I am on my second week on Enbrel & have been having a lot of pain at the injection site. I expected it to hurt while injecting but my pain lasts 2-3 days after I take a dose. Does everyone experience this too? I am using the auto-injection pen on my thigh. I do leave it out to warm up a bit before I use it but is there anything else I can do to limit the pain? I have also read about people having experiences where the stomach was less painful or the prefilled syringes worked best. Any advice you could give me is much appreciated!
You might change the angle and see how that works. I'm a fan of the pre-filled syringes because I can control the "flow" Possibly the reason you have pain afterwords is that forcing the med (its alot) all into one place really fast is like making a "blister" all at once......
It took me 3 years to work up the nerve to try my stomach. Before that I would ONLY use my upper right thigh. (There was a perfect target area defined by three freckles in a perfect triangle) Its numb from some spine problems...... used the area for another med (deep muscle) and accidently poked through a blood vessel making an H of a bruise so had to move elsewhwere while it cleared up. Actually found the belly to better..... Honest to gosh it shouldn't hurt. There is a little sting because the pH is off a bit but if its last several days I gotta wonder IF its being absorbed. You best source of info will be Enbrels nurse line.....
Does it feel like your injection type of pain? Ya know, like it feels the moment when you inject your Enbrel? If so, I believe that would be unusual and something to call your doc about. Or is it soreness or tenderness at the injection site? That would be more common and I imagine nothing to be overly concerned about. Although I have yet to take Enbrel, I was on Humira for about a year. I always seemed to have tender spots around my belly area. And for several day's after my injection I would have pain and redness at the injection site. Docs said it was no big deal.
When I finally break out my fridge full of Enbrel lol, I believe I will inject into my belly instead of the recommended thigh. For one I, like most people, have far more cushion there. And two, I'm already used to that site because that's where the Humira folks recommend you inject. So maybe talk to your doc about switching injection sites.
In the meantime I would contact the Enbrel support line and run this by them.
Have you tried letting it warm up after getting it out of the fridge?
I do not like the autoinjectors...I find I have pain for a few days after, because my tissue is very sensitive, and the bubble of med forced in so quickly causes a lot of tissue discomfort.
With a prefilled (which I'm getting tomorrow and have used in the past), I inject much more slowly, and at an angle. I find this much more comfortable.
Not a chance in hell I could ever inject with a syringe. Auto-injector is the only way possible for me i'm afraid.
The pain I have feels like the pain you get from what I would imagine is the medicine spreading. Its not that the hole left from the injection itself hurts, although I do bruise. The pain goes beyond the exact area I injected to about half my thigh. I called the nurse from my rheum office and am waiting to get out of work to speak to her. From what I am hearing, I might want to try the pre-filled ones so I can keep using my thigh. Im hesitant to try my stomach but I dont have a problem seeing the needle or using the syringe. I didnt know there is an Enbrel line you can call so I will try that too. thank you all for your answers!!!
I think that's interesting. I have given my self literally hundreds of injections, including deep muscle (2" big bore needles with really thick meds) They gave me an auto-injector to try and I sat there for five minutes (might as well have been a loaded 45) As I was becoming a quivering mass of protoplasm I finally pulled the trigger confirming my every fear of the auto injector. It actually goes back to in-processing for the Army when they still used the auto injectors back then (they have since quit.) XYVANEX description mirrors my experience with the auto injectors. Weird how different people are.
I have to tell you though in the northern parts of this continent where we frequently mistake mosquitoes for Birds, those mosquitoes have bigger stingers than the enbrel needles.....
Chris said:
Not a chance in hell I could ever inject with a syringe. Auto-injector is the only way possible for me i'm afraid.
I've been taking humira. First by pen - very painful. I find the syringe much less painful and inject in my tummy.
I don't use Embrel but I do Humira injections with the pen because I do not have enough control in my hands to use the syringe for it or the metho - rhuemy wants me to switch to that instead of the pills because she says I would get more of it to the right places. But until we get my hands in control I can't switch. I will tell you that I gave myself the first two Humira injections in my thighs and the pain was miserable. So the third one I thought, what the heck, what do I have to lose let me try my stomach and I will tell you that now I only give them in my stomach. Much less pain - at least for me, that is the "fattest" part of my body and it doesn't hurt nearly as bad and I don't have the bruising and injection site problems I had when I tried my thighs.
