Pump Site Pain/Sting

Anyone have any similar experience with bad pain/stinging when inserting on the upper butt region? My thighs are what I have been using most, but they are starting to have visible signs of overuse so I tried the upper butt…well, the insertion itself was rather painful but I figured that would subside. I was up most of the night though with a burning sensation. Then when i was sleeping at one point I must have rolled on that side and the pain actually woke me. After sitting in my car and still feeling pain, I said forget it and took it out. I’m just wondering if anyone else has had this issue because I know this is a recommended site! Meanwhile, even after removal I’m rather sore.

Yeah my guess is you either hit a nerve ending or muscle. I can only use my right upper butt/small of my back because my left does this.

While I can’t speak to using that part of my anatomy for insulin infusion, I do have a few comments about painful sites.

Some pain upon cannula insertion is not a reliable indicator for me regarding site success. Many times the pain will drop away and by the next day disappear altogether. I’ve also found that sites that continue to be painful are nothing but trouble and like you, I’ll bail. I pulled one last week that was painful going in, was still slightly painful before bed, and the pain returned the next morning. I pulled it at 17 hours. I should have removed it after seven or eight hours but sometimes I’m foolishly optimistic.

I’m thinking that any infusion set that causes a much higher insertion pain than normal is probably worth taking out right away. Leaving them in causes needless inflammation and lengthens the healing time.

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Yeah, I think this is a very individual thing. I love the hip and upper buttocks area and the thighs are very painful. Probably because of all the walking & running I do no how muscular my thighs are. The metal infusion sets can really hurt on my thighs. I just think it’s kind personal where the pain might be. But I do agree after a day, probably might be wise to pull it. I tend to deal with the pain as long as the blood sugars are ok. If blood sugars start climbing, I know it’s a bad site.