Abscess starting to grow in thigh.

[odd]

Well, just as the title says I decided to get clean this week (I am on day 4 right now) and so to prep myself for it, I did one last shot last Sunday. Since the veins are shot I muscled it in my thigh. I noticed 2 nights ago that I was getting a lump, it's red and it hurts, all the classic signs.

Anyone ever have this in the same location? I have had 1 abscess before on my arm and since it was close to the surface I was able to get it drained pretty quick and it healed pretty well. Now since this seems pretty deep under the skin, anyone know when I should go see a doc? Right now I am putting heat on it and soaking in a bath at night hoping for it to go away.

It's going to be hard to take time off from work to get this looked at so I was wondering if there was anything else I can do to try and avoid the doc. Don't get me wrong, if it gets worse, I will no doubt go. I am just trying to heal at home.

Any suggestions? I am off to work and will check this when I get back, thanks all.

[Duckfeet]

Once it gets past a point, ur just putting off the inevitable use of anti-biotics. I know u don't want to hear it, but I'd go to a doc. Especially if u get feverish at all. I've tried to wait'em out myself, but there's a point where it's not getting better and u just need to bite the bullet. Best of luck, it is a drag...

[Synack]

I've fucked up once, and out of two IV's on my own my odds arn't good. All the signs you're describing, red, lump, tenderness, swelling - I just popped a few extra pills pushed a razor into it and then ran peroxide and shit through it....nice little scar but its not a lump and no one q's it...

my advice probably isn't good advice.

[phrozen]

You drained it yourself?!:eek:

See a doctor immediately. Abscesses are serious business. The infection could spread and you could end up losing a chunk of your thigh. Trust me, I've seen plenty of addicts with holes in their arms and legs caused by abscesses.

Fuck work, I'd consider an abscess a medical emergency. Go to your GP, free clinic, or even a hospital.

[flipside]

As soon as you finish reading these replies..go to the Er or your PCP ..run..don't walk.

An abcess in your muscle is nothing to play with..and forget trying anitbiotics on your own. and under NO CIRCUMSTANCES TRY LANCING IT YOUSRELF.I know it sucks and I would probably do just he opposite..but man abcess & muscle can be really really bad news. Nah actually. if it were in my muscle I would suck it up and go to the ER.

[odd]

Thanks for all the advice. Yeah, cutting it open myself is not going to happen. As for the doc. Well I can only wait. If I went now, there would be nothing they can do. It's not filled with enough shit to form a head so to speak so all I can do it wait. I guess my post was more along the lines of, what can I do while I wait for it to "form" before I see a doc. I talked with a friend who is a real deal doc and he told me the same thing. Just wait it out, hope it goes away or when it forms, go to the hospital.

As of right now, I will go on Sat and have it looked at. I don't have a fever, it's not as bad as the other abscess I had and no red lines (like the one that almost killed me).

Anyhow, I am heading out to needle exchange (they have a doc there) and have them check it out to get a second opinion. I'll check back later.

Thanks again all.

[Duckfeet]

yeah, down here needle xchanges are good places to get good info, even on medical stuff, theyve always steered me straight...big on harm reduction and practical advice, best hospitals for abcesses, now who'll take yay at night, all kinds of good stuff. Good idea...



Thanks for all the advice. Yeah, cutting it open myself is not going to happen. As for the doc. Well I can only wait. If I went now, there would be nothing they can do. It's not filled with enough shit to form a head so to speak so all I can do it wait. I guess my post was more along the lines of, what can I do while I wait for it to "form" before I see a doc. I talked with a friend who is a real deal doc and he told me the same thing. Just wait it out, hope it goes away or when it forms, go to the hospital.

As of right now, I will go on Sat and have it looked at. I don't have a fever, it's not as bad as the other abscess I had and no red lines (like the one that almost killed me).

Anyhow, I am heading out to needle exchange (they have a doc there) and have them check it out to get a second opinion. I'll check back later.

Thanks again all.

[jonny-5]

go to the doc! i had an abscess in the exact same location, and i waited to go to the doc untill i was all feverish and feeling like i had malaria. it had gone so far that they had to do expensive surgery to drain it, and the healing process sucked balls. i had a hole in my hip that an M-80 (big firecracker) would easily fit in and it was stuffed with gauze that i had to replace twice a day, which hurt like a bitch. i had to do that for 6 weeks. all i would have had to do was take antibiotics when it first appeared to avoid all that. ever since then, whenever an abcess starts to appear on me i go to petco and get tetracycline (antibiotics for fish, its in the fish section) and mix it with water, and every time (3 times now) the abcess has gone away no problem. PLEASE TAKE SOME ANTIBIOTICS, YOU DONT WANT TO HAVE TO GO THROUGH WHAT I DID, IT STILL CAUSES ME BACK PROBLEMS TWO YEARS LATER! im serious.

