Physically Can't Inject Myself!! Help!!

And carrying around peroxide with you at all times in case you get blood on your clothes. :roll:

Personally, having spent my hard earned money on beautiful clothes, I like to make sure there's no blood seeping out (however little) to mark them.

Sorry to respond so late, but I love the comments re: blood on the clothes. The number of times I have stained nice clothing (in addition to my bed linens, the wall near the light switch, etc. etc. etc.) is ridiculous! I have hydrogen peroxide at home, but don't carry it around with me ---something I should definitely start doing.

.Reusing needles and injecting through clothing are 2 different matters.
When you don't have to pay for needles, I see no point in re-using them.(a very diferent matter for those who have to pay for their healthcare)
A bit of research finds a few case studies of abcesses due to injections before single use needles were available. One Scottish doctor commented on his abstract back in 1986

This case stresses the importance of adequate sterilization of needles and syringes and may provide further evidence to support the suggestion that diabetics ought to be provided with disposable, once-only equipment.

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There was actually a study in 1997 on injecting through clothing .
abstract here
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/e...opt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=9051365&query_hl=2

Over the 20-week period approximately 13,720 injections were performed by participants. None of the subjects experienced erythema, induration, or abscess at injection sites. Neither the glycated hemoglobin levels nor the leukocyte counts differed between the conventional and experimental regimens. During the injection-through-clothing phase of the study, only minor problems, such as blood stains on clothing and bruising, were recorded in the logbooks. However, subjects reported that injection through clothing offered benefits such as convenience and saving time. conclusion
It is safe and convenient to inject insulin through clothing.

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A note of caution though from a 2006 article: (Though this is the only one I found and lots of people inject through clothing)
This is a case of a lady who developed ulcers in the area she injected through clothing some 15 years after stopping the practice.

While one cannot be completely certain or prove that injecting insulin through clothing was responsible for this patient's problems, it seems to be highly likely under the circumstances. Our experience provides a note of caution against this practice

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http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/fulltext/112584902/HTMLSTART
(caution photo of ulcer)
Personally, if I still injected I'd do it through clothing when it was easier.

A little bit more 'research' throws up this from respected ROYAL COLLEGE OF NURSING.

Injecting through clothing - people sometimes feel they need to do this, for example while travelling or in social situations, but it should be discouraged.

Injecting through the clothes affects the lubrication of the needle and makes it difficult to pinch up
and/or check for bleeding.

It also damages the needle and can pick up contaminants.

Hi All

I have a real prob injecting i use Byetta twice daily and i dont have a problem with putting the needle into me, what i cant do is press the button to inject the meds.

Yeah i know it seems silly, its the same when i test my blood, i dont use the pen to prick my finger i use the lancet on its own.

I have tried and tried and have put the needle into my leg numerous times but just can not press the button and before you laugh am a 42yr old professional woman and would regard myself as an intelligent and informed creature!!!! but think this is some sort of mental block, i physicall start to shake and can not bring myself to press the button i know it sounds stupid.

how i got round this was to have a fantastic partner who injects me, yeah he has great delight in stabbing me and i now think he has a smirk when hes doing it!!!! (jokin)

have asked if i can have the Byetta in a syringe to try it as i have no prob with pushing a plunger but DSN said nope.

Well have found a solution to this but i do wonder what will happen if i have to take my injection at set times as with the Byetta i do have a little bit of leeway.

Juliexx

Like phoenix I can see no benefit to re-using needles if you get them free on prescription as you do in this Country.

I have though injected through my clothing on numerous occasions whilst in shopping malls, restaurants, car journeys and other situations where it is more discrete than exposing flesh and drawing attention to yourself. No problems so far and I shall continue with this practice as it seems sensible to me.

Hi Julie.

Do you look at the device when you are trying to inject. Sometimes looking away and then pressing the plunger is easier. As you say it is a mental thing, just something to be gotten over. Keep trying and don't give up. I am sure that given time and perhaps a change in technique you will 'crack' it.


Sid.
Injecting through clothing.

I've been over this many times before. Whatever you do is up to you mate. You know it makes sense....

One thing I haven't seen mentioned is what make of needle you and size of needle?

Most people are aware that the size (length) of the needle can make a difference to injection experience...

But the make can also, as different maunaufacturers not only use a slightly different lubicant on the needle but also how they've got the end of the needle can differ as well, from a straight cut across to quite a a slant... Might be worth having a look at this.. As some find that it really does make a difference indeed..

