Testosterone leaking from injection site

Hi,

I just started T injections last night. I used Nelson's HCG/T protocol without the HCG: 50 mg at 90 degrees in the shoulder with an insulin syringe. The only difference is that although I asked for and my doctor prescribed 27 gauge, 1/2-inch syringes, the pharmacy gave me 26 gauge, 3/8-inch syringes.

After I pulled the needle out, some of the T leaked out (no blood). I'm concerned because the injection was only .25 mL of T, so did I lose most of it?

Is 3/8 inch long enough for the shoulder?

I did a search on the forum for "leaking" and saw a couple of suggestions on how to prevent this:

1) Put pressure on the injection site with a cotton ball
2) Gene Devine mentioned the "Z track" method of pulling the skin tight while injecting so that when you let go, the hole is not above the injection site.

Does anyone think one or the other of these methods is more effective, or have a different suggestion?

Gene, when you say "pull the skin tight," you mean pull it tight with one finger to one side rather than between 2 fingers, right? So that the skin moves to one side?

Thanks for helping out a newbie!

Phil

The needle is a little smaller than the 1/2 inch I use.

Load the HCG first and then the testosterone so that the HCG "flushes" the testosterone while injecting. Putting pressure right away on injection site is always recommended.

The concept behind a Z-Track injection is to move the skin over where you are going to inject so that when the injection is completed you can release the skin and thus cover the injection site from the original hole in the skin.

Youtube has a number of good instructional videos on how to inject this method.

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=z+track+injection+technique

Thanks for your reply, Nelson. I'm not using HCG yet, but I am planning to discuss it with my doctor after my first set of follow-up labs.

Do you think the 3/8-inch needle is long enough for the T injections into the shoulder? Or should I buy 1/2-inch needles from the sites you suggest at the end of your video?

Thanks again.

Thank you for replying, Gene. I will definitely check out those videos.

Phil

The smaller the gauge needle the less an issue this becomes. Gene's z track suggestion has worked well for me and I even sometimes do that but after the injection. That is I pull the skin aside immediately after pulling the needle out so there is no longer a straight path for the oil to flow out. But again the smaller the needle the less an issue this becomes, I use 1/2 inch 28g. They are like $16.00 for 100 at allegro medical supply and they have a large selection of sizes and brands.

The shortest I see people use is 1/2", that could be it. I get it all the way in with an inward dimple of the skin. No pulling the skin tight or Z tracking for me. Once the plunger is fully pushed, I sit there about 10 seconds before I pull it out with one quick motion. The most I EVER get is a tiny drop of blood and that's about 1 in 10 injections. Being your first one it's gonna be a learning process for a bit.

Thanks for your responses, captq and Vince. I'm going to go back to the pharmacy and have them replace the 3/8" needles that they gave me with the 1/2" that were prescribed.

I've been using 1" 25g needles and have not yet had this issue, thankfully.

I use a 30 gauge needle (insulin pin) and there's no leaking, though I'm not injecting in my shoulder but directly into the abdomen subcutaneously. I've had it bleed a tiny bit a few times and I just rub it with an ice cube. Seals everything up immediately.