[odd]

Well I just got back. I got some antibiotics and talked with the doc there. he told me the same thing my doc friend said that it's not "ready" yet as there is no huge lump and that they cannot lance it yet. Duckfeet, I hear you about the exchanges, this one has a real doctor on hand he works one day a week for the exchange, so I am getting quality info. Not some dude/dudette who took some classes.

Anyhow, this sucks. I just want to get this over with. It's so ironic what when I decide to quit, after the years of not getting shit like this, this pops up. Yeah it just sucks that A. it is noyt bad enough to go to the hospital right now and B. I need to wait. Shit. Well no matter what I am going on Sat and hopefully by then, it will be ready to be lanced, or will have shown signs of going away. I have always managed to beat abcesses before so who knows.

I understand everyones advice, so don't think that I am not listening. I know my body well enough to know when shit is way fucking bad (hence the reason for kicking) and I am far from a n00b with dope (going on 6 years or so? I lost count). If shit was real bad, I never would have made this post and would have been at the hospital long time ago. I just wanted some feedback and see if anyone had shit they did to get rid of these things, BEFORE they got way out of control.

Also, the doc at the exchange told me that it's not in my muscle, it's between the layers of fat and muscle whick makes sense since I did not really muscle it. I lifted the skin on my thigh and hit that. Not that it makes any difference I just wanted to share.

Thanks again and know that I am g=taking care of this and I will see a doc come this Sat.

[kazman32]

I have had a few from anabolic steroid injects, I have drained them myself and given my self antibiotic shots, I have some medical background though...you def need to get to a dr. an abcess can kill you, no joke.

[AWOL]

best of luck to ya, post back to let us know.

[candy]

I hope your abscess is getting better and continue to follow up with that.

I do want to add a few things that are often not addressed when it comes to IM injections and abscesses.

If you are using a Insulin syringe for an IM injection, your not getting it deep into the muscle where you want it to go. With insulin syringes the injection generally is injected into the layer of fat between the skin and the muscle. While you may be giving yourself a SQ(subcutaneuos) injection, depending on the needle size in your Insulin syringe, this is just as risky as an IM.

You need a needle at least 1" to 1 1/2" to get an IM injection.
You want to grab the skin around the site you have cleaned with alcohol and do the injection while releasing the skin. After the injection, rub the site gently to distribute the drug throughout the muscle. This prevents the fluid from sitting in the site, which can become a breeding ground for germs.
It is OK to rub the site gently.

I know you may hear some different info regarding insulin syringes being OK for IM injections, but all your really doing is giving yourself a SQ injection.

Most needle exchanges carry needles for IM injections and syringes that you can use them with. Weight lifters will use needle exchanges to get these longer needles for steroid injections that have to be given IM and to prevent sharing, most exchanges should have them available or will get them if someone needs them.

I really wanted to bring this up, because it is a cause of abscesses.

So get the right equipment.
Clean your site with an alcohol wipe or a cotton ball and alcohol.
Wash your hands before you handle your equipment and keep your equipment clean and dry.
And if you are going for IM injections, gently rub the site after the injection to distribute the fluid and drug throughout the muscle....Which leads to a faster and better high too!

Remember as well, if you miss a shot, get some heat on the site immediately or as fast as possible. This will help the tissue to absorb the missed shot much quicker and this will help to avoid abscesses as well!

[Lil_Miss_Brownstone]

I have an abscess right now (just clearing up) in the same location. Inner thigh. I waited for it to get swollen hard with a soft spot in the middle and I drained some of the fluid with a CLEAN needle. I did this a few times and applied heat to it and it eventually started seeping (clear, reddish fluid- not the yellow pus in my nastier ones I've had) through the holes I made with the needle. I got some cipro and some ammoxillan that had been gathering dust in a friend's medicine cabinet and have been taking those for three days now. The area is still hard and purple but the swelling and pain is pretty much gone.

My last, much nastier abscess was in the side of my left tit. (from IM-ing near my armpit) Because it was in a soft, fatty area it grew and grew without ever "coming to a head" and it was EXCRUCIATING pain. I injected a little bit of lidocaine into the area (great if you can get it) and made a cut about 1/2 an inch long and 1/4 of an inch deep. Still didn't "burst" so I stuck a needle into the cut and moved it around a little to open it up. Then, the pus started pouring out. Probably at least 1/3 of a cup, maybe more. Yellow/green/grey and very thick and unhealthy looking. I squeezed everything out that would come out and repeated the process the next day. It healed fine, just a little scar from the cut I made. Oh, and I poured lots of peroxide on it.