I take it out of the fridge, go take a shower and then give myself the shot. I think the warm shot and the fact that my body is warm and soft make it easier. Just a suggestion.
Mat,
The nurse at work and at my General Doctor's office gives me my shot for free. Do you have that option?
It's a needle phobia. Crazy common I'd imagine. Needles wig me out totally. W/ the auto I see no needle. I know it's there but I can't see it.
tntlamb said:
I think that's interesting. I have given my self literally hundreds of injections, including deep muscle (2" big bore needles with really thick meds) They gave me an auto-injector to try and I sat there for five minutes (might as well have been a loaded 45) As I was becoming a quivering mass of protoplasm I finally pulled the trigger confirming my every fear of the auto injector. It actually goes back to in-processing for the Army when they still used the auto injectors back then (they have since quit.) XYVANEX description mirrors my experience with the auto injectors. Weird how different people are.
I have to tell you though in the northern parts of this continent where we frequently mistake mosquitoes for Birds, those mosquitoes have bigger stingers than the enbrel needles.....
Chris said:Not a chance in hell I could ever inject with a syringe. Auto-injector is the only way possible for me i'm afraid.
I have used both auto injector and prefilled syringes. I prefer the auto injector and use my stomach. I got reactions with the Humira so I could always map were my previous injections were! On Enbrel I started out with prefilled then tried autos. I liked it better. Now I am on Remicade so I get the infusions at the hospital. I still give myself mtx weekly by syringe in my tummy. I guess we are all different.
Chris said:
It's a needle phobia. Crazy common I'd imagine. Needles wig me out totally. W/ the auto I see no needle. I know it's there but I can't see it.
tntlamb said:I think that's interesting. I have given my self literally hundreds of injections, including deep muscle (2" big bore needles with really thick meds) They gave me an auto-injector to try and I sat there for five minutes (might as well have been a loaded 45) As I was becoming a quivering mass of protoplasm I finally pulled the trigger confirming my every fear of the auto injector. It actually goes back to in-processing for the Army when they still used the auto injectors back then (they have since quit.) XYVANEX description mirrors my experience with the auto injectors. Weird how different people are.
I have to tell you though in the northern parts of this continent where we frequently mistake mosquitoes for Birds, those mosquitoes have bigger stingers than the enbrel needles.....
Chris said:Not a chance in hell I could ever inject with a syringe. Auto-injector is the only way possible for me i'm afraid.
You have PsA and you don’t like needles??! That sucks! I am always having to do blood tests for this, that and the other.
Hi,
I take my enbrel in my stomach and it's not so bad. I have experienced a rash with it, but it's minimal.
I don't have that option here at work. I also work about 20 miles from either of my doctor's offices but that is a possibility I haven't thought of. I will check into that! Thanks!
Frances said:
Mat,
The nurse at work and at my General Doctor's office gives me my shot for free. Do you have that option?
Other possibilities are your pharmacist, any walgreens, SOME walmarts (more very soon) or a "partner"
MAT said:
I don't have that option here at work. I also work about 20 miles from either of my doctor's offices but that is a possibility I haven't thought of. I will check into that! Thanks!
Frances said:Mat,
The nurse at work and at my General Doctor's office gives me my shot for free. Do you have that option?
I use Humira and my nurse uses the upper thigh…stomach & lower thigh hurts…I not sure on enbrel but the Humira nurse told me not to leave out at all…and if the pain is really sore she would use a ice cube to numb the area the next time…but it’s been since last may and I haven’t had to…not to say it doesn’t hurt…lol…just doesn’t continue to hurt…I only wish the Humira worked for…next month I see my Rheumy so I guess it’s onto something else.
I had a friend that was on the pen injector but had bad burning sensation and come to find out he was having an allergic reaction to the preservative that is used with the pre-filled doses.. he switched to the no-pre mixed and no more pain.
For those that are phobic around the needles, I had same fears but trust me, it goes away.. especially if you really want to get healthy, and live a somewhat normal life.. you just do what ya gotta do. If it helps, the needles they use are so thin, and your fat around your belly has few nerve endings, it is not even noticeable when it penetrates. Way less sensation then when getting your blood drawn.. which I have to do frequently as a diabetic.. The only discomfort I get is you can sort of feel the liquid being injected, but if you go slow, and use a dose that is room temperature, it's not a thing to be worried about really..