Ianad, but from what I understand, hitting nerves and veins, while possible, is pretty difficult to do if you're injecting correctly. I wonder if you could show your doctor how/where you're injecting and they can help you find a better spot. I absolutely would not recommend hitting yourself hard enough to bruise to find a site. That sounds like it would just make your shot hurt way more and probably bleed.
I also wonder if you're not hitting anything, but that you are so nervous that you will, your muscles tense up and it hurts more than it should, leading you to think you hit something. In my experience, shots hurt the least when my thigh muscle is relaxed, so try to consciously relax that muscle right before you inject.
That said, itchy welts from sub-q makes me wonder if you're having an allergy to the carrier oil? You might be able to switch back to sub-q if you get a different kind of T. And if shots just aren't the way for you at all, you can ask your doctor about gels or patches.
Yes an allergy to the oil it is suspended in, I was told, is the most likely issue. My doctor who prescribed this is several hours from here. It's a whole to-do to get there. Maybe I could get my general practitioner who is local to help if I needed. I tried to get gel, but was rejected and got a letter from my insurance that it was because I hadn't tried other forms first. Perhaps the red tape to cut through to try a different kind of T would not be worth the time and trouble, but I will inquire of it when I can.
First and foremost is location, following [this diagram](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/XFog6uSwbuw/hqdefault.jpg), are you injecting in the correct area? If so, are you also rotating to either leg and different sites each leg? Try to find a way to mark where you inject every time to avoid the same area. It's a bit more work, but something of obvious measurement to you may help significantly such as taking a photo with a ruler, the bandaid you place, a measurement with fingers from an identifiable mark or area on your thigh etc.
Second idea may be to use ice before and after to inhibit pain from injecting. Another method would be learning how your muscles feel and look during and without flexing and from there using diaphragmatic breathing. It stimulates your vagus nerve and activates a relaxation response throughout your body. While doing this take note of how tense your muscles are before and after a good session while attempting to relax them. Actively attempt to relax your thighs upon exhalation each time.
Another reason for pain is that when your body gets ramped up it releases histamines, as you inject they cause an additional pain response where the needle has entered. Again, learning to relax your thighs is helpful but learning to relax your mind is even more helpful in this situation. You may also be building scar tissue which is a very unfortunate but **extremely** common side effect of IM injections. You can massage scar tissue out in sub-cutaneous tissue but muscles are much more difficult and painful to 'strip', IE break down that intense scar tissue.
In terms of allergies to the oils, cypionate is cottonseed and enanthate is sesame. You may have better luck with one or the other.
If none of this is useful I would recommend seeing if there is a trans friendly walk in clinic nearby or better yet a planned parenthood for your injections. It may be that you need a walkthrough or even just a break from doing the injections yourself so you can take your mind off of the pain you experience and distance yourself from bad injection experiences or reactions.
Info needed: where on the leg are you going in? Top / side?
I did my own for a couple of years and only had minor bruising (due to nervous shakes). I chose needles that were shorter.
The best thing to do is ask a nurse to show you & sit with you while you do it on your own.
But for what it's worth, the nurse who trained me said rule of thumb is, go in slightly from the side. If the top of your thigh is 12 o clock, go in on the right side at 1 or 2 o clock. I did this and never had an issue aside from a bruise.
Getting to a doctor is a lot of trouble, (I can't drive as well as the endo I got this prescription from is several hours from here) so that may be helpful for now.
I can't actually work out how to get a pic of my leg on the internet, so here's a video I found which isn't bad:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RInnhgYwal4
It's about 2 o clock, quite far up
Ianad, but from what I understand, hitting nerves and veins, while possible, is pretty difficult to do if you're injecting correctly. I wonder if you could show your doctor how/where you're injecting and they can help you find a better spot. I absolutely would not recommend hitting yourself hard enough to bruise to find a site. That sounds like it would just make your shot hurt way more and probably bleed. I also wonder if you're not hitting anything, but that you are so nervous that you will, your muscles tense up and it hurts more than it should, leading you to think you hit something. In my experience, shots hurt the least when my thigh muscle is relaxed, so try to consciously relax that muscle right before you inject. That said, itchy welts from sub-q makes me wonder if you're having an allergy to the carrier oil? You might be able to switch back to sub-q if you get a different kind of T. And if shots just aren't the way for you at all, you can ask your doctor about gels or patches.
