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Guide to Injecting One
Type of Insulin
This Guide is also available
as a full-color, 3-page poster. Click here to download the PDF file (see
below for more information on PDF files).
One type of insulin
Okay, let's get started:
-
Wash
your hands.
-
Choose
the injection site according to your child’s site rotation plan
(click here for more on site rotation).
-
Check
the insulin carefully. Rapid- and short-acting insulins should look
clear. Intermediate- and long-acting insulins should look cloudy, with
no clumps or crystals. Insulin that looks different than usual could
be too old or spoiled. Throw it out and start a new bottle.
-
If
you’re using intermediate- or long-acting insulin, roll the insulin
bottle between your hands to mix the insulin evenly. Don’t shake the
bottle, as shaking can make the insulin clump together. Rapid- and
short-acting (clear) insulin doesn’t need to be mixed.
-
Check
how many units you need to inject. Then pull back the plunger to draw
that amount of air into the syringe.
-
Hold
the insulin bottle upright and push the needle into the top of the
bottle. Push the plunger to put air into the bottle. Keep the needle
in the bottle.
-
Holding
the needle in the bottle, turn the bottle upside-down. Then pull out
the plunger to measure out a bit more insulin than you actually need.
-
With
the needle still in the bottle (and the bottle still upside-down), tap
the side of the syringe gently. Any air bubbles will rise to the top.
Then push the plunger in just enough to get rid of the air and the
extra insulin. You should now have just the right amount of insulin in
the syringe and no air bubbles. Double-check to make sure you have the
right amount of insulin. Then take the needle out of the bottle.
-
With
one hand, gently pinch about an inch of skin at the injection site.
Pinching makes sure you don’t inject into a muscle. Injecting into
muscle can be much more painful for your child, and it changes the
amount of time it takes the insulin to work.
-
With
your other hand, hold the syringe like a pencil. Look at the needle to
make sure it’s angled correctly for injection. (The doctor or
diabetes educator can show you the correct angle.)
-
Gently
stick the needle in under the skin at the correct angle. Press the
plunger with your thumb in a gentle, steady motion until the insulin
is gone. Talk to your child about whether injecting the insulin a
little slower or a little faster may be more comfortable for him.
-
When
the syringe is empty, pull out the needle at the same angle you put it
in. Press the injection site gently for a few seconds to prevent the
insulin from leaking.
Click here to read about injecting two
types of insulin (mixed).
Download
Information: The downloads on this page are .pdf files.
They can be viewed and printed with the Adobe Acrobat® Reader,
a free application from Adobe.
Click
the graphic below to go to Adobe's site and download the Acrobat Reader if
you don't already have it installed on your computer.
Click
here to go to the Parent Forum
and talk with other parents of children with diabetes.
Proud sponsors of the American Diabetes
Association WizdomTM program:
 
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