Missed shot of suboxone,ADVISE ME PLEASE

[Bundaroo7710]

So I'm relatively new here and I hope this is the proper place to ask for advice.
I would also like to mention that I am somewhat new to the IV method(mainly because I'm kind of a germaphoeb and the risk of bacteria/infection scares the poop out of me) that being said I've decided to completely stay away from needles and continue with my usual method of administration(sublingual)


Around two weeks ago I missed when I attempted to give myself a shot of suboxone on the back side of my left hand.
.3ml solution
Of 2mg suboxone pill (crescent moon)
No michron filter but it was filtered thoroughly.
All my equipment(syringe, spoon,etc) and work station was also thoroughly sterilized
I am pretty sure it is an infection free abscess due to what I've read online.
I've also read that missed shots of suboxone usually take longer to absorb but I'm not sure
My concern is that in about two
(February 8-9th is the day I did this)
weeks, the size has not gone down significantly. Slight reduction in size temporarily, when I sit my hand in warm-hot water or press a warm wet cloth. Yet the overall size has stayed nearly exactly the same(hasn't gotten bigger or smaller)
Initially my grip was weaker than normal and the back of my hand felt like a really sensitive bruise(painful when pressure was applied). That lasted about 1-2 days and immediately after That, I've had an almost full range of motion, no more sensitivity(doesn't hurt to touch)


I am very reluctant to get medical treatment because I am afraid to get blacklisted which would make it nearly impossible to obtain prescriptions in the future.


I am not currently dependent on any substance,
Long ago i was a regular opiod user but now I only take suboxone occasionally


1st-I got the first half of the shot in with no pain or discomfort
2nd-When about a half of the shot was in safely, I shook my right hand a little bit which pulled the needle out of my vein slightly
(At the time I wasn't so sure)
3rd-At this point I should of pulled out but me being a novice I attempted to place the needle back in the vein(digging) without pulling out completely(ie:needle stayed in my hand the entire time.
4th- I noticed a sharp and cool sting immediately as i pressed the plunger down,
Not particularly painful but very different from what it should feel like
5th- As i removed the needle there was No excess blood and no pain
6th- i immediately noticed a bruise and when i moved my fingers around(rapidly) i noticed a pinching sensation, similar to what putting pressure on a regular bruise would feel like.
I can pull my fingers around with my other hand with no pain but when I move them independently, i feel the pinchings sensation
7th- the injection site is swollen with no discoloration, roughly the width of a 50cent peice and at the very center it is raised at least one centimeter. There is NO redness, NO excess heat, and I've felt perfectly healthy
(ie; NO fever or any other symptoms


Also i just received one-two weeks worth of amoxicillian(antibiotics), which i started taking today.


If i go to a Dr would they be able to do anything to help besides giving me antibiotics?


..........
Is this a normal length of time?

If i have to get medical treatment, is there anything i coud say that would keep me from being blacklisted?


From my description, does this sound like an abcess with NO infection?


I have an doctors appointment for friday, is this something i could speak with him about or would the hospital be more appropriate?


Thank you for your time and concern, I pride myself on using knowledge for harm reduction purposes and i know its better safe than sorry (as far as medical treatment goes) but because there's no redness, heat, or fever i wanted to at least check here before i bite the bullet and see a physician. 8(8?

 

[Keif' Richards]

This is just my opinion, but I strongly believe that the pill itself was probably the culprit. I'm not a scientist and won't pretend, but for some reason, intravenous users of Buprenorphine seem to acquire complications pretty easily. It was unwise of you to do this. Being a germaphobe, I would've thought the last thing on your bucket list would be to inject a pill, without all of the proper equipment i.e. micron filters and as a novice user. For the record, regarding the Buprenorphine, I've been an IV drug user for ten years and have never had a complication. That's not a "better than you" statement, it's a testament to the potential dangers of using Buprenorphine off the street by this route.

It's fairly normal for the "mass" around an abscess to soften when exposed to heat. I can only imagine that the heat causes it to become loosened up somehow, maybe by promoting blood flow to the area? Again, not a scientist. At any rate, the best thing that you can do for yourself is to go get medical attention. Whether it's a potentially life threatening abscess or a benign mass, it's probably going to have to be excised and packed.

I'll warn you that pulling off a convincing ruse for hours in an emergency department is difficult. Doctors have to ask questions as part of their work and I've learned the hard way that they can easily poke holes in your story because they know much more than you or I on the given subject. This isn't advice on how to deal with Doctors, which we can't give, it's more of a disclaimer.