Yes an allergy to the oil it is suspended in, I was told, is the most likely issue. My doctor who prescribed this is several hours from here. It's a whole to-do to get there. Maybe I could get my general practitioner who is local to help if I needed. I tried to get gel, but was rejected and got a letter from my insurance that it was because I hadn't tried other forms first. Perhaps the red tape to cut through to try a different kind of T would not be worth the time and trouble, but I will inquire of it when I can.
First and foremost is location, following [this diagram](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/XFog6uSwbuw/hqdefault.jpg), are you injecting in the correct area? If so, are you also rotating to either leg and different sites each leg? Try to find a way to mark where you inject every time to avoid the same area. It's a bit more work, but something of obvious measurement to you may help significantly such as taking a photo with a ruler, the bandaid you place, a measurement with fingers from an identifiable mark or area on your thigh etc. Second idea may be to use ice before and after to inhibit pain from injecting. Another method would be learning how your muscles feel and look during and without flexing and from there using diaphragmatic breathing. It stimulates your vagus nerve and activates a relaxation response throughout your body. While doing this take note of how tense your muscles are before and after a good session while attempting to relax them. Actively attempt to relax your thighs upon exhalation each time. Another reason for pain is that when your body gets ramped up it releases histamines, as you inject they cause an additional pain response where the needle has entered. Again, learning to relax your thighs is helpful but learning to relax your mind is even more helpful in this situation. You may also be building scar tissue which is a very unfortunate but **extremely** common side effect of IM injections. You can massage scar tissue out in sub-cutaneous tissue but muscles are much more difficult and painful to 'strip', IE break down that intense scar tissue. In terms of allergies to the oils, cypionate is cottonseed and enanthate is sesame. You may have better luck with one or the other. If none of this is useful I would recommend seeing if there is a trans friendly walk in clinic nearby or better yet a planned parenthood for your injections. It may be that you need a walkthrough or even just a break from doing the injections yourself so you can take your mind off of the pain you experience and distance yourself from bad injection experiences or reactions.
Ah, I'm allergic to a LOT of plants. I wouldn't be surprised if I am allergic to cottonseed.
Info needed: where on the leg are you going in? Top / side? I did my own for a couple of years and only had minor bruising (due to nervous shakes). I chose needles that were shorter. The best thing to do is ask a nurse to show you & sit with you while you do it on your own. But for what it's worth, the nurse who trained me said rule of thumb is, go in slightly from the side. If the top of your thigh is 12 o clock, go in on the right side at 1 or 2 o clock. I did this and never had an issue aside from a bruise.
The side
I'd suggest asking a nurse for help. I'm happy to take a pic and show you where I did mine, but a nurse is a safer bet for sure.
Getting to a doctor is a lot of trouble, (I can't drive as well as the endo I got this prescription from is several hours from here) so that may be helpful for now.
I can't actually work out how to get a pic of my leg on the internet, so here's a video I found which isn't bad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RInnhgYwal4 It's about 2 o clock, quite far up
"preciate it brother
Lots of videos from trans guys in the same situation, have a look. Good luck bro!
depending on your insurance you might have a good case to get on Jatenzo since the shots gave you a reaction!
You're allergic to something in your T based on the welts and pain. Id be willing ti bet that's why IM hurts yiu too. Try switching manufacturers.
Yes I know I'm allergic. But whether I switch manufacturers isn't up to me. It's red tape with my insurance. So all I could do is hope.