Steroids are being used more and more often lately. In the past, they were mostly taken by professional athletes or people that in some form put bread on the table benefiting from the positive effects of steroids on them. It is not uncommon for a completely inexperienced user to decide to hop on a steroid cycle and get buffed. This poses some risks, especially regarding the fact that steroids are not simply “taken”, they are injected. It is important to provide proper information on how to inject steroids safely. A lot of people ask “How to take steroids safely?” and more experienced guys might jump into explanations about cycles, breaks, regime and more when they should really emphasize on how to inject steroids. Most of the new users do not have any idea on how to inject themselves, which is very important. Improper injection may cause skin irritation, pain or even severe medical conditions that may require a visit to the emergency room.
So, in the following rows, we will cover some basics. We will talk about how to use steroids as well as where and how to inject steroids safely. We will also make a list of pharmacy products that a new steroid user needs to stock up on.
Things you will have to stock on:
- Green needles: not for injecting but rather to extract the compound from the glass;
- Short blue needles: especially for individuals with less fat and muscle mass;
- 2ml barrels;
- Swabs and alcohol: for prior the injection;
- Hazard bin: for the used items.
General rules on how to take steroids (intramuscular injection):
- Sterilise the rubber seal of your product with an alcohol swab and let it dry;
- Fill in the barrel with your steroid: make sure there are no air bubbles in the barrel;
- Swab the injection site with alcohol and wait a bit for it to dry out;
- Slowly insert the needle in the selected spot;
- Once you insert the needle pull the plunger and see if there is any blood in the barrel now;
- If there is blood, throw everything away and start clean;
- If not, continue with your steroid injection slowly;
- Afterwards, put pressure on the point with a swab and don’t use alcohol this time;
- Massage the area to help the compound spread evenly in your muscle.
*If you use alcohol on the swab you use after the injection, the bleeding (if any) will just be harder to stop. Alcohol is a blood thinner, which has positive and negative effects, but in this case, it could cause a nuisance.
Where to inject steroids
There are many areas and muscles, where to inject steroids.
- Leg;
- Thigh;
- Bum;
- Shoulder;
- Glute;
- Quad.
We will go through specific instructions on how you can inject steroids in these areas, a bit further down the article. A key thing is to often switch the areas you use. This will help limit the chance of skin irritation and scar tissue. Beginners often ask where is the best place to inject steroids, well there is no single best area because you need to rotate.
Where to inject steroids in the leg?
You can inject steroids in your calves. Go for the centre of the muscle.
How to inject steroids in the thigh?
Here is how to inject steroids into the quad. The best option is at the inner side of your thighs, a couple of inches above the knee cap, or the so-called “teardrop muscle”. Beginners can also go for the outer side of their thighs, the Vastus Lateralis. It is easier to find, as it is the largest muscle in our thighs.
Where to inject steroids in the bum?
Go for the top side of your bum. You can squeeze cheeks to easily find the “beginning” of your bum muscle (gluteus medius), but remember not to do that while injecting! Breaking the needle while it’s inside your body is extremely dangerous. This gives an answer to the question “where to inject steroids in glute” which is actually the same. The glute is the muscle formation forming your bum.
Where to inject steroids in the shoulder?
You would want to inject right in the middle of your deltoid muscle. You can locate this muscle right at the top end of your upper arm bone (humerus). You can also use your biceps as an injection site. Aim at the centre of that muscle and make sure you are not rushing it, allow for the muscle to easily absorb. Day to day life may be a bit more difficult with a sore biceps.
There are a couple of other options presented out there, however, those are the most used one and most practical, especially for beginner steroid users. It is important to constantly rotate different injection sites, so you can avoid muscle pain and scar tissue.
Common mistakes made when injecting steroids
- Injecting in a blood vessel – this is why you should always pull on the plunger after pinning the needle and check if any blood enters the barrel of the syringe. If so, you need to discard it and start again. Injecting in a blood vessel is dangerous, it can block blood vessels and even cause life-threatening complications.
- Not injecting in a muscle – this can cause swelling and pain.
- Not rotating the injection sites – this can cause discomfort, irritation, maybe scar tissue.
- Choosing a wrong needle – needles that are too short may not be enough to penetrate all the way to the centre of the muscle or reach it at all. On top of that short needles are not ideal for oily based solutions such as steroids. Of course, don’t overcorrect for that error and pick the longest needles you can find.
Don’t forget to consult with a doctor regarding the steroids you use and with a more experienced user and exchange knowledge, there is no shame in asking questions. You can also consult with a professional regarding dosages, cycles and breaks (off cycles). Other than that you should make a bin for your used needles, keep them in a safe space and be very careful with them.