Disclaimer: I am stupid, reckless and was under a LOT of stress. (about to go to jail for 6 mos, 2 gram per day habit). going to a doc is much smarter.

I just have a major fear of docs. Except the ones who i know are going to give me oxys.

[CIIORNOTHING]

If every red, swollen lump I had in my quad was an absess Id be a double amputee by know. I get those all the time from quad injections of steroids or if I just decide to quickly IM some morphine or whatever and dont have time/convenience to hit a vein.

Its almost always just inflammation and swelling. Its made even worse from a dull over used pin. Not infection, not an absess. If its an absess or inefected, you WILL KNOW IT.

My advice is to give it a few (3-4 days), rub it and rotate ice and heat on it, and it should get better. If after about a week its showing no signs of getting better, or if you have the red streak, running a fever, etc, go to the doctor right away.

Just my humble advice and rules that I follow. Your results may very. If you lose a leg, dont come blaming me.

[chopstix]

Be really careful with anti-biotics. If you don't take a full script of an appropriate a/b for an infection, it can make things a lot worse. It doesn't help you to take cipro for a couple days just because you found some in someone's bathroom. They really shouldn't be there in the first place, the initial script should have been finished off..

[Hacker]

I hope your abscess is getting better and continue to follow up with that.

I do want to add a few things that are often not addressed when it comes to IM injections and abscesses.

If you are using a Insulin syringe for an IM injection, your not getting it deep into the muscle where you want it to go. With insulin syringes the injection generally is injected into the layer of fat between the skin and the muscle. While you may be giving yourself a SQ(subcutaneuos) injection, depending on the needle size in your Insulin syringe, this is just as risky as an IM.

You need a needle at least 1" to 1 1/2" to get an IM injection.
You want to grab the skin around the site you have cleaned with alcohol and do the injection while releasing the skin. After the injection, rub the site gently to distribute the drug throughout the muscle. This prevents the fluid from sitting in the site, which can become a breeding ground for germs.
It is OK to rub the site gently.

I know you may hear some different info regarding insulin syringes being OK for IM injections, but all your really doing is giving yourself a SQ injection.

Most needle exchanges carry needles for IM injections and syringes that you can use them with. Weight lifters will use needle exchanges to get these longer needles for steroid injections that have to be given IM and to prevent sharing, most exchanges should have them available or will get them if someone needs them.

I really wanted to bring this up, because it is a cause of abscesses.

So get the right equipment.
Clean your site with an alcohol wipe or a cotton ball and alcohol.
Wash your hands before you handle your equipment and keep your equipment clean and dry.
And if you are going for IM injections, gently rub the site after the injection to distribute the fluid and drug throughout the muscle....Which leads to a faster and better high too!

Remember as well, if you miss a shot, get some heat on the site immediately or as fast as possible. This will help the tissue to absorb the missed shot much quicker and this will help to avoid abscesses as well!


God I wish I had seen your post 10 years ago, Candy! Being a hype off and on (mostly on!) for over 35 years I've never heard that an insulin syringe is not the right instrument for IM'ing dope. Never had problems with veins up until about 10 years ago when I started using tar when supplies of Chinese and Afghan dope dried up. My upper arms, thighs and buttocks look as though I got hit with shrapnel! I have at least 50 scars that are anywhere from 1/32" to almost a 1/4" in depth and from 1/2" to an inch in width all from self treating myself. If used all that have been mentioned above and then some and to still have all my limbs and not have either of my ass cheeks removed is a minor miracle. The hardest thing for me to admit now is, I never slowed down even when I might have had three or more abscesses that where open and draining...I would just hit as far away from the infected site as possible. I guess that's why it's called addiction because, at the time, I could care less if I were to lose an arm, leg or even my life, just as long as I could get that dope going through my system.

Again, thanks for the invaluable info and I hope all who IM opiates will take heed of it's message.

Peace,

Hack

[Shotalotofdopeamus]

This time last year I had an abscess form on my right arm right by where the 'junky stamp' goes. I just ignored it but after about 4 days I started getting a fever and it was almost impossible to straighten out my arm. One night at work I could not take it any more and went into the bathroom. Once in , I pushed off an extra large dose (200mg OC or so), bit my belt, and lanced it myself. I removed almost 9ml of pus. Did the same 2 days later. Never got any antibiotics. Looking back I should have probably lost my arm. It took almost a month for all signs that I had it to go away. If it ever happen again ill just suck it up and go in...

[jonny-5]

i dont know why people are saying to wait 3 or 4 days and see what happens. whenever i get one, i take antibiotics ASAP until it goes away. of course i know the dangers of overusing them so im careful not to, but they always work. i have avoided 3 out of 4 abcesses this way. waiting a week is just going to make it grow past the point where antibiotics will help. god i hate abcesses.