Harm Reduction In my experience the smaller the gauge of the needle the better

[purplehaze147]

31 gauge needles (the smallest avaible I my area I think) are the best IMO. The gauge is the circumference of the needle tip. The higher the number the smaller it is. You want the smallest hole possible so less damage is done to the vien.

A lot of people on here say they can't use a smaller gauge. This doesn't make much sense to me. For me it's even easier to hit the vien. If you miss it does hurt a lot more with a smaller gauge but you should never be missing, that causes so much damage. You shouldn't ever see your skin goin up &/or getting lumps and pain that means you missed! You need to pull back blood before you inject. If you can't find a vein take a shower and make sure you're at the right angle.

 

[BlueIV]

but you should never be missing, that causes so much damage.

How do you ensure you never miss? Even the nurses training me don't get a vein every time on the first try. Not missing would be ideal, but it isn't always possible.

As for the gauge, I've been learning here and looking elsewhere. I think the most important thing first of all is having the right type of needle for what you're doing, then getting the smallest size for that type. I'm using a butterfly needle. The smallest size is 25g and it's safer to use that with the tubing connected to the syringe for what I am using. Sitting there, pushing the plunger on a syringe directly attached to the needle for 10 minutes with a 31g would do more damage than my bigger butterfly that can be taped down and isn't going to move if the syringe moves over those 10 minutes.

Someone please correct me if this is wrong, finding good information about this has been difficult/

 

[Larc]

I always used short tip 31's. Never had a problem.

A valid argument can be made for larger gauge needles.

 

[purplehaze147]

How do you ensure you never miss? Even the nurses training me don't get a vein every time on the first try. Not missing would be ideal, but it isn't always possible.

As for the gauge, I've been learning here and looking elsewhere. I think the most important thing first of all is having the right type of needle for what you're doing, then getting the smallest size for that type. I'm using a butterfly needle. The smallest size is 25g and it's safer to use that with the tubing connected to the syringe for what I am using. Sitting there, pushing the plunger on a syringe directly attached to the needle for 10 minutes with a 31g would do more damage than my bigger butterfly that can be taped down and isn't going to move if the syringe moves over those 10 minutes.

Someone please correct me if this is wrong, finding good information about this has been difficult/

You pull back (draw) blood into the syringe. I don't always hit it on the fist try (about 85% of the time I do but that took a lot of practice), I just never inject if I'm not in. I don't know if you can do this with a butterfly needle I never used one. If your injecting yourself to get high you should just use a regular hypodermic insulin syringe. You can inject slowly if you want to it doesn't mattter, injecting it fast gives a better rush though.

 

[BlueIV]

I do pull back. Sometimes I can't get a vein in the spot though. Other times I have it and lose it. I'm not getting high. I have to inject at a specified rate, I can go slower, but the minimum amount of time it should take is 10 minutes, otherwise the risk for negative health effects increases. I'm using a large volume, more than 10x the volume use for most street drugs.

 

[purplehaze147]

I do pull back. Sometimes I can't get a vein in the spot though. Other times I have it and lose it. I'm not getting high. I have to inject at a specified rate, I can go slower, but the minimum amount of time it should take is 10 minutes, otherwise the risk for negative health effects increases. I'm using a large volume, more than 10x the volume use for most street drugs.

Your not getting high because of you're tolerence most likely. If you're just shooting opiate pills like roxies you should just quit for a while before you get worse, it's a very expensive habit with pills. The health risks don't decrease by injecting it slower you just have less of a chance of O.D.ing because you can pull the butterfly needle out in case of an emergency.

 

[BlueIV]

I'm not getting high because it isn't something I can get high off of. It's not pills and is a hellva lot more expensive, luckily I don't have to pay for it. It's something that is preventing me from having life-threatening attacks. I'm following my doctor's instructions, which are also the drug manufacturer's instructions in terms of flow rate. It is well documented that there can be side effects, possibly serious if it's infused too fast. If I could live a healthy life without needing to give myself IVs I would. I hate having to carry my IV supplies around with me wherever I go just in case I have an attack. I'm not a drug abuser.

Have you ever injected more than 10 mL at a time?

 

[SB1981]

FOr me, 25 gauge one inch with 3mL barrel is perfect since I only slam my arm crooks. The barrel is much easier to operate and I prefer some width so I can feel it as it dives inside. Also, I like to have more than half an inch since the spike usuallu goes in 3/4 of the way and I do like it deep. I'm a sicko, lol. Seriously, anuthing smaller just clogs up and isn't as charming. I like to see and feel my vein open as I'm feeding it full.

I ma not a drug abuser! I'm a drug User! 8)

 

[SB1981]

I'm not getting high because it isn't something I can get high off of. It's not pills and is a hellva lot more expensive, luckily I don't have to pay for it. It's something that is preventing me from having life-threatening attacks. I'm following my doctor's instructions, which are also the drug manufacturer's instructions in terms of flow rate. It is well documented that there can be side effects, possibly serious if it's infused too fast. If I could live a healthy life without needing to give myself IVs I would. I hate having to carry my IV supplies around with me wherever I go just in case I have an attack. I'm not a drug abuser.

Have you ever injected more than 10 mL at a time?

I would love to give it a "shot" as I enjoy injecting a lot. I've shot 3mL of water when I was training.

 

[SB1981]

How do you ensure you never miss? Even the nurses training me don't get a vein every time on the first try. Not missing would be ideal, but it isn't always possible.

As for the gauge, I've been learning here and looking elsewhere. I think the most important thing first of all is having the right type of needle for what you're doing, then getting the smallest size for that type. I'm using a butterfly needle. The smallest size is 25g and it's safer to use that with the tubing connected to the syringe for what I am using. Sitting there, pushing the plunger on a syringe directly attached to the needle for 10 minutes with a 31g would do more damage than my bigger butterfly that can be taped down and isn't going to move if the syringe moves over those 10 minutes.

Someone please correct me if this is wrong, finding good information about this has been difficult/

Personally, anyone who uses their arm veins should use 25 gauge unless their veins are smaller than usual. 27 gauge or larger (smaller) just seems to fall out. I like girth and control.

 

[sailor bugg]

I usually use 29 gauge, 100 unit, long tip rigs when I do the occasional shot of d.

 

[Tommyboy]

There's really no question here as it's more of a blog post, so I'm going to close this. There's a syringe size argument going on elsewhere in Other Drugs, so post there.