As to how many times one should or shouldn't use there syringes/needs and lancets before disposing well this is what I've always been told by my diabetic team over the last 21 years...

That you may re-use your syringes/needles they don't recommend that you use them more than 5 times in all... And if on insertion or injection is uncomfatable then dispose of needle/syringe... Same as with lancets..

As to injecting through your cloths, yes it's permissable to do so, but not advicable to inject through heavy cloth such as demin or through cloths that you've been wearing for a couple of days or that you work in more so if you are in a manufacutering type enviroment.... They also suggest that you only do this occasionally and avoid doing it as common practice...

I have always reused my syringes/needs (don't now as I'm on an insulin pump, so different set up) in 20 years of doing so I never had one infection or injection site problem, my husband does the same and in 31 years never had a site problem.. But for some people who suffer problems with injections sites, then changing there syringe/needle every time might be essentrail to limit problems..

Lancets, well I change mine when it hurts or I remember, I can carry out 6+ bg test a day, but looking at my finger tips you wouldn't know that I tested!

As to injecting through cloths neither of us has actually done this, as we just don't like the idea of it, but each there own..

When I was fist injected myself and for many years, I had to swab the injection site with surgical spirit as did all diabetics, until they realised that this practice could cause more problems with injection sites and infection as it dryed the skin, causing cracking etc...

Hi Jopar.......

Excellent post jopar. Although I never had a problem injecting, I always noticed the size and gauge of the needle I was using, and they always seemed to get smaller and smaller as years went by. So much so that in my last few years of using a NovoPen I literally could not feel the injection - and this was not down to neuropathy before anyone says something! I think I was using 30G needles at the end - which are absolutely minuscule - before switching to a pump. Might be worth considering...

Hi Keg...... Excellent post.

I'm an ex nurse, every time you inject yourself with a needle you blunt it, there is no harm in using a needle twice as long as you resheath it after use. however it will hurt more the second time around as it's already blunt from using it the 1st time.

if you use syringes and needles you should put a new needle on after drawing up insulin as even putting it in the vial will blunt the needle.

However you are upping the risk of infection if you don't use a new needle each time, because you have placed it in your body it has your blood on it and is exposed to the airborne pathegens can be attracted to the blood on the needle.
I don't change my finger pricker each time, but i do use a new needle each time I inject.

Injecting through clothes, is not a problem as long as you make sure you are actually injecting through skin, your clothes are clean and holding for the full 5 seconds to make sure your insulin won't leak out.

Just for information; I use insulin pens and inject 4 times a day.

I pretty much always inject through my clothes and use the same needle for days on end; often only changing when I change the insulin cartridge. It doesn't hurt, I've had no infections, I only seem to bruise on my stomach, it's a lot less hassle and I have no fatty deposits at my (well rotated) injection sites.

I think people get a bit obsessive/compulsive about diabetes which is understandable, but don't add this to your list of things to get overly worried about. If you want to change needles every time you use them then go ahead; if not then things won't go badly for you.

Dillinger

The best way to solve pasty hard skin in the tummy area,
when you have a bath or shower rub the whole area with lotion or vaseline.
The skin looses its pastiness and is easier to re-inject in the tummy area over and over.

By the next day the skin does not burn so much.
I only use my tummy as too scared for other places.

The tummy is the convenient place to inject when out and about as during the autumn and winter its easy to unfasten coat or jacket and go straight in through clothes. No one should really notice you.

But however, the tummy will often bruise especially if injecting directly into skin so best place is to use if you can, the upper back part of the arm, again through clothes. I use a 5mm needle and often go through clothes with no problems at all.

I have a feeling from my own experiences, that the modern analogue insulins can function fairly well being injected just below the surface of the skin. I'm sure that my needles only go in about 3mm as I go through clothing first.

Hi ihs.

Does that mean it's OK to inject through my clothes then....... :wink:

I just read through this thread, for twenty years I have injected through my clothes, dirty oily jeans etc. Used the same needle until its totally blunt.

Its a bit like driving a car, when you pass your test you do everything right, then the bad habits creep in, for many those bad habits cause no problems, but for some, one day your bad habit causes an accident.

Think its the same with the injecting, you start off with good intentions and the bad habits creep in, I have done twenty years with no infections and no problems, but I know there is that risk that one day I could get an infection and as a diabetic it may cause me all sorts of problems.

So the advice to new diabetics must be do it right and minimise the risks, don't start the bad habit of injecting through clothes.

Do as I say not as I do. :!: