Hey all, I'm a newly diagnosed type 1 diabetic aged 17, meaning that i still go to school. My biggest fear is giving myself an insulin shot at my locker and someone rushing past me and pushing into me causing the needle to puncture something deep! This fear was very apparent while eating at a food court in which i had luckily just taken my insulin shot when a small child pushed the chair next to me which caused me to almost fall off my chair and drop my food.....the mother didn't bother to say sorry or put the chair back!!! Does anyone have anyone else get nervous taking shots t school or in public?
Thankyou Adele
When I was using pens my biggest fear was taking a shot twice or taking the short acting instead of the long acting insulin because for a while both pens looked almost exactly alike. I did swap the short instead of the long acting once which is what caused that fear.
If you’re using reasonable sized needles… Say 5-6mm, you’re going to have a pretty hard time puncturing anything important no matter how hard you get bumped
After you do it 40,000 - 50,000 times, you get over it. :-)
I would submit it's impossible to puncture something deep with an insulin pen.
I do have a question though. Why are you giving yourself injections at your locker?
Hi Adele,
I think the needles are too short to go that deeply into you but I also worry about that sometimes too. I try to stay far away from moving people/objects when injecting etc. The worst I have done is to scratch myself with the pen needle once by accident.
Because I keep my insulin in my bag in my locker at school.
Yeah same, I slipped my needle across my belly once, it’s very reassuring that my fear has little to no chance of happening 
agree. i have a pump, with a steel cannula, which means the needle stays in 24/7. it is about the same length as pen needles, and i can push, pull and do whatever i want, i have never punctured anything. we do have more fat than we think ;)
the only thing i heard that happened once, was that a friend of mine put her set too close to the hip bone, which caused pretty severe pain.
but if you don't go too close there, you should be fine! i wish you all the best, and remember, it does get easier!
hugs
Well that’s ‘interesting’. Do you keep your meter there as well? How about your glucose tabs (or other fast acting Carbs)?
Sometimes the best way to overcome fear is to turn around and stare it in the face. Logically you probably realize that an insulin pen with a needle only something like 8mm in length is just not long enough to reach anything that can be damaged. The insertion of the needle is stopped short by the pen face itself. Why don't you try to put extra pressure on the pen next time you inject. Press hard. Did anything happen? Did a huge opening erupt in your body? I didn't think so. Once you have done this and experienced the situation which gives you fear you should lose you feelings about it. You will realize you are strong and you can face anything.
Hi Adele, welcome to the family!
Please be assured there is no risk of what you fear at all. Especially so if you're using the 4mm needles (which you should be -- no pinch-up!).
To get perspective on this, imagine a thug trying to mug someone with a 4mm knife -- not too scary, eh?
You could jam that pen straight in very hard and the worst that going to happen is a bruise.
And then after that you can stick the pen needle into your gut and then have a buddy slam a door into it… And you’ll still be ok;)
I know what you mean! I was in a restaurant last week that had tables close together and I got bumped right after injecting Symlin. Is it just the fear of getting bumped, or ae you concerned about privacy? I'm not, but you can always look around to make sure someone's not heading towards you. Injecting only take a couple seconds, Or you can duck into a corner. If a kid bugs you just tell them you are "shooting up" some medicine. HS kids always thought that was cool. LOL
Hi Adele,
Welcome to TuD. I see you’ve received some excellent replies to your fear and hope that you truly are reassured. The one thing I wanted to pop in and say is DO NOT tell anyone that you are “shooting up” some medicine as angivan suggested. Cool is different these days. Saying something like that might get you a trip to the office of unpleasantness.
I am not at school and don’t hide my business but I remain discreet even after decades of testing, bolusing, and whatever. I know you will be okay and fears will lessen more and more over time.
That exact scenario has happened to me. It bruised and hurt a little, but the needle is too short to cause real damage.
ahahhaha yay!
that sound like a good idea, I'm not worried about privacy its just about the needle, however all of these comments are making it seem almost impossible.
yeah its all in my locker
thankyou so much for the kind advice Karen
Wow, thats very reassuring thank you for sharing your story Leah