New to SC injections

[pinkpaddleboarder]

I was looking for a video after buying the 31g 6mm needles as kindly recommended on here and found there to be information regarding different angles when injecting, I.e. 90 degrees or 45 degrees. What's people's thoughts? I'm quite slim and can not pinch much fat? Here is a video I found royalmarsden.nhs.uk/how-to-... with pictures of where the sc tissue is.

[Wheat]

hello, pinkpaddleboarder - every time I would say insert the needle at 90 degrees ie straight.

As you will be doing subcutaneous injections with a short 6 mm needle a 90 degree angle is needed to reach the fat layer. I too now use 6mm needle at a 90 degree. It's not necessary to pinch up skin with a 6mm needle.

I have had intramuscular injections by nurses at 90 degrees. Looking at diagram they are using a long needle and at 45 degrees to avoid the muscle. Also the needle is not fully inserted.

Recently read a document (usa gov. ?) saying using 45 degree for injections is causing high number of needle injuries. Makes sense, ouch.

Best wishes

[wedgewood]

You only need to pinch your fat and inject at 45 degrees if you are using a 1/2 inch needle . That’s so you don’t inject too deeply and pass straight through the fat layer . With the 6mm needle , inject at 90 degrees and don’t pinch the fat . You will inject straight into your fat layer .

The NHS doesn’t have 6mm needles usually . Their short needles are longer than 6mm , so you would need to inject at 45 degrees to make sure that you inject into the fat layer . I think that’s right !

[pinkpaddleboarder in reply to wedgewood]

Ok, thank you. Do you hold your skin taught around the area you are going to inject. I may be slim, but when sitting i still have a little bit of a wobble

[wedgewood in reply to pinkpaddleboarder]

No , I don’t . I just stab myself ( not ferociously!) straight into the front of my thigh.

[pinkpaddleboarder in reply to wedgewood]

Ah I see I wrongly assumed I was going to inject into belly fat, as previously I was doing IM into thigh.. not sure where my brain is at as SC tissue is obviously all over. I can still use my thigh just with 6mm needle. This is mainly for my daughter who finds the IM injection in her thigh painful with the 1 inch needle., so I was going to practice on myself first. Is there benefits to IM compared to SC injections, or does it not make any difference? sorry for all the questions.

[wedgewood in reply to pinkpaddleboarder]

It makes no big difference which method you use .The small difference is the fact that the fat layer has a lesser blood supply , so it takes longer for the B12 to get into the system than an I.M injection. I think that this is an advantage .

[Nackapan in reply to pinkpaddleboarder]

Belly fat is most suitable if you are thin and née to itIt's the route most used and recommended for sc ax more easily absorbed.

I use belly always 2: away from belly button.

However anywhere you can pinch I.e hip ,upper arm .

Outer thighs ftint of thighs also suitable.

Just takes a little longer to absorb thsn belly fat route.

31 G id s diabetic pen needle size.

Itx okay but as more volume in z b1e injections 30G the smallest for ease to inject .

I've used s 30G 1/2 " needle for e yests with success now.

27-30G recommended

1/2 - 5/8 " length recommended

That's my experience

[pinkpaddleboarder in reply to Nackapan]

Thank you. Very helpful I will try and get bigger gauge needle. I'm worried about missing the sc area after seeing the difference diagrams and videos.

[Orchard33 in reply to pinkpaddleboarder]

I inject at 45 degrees into pinched flesh. I'm slim too so not much fat at the bottom of my belly, which is where I inject.

[pinkpaddleboarder in reply to Orchard33]

What size needle do you use?

[Orchard33 in reply to pinkpaddleboarder]

30g half an inch yellow.

[wedgewood]

You can use belly fat , but I never have . I find the thigh a much better place . You can use the whole of the front of the thighs ( I swap each time) You don’t have to confine sun-cut injections to the middle of the outer third portion , like you do for Intra-muscular. It’s a large choice of injection spot which means that it’s easier not to overuse one spot which can lead to a skin problem . But use the tummy fat by all means .

[pinkpaddleboarder in reply to wedgewood]

You have been incredibly helpful, thank you so much x

[wedgewood]

You cannot inject quickly with such a fine needle as 31G . There is a lot of resistance with such a fine needle .

[pinkpaddleboarder in reply to wedgewood]

Should I try to look for another needle. The ones I have are from Amazon 6mm 31G

[am111 in reply to pinkpaddleboarder]

Actually, injecting fast causes more pain. Better to inject slowly.

I use 31Gx6mm and even with this, if I inject too fast, it causes more pain.

Also, you should do 90degrees with such a short needle. I use this needle as it causes much less pain than longer and thicker ones. Good luck.

[pinkpaddleboarder in reply to am111]

Thanks. Do you use belly or thigh?

[am111 in reply to pinkpaddleboarder]

I use belly and it is not an issue at all. I haven't tried the thigh for SC, but did use it for IM and found the thigh very sensitive and switched to hip for IM that caused less pain.

[wedgewood]

Oh no ! Those needles are great , especially for your daughter who hates needles .They are wonderfully fine . Just thought I should point out that , as you haven’t used such a fine needle before , you wont realise that there is more resistance when injecting with such a very fine needle than the coarser needle that you are used to . You might have thought that there was something wrong , which there isn’t ! You will love the very fine short needle !