Red skin, Hard Vein, Soreness, and Sweeling around injection site. HELP!

[boognish459]

Ive been using dull syringe and having a hard time registering. I do not know if I injected or just made a puncture and pulled out bc unsuccessful in registering at this site. But, it began becoming sore the day of puncture. next day swelling begun to show. today, 3 days later the skin around injection site is red. I can feel hardness above and below the site on the vein. When still it doesnt hurt. But , when I move my elbow i feel pain from stiffness caused by swelling. I have no insurance nor money
and live in rural area where free medical attension is non-existant. Can someone tell me what this is. Will I be Ok. How do I treat and take care of it. How long will it last. I have had a similar experience but did not see skin become red because of covering tattoos..


Thank You for your help.
IV drug use is bad kids!!!

 

[SKL]

Warm to the touch? Fever? Other symptoms? Numbness or loss of feeling in the extremities? Does not look in need of urgent medical care if not worsening. Warm soaks and Motrin.

Standard disclaimer: not medical advice, etc.

 

[JessFR]

I'm not sure exactly what's best to treat this, hopefully it will get better on it's own.

But, and this is the main reason I'm posting, if it still seems to be better worse in a few days please see a doctor, and if at any point in the near future (before it's healed) you begin to feel unwell in any other ways, go to the hospital at once, do not wait, do it and do it at once.

I'm sure you'll be fine, just take care of it, info is everywhere on how to go about doing that. Even if you don't it'll probably get better on its own soon. Do not keep injecting there in the meantime, and if you have absolutely no other choice but to inject there, do everything with sterile equipment, ideally just dont use it.

If it keeps getting worse in a few days please see a doctor.

But most of all, if you begin to feel unwell more generally, seek medical attention at once, it could mean you have a potentially lethal infection. I'm serious, infections from bad injecting can kill. Someone I knew died of exactly this only a week ago. She was only mid 20s. She would use clean needles and filters, but had a bad habit of missing and was otherwise generally not exercising great needle practice. Had been doing it for years and getting away with it. A month ago she was fine, I mean yea she was an addict and had issues like a lot of us do, but nothing to make you think she wouldn't make it another month. It didn't start out too bad, but gradually got worse each day, then started feeling sick. Everyone told her to go to the hospital but she refused. Within days she was so weak and sick she couldn't stop her bf taking her to the hospital. Doctors said she was suffering from a serious infection that had spread to her blood and from there to everywhere else starting from a much smaller infection from bad shooting. Soon after shed been put in a medically induced coma, she would be dead soon after that.

All she had to do was go to the doctor sooner, and she likely would have lived. Whole thing began and ended over just a few weeks. After years of taking risks and getting out of it without a scratch, one screw up exactly like so many harmless ones before cost her her life, and left everyone who card about her devastated.

I'm sorry I'm not trying to scare you, I'm sure you'll be fine, really. All I'm saying is, better debt than dead, decide when you'll have waited long enough and then go if you're still not better then.

Stay safe.