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Harm Reduction Track Marks MEGA Thread v 1:Human Pin Cushion

There are some good suggestions in this thread, and we have had topics about this in the past. I'll merge this in with a similar topic.
 
I use my thighs so that it doesn't show on my hands and wrists. My arms have long since worn out. Whenever I shoot in the legs it leaves a nasty yellow bruise for days, but I think I agravate it by not rotating from my lucky spot and using dull points for too long.

Even though I haven't been able to use my arms for many months, I can still see a scar where I used to poke, and the veins are scarred and hard and blue underneath. I am hoping these will eventually go away but I am starting to doubt it.

Anyway, I've been using my right upper leg for some time now and it still works and when I stop for a week, the bruises go away. So there is pretty conspicuous. My lower legs scar even easier than my arms, though.

I'm stuck having to wear long shirts until my arms hopefully heal.
 
Tips and Tricks for injection mark healing

I'm trying to limit my marks of drug use. I use my hand, so it's important to make these marks of vice go away. I currently use a generic neosporin ointment after injection, but I still have pronounced marks. What can I do? My technique is better after 6 months, but even one prick a day is making me look like a junky. Please give your personal methods and share your success.
 
Heparin ointment is good to dissolve blood clots if there are any.

I wonder if getting a sun-tan is recommended. A sun-tan on scars is not good but track marks are not exactly scars.
 
Track marks are like moles of shame, lol. I have to laugh, but I'd really love to hear how others here have dealt with them. I don't have any blood clots, and the "red" marks, the immediate injection site wound, heals almost always. But I have several black marks, which are obviously track marks. Maybe from misses? Messed the vein at one point? How do I make those fade? I honestly tried make up at one point... good thing I hang out with girls who don't mind trying to help me hide track marks....sigh.
 
Personally, using proper injection techniques has been the best method to making track marks as little and un-noticeable as possible. Use the smallest gauge needle you can find, especially if shooting in your hands. 30g or 31g, is what I was using since I would use my hands/wrists a lot as well.

Other than that, applying pressure after your injection, using heparin/neosporin ointment is great. I dunno. Band aids? Ace bandage? Haha just kidding. But seriously, the thing that made my track marks so much worse was falling into the habit of using shit IV techniques, especially when shooting coke.. Shooting coke makes all sense of normalcy and reason go bye-bye.
 
My old trick is, buy a bottle of Vitamin E gelcaps, bite one open and rub the gel inside on your track marks with a little bit of rubbing alcohol. Always seemed to help clean my marks up faster and it's cheap.
 
there might be nothing you can do--I used new needles every time and rotated sites but after 6-8 injections a day for 9 years you're likely to have purple scars like me. I won't be wearing short sleeves in public much for the rest of my life. it's a reminder, if nothing else. I've heard people swear by Vitamin E too, but there's only so much it can do.

it depends on how well/fast you heal. when I use my white blood cell count goes down. I used to inject my ex about three times a day for four years and her scars were gone in about half a year.

I have a friend who always used his hand area. he wears leather wristbands in public.
 
^^^this
It sucks being pale, I've been contemplating either getting tattoos in the color of my skin over the bad ones, or just tattooing big black bands around the crooks of my arms

mederma has helped me a little but it's expensive. for now you could go up to sephora or an equally nice makeup store and get some good liquid concealer. mine don't look great with just concealer though, I have to use powder as well.
 
We already have threads about this, let's see if I can resurrect one of them...

xxl said:
Heparin ointment is good to dissolve blood clots if there are any.

I wonder if getting a sun-tan is recommended. A sun-tan on scars is not good but track marks are not exactly scars.
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Sun tanning is damaging to the skin, whether it's natural or otherwise.

You should still get some sunlight every now and then, but I wouldn't recommend it personally.

I would stick with triple antibiotic ointment, as well as the other good examples listed here and elsewhere.
 
