Out of desperation I talked myself into a B-LA injection last night. I have a few syringes left to use before they go out of date. Have not given myself a B-LA in quite some time. Mainly because my muscles are so sore - IM injections now hurt too badly.
I did my usual routine - injected into VentralGlut muscle. I "exposed" the muscle clearly when crossing my bent leg over my body lying down. That method has always worked - but perhaps it makes the muscle too tight? Also FWIW since my last B-LA I have lost so much weight - hardly any fat on me/my hips.
Anyway (sorry - bad brain/body herx going on here)...
My usual routine was to start the injection - push slowly - and close my eyes - and relax.
So......last night when I looked to withdraw the needle - to my horror - I discovered that only about half the needle was still in. 22g 1''. About 1/2" was in my hip.
Now I have a painful lump. If some of the B-LA went SubQ - what happens? How will it absorb vs IM? Slower or faster? The same - or maybe none at all?
Generally the first cc does not hurt - its getting throught the second cc that I start to feel pain. Last night it felt like my muscle really did not want to accept the second cc.
Obviously the needle moved from the original place where I had aspirated and found no blood. My first thought was Yikes I hope where I just finished injecting was not in a vein.
Now worried some might have gone SubQ. I now regret doing the injection - and truthfully hope that whatever I did - the B-LA will get out of my system quicker. No chance of that, right?
Obviously I have Lyme brain and need to do something. Was hoping a B-LA shot would make me feel better like it did the very first time I had one. That "gee I almost feel well" unfortunately has not happened in subsequent injections. Dang it. Thoughts? Thanks. PS - to add: In animals - "Bicillin" is given SubQ.
Posted by Carol in PA (Member # 5338) on :
Try a hot compress for 20 minutes every hour or so. This will increase blood circulation to the area, which will help it absorb.
When I was giving injections as a nurse, I used a longer needle for intramuscular injections. Although if you have very little fat under the skin, the one inch needle may be okay.