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High-Risk Pregnancy
New to Lovenox injections... frustrated :(
Hi I am new here and started lovenox injections last week. My DH has been giving them to me since I don't feel comfortable doing in on my own yet. He is a physician so I feel like he would be better than me anyway.
So this morning I wake up to my first bruise and I am puzzled. Why do you bruise sometimes but not others? It didn't hurt or bleed anymore than the other injections (actually it hurt less). He did inject closer to another spot from 2 nights before... don't know if that matters.
How do you nesties do it? Does it get easier? Honestly, each night I dread these injections. Does anyone else feel this way?
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Re: New to Lovenox injections... frustrated :(
To answer your questions...
I also don't know why they bruise some times and not others. It does seem, though, that the slower I inject, the less likely I am to bruise. This isn't always the case though. Icing afterwards also helps prevent bruising.
My shots hurt like h*ll, and I think it's because I do 2 100mg shots/day. I ice for about 20 minutes before (to numb) and after (to prevent bruising). It absolutely gets easier. I don't even think about it much. As I've written before, it becomes like brushing your teeth - you know you did it, but you can't really remember doing it because it is so routine (You can thank your basal ganglia for that; sorry, I'm a neuropsychologist).
My H used to do them, before we figured out the icing and the going slow tricks. Honestly, I slowly, subconsciously started to seriously resent him because he would ram them in so fast, and they hurt SOO badly. I think I would glare at him and would certainly dread those times of day. I NEVER thought I'd be able to do them on my own, but now that I am it is SOO much better.
Make sure the bubble's at the top and the last thing to be injected. I also do it REALLY slow. I have been taking Lovenox shots twice/day now for 14 months and think I've got it down to a science. I can't tell you the last time I had a bruise. I just get little red dots where I injected and that's it. I can't stress the injecting slowly part enough.....if I'm in a hurry to get somewhere and I do it really fast, I almost always get a bruise. That's why I stopped letting the hubby do them and started doing them on my own.
Like someone else said, it does become like brushing your teeth after a while. But I was so fed up at first sometimes I would just cry because I was so sick of the needles and the burning and the bruising. After I got used to it, it's gotten much better. I've found spots that don't really hurt anymore and it's worth it for a healthy momma and healthy baby so that's what keeps me going with it.
It gets easier, but you will always find that sometimes they bruise and sometimes they don't. Maybe it has to do with hitting a blood vessel under the skin or something? Icing before/after might help a bit.
Eventually you will probably find that you prefer doing the injections yourself so that you have more control. I inject slowly, and if it starts to sting I stop for a second before continuing.
Good Luck!
I'm at 24 weeks and have been doing them since I was 6 weeks. They Stink! You will notice yourself bleeding a little more and brusing a little more in the summer b/c your blood vessels are closer to the surface (to cool your body core temp).
I agree with all the pp be sure to ice for a good long while before and after and definitely take it slowwwww with the plunger.....
I do not have to be on this- but I am a nurse and have given them routinely to many patients.
I know some people are told to ice before and after, etc- but from what I have seen- it is those who are icing who bruise more. I think part of it is because after you ice- your natural tendency is to rub the area to get it warm again because really, who likes a frosty belly? And that will cause bruising.
Make sure like OP said- keep the bubble at the top so it is injected last- this is to make sure you get your entire dose.
Go slow, and make sure you are alternating your injection sites. Do not rub them after you inject.
Whenever you poke a needle into yourself you can nick a little blood vessel, and you may have a bruise. The good thing is that this isn't generally harmful- (unless they are huge and very painful- then I would see a doctor).
I am sure some of the GD gals here would admit to once in awhile having a small bruise on thier finger from the lancet.
The other bummer with Lovenox- is that the prefilled syringes aren't as sharp as ones we nurses use when we draw up things individually. But, it just isn't safe to dose it every time.
Good luck- it isn't the funnest thing about your PG, but it will keep yhou and baby safe.
I would never, ever rub the area after I'd just injected a needle there. I don't want it to warm up; I want it to stay numb! Plus, it's been sterilized! Before I started icing, I would get baseball sized, horrendously dark bruises at nearly every injection site. There were not really areas on my belly that were not bruised. This is a MILLION times improved since icing.
I am glad this works for you:)
I was referring to people whom I would give the injections to- not anyone here. Those that had lots of bruises were icing- and I would notice them rubbing thier bellies after...had to do a little education on why not to do that;)
So- if it is working for you- great! There are many ways to deal with it- and if your provider thinks one way is better for you than another- do what they say, too.
The other thing is- some people no matter what will bruise. I feel bad for them- they mostly don't complain that the bruises hurt much, but do not like the look- they look as if they have been beaten. And that would not be a look a mama with a baby in the belly would be going for!
Thanks ladies.
When some of you mention injecting slowly... do you mean the needle or when you push the meds in or both?
When you are pushing the med in.
Yeah.
It does get easier, I promise! In the beginning, I would almost cry before I would give myself the injection. But after a week or two, it just became part of my nightly routine.
I bruise easily, so I expected the bruises. When I was in the "I just look like I ate one too many donuts" stage of the pregnancy, I used to joke that I had a blueberry muffin top. Plus, the longer that you are on the blood thinner, the more easily you will bruise.
Cute comment!
I do mine in the morning after my vitamins and such. I have it down to a routine, but every once in a while it hurts or bruises. As other have said, I bet it has to do with the air bubble. Your skin also gets a little tough and you will start noticing where it hurts and where it doesn't.
DH won't help unless he has to- he saw me do it one day and almost threw up. Can't wait to see him at the c-section! I have also taken some pics of the bruises for when our baby becomes some rebellious teen ("see what I went through to have you!?").
Yes, he does remove the air bubble... I think the reason they tell you not to is because you can lose medication trying to do so. He is a physician so I trust he knows what he is doing. I don't think the air bubble serves a purpose... I mean it is basically air isn't it?
I agree it is against the instructions... so everyone should follow those.