Immediately after shooting, I'll use an alcohol pad to clean the site, however, this usually thins the blood and leads to what LOOKS like more bleeding - you aren't bleeding more by applying the alcohol, just thining the blood that would have come out anyways. Once the IV site has closed, usually a minute or two after shooting, I use Dettol® (an anti-septic, can't get enough of the smell of that stuff - just smells good and sterile, like a clinical sort of smell) and dab it directly on and around my shot site with a cotton swab. When I wash, I use a moisturizing soap with aloe vera extract, and for post-treatment of trackmarks, I use a panthenol (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panthenol) containing cream, and a day or two later I can barely tell that I injected myself at any given spot... The panthenol cream is the same thing any tattoo artist should advise you to rub on your new tattoo for faster and better healing of the skin... of course some places bruise easier than others, and sometimes a shot goes bad, causing extra damage... and mind you, the precautions that I am taking are mainly cosmetic, and have an effect on the healing and appearance of the skin, while my veins might actually not be in as good shape as they look on the surface. But the alcohol and anti-septics at least prevent infection of the site. If a rash of the skin appears around the site, I have usually eaten a non-drowsy anti-histamine (tried this twice), but this has probably had more of a placebo effect, and just kept me at bay and not worried about the rash, which usually dissipated quickly anyways...
Just ran out of IV bupe solution yesterday, so I'm going cold turkey this easter :(

EDIT: And another thing, bruising and cuts have always healed slower in cold climates on me than in warm climates, and usually, there is nothing better for healing than a hell of a lot of fresh air, but not too much direct sun (too much of that on and around the site will end up leaving clearly distinguishable scars, as the damaged tissue is even more prone to sun damage than the surrounding tissue), nonetheless, I like to keep my cuts and bruises exposed as much as possible... So for example, instead of treading all over town showing off my track marks, I'll make sure that at home or in a comfortable space, I take off any shirt or what not covering my shot sites, and just let the sites 'breathe' as much as possible.
 
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Believe it or not I usedto use tooth paste to coverup and to antiseptic the area. Also if no oneis around sun light then long sleve shirts especially forcke usre. I remember the ringing of the bells all to well unfortunately.
 
AtxBigBallin said:
I have been getting killer bruising from IV coke use. I was curious if there are more conspicuous places to poke myself that will be comparable to the arm. I know its best to stay as close to the heart as possible but the bruises really are a pain to have to cover up.

Ideas anyone?

Peace
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Even if you go through lengths to purify your cocaine, it doesn't seem to matter that much. It's just one of those things where you will end up with tracks.

First, make sure you are using a NEW needle EVERY single time. I know most people think this is a pain in the ass, especially if you're shooting within minutes of your last injection, but it REALLY makes a difference.

If you're getting bruises, I would try to make sure you're getting enough iron and other essential minerals in you.

Also, use skin rejuvenators, especially those aimed at helping remove wrinkles that have lots of vitamin E. And the suggestion of using products aimed at tattoos, also genius.

And as far as hiding the marks, go to the make up isle in a grocery store or whatever and pick out a few different brands of cover up. The reason you want to go with three different brands is because some of them have sparkles or are really obvious. Generally, you want to use a color that's a shade or two darker than your nature skin. Get some make up wedges. And practice. You can't just put it right over the mark you're trying to disguise. Obviously, you have to apply the most there, but you need to make sure it spreads out gradually to look natural.

And if you have to go through a store clerk instead of the self-check out line, who cares? Go to a store out of your way. And if worse comes to worse, just have a list with a few things on it including cover up and make up wedges and grab some other groceries or what not. You're shopping for more than yourself. Great cover story. Back in the day when I was doing my thing and had tracks, I'd pick a box tampons, too. AND I would keep the bag (minus the receipt) in my car. Not only are cops rarely going to inspect a a box of tampons, but it makes for a great cover story and a greater place to store your gear (WHICH YOU SHOULD ALWAYS HAVE IN YOUR TRUNK IF YOU ARE TRANSPORTING IT ANYWHERE!)

Having female friends that are also invaluable with make up are teaching you proper of techniques. "Oh, I'm going out tonight and I cut myself shaving, how can I get rid of this mark?".
 
