with syringes and longer thicker needles..

A light pinch of skin between your fingers as the nurse showed you will prevent hitting muscle with needles used today...

when I started to inject insulin 21 years ago with the syringes I had black and blue thighs for a couple of months perfecting my techinque :lol: But then you had a needle length twice as long as you do now and had to inject at a 45 degree angle!!!
 
Hi Cricketer

I hope you're getting on OK. I have been injecting for 40years, since I was 7 and just wanted to say incase you haven't been told - you MUST vary your injection sites as if you keep injecting into the same spot over and over you get a build up of tissue which is like a hard lump under the skin, once you have these, and I have had a few(naughty naughty)over the years, they take between 18 months to 2 years to go and you must not inject into them as your insulin will not disipate into your body correctly. I have two injections per day of long acting insulin (Levemir) and have always injected this into my backside. The quick acting which I have 3 times per day into my tummy, but this is my preference. Make sure you change your needles regularly as a blunt needle HURTS!!

This is a really BRILLIANT forum and will help if you have any problems or don't understand stuff, just remember that you run your life not the diabetes (OMG sound like your mum now)!!!!

Good Luck


Sue
 
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