you mentioned an actual T shot only takes a second or two- my nurse at my gp does it and she will take At Least 10 seconds to slowly, slowly push it in (it feels like longer so I'm not sure but it just feels like ages because its uncomfortable). I'm on Reandron which is like, a 3-4monthly I think? Is there a reason they choose to do it this way?
Every injectable T formulation I’ve ever heard of is EXTREMELY thick, and when you’re injecting something thick, you have the choice of using a bigger gauge needle and having it hurt worse going in, or a thinner gauge needle and having the injection take a (relatively) looooong time. Most people opt for the thinner gauge. I’ve injected with a couple of different gauges, and they really do make a huge difference in the speed - so much so that many people, myself included, use a thicker gauge needle to get the T into the syringe and a thinner one to inject. Drawing with a thin needle takes TEN THOUSAND YEARS.
So I’m guessing you’ve just got a thick formulation (quite possibly thicker or a greater volume than your standard once-a-week formulation), a thin needle, and a careful nurse. But you might want to ask them if there’s a different, faster method they could use, just in case!
updating this ask as it is specifically a response to information I provided. Your formulation is about 3x the volume of the weekly shots that many of us use (on which I was basing the 1-2 second time frame at my experience level), which accounts for the majority of the difference in time, without regard to any difference in technique, needle size, confidence or skill of nurse or any other factor. I try to answer all replies/questions about statements I've made/medical info I'm providing, but sometimes others get to the inbox before me. Mod mayhem