If they aren't black they're going away. I have two black ones, any tips for these especially? I've given up pricks for the time being, it's been over 10 days so they aren't "fresh."
 
The Captain's Track Mark Advice

So, a Bluelighter PM's me with a frequent question I have gotten in the past, many times, and have only until now had the time and ability to fully articulate all my advice. I'm sharing it here with you all now so as to be able to get good advice out of it; if you can avoid IVing multiple times per day - like I am currently doing - please do so.

If not, then follow these tips to get your veins in the best of shape and keep them that way.

Hey mate, just have a quick question for you.

I read that you IV 1-6 times per day, everyday. I'm just curious as to what kind of damage you're noticing and ways of minimising that.

I kinda thought performing venipuncture daily wasn't sustainable, even with new needles and even rotating veins, serious like 4 shots a day? Do you have perpetual track marks on all the veins you hit?

Or is it possible to inject IV daily sustainably(keeping a balance between damage creation and healing) by doing things right ect. Also if you're injecting that often is it alot more important to locate the valves in your veins so as to not damage them ect.

I'm just curious because i'm learning to IV myself, and i expect to be IV'ing maybe once per week once i'm competent enough with the needle, but my health means alot to me and i'm trying to learn everything i can and gain as broad a perspective as i can when it comes to the serious business of pumping shit into my bloodstream.

So yeah man i'm just curious if like you are forced to where long sleeve shirts constantly and have alot of marks and shit or if it is possible to really keep that shit down by injecting properly.

Thanks for reading dude, sorry to waste abit of your time here. :)
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Basically, using a 31G short tip needle with every shot I use now, and *neverrrr* reusing a needle (meaning ifyou load up your shot, and the needle gets dinged on a spoon or anything else before trying to get it to work, then I'd get it exchanged into a new one, if you are trying to IV and it doesn't work and you have to take it out, replace it, get a new needle out - it's worth it for your veins in the long run).

I also make sure by looking at the face of the needle that it isn't going to be super messed up. If the tip is bad , you can at least half the time, see that it's going to be this way before you're trying to puncture it past your skin and you're getting massive resistance.

The best new needles I have used slide right in like butter and there's almost no "force" you need to put on it. At least to get through the skin.

OK, so - what I have noticed. At first, using the 31's over and over was the worst idea. using a new 28G every time is better than reusing a 31G. However, reusing any needle is just a bad idea, and I would say 30G to 31G is what you should be using anyways ideally, as anything larger than that is just unnecessary, unless you plan on having to inject a large volume of solution (if you aren't sure about solubilities don't hesitate to ask :)).

When using 27, 28, 29 gauge needles, there is a serious marking your veins will take. With 30g, 31g especially - sometimes I can't even see where I injected unless I can feel for the space where the vein isn't uniform with the rest of the vein. Typically what happens is I'll find a good vein, use a 31g short tip, get it on the first try (if you have to stab it in a few times to find out the right angle to use as a new IV'er, that's OK, just don't go "digging" like I have unfortunately seen someone do in the past) - then I will slowly plunge. Plunging too quick can cause the vein to burst and then you'll have the fluid from the injection leak elsewhere into the subcutaneous area - this is like missing your shot all together. This will give you a "lump" under your skin which is big and puffy and round.

Before plunging though when you register, you want to pull the plunger back carefully. You want to make sure the plunger isn't sticky - because pulling the plunger back too forcefully can cause a collapse of a vein in the worst circumstances, or hemolysis in mild circumstances.

Then, after you have plunged carefully (It took me a long time to IV on myself, this can be really tricky, so take all the time learning you need to and don't feel pressured or overly challenged if you don't get it on the first attempt, it took me uhhh probably hundreds of injections to learn how to do it optimally) - you want to remove it slowly. Yanking out the needle real quick can also damage the vein - this is bad.

After getting the needle out, I immediately grab some clean toilet paper and hold it semi-firmly (about as hard as you would apply gently rolling a bandaid onto your skin) so that the bleeding is stopped by the toilet paper, but also that you are not pressing down hard.

For some of my veins - bleeding is more likely to happen. The steeper the angle you use with the needle (meaning the more up and down it is, instead of parallel to your arm) the more bleeding.

For other veins - I almost get no bleeding 99% of the time, so that I just have to hold toilet paper briefly, I'll look and see no blood and a healed site. :)

Sometimes there will be a tiny bit of red left in the center where the needle was - then this tiny, tiny bit of red blood will stain the skin purpleish but it's so small it's hard to see. I can show you a picture of my arms if you want but I will need to find the camera.

To be honest, I have had tons of doctors, cops, nurses, etc. see my arms. Almost none of these people identified my arms as having track marks, the only one noticed I had some marks, and I quickly explained a legitimate reason for having them and to them it seemed plausible because they didn't ask any other questions, didn't give me a weird look, etc.

So to answer your question, here is what I do to minimize the harm and keep my veins looking good:

1) eating a well balanced meal as frequently as possible
2) drinking plenty of water (helps distinguish vein blood from artery blood too)
3) exercising by doing cardio but primarily lifting weights (lifting weights causes your veins to circulate the most blood especially when using your arms to lift weights)
4) Before going to sleep every night, I put some triple antibiotic ointment over my injection sites. If I am staying up all night long, or just going away from being able to IV for a while, I'll put on some ointment on my sites I've used and leave some other sites open for later. Only doing this 1 time per day is critical, as well as not using too much. A light layer which is visible in good lighting, but not a thick glob - is essential. Over-using triple antibiotic ointment, like neosporin, is going to cause the marks to worsen not get better. Weird, I know. Someone told me this before I started using it.
5) following all of the good IVing tips listed above - if you wanted clarity on any of them let me know.

yes - it is a good idea to know where the valves are, you are more likely to mess up your veins at these points, and all you really need is a solid section of one vein, not an intersection. Sometimes it's harder or easier to see them based on what your body is like. The more body fat = the harder it is to see your veins.

No - I don't have to use long sleeves. I drive around and walk around in short sleeves or even cut off T-shirts all day long. No one stares at me weird or even asks me questions about it.

Basically - yes, you are totally able to take care of your veins and skin so that this isn't an issue. :) Once every other week is barely noticeable - if you keep it to that frequency and use great harm reduction strategies, micron filtering, etc. it'll stay that way.

The key is to avoid missing shots - and to not bother IVing without micron filtering. If you don't micron filter, and miss a shot - it can be easy for an abscess to form. I am lucky to have never gotten one, I have missed a fair number of shots, particulary in the beginning.

If your veins start to feel lumpy, scarred, retracted, knotted up, swollen, etc when you go to inject, don't do it. Find a better vein. These are problems that typically happen when people are beginning to over-do it.

It's natural for the vein to be slightly retracted after your shot, but this will go back to normal soon thereafter. With a 31G it takes maybe 1-2 hours to go back - maybe a bit longer depending on what angle I inserted the needle, etc. - with the huge 20-something gauge they used on my hand vein for surgery, it took weeks to come back. :(

If you do happen to miss - don't panic, especially if you micron filtered. Either way, use a heat compress, and make sure you aren't burning the area with too hot water, but lukewarm is best. :) - If you are experiencing excruciating pain and localized swelling in the extremity you injected into, you could have hit an artery and might want to go to the ER. However, I have never had this happen to me. Artery blood is bright red, vein blood is dark red.

Basically, the worst thing in the world for your veins is for you to not just puncture through one side, but both of them; this causes a worse pinching than any other type of injection. When you are new, try to find your veins, you should be able to see and feel them, insert the needle shallowly - it doesn't have to go in too shallow so as to make sure the needle's bevel will make it in, but also so that you don't have as high of a likelhihood of puncturing through both sides.

When you are on the side of a vein, you will notice some blood register back, some air stay in there. Sometimes the trick is to maneuver it to the side to get more into "all" of the vein, or to just pull the needle somewhat back so as to get 100% into it. Sometimes in these situations, you may have already gotten a larger hole than necessary so if this is the case, just try to see if you can make the best of a situation before having to pull the needle out.

But yes, I often wondered how long I could keep up injecting at least 4 times a day (it's probably more like 6 times minimum - in a whole 24 hour period I might do it up to 8 times per day), and now I can tell it'll be able to go on as long as I want it to.

I think that most people's issues with track marks stem from...

1) injecting drugs which are harsh on the vein and the subcutaneous tissue (cocaine, methamphetamine/amphetamine, antihistamines)

- avoid these if possible. Meth is worth using if you can keep it to 1 injection per day or less but it's not a great addiction to have. I have never been addicted to uppers as I have ADHD and I have to take breaks from d-amp and don't even like IVing it

2) reusing needles, or the wrong gauge

- 30G or 31G is best IME; some people prefer one over the other.

occasionally - wrong needle lenght.

- 1/2" is too long for me, I only use short tips aka 5/16". 1/2" is better if you can't see or feel your veins, unless you get a tourniquet then you can feel it underneath a layer of basically fat. (no offense if you are- I am really thin)

3) pushing plunger down too hard, pulling plunger back too hard, yanking out the needle too quickly

- self-explanatory :)

4) won't blot blood for long enough, then it starts to pool and harden on skin, staining skin into a purple blotch

- preventing blood seeping into the skin post-injection helps a lot

5) they may have a hard time visualizing where their veins are going to be. There are blue lines on the skin where our veins are - except some roll some don't, others are deeper or closer to the skin than we may imagine. This can make it tricky and some practice will help you out here.

6) lack of neosporin = slower recovery.

- your veins heal quickest in a moist, warm environment. Cold and dry - slow healing.

OK so those are probably the biggest issues people will face with track marks.

Some final tips...

If you feel pain, take the needle out, you likely hit a nerve. I have injected on a nerve more times than I care to admit, but it's still not a fun sensation, and it can really reduce your nerve's sensitivity.

The key is to know what you're doing. Look at the vein maps in the IV/injection complications mega thread FAQ. Also look at the WHOLE thing and know what to look for as a problem: heat, pain, inflammation, and so on. The signs are easy to spot.

When looking at the vein maps, identify the veins in your HANDS, and then work your way up to the elbow. This is the direction you will want to cycle your sites. I mention identifying the veins in your hands because they're just easier to identify. If you look at just the arms, it's harder to tell, as they all kind of vary a little bit. Start with one vein somewhere closer to the hand, then work your way to the heart. The clots that form will be interrupted if you do the opposite, and this is less ideal for your health.

Even if I do 8 shots per day, I can find 4 to 6 veins to use 1.5 to 2 x in a day, and it'll work just fine for me. Before I come back arond to the same section of a vein, the marks I left behind last time have already healed. :)

Don't start off using hand veins, they are easy to collapse by comparison.

Practice with something before trying it on yourself with drugs in the rig.

If you have someone with experience and is aware how to not spread HIV/Hep C (very important if you have other injecting drug user friends - make sure you know how Hep C can be transmitted ASIDE sharing needles) - then this can help. Someone else's two hands plus my hand really helped me learn how to do this effectively.

I hope this was a good enough explanation. If I find the camera I'll take a picture of my arms.
 
[i used to shoot coke into my chest veins. idk if that works for guys better or worse than women. btw the veins i used for coke are big and blue and very visible from the scarring, never goes away

QUOTE=AtxBigBallin;1669965]I have been getting killer bruising from IV coke use. I was curious if there are more conspicuous places to poke myself that will be comparable to the arm. I know its best to stay as close to the heart as possible but the bruises really are a pain to have to cover up.

Ideas anyone?

Peace[/QUOTE]
 
kat von d has a makeup at sephora designed to be a tattoo cover-up. that works well, even on my permanently big blue coke tracks

comatoserct said:
^^^this
It sucks being pale, I've been contemplating either getting tattoos in the color of my skin over the bad ones, or just tattooing big black bands around the crooks of my arms

mederma has helped me a little but it's expensive. for now you could go up to sephora or an equally nice makeup store and get some good liquid concealer. mine don't look great with just concealer though, I have to use powder as well.
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