Friday, February 5, 2010

Clexane... the devil?

This is the first time I am taking Clexane (a.k.a. Lovenox, Heparin) injections with an IVF cycle. I took the second one today and man do they leave bruises or what???

All the other subcutaneous injections I have taken did not bruise like this. Is this normal? I did not Goo.gle it cause I know alot of you have taken these, so tell me does it get any better? Please say it does.

I ice my tummy before so it feels fine going in and then later the place is bruised and sore. I can bear it but wanted to see what your experiences were/are.

Did I tell you we are so addicted to American Idol again this year? We get it here in Cairo on Thursday and Friday, a few days after it airs in the US. When my news reader comes up i have to scroll past anything Idol related so it does not spoil my delayed watching here on Thursdays and Fridays.

Funny thing is when we lived in the States we had no interest. The auditions are a friggen trip and I think today will be the last of them and then on to Hollywood. I just need to know though, some of these people can.not.be.serious can they?

20 comments:

  1. Oh yes it bruises badly and though the actual injection doesnt hurt going in (which is why I don't ice) the burning afterwards is brutal! I have noticed certain parts of my body bruise less, after trial and error you'll find it, but when if your doctor is putting you on a lovenox protocol for the entire pregnancy then the bruisy bumps are just going to be inevitable!

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  2. First, heparin does leave bruises. Lots of them. I had Mel's book sitting on my desk, so I looked up...she says that Lovenox (low molecular weight heparin) leaves bruises because it's a blood thinner. I'm guessing that there's no way to avoid the bruising. I didn't find it that bothersome, but it was certainly unsightly. Don't forget, there are many choices for injection sites. I kinda looked at the bruising as a way to keep track of where I should not inject. :) My husband was HORRIFIED when he saw the bruises. Mine always faded by about the third day (which was handy, because that's when I would need to inject there again!)

    Also, if you've been avoiding the Idol news, then you probably missed the audition expose articles - where they tell you that the screeners pick out the really good and the really awful to come back in front of the celebrity judges. But, while they tell the contestants that they are either really good or really awful, the producers don't tell them which they are.

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  3. Definitely leaves bruises. I minimized mine by pushing out all air in the needle and *not* massaging the area after injection (unlike PIO). Big pinch on the lower edge of my belly was best.

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  4. Most certainly leaves bruises, I'm afraid. I did the first Clexane injection into my stomach which made me feel very sick, so the rest went into the top of my thigh (alternating thighs each evening), which hurt the same but at least didn't make me feel ill.

    Hang in there, you'll get used to it! :-)

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  5. When my Dad was on Heparin (after his heart attack) I believe he was told to ice after the injection to avoid a big bruises.

    Also avoid food and things that natural thins your blood like aspirin,omega-3 fatty acids,foods with natural antibiotic properties and vitamin E supplements. Also avoid for that is natural rich is vitamin K (vitamin K is a Natural blood thinner) cabbage. Here is a link with some decent info
    http://www.ctds.info/natthinners.html

    Also remember Heparin (vitamin K) are used as a Rodenticides. So please be careful with it, are the checking you blood levels for it once a week while you are on it?

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  6. My bruising has gotten better as it's progressed. I only get very small ones or just small spots now. I'm now in the 27th week on heparin, I've never iced, just make sure to inject SLOWLY. I've been told that helps with pain and bruising, seems to have helped.

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  7. You guys are so awesome! So I will push out air bubble that it tells me not to, I will inject slower, and i will bear it. Its all worth it right as the BFP will come in a few weeks... God please! Love u all! xoxoxoxoxo

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  8. At first I got a ton of bruises. Now not as many, but still some. Some hurt, some leave knots. It is just something that I have learned to live with. I hope that it gets better for you!

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  9. The bruises are completely normal. I have threatened to do my injection in a smiley face if I ever get pregnant again.

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  10. I agree with G$ it does leave bruises but you do minimise them by pushing in the air bubble at the end of the syringe and not massaging the area. I just put the swab over it. Still I have little circles more or less of the dimension of the bit holding the needle. I don't put ice, it's not like heparin that stings and I think having the part numb may make you less aware of the pressure you are applying on the area. Love, Fran

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  11. I've not had Clexane before (have to use heparin), but I'm bruised; it's normal. Definitely push the air out and don't massage the area. I've never bothered icing. Just pinch, push, withdraw.

    Good luck!

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  12. I am on my 11th week of Clexane and am not bruising as much these days. My OB told me that sometimes you can get a batch of them with blunter needles than normal and that can cause it to bruise a bit more. Good luck!!

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  13. Agree with the previous comment that said ice it after as well. I ice it up before and after, which helps. Also pinch up a big bit of skin and inject into that, rather than flat. If that makes sense. I end up with small bruises at the injection site. It does get better with practice - although DH does mine for me.

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  14. Hi, i'm on clexaine right now and have been for a few months. First of all someone above said they take the air out first. DO NOT DO THAT! The air is there to ensure you get the entire dose. The bubble should be just under the plungger. As u push the plunger down it pushes the bubble down which inturn pushes the meds out. When the bubble gets to the neck of the syringe it pushes the last of the meds out the neck and the needle itself where the plungger obviously can't fit. So for the ramble but it really bothers me when people freak out about the bubble. It has an important role it's not in there for the fun of it lol.

    Ok now the bruises, yes they happen but not always. somtimes they happen straight away and sometimes you'll find it 24hrs later. It's strange how some spots bruise and some don't. It helps to make sure you go stright it at 90 degrees and straight out, don't wiggle it or move it around as much as possible, also don't 'dart board' it, just put it to the skin and through in one fluid motion not to quick and not to slow (they feel a little blunt but thats how they are) And don't rub the area at all after cause this causes trauma to the tissues and will definalty bruise you. Definalty pinch a big bit of fat and then gently let go (with out wiggling it) before pulling out. Doing all this i only get about 3 good bruises for every 10 i have. Oh and i've only felt a sting/burn a couple of times, i usually feel nothing from the meds. Good Luck! :)

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  15. I'm with you. The bruising stinks. I ice beforehand and don't massage it after. It's odd to me also that one side of my body feels much better than the other.

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  16. I took Lovenox for the first time on my 6th fresh cycle. It's completely normal for it to leave bruises because it's a blood thinner. Also, I stopped taking it at 6 weeks of pregnancy due to some other issues and it took a couple weeks for the bruises to go away. But it did the job! To read my blog email me at emmhollar@yahoo.com

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  17. I love the audition rounds of AI! So funny, but I am looking forward to seeing Ellen on the show and she'll start during Hollywood week. I also enjoy this part b/c it's where most of the drama takes place! :)

    No idea about lovenox, but sorry about the bruises! I know your pain--my belly was full of 'em. What's that they say? No pain, no gain? ;)

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  18. Oh well, even though it now feels redundant to say this, but yes, from what I have read in bloggyland, clexane does bruise bad.

    I hope that this be the cycle for you.

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  19. Love.nox shots are painful and the bruising is awful. But hopefully this new addition to your cycle will help.

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  20. # Debbs wrote: <>
    Quite the opposite - vitamin K is vital in helping blood clot, that's why anti-clotting medicine, such as warfarin, work by removing products of vitamin K from your system. (Sorry I don't know the proper medical vocabulary, but you can google the details.) So it's rather a thickener, not a thinner.

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