Giving the trigger shot.

[Anonymous]

I am worried about giving my wife the trigger shot. I’m concerned that as an amateur I am going to hurt her. Any tips on how to make it as painless as possible from those who have already done this?

[Anonymous]

I actually found the trigger shot to be less painful in some ways than the sub-Q shots. Make sure your wife ices the area for about 20 minutes beforehand - that did the trick for me. Then afterwards, apply heat and pressure to the site. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

I'd also recommend having the nurse mark the spot where you should give the shot. I had the nurse make a little X on my butt and that way we had one less thing to worry about. Once I had a nurse come to the house to give me the shot and she had me lie down with my toes pointing in (a reverse of first position in ballet). She said this makes it more difficult for your muscles to tense up. Good luck -- hope this cycle works and you only have to do this once!!!

[Anonymous]

Throw it in hard and fast, no dilly dally. I stand and put all my weight on one foot (the side not being shot). Divide the buttock into 4 quadrants, shoot in the upper outer quarter. It doesn't hurt really, so don't worry.

[Anonymous]

My husband was the same way. Assuming they give you a small needle, which they should for a sub-q injection, you hardly feel it at all. Have your wife pinch a fold of skin on her stomach and hold it until you take out the needle, and make sure you insert the needle pretty quickly. The anticipation is much worse than the actual shot, and once you get the first one out of the way they get much better (relatively speaking).

[Anonymous]

My hubby basically threw it at my butt (wasn't holding it firmly enough) and the needle bounced off of me onto the carpet. I was less than pleased and got all upset.

Just be as calm as you can, take a deep breath, aim, count to three and jab it in. It will be over very fast. If you have an extra needle you can practice by jabbing an orange. Ice helps too.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Thanks all - we did a test run this morning with our nurse at SG this morning my wife said it hardly hurt. I do think the trick for the person giving the shot is, as the 10:39 poster said, to go in relatively hard and fast, no hesitation. This will not be the first time I have been a pain in my wife's ass.

[Anonymous]

our nurse said "pretend like you going in with a dart" and i thought that was the right level of intensity. plus, it really doesn't hurt... you're cute to be asking and showing so much concern!

[Anonymous]

Just don't "throw the dart" as I experience! I think its awesome that you are posting and so supportive. Bravo!

[Anonymous]

OP here -- dart analogy is a good one, that is what I thought it was like. Don't drop the needle. Got it. And get the needle all the way in, in one fluid motion.

[Anonymous]

And make sure your finger is not on the plunger when you stick it in, because you don't want to accidentally press it before it is in all the way.