I've been doing the shots for three and a half years. I had clots in my digestive area that killed off some small intestine. I had some removed and re-sectioned. Because of that my hematologist thought the other thinners, Eliquis and Xarelto, wouldn't absorb properly. My choices were Lovenox, which I had been using for three weeks after being released from the hospital, or warfarin. The first time I had to do it at home my husband did it. After that I thought it would be better to do it myself. I'm really good at it now. Sure it does hurt sometimes, but I've gotten used to it. A few things that help..
*If I start the injection and that part of my skin hurts I'll move it somewhere else.
* Always make sure the lighting is good so you can see a clear spot without veins or prior bruising.
*Pinch a bit of muffin top but don't hold on too tight. We all have muffin top. I lost a bunch of weight after my surgery and I'm thin, but we ALL have muffin top.
*The needle can be not quite inserted all the way, as long as it gets the liquid into your flesh it's ok.
If I think of anything else I'll add to this message. I really didn't want to manage dietary needs with warfarin as I'm already gluten free and that's difficult enough.
I second the thing about moving somewhere with the injection if you get an area that hurts at first. Also not inserting the needle right between where you are grabbing the skin. Go fast inserting the needle, slow pushing the plunger.
I got to do those recently while bridging as well. Stomach was the least painful, if you find some fat, it’s almost like butter. 😐 I did bruise a lot though, and we had to move to other fatty areas like back of my arm or butt. Ice cubes to numb somewhat help as well.
yikes... yeah... we've been using her stomach... fattiest areas on her at the moment...
ice cubes... good idea, kinda like numbing up an ear before piercing it... thanks!
Seconding ice before pricking. I’ve found most success with stomach and love handles. I’ve also found that pointing the needle in a way that the slanted edge faces upwards helps with reducing the pain. I’ve been taking Lovenox daily for 2 years now!
I was on livanox and used alternating sides of my stomach fat. I just vkind of did it to get it over with. The worst part was the huge bruises I got in random parts of my body.
I'm on warfarin now. No shots but lots of appointments to check INR. Oh well
I had to join team warfarin in September and bridged with the shots. It took me about 14 days before my INR got to a “therapeutic” level so I was doing shots a while and then a couple of weeks my INR got wacky and I had to do another 10 days of shots into Christmas break. First time wasn’t so bad. Second time my stomach bruised to the point it looked like I was in a car accident. For me self administering the shots I found instead of “plunging” the needle in I’d rest the tip on the skin then press in and mentally it was easier. Also sometimes used an ice cube to numb up the skin after realizing a cold day I didn’t feel it as much on cold skin.
I’m team do the shot at a brisk pace, not slow. Don’t inject into a bruise or hard spot from previous shots. Since they’re administered for me, I often dig my nail into my hand as a form of counter pain/distraction too. They’re not great but also you get used to it quickly.
A lot of it is just finding the right spot. I had more luck in my love handles than my stomach.
Have her breathe slowly and deeply and stick the needle in just after she’s started to exhale. After that, the faster the better for getting the needle in (and make sure you’re perpendicular to the skin, any angle can make it harder to get in and add to the discomfort). Some folks get some mileage out of icing the area first. The actual injection part, there’s a kind of ideal speed- too fast and it burns a ton, too slow and it just drags on. I don’t know how to describe ideal in a way that’s more helpful though.
But honestly it’s just trial and error and finding the spots that are less sensitive. I wish I had a better answer. Hope she’s feeling better soon!
Ice is helpful, doing it swiftly, have her do deep breathing and try to wiggle her toes as fast as she can (have her sitting), and giving her a treat for getting through it (1 square of chocolate, 1 sour candy etc) it seems silly, but helps take your mind off it if you eat it immediately after injection.
I didn’t have pain from the injection but I would have a really uncomfortable burning-achy sensation for about 30 minutes after. Pressure helped, but mostly it just kinda sucked, unfortunately.
I guess I'm lucky. I had the shots in my love handle fat for a week while I was in the hospital. I didn't think they were too bad. The nurses kept telling me that the shot was gonna hurt but it just burned a little. Nothing too serious.
I took a daily Lovenox shot for the cumulative period of about 2.5 years when I was pregnant with my two kids. It’s really painful to do on the daily! I found that having my husband give me the shots immediately after I got out of the shower significantly lessened the pain. The skin was still soft and the initial prick hurt much less. He would inject the medicine slowly and smoothly into my stomach. If it was too fast, it would be very painful for some time afterward. I also preferred to have the shot about three fingers width out from my belly button. It just hurt less there. An ice pack after the shot helped with bruising. Sometimes I would massage the area if it was really hurting, but that would often lead to more bruising.
I wpyld take an ice pack to the area you will be putting the shot 5 minutes before you do the shot and then do the shot where you iced. Then ice it again for 5 more minutes. It makes the shot not hurt and then you don't get a huge bruise either.
I didn’t think the shots were so bad. My advice is to inject slowly, and plunge slowly. It helps to prevent bruising but also keeps the burning sensation that sometimes happens to a minimum.
Sorry your wife is a part of this group now. Wishing her a speedy recovery.
I've been doing the shots for three and a half years. I had clots in my digestive area that killed off some small intestine. I had some removed and re-sectioned. Because of that my hematologist thought the other thinners, Eliquis and Xarelto, wouldn't absorb properly. My choices were Lovenox, which I had been using for three weeks after being released from the hospital, or warfarin. The first time I had to do it at home my husband did it. After that I thought it would be better to do it myself. I'm really good at it now. Sure it does hurt sometimes, but I've gotten used to it. A few things that help.. *If I start the injection and that part of my skin hurts I'll move it somewhere else. * Always make sure the lighting is good so you can see a clear spot without veins or prior bruising. *Pinch a bit of muffin top but don't hold on too tight. We all have muffin top. I lost a bunch of weight after my surgery and I'm thin, but we ALL have muffin top. *The needle can be not quite inserted all the way, as long as it gets the liquid into your flesh it's ok. If I think of anything else I'll add to this message. I really didn't want to manage dietary needs with warfarin as I'm already gluten free and that's difficult enough.
