Safety basics

Technique does not make an unapproved compound appropriate for you. What it does is remove a set of avoidable harms that have nothing to do with the compound itself — contamination, degradation, and injury. Those are worth removing regardless of what you decide.

Sterile technique

• A new sterile needle every single time. Needles dull immediately and reusing them damages tissue and invites infection.

• Swab the vial stopper with alcohol and let it dry before drawing.

• Wash your hands first. Swab the injