HSSS
Expert
More fingerprick tips.
- Make sure you’re well hydrated. Blood flows easier and you don’t need to poke so deeply.
- Only set the depth of the lancet to the minimum you need it, not full on stabbing depth.
- Have warm hands, blood flows better
- Massage from palm to tip before you poke
- Have your kit all ready other than the final push of the strip into the meter, less chance of messing it up whilst bleeding and having to start again
- Poke around the edges of the fingertip. Not the very top or centre. It hurts less and heals quicker. Often I don’t even feel it at all and have to wait to see if blood flows to know if it actually happened
- Wait a moment for the blood to well up. Sometimes it takes a few seconds. If you need to “encourage” it squeeze gently from the bottom of the finger upwards not at the tip. Squeeze too hard and you bruise more.
- Use a different spot each time either around a particular finger each day or a new finger each time etc.
- learn which fingers bleed easier and better. I have some that are a pain (literally) and others that are geysers. (For me little and ring are best, index ok ish and middle hurts most. Never use my thumbs for some reason.