hi girls remember me? i have questions RE lovenox

mrs.viv07

I have been refered to a high risk OB who agreed to put me on lovenox at 6wks when i get my next BFP
Does anyone know of a tutorial or can anyone give me some pointers, i'm not scared of needles or anything but i want to know if there is anything i can do to minize the pain or discomfort on a daily basis.I'm sure the doc will explain more but i wanted "real" feedback on this.

TIA hope to be back soon!

Georgia-Peach

I am terrified of needles and shots but would have done anything to have this baby so keeping that in mind really doesn't make it so bad!  I inject in the abdomen and rotate sides each night.  I ice the spot for a couple of minutes before injecting and then for a couple of minutes afterwards.  I haven't had bad bruising...mostly just a purple spot at the point where the needle went in.  Inject slowly because when it goes in too fast it burns.  Can't wait for you to be back!

Sueball1

No experience w/Lovenox, but wanted to wish you luck - its nice to see you back around these parts!

Dontblink

The needle is really tiny and the syringe is prefilled so it is really easy. You just pinch some fat below your belly button on either side and in it goes. I dont have issues with pain or burning...just some nasty bruises. Honestly, I would pick Lovenox over P4. I am glad that I am done with the P4 and still on the lovenox! GL

marinabride

Hi, I remember you. I have taken Lovenox and am now on Heparin because I am getting close to due date. I actually preferred doing lovenox! Never thought I would say that.  I iced for 5minutes before. Pinch below belly button somewhere and rotate sides. I tried the leg one time. Not good idea. Every once in awhile I would hit something and it would be really painful or hard to stick but in general, not too too bad. Go slow, it does burn going in sometimes. My best recommendation is to try Arnicare. It is homeopathic pain gel my dr recommended. I found it at Whole Foods. It really helped calm down bruises.

bellaciao

I had to give myself Lovenox shots everyday for 3 months when I was going through cancer treatments in 2006.  It's really not as bad as it sounds - the first time you give yourself a shot is the worst - it gets easier.  Someone at your doctor's office will give you a tutorial on how to do it.  It honestly doesn't hurt much - the worst part about it for me was watching myself stick myself with a needle.  You'll be fine - and hope to see you back here soon!

sueandjoe

I like your blog, great music. Thank you for all the info on mthfr. I only have 1 gene so I am only taking asprin, I don't need the shots. I really hope everything works out for you.

tams148

Don't have any advice, just wanted to say hi and I hope to see you back here for good soon!

mrsladd

I'm not scared of needles or shots either, but I felt a lot like you before I started my shots, just anxious to hear real personal experiences and tips.

When I started my shots, my dr called in my prescription (30 pre-filled syringes, it's always a one month supply), and had me bring it in with me to the office.  There the nurse instructed me on how to do the injection (she oversaw while I did that first one there in the office).

At first, I didn't ice beforehand at all.  In fact, it wasn't particularly painful, maybe a tiny bit of stinging while the needle went in sometimes, or while the Lovenox itself was going in (it can burn a bit).  Most often I felt nothing at all.  I pinched up some skin and fat (easy for me after having my other kids), and put the needle straight in at a 90 degree angle, per the nurses instruction.  I then pushed the plunger down very slowly, since I've heard that can limit any burning sensation.  At first I would mostly just get a dark purple spot at the injection site, then sometimes I'd get a bit of bruising.  I just pick random different spots starting out a few inches from my belly button. 

After about two months, the shots suddenly started to HURT!  I began icing beforehand (I use a boo bunny, and just hold it on my belly where I'll do the injection for about 5-10 minutes beforehand).  It helps a lot.  Now it's pretty much old hat, and it's just something that I do.  (I used to do my shots in the morning, but now that it's more of an involved process with the icing I do it before bed).

Oh, and it took a bit to get used to the correct pressure required.  At first I'd just sort of aim and stab.  A few times it bounced off because I didn't go hard enough, then I'd have two little poke marks, lol.  Now I have pretty precise control as to aim and pressure.  I was also worried how I'd keep them up when my belly got big and tight, but so far it's still fine.  Maybe I have a bit less loose skin to work with, but it's not bad, and I try to go in on a bit more of an angle, anticipating when there will be less fat still.

Good luck with it all, I feel really good about this, and I hope it helps for you.

mrsladd

Oh, and if my other post wasn't long enough, I remembered a few other things.

Air- you will want to tap the syringe with the needle pointing up, to get the air bubble inside to rise to the top.  Then just push the plunger until the air is pushed out.  I have forgotten to do this a few times, and it didn't make a difference, though.

Blood- sometimes you might have no bleeding, sometimes there might be a tiny spot or two of blood after (usual for me), and once in a great while you might get one that won't seem to stop, and that's all normal.  (If you get a bleeder, you probably hit a tiny vessel, it might hurt a bit more, and just press a bit of gauze or a tissue on it for a minute, and it should stop.)

Sharps container- I had not thought about what to do with the used needles, but the nurse suggested I buy a sharps container, the same thing they put used needles into at the dr's office.  They sell them at Walgreens, BUT, my needles don't fit in them (I think this is common), so I ended up getting a freebie one from the ladies at the blood draw lab.  It's huge, so I'm still using the same one after five whole months of shots, but I'm still not entirely sure what to do once it's full (I think I'll bring it in to my dr's office and let them deal with it).  Some people use empty laundry detergent bottles, which doesn't sound ideal to me, but...  I've also heard people say they recap their needles, which I did at first, until I found that the caps are really flimsy, and with too much pressure, you can easily bend the needle, poke through the cap, and stab your finger (ouch!!!!).  So, I don't recap mine.