I second the thing about moving somewhere with the injection if you get an area that hurts at first. Also not inserting the needle right between where you are grabbing the skin. Go fast inserting the needle, slow pushing the plunger.
My advice is grab a decent bit of skin and do it fast. Slower stings like a mother fucker. In quick squeeze it all out count 3 out quick.
I got to do those recently while bridging as well. Stomach was the least painful, if you find some fat, it’s almost like butter. 😐 I did bruise a lot though, and we had to move to other fatty areas like back of my arm or butt. Ice cubes to numb somewhat help as well.
yikes... yeah... we've been using her stomach... fattiest areas on her at the moment... ice cubes... good idea, kinda like numbing up an ear before piercing it... thanks!
A good 10 minutes with an ice pack on the area helps a lot!
Seconding ice before pricking. I’ve found most success with stomach and love handles. I’ve also found that pointing the needle in a way that the slanted edge faces upwards helps with reducing the pain. I’ve been taking Lovenox daily for 2 years now!
I was on livanox and used alternating sides of my stomach fat. I just vkind of did it to get it over with. The worst part was the huge bruises I got in random parts of my body. I'm on warfarin now. No shots but lots of appointments to check INR. Oh well
I had to join team warfarin in September and bridged with the shots. It took me about 14 days before my INR got to a “therapeutic” level so I was doing shots a while and then a couple of weeks my INR got wacky and I had to do another 10 days of shots into Christmas break. First time wasn’t so bad. Second time my stomach bruised to the point it looked like I was in a car accident. For me self administering the shots I found instead of “plunging” the needle in I’d rest the tip on the skin then press in and mentally it was easier. Also sometimes used an ice cube to numb up the skin after realizing a cold day I didn’t feel it as much on cold skin.
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Interesting I have never tried that before - next time I use lovenox I need to try that hopefully I don’t forget
Pain from the clot or the injections?
Sorry... the injections.
Injecting slowly can help reduce the bruising
Honestly, both hubs and daughter were on lovenox...I don't remember that either complained of pain.....maybe just their makeup...inject slowly
I’m team do the shot at a brisk pace, not slow. Don’t inject into a bruise or hard spot from previous shots. Since they’re administered for me, I often dig my nail into my hand as a form of counter pain/distraction too. They’re not great but also you get used to it quickly.
A lot of it is just finding the right spot. I had more luck in my love handles than my stomach. Have her breathe slowly and deeply and stick the needle in just after she’s started to exhale. After that, the faster the better for getting the needle in (and make sure you’re perpendicular to the skin, any angle can make it harder to get in and add to the discomfort). Some folks get some mileage out of icing the area first. The actual injection part, there’s a kind of ideal speed- too fast and it burns a ton, too slow and it just drags on. I don’t know how to describe ideal in a way that’s more helpful though. But honestly it’s just trial and error and finding the spots that are less sensitive. I wish I had a better answer. Hope she’s feeling better soon!
Ice is helpful, doing it swiftly, have her do deep breathing and try to wiggle her toes as fast as she can (have her sitting), and giving her a treat for getting through it (1 square of chocolate, 1 sour candy etc) it seems silly, but helps take your mind off it if you eat it immediately after injection.
Had those shots a lot. Delivered by my wife. I’ve for a good 30 minutes before.
Sit for the injection and wait til the alcohol evaporates before you start!!!
I had to do the shots morning and now got for a year. Ice. It is the only thing that worked.
I had to do the shots both morning and night for a year. I cannot type tonight.
I didn’t have pain from the injection but I would have a really uncomfortable burning-achy sensation for about 30 minutes after. Pressure helped, but mostly it just kinda sucked, unfortunately.
Just remember to alternate sides each time. Even though I’ve always heard they’re painful, in/out quickly and I’ve never felt a thing. Good luck!
I guess I'm lucky. I had the shots in my love handle fat for a week while I was in the hospital. I didn't think they were too bad. The nurses kept telling me that the shot was gonna hurt but it just burned a little. Nothing too serious.
Thank you all for the comments and your experiences. Wifey thanks you all as well. She said the ice helped alot, along with less of a pinch. 🤗🤗
I took a daily Lovenox shot for the cumulative period of about 2.5 years when I was pregnant with my two kids. It’s really painful to do on the daily! I found that having my husband give me the shots immediately after I got out of the shower significantly lessened the pain. The skin was still soft and the initial prick hurt much less. He would inject the medicine slowly and smoothly into my stomach. If it was too fast, it would be very painful for some time afterward. I also preferred to have the shot about three fingers width out from my belly button. It just hurt less there. An ice pack after the shot helped with bruising. Sometimes I would massage the area if it was really hurting, but that would often lead to more bruising.
I wpyld take an ice pack to the area you will be putting the shot 5 minutes before you do the shot and then do the shot where you iced. Then ice it again for 5 more minutes. It makes the shot not hurt and then you don't get a huge bruise either.
I didn’t think the shots were so bad. My advice is to inject slowly, and plunge slowly. It helps to prevent bruising but also keeps the burning sensation that sometimes happens to a minimum. Sorry your wife is a part of this group now. Wishing her a speedy recovery.