I have taken the decision to take matters into my own hands thanks to the intransigence of my doctor and 4.5 years of symptoms, and administer Vitamin B12 doses myself via intra-muscular injection. I intend to self-inject at the very least until my doctor has sent me for tests that rule out Pernicious Anaemia. As such, I wish to ask what equipment I will need to accomplish this. What sort of syringe and needles should I purchase? What will I need to keep them clean/sterile? Where should I store them? What kind of Vitamin B12 solution should I obtain? I have read on other posts that many obtain their Vitamin B12 from a German pharmacy, is this viable?
Many thanks for your advice!
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The syringe and needle come as a sterile set, prewrapped as a disposable item. Don’t reuse them. Get yourself a sharps container to dispose of the needle. The rest can go into the rubbish. I get my syringes thru my local pharmacy.
1 ml volume with 25 mm (1 inch) 25 or 30 gauge needle for IM. These are typically syringes used for diabetes injections.
The subcutaneous needles are 15 mm (1/2 inch) long.
There are some good youtube.com videos on how and where to inject as well as how to get the air out of the syringe (you do not want to be injecting air into your body). Remember “upper & outer” quadrant.
Also, ask the health nurse at your GPs surgery to show you how to do it. This can also make them sit up and take notice that you are serious about more frequent injections.
Are you keeping a logbook of all your symptoms? This helps you figure out what is a good symptom (from the injection) from a bad one ( from the deficiency). They are very similar. The good ones tend to occur within 48 hours after your injections and repeat in the same sequence after the injection. The bad symptoms tend to reappear as you are getting low on B12.
Is it the case that I would have to purchase a separate syringe and needle for each individual injection that I make? Given that I plan to inject every other day until symptoms show sustained improvement per the NICE guidelines, that could drive up the cost significantly. Is there no way of purchasing something more reusable? I can understand having to replace the needle each time, but the actual syringe as well?
Yes you should use a fresh syringe for each injection, for safety . 100 syringes cost about £4.00 . It is NOT worth the risk, and there is a risk in re-using syringes . Please be safe .
I had assumed that self-injecting vitamin B12 would be similar to self-injecting insulin as diabetic people do, that I would buy a frame or 'pen' in which the vials sit, with the vial and needle being discarded after each injection. Perhaps I am wrong about this?
In the U.K. the Hydroxocobalamin form of B12 is used . It is only obtainable on prescription here , so we need to get our supplies fro German online pharmacies . I use one called” versandapo.de in English “ yes type all that in and youwill get to their site in English . You need to register before your first purchase . Then search for Hydroxocobalamin . A drop down box appears and you click on Hydroxocobalamin acetat . Then all the choices are revealed . I always buy 100 ampoules of 1mg x1ml Rotexmedica costing €52.90 You can also buy 10 for €7.99 and multiples thereof . Shipping costs €9.00 no matter how many you buy . You can also buy 1mg x 2ml ampoules made by Hevert . but I prefer to inject less liquid . Always make sure you order Hydroxocobalamin, because Cynocobalamin is also on offer . You can pay with PayPal or a card .
Everything else can be bought in U.K. at medisave.uk — Needles, syringes swabs and sharps box . I keep everything in a plastic box in a clean dark place . ( the ampoules must be kept dark and preferably not above 25 Celsius ) Always observe strict hygiene . Watch some videos on self injection Draw the B12 into the syringe using a long needle . Inject with a fine needle of 25 gauge and 1inch length .into the outer middle 1/3 of the thigh where the muscle nearest the surface .Good Luck and best wishes .
I do subcutaneous the injections because the insulin needles are 1ml and i need 2ml to inject. So i use 2.5ml/23g syringe. There is no pain when i insert the needle in my belly but when i push the liquid there is some pain but nothing too much. I think it really is much easier to do them in belly than thigh and less pain
I get all of my B12 from Versandapo in Germany, and syringes, needles and sharps bins from Medicare. This is all relatively cheap as stated by Wedgewood and is wonderful to be in control!
However, I would like to point out that if you plan to pursue any kind of blood test re your B12 levels, this absolutely MUST be done before you treat yourself. Any B12 you are taking - even in a multivitamin, never mind injections, WILL skew the results.
Good luck and let us know how you get on!
Drumstix
Not medically trained but in control of my own health! 😃
If I choose to pursue an Active B12 blood test (MMA and homocysteine), will the course of six loading shots I had a month ago adversely affect the test? How long should I wait before having the test done?
Just get the test don't take any multivitamins any B12 vitamins don't take any injections and just see what they come back with I think you will be surprised
Ahh I see, I'm sorry I didn't realise from your initial post that you have already had loading doses. I assume then that they have already confirmed that you have B12 deficiency. The tests to clarify 'Pernicious Anaemia' are very flawed, unreliable and hence don't actually tell very much. They often come back negative even though there is clearly a B12d issue. I'm not sure whether we actually have a reliable active B12 test in the UK? I see it was mentioned above but I'm not aware of one. The bottom line is that if you know you are B12 deficient, then that is what you need, regardless of the cause. Unfortunately many of us don't get to know the cause as this generally isn't investigated, and this is the very poor state of affairs with PA/B12d in the UK. At present most people just have to find their own way.
I highly recommend the local groups for insight and support but I would say listen to your body; we're all very different!
I stand corrected! Thanks toph...may be worth a trip to London? When I asked my GP about an Active B12 test she wouldn't hear of it, just said there wasn't one. To have it posted would also require GP co-operation which isn't an option for me but certainly food for thought...👍
Same here in America. I was referred to a great hematologist to figure out why my RBCs remain too large, too few (yet have too much iron in each, I suppose out of necessity) despite my 900 serum B12 (normal blood MMA, normal homocysteine, slightly high MCH and MCV).
My blood threw a curveball of low white cells that distracted her. I have now got normal WBCs after three months of tests so I asked her if she would please prescribe hydroxy or methyl for SI. **NOPE!** She’s fighting it as though i was asking for gabapentin for my toe (permanent neuropathy from the 1990s before I learned my B12 was low, not bad enough for any treatment).
I want to shout, “B12 isn’t an opioid, so you can relax! Geez.
I had assumed that self-injecting vitamin B12 would be similar to self-injecting insulin as diabetic people do, that I would buy a frame or 'pen' in which the vials sit, with the vial and needle being discarded after each injection.
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