B12 Injections

[Eloise81]

I too have had my monthly injections stopped due to the current situation & told by my GP I would be OK for 3,6 or even up to 1 year!!!! A common comment from GPs unfortunately 😠. Those who don't have this condition do not understand what it's like to go without it. I suppose I'm lucky in that I have the vials & a relative who is a nurse but I've had to buy syringes & needles online (which I don't mind) but I asked my GP if I could have a syringe, the answer was no so I asked my Pharmacist & he said he couldn't supply one. Refusing to give up I went to another Pharmacist who operates a 'needle exchange'...he referred me back to my GP!!!! Probably would have got one if I had been a Junkie!! Complete waste of time!!! Picking up on what someone else has written on here; I did notice on my repeat prescription that my B12 vials (Hydrocobalamin) had been removed, so will have to pursue that as well! Also, it's the Regional Health Boards who have stopped these injections & classed them as 'non-essential' but the WHO recognises them as 'essential'. I have a feeling when this pandemic is over we will be having a fight on our hands to get our injections reinstated...let's hope not! Good luck & keep well!

[Jones123456]

Hi I am on the same situation can you tell me where you ordered your syringe and needles from and what size and type. Thanks

[wedgewood in reply to Jones123456]

medisave.co.uk have a full range of all medical requirements, including needles and syringes . exchangesupplies.org also have needles and syringes .

[Eloise81 in reply to Jones123456]

Hi, Have ordered from Amazon: 2ml Syringe with 23Ga blue needle & cap which comes as 1 unit. Pack is of 20 pieces so I'm guessing that is 10 complete syringes with the cost being £7.99 + delivery. Hope this helps,. Best Wishes!

[Hidden in reply to Jones123456]

I bought 100 of each and the syringes from praxisdienst.com/ A couple of weeks ago.

They are based in Germany (I am in the UK) and it arrived by DHL in three days. The site is in english.

I ordered 100 of each of:

Injekt Disposable Syringes, 2ml, Art. No.: 421109

Disposable Sterican Cannulas, 23G, 0.60 x 25 mm, blue, Art. No.: 311216

Disposable Sterican Cannulas, 21G, 0.80 x 40 mm, green, Art. No.: 311202

The total order was only €13.88 including postage.

[Kmt3]

It's awful isnt it..... I wrote to my mp and to the doctors mp response was its government guidelines to protect the NHS and myself and the doctors haven't bothered to reply

[Cherylclaire Forum Support]

For those who are contemplating self-injection or have recently started self-injecting, because the alternative is even more frightening :

It is worrying how few in the medical profession seem to understand B12 deficiency and, as a result, severely underestimate the consequences of stopping injections.

Not all practices are the same though;

Ssome GPs or nurses are teaching their patients/ patients' partners how to self inject and supplying the B12 and equipment to do this safely at home.

Some nurses are putting on PPE and continuing with injection regime at the surgery.

One enterprising GP has made a youtube video demonstrating how to self-inject: I saw this via a link from Galadriel1's reply to distractonaut's latest post entitled "Picking up where I left off".

On that subject, if you want to ensure that you are able to pick up where you left off after the pandemic, you might have to be honest about having self injected during it. Otherwise your practice could believe that you can make do on vitamin pills indefinitely, and would then be unlikely to reinstate previous treatment.

Some of them, I'm sure, will use this as an opportunity to retest serum B12 levels and make individual judgements based on these results. If you have self injected over this period, this test result is likely to be high - and the result will be attributed to tablets- whether on/off prescription.

Honesty may well be the only policy. Or learning opportunity !!

[Frenchiebabe]

I am on on B12 for PA and lack of IF and malabsorption / my folic Acid is in its boots / I get horrible symptoms but it’s not the GP fault we should be blessed they are trying to stop us meeting those who are infected . Most of us pee out what we recieve when our levels are adequate anyway - if you don’t have absorption issues you can get tablets . Why am I writing this — because the GPS and nurses are fighting with a bigger crisis - PA sufferers will not die or suffer due to a missed injection which you are already supplementing .