I just read about the antibiotics after I had already written my post. Antibiotics are not a first-line treatment for abscess. I know it sucks to hear, but the first-line treatment is surgery. From what I've been told, it's not a super-painful experience.

 

[dopemaster]

A trip to a surgeon might be a good idea.

I am pretty sure you can concoct a decent lie and all seeing how a hand is relatively easy to injure working or in a fight but it may not be in your best interest if its worse than you thought.

That being said most surgeons don't even want to take the time to hear it as they barely wait for the lidocaine to kick in.

If you wait it could get alot worse. Plastic drug formulations such a sub strips & tablets, opana, and oxycontin purdue are not good. They just kinda stick around forever.

Hands are not a good place for an abcess either. It can be fucking painful.

I know on both but luckily separate abcesses.

Look if it hasn't gone septic and has been around this long you really don't want it to or for it to spread.

It won't hurt that bad. I had the palm of my hand operated on and that was not fun and neither is anesthesia.

Most surgeons will drain it in their office if its soft, as in something that will drain. You know a lil squish.

If its not soft even more cause for concern. If its soft and not coming to a head it might be under the thicker hand skin and those take forever to come to a head.

I am trying to say call a surgeon and go asap, like today or tomorrow. Now is a good time to go and they will most likely give you an antibiotic more geared towards skin infections.

They will numb it and if your story flies you probably still won't get pain pills but hey it could get alot worse.

Honestly it will hurt less after surgery because of the relief of pressure.

I really think if it was going to surface or go away on it's own it would have and trust me it really fucking hurts to cut an abcess open with no anesthesia and then pack it.

Go to a surgeon is my advice.

 

[Agoraphobiaphile]

Do you happen to have an over active immune system? Just wondering.

My gut says go to the ER. I mean this is a HR forum and nobody wants to give you potentially bad advice to where you May lose a finger or your hand or become deathly sick with something like sepsis

You don't want to be black listed so what.. You can get some dilaudid in the future or something? Not worth the trouble IMO. If you get into an accident and need back surgery they will still give you pain meds it's not like you're going to be stuck in agony.

I don't even think they would blacklist you tbh. You're not drug seeking. I've ODed and been brought to the ER and I'm not blacklisted.

For what it's worth I have had plenty of misses and abscesses a and have never gone to the ER for then n they healed on their own but I do have an over active immune system and I think that is the reason why. Two weeks with no improvement however? Even supposing there is no infection, I highly doubt whatever is chilling under there is very good to local tissue unless your body has enveloped and isolated the infection which would be called a cyst.

 

[Agoraphobiaphile]

Can't edit but I did a little research and saw what you were talking about which I had never heard of before, a sterile abscess

It is a thing. And is just the local tissue being unable to absorb the binders and fillers if the pill. It really doesn sound like your lump is infected.. You would probably know after two weeks.

Sounds like the foreign insoluables do just get isolated and end up turning into a lump of scar tissue. That is best case scenario

 

[Bundaroo7710]

Thank you everyone for your advice, i really appreciate it.
As far as my having an issue with being blacklisted is not for any concern about opiates but rather alazopram for anxiety, etc. ( hoping that this wont affect a doctors prescription for me.)

What did you mean by "have more to worry about if its hard and not soft?" Because overall its soft but at its core there does seem to be a rather stiff spot so that has me curious.
Also I know its very difficult to give this type of advice but i was wondering if this sounds urgent or if ill be okay with waiting until friday morning for my dr appointment?

Thanks again everyone, your responses have made me much more comfortable with the idea of going to to the Doctor. I'm still worried that my family is going to assume im using real opiates again, when its actually suboxone.
The real kicker is that I've been through my fair share of opiates in the past and never once even touched a needle until now and then this happens

I was also wondering if other than infection if there's any other serious injury i may of caused? Considering that its not very painful and by the stiffness/elasticity it feels like a cyst. If this is the case, is this seriously life/limb
threatening? I dont feel like im in any immediate danger but im not an expert and I really like hearing what you guys have to say about it. And yes i do plan on getting treatment as soon as possible.

If anyone has any simple tips or guidance on what exactly i should say at the doctor i would be forever grateful

Basically im looking for any other reason that this cyst/abcess could've possibly formed other than a failed attempt at IV suboxone. Im not 100% sure but i would think that any small cut or skin piercing wound, would be prone to infection but would it turn into an abcess with or without infection?

 

[dopemaster]

Can't edit but I did a little research and saw what you were talking about which I had never heard of before, a sterile abscess

It is a thing. And is just the local tissue being unable to absorb the binders and fillers if the pill. It really doesn sound like your lump is infected.. You would probably know after two weeks.

Sounds like the foreign insoluables do just get isolated and end up turning into a lump of scar tissue. That is best case scenario

If its a sterile abcess you already have some cellulitis and it doesn't have to spread which is exponentially worse and by the time you feel the onset its too late so its your life

Some of this is out of order but I almost lost my arm with a dry abcess and it wasn't the most painful one but it still hurt more than you can imagine. You risk losing a limb and it being on your hand is not good and you could lose it if you wait but I can only guess here, mine started small and git bsd fast so I took some time to write this mainly to urge going the hospital. Do not stick a needle in it.

If its squishy in the middle and been around this long its probably a bit of cellulitis around the infection which doesn't have to spread and you don't want to risk it in my opinion, I would guess they would cut you and give you antibiotics at the hospital if not rush you onto an operating table

Sterile abscesses are bad news and I can't diagnose you. A picture will help but the only medical advice I am giving you is do not wait and get help asap, the rest is my.experiences and what I would do

I would say its urgent if you have a high fever or if it gets bigger. Draw a line around it with a sharpie and if it gets bigger go to the ER.

I doubt you will lose a suboxone rx over a relapse cuz a friend of mine was using cocaine, opana and subutex iv and tested positive for these drugs and didn't lose her rx.

No a sterile abcess is not fun. I had one from an opana miss and the doctor declare it a spider bite seeing how I paid cash when I had insurance.

You are unlikely to lose your rx because of the simple fact maintenance drugs are made to get you away from this behavior. Don't squander a second chance. I think iv bupe is pointless and I wouldn't IM ampules even to give you an idea how shitty I think the effects are. I get why you do it, I have done it myself.

I didn't really have much track marks my first second chance. That was when I still had good veins and it looked like I made a mistake and didn't have a habit.

The doctor called me out. He still gave me pain medication before surgery was determined necessary but my mistake was taking the wrongantibiotics and they worked for a while but when they stopped working ot came on so fast despite thr rightantibiotics oral and IM.

You won't get refused medical care in the future, worst case a pain clinic asks if you were hosiptilazied in the last 6 months and at least in the States it means admitted which is after the observation which is up to 24 hours and then you are admitted. If you spend a week in the hospital so be it cuz it's just six months of not getting anything but bupe or methadone.

I wouldn't wait because A) it could get worse B) if it gets worse you will have a worse medical record C) if it goes septic you could die D) if you get.cellulitis it will be much more painful and more intrusive surgery

It sounds like you might be on the verge of cellulitis and it can stretch your skin till it rips. It makes surgery way worse too and the cut will be much deeper

What will happen is if you go to the ER they numb it and stick a needle in the soft spot and then cut and pack it, it should feel better immediately and you take all the antibioticst they give you

I wouldn't wait but I would do a few moist warm compresses and it.might come to a head, if you don't hsve a fever it can wait if its coming outwards and not getting a larger diameter, DON'T squeeze it because that can pop inwards and it will go septic immediately

So you could even be put under for surgery and not have to check that box because they usually discharge me after surgery immediately upon waking up.

Regardless I am telling you no pain pill is worth your limb. I think losing a limb to an abcess would be a bigger red flag.

I can't tell you how little of a shit you will about pain medication when that hand or arm feels like its gonna fall off.

I was in the same boat and so reluctant to get medical treatment. The doctor agreed it should be a spider bite officially but needed to know what he was treating.

I got a bottle of amoxiciln and penicillin each and honestly all I did was prolong and intensify my misery.

My arm was over 3 times its size. I spent over a week on IV fluids. It went from kinda squishy to rock solid from the morning when I saw the doctor to about 430 pm when I returned. They gave me a shot of antibiotics and steroids intramuscular but it got worse so fast during the drive home I didnt go home, I called the doctor and went to the hospital.

My temperature went from 99 to 103.5 in that short time span.

So yeah the antibiotics you have won't treat a sterile abcess.

The day before they cut me my arm split open at a vein and I literally pushed that shit out like toothpaste.

It was opan that time. I have had three serious infections over the course of 12 years. That wasn't even the worst experience but this one went septic and I was so lucky to never get mrsa. So I have a very strong immune system.

An abcess either comes out or goes deeper and it can move through your body. The first one was from an opana miss and sounds similar to what you have.

Look I really hate thinking about this stuff. I am posting it because I am not sure you understand the gravity of not treating this.

I don't think you can treat it on your own and definitely not with that type of antibiotic, it will just make the bacteria mutate into a stronger strain.

So please go to a surgeon because if you need to go to a hospital even if its just for scans you can probably just get it over with in a quick cut.

If you get cellulitis they tend to wait and believe me when I say I was begging them to cut it. You can do warm not hot moist compresses to help make it easier for them and yourself which will soften it and draw it outwards.

You might get lucky and it will drain on its own but you will need different antibiotics. Do what you want and say what you want.

In the end they write down what they want and the only time they concluded it was due to iv use I was ten months clean but they didn't believe me.

My doctor that writes my pain rx does though.

Please go to a surgeon. It's probably the fastest way to get treated unless you get red streaks and in that case you need immediate medical treatment and surgery so at that point go to the hospital and show them you have red streaks because they won't want you waiting long because you will be contagious as fuck.

 

[cj]

If your in the US there is no such thing as a universal blacklist. You just will have drug user in your chart at that one hospital so don't let that stop you. You need medical attention cause its been so long and is not going away.

 

[Bundaroo7710]

thank you everyone for your help.
Update: im not sure exactly what this means but now after a warm soak it seems as if the lump is actually "coming to a head", meaning its trying to come out of my body instead of going inside. It doesn't really have a solid exit strategy but it seems like it's at least headed in the right direction

I was going to go get checked out today but I have no one that can accompany me so I've decided to go in the morning. Based off of all this information so far, I should be okay to wait for the morning unless I get a fever, redness, or heat yeah?

 

[trunkofmycar]

Everybody's kinda afraid to tell you that you'd be fine waiting till tomorrow, BC we're not you, and abscess situations have an unpredictability that can be v. dangerous...

fuck it though, if nothing changes suddenly I think tomorrow's pretty safe

Good luck, I have far too much experience with this shit than anybody ever should, haha.

 

[dopemaster]

After reading this sticky I am not concerned about liability anymore so much that the OP could lose their life if they don't go to the hospital.

It won't affect you getting a Benzodiazpine rx as that seems to be your main concern.

It is honestly more dangerous than I thought. There is some nasty stuff in subutex and I would advise going to the hospital and telling them you injected subutex.

The longer the OP waits the greater than chance of amputation, sepsis, gangrene, or death are. I don't know how else to illustrate the point.

This in my opinion is worse than your average abcess and they all carrry those risk but not this degree.

http://www.bluelight.org/vb/threads...t-could-happen-to-YOU-)?highlight=Abcess+care

OK, read this, I have read evey post.1 It pretty much starts off with subutex. This matter is very urgent in my opinion.

If those case studies in the link don't make you want to go to the hospital now, I don't know what to tell you.

It might be not much surgery or it might take alot either way why wait? It could get worse and I already told you i detail just how bad it can be.

I knew people irl and on here that died from not getting medical attention soon enough.

Is there anything more important to you in this situation then your life? Don't worry they will give you drugs because they have to.

Every poster in this thread has been more than accommodating but it is someone's job to cut the shit

You need medical care. If you continue to dick around I can't help you. I can get another moderator to say the same thing.

You are real danger in my opinion and given the risks involved you are getting a clear cut answer because we are hear to reduce the harm drugs do to your body and maybe save your life.

Please look at what could be under your skin or just go to a hospital. You have your answer. It's your life, I would prefer if you kept it.

My advice is to get to the hospital asap.

It could easily develop into cellulitis overnight and be far more painful and deadlier and if it goes to your heart that is very bad.

I don't think any doctor is going to refuse to treat you for addiction because of going to a hospital so please go soon as possible to the nearest hospital.

 

[Keif' Richards]

I think the concensus is that you're going to need to go to the hospital and get it excised. Like I said, this is the first-line treatment for abscess. The physical nature of the mass itself insulates it from completely effective antibiotic treatment in many cases. In most cases, at least where I'm from, no antibiotics are used unless it's an especially severe case.

 

[Bundaroo7710]

So I went to the ER and the doc said that it was a minor infection (not red, hot, or fever) and perscribed me two antibiotics that only work properly together. It actually worked out really well. He said the excess fluid im my case will subside within the next few weeks. He said it's not life/limb threatening but without antibiotics it could take longer too heal or potentially get worse so I'm definitely glad I went instead taking the amoxicillan i had already. Not to mention my report read as a "spontaneous hematoma of the hand) thabk you again everyone. And just to make something clear, my hesitation had much more to do with my family finding out that I shot up, because with the exception of suboxone I've been clean for a very long time and if they had found out it would of been quite the headache.
But regardless, thank each and everyone of you for your input.

 

[Bundaroo7710]

Needless to say, I dont plan on ever shooting suboxone again. Actually I'm staying away from needles completely