Administering Sustanon
What you need to prepare:
- Medication glass vial
- Syringe
- Needle for drawing the medication into the syringe
- Needle for giving the injection
- Gauze
- Plaster
- Alcohol swab/cotton soaked in alcohol
- Gloves (optional if someone else is injecting for you)
- We highly recommend that you try it out injecting some oil into an orange first, this will help you imagine how things would go.
Steps
- Gather all your equipment around and sit in a comfortable place where things are clearly laid out
- Wash your hands thoroughly
- First start by peeling the syringe from its plastic, and attaching it to the larger needle (if you are using different gauge needles), keep it covered and set aside for a few seconds while you get through the next step.
- Hold the vial of Sustanon with one hand and with your other thumb on the blue dot and your index finger on the other side, snap the top off the vial by applying pressure with your thumb. NB: If you are concerned about this step, you can cover the glass vial with a piece of tissue and break it.
- Uncap the needle, and insert into the vial, making sure the needle tip is below the surface of the liquid, near the bottom of the vial. Sticking to one side of the vial is helpful to get every last bit of medication there. Pull back the plunger of the syringe slowly.
- When all medication has entered the syringe, remove and cover the needle again.
- Turn syringe upright so that the covered needle is pointing upwards. Tap the syringe gently to make any air bubbles go to the top, then slowly push the plunger upwards until no air is left in the syringe
- At this point, you can set aside the syringe and wipe the skin where you will administer the injection with an alcohol soaked piece of cotton or a pre-soaked alcohol swab. Make sure the area is dry before injecting. While the area is drying, you can carry out the next step
- Remove the needle with which you withdrew the medication. Take the needle you will be injecting with, and put it in place on the syringe and secure it. Now you are ready to inject.
- Locate the area of skin where you will be injecting.
- If you are injecting yourself, the best place to do this is the vastus lateralis muscle, or the outer side of the thigh. Imagine you are aiming for the section of the thigh that is between one hand breadth above your knee and one hand breadth below the pubic area. After locating this rectangle, aim for the outer part of it.
- If someone is injecting for you, it is best to inject in the gluteus muscle, in the buttock area. To do this, imagine that you would be dividing each buttock into 4 quarters. You will want to aim for the upper & outer quarter, as this is the area easiest to inject in, away from any major blood vessels and nerves.
- Stretch the skin around this area (if you are using the thigh) gently with your thumb and first finger. Providing traction reduces any pain. Remember, it is our outside skin that feels the pain from the tip of the needle so it only hurts for a small second.
- Swiftly and in one go, at a 90 degree angle, insert the needle into the muscle. Take a deep breath right before you do this and exhale as you insert the needle. Remember that if you are clenching your muscles, the pain may be more
- When the needle is almost all the way into the muscle, secure the needle and syringe with another hand onto the skin, and pull back very gently on the plunger to see if there is any blood going back into the syringe. NB: If there is any blood, withdraw the needle immediately and change it then attempt again at a slightly different area.
- If all is well when you pull the plunger back, please start injecting the medication slowly. If you are injecting 1ml, it is okay to do so over 10-15 seconds. Don’t feel frustrated, and don’t forget to breathe. The medication is a bit thick so it’s okay to be taken slowly
- When you are done, hold the gauze with your free hand, and quickly pull the needle out of the muscle. Press gently with the gauze where the needle was inserted, in case there is a drop or two of blood. That is normal. Cover with a tiny plaster and gently massage the area.
- Dispose of your sharps in the Sharps Bin and best of luck!
Good to note:
- Do not inject in an area if there is any scar, rash, bumps, bruise, or visible skin affection
- The medication should be at room temperature for injecting.
- Ensure to rotate the injection site from left to right leg each time to avoid any unwanted skin reactions.
Additional information for training sessions:
- You will need to have all of the equipment listed above conveniently to hand.
- You will also need to have some hand sanitiser or similar.
- You will need to be set up in such a way that your face can be seen for part of the session, and your set up can easily be altered, or you can move so that the injection site can be seen, bearing in mind that your leg will need to be bent at a right angle at the knee with your foot on the floor.