Going down the self injection route

[sharonmac99]

On boxing day my cousins wife, a nurse in London, will show me how to do self injections. Do I ask for instruction re sub-cut or intramuscular please? I have B12 from Germany, blue and green needles, wipes, sharp box etc. Also, do I need to keep the B12 in the fridge (instructions all in German) ?

Thank you in advance

[fbirder]

If you've boght from Germany then it'll almost certainly be hydroxocobalamin or cyanocobalamin - both of which can be stored in a cool (less than 25ºC) dark place.

IM is good with blue needles. SC normally needs shorter needles. Most people use orange.

[sharonmac99 in reply to fbirder]

Thank you fbirder, I hadn't seen a reference to orange needles, just the green to draw up and blue to inject. Which is the most effective please, IM or SC ?

[fbirder in reply to sharonmac99]

IM vs SC? Nobody knows for sure, but opinion seems to be that there's not going to be much in it. Many prefer SC because they think it will be less painful. I'm not so sure.

[sharonmac99 in reply to fbirder]

Thank you so much. I am really looking forward to Boxing Day !

[jade_s in reply to fbirder]

I've never had IM injections but after quite a few SC jabs, I've finally managed to give myself injections with literally zero pain - it really depends on the location (upper abdomen hurts like hell, lower abdomen doesn't hurt at all). There's always the odd hitting a nerve or blood vessel issue but that seems to happen with IM as well.

I also warm up the ampoule and then once I draw it up into the syringe, I warm up the filled syringe to body temperature as well. I know, LOL, but it seems to help. Then - and this seems to be critical for me - after putting the needle in with a quick darting motion - I do NOT inject immediately. If I wait a few seconds first, then it doesn't hurt once I start injecting the contents. If there's any pain at this point, I pull it out, put on a new needle, and find another spot. I inject very slowly - I seem to have settled on about 0.1mL every 5 seconds or so.

[sharonmac99 in reply to jade_s]

Thank you jade_s

[blondie2505]

I'd ask to be taught both ways the more knowledge the better plus some people only benefit from IM.

[Harvena in reply to blondie2505]

I only do sc, but if I had the opportunity for someone to teach me, like Blondie I would say learn both ways. good luck.

[sharonmac99 in reply to Harvena]

Thank you Harvena

[sharonmac99 in reply to blondie2505]

Good idea blondie2505. Thank you

[sharonmac99 in reply to blondie2505]

Good idea blondie2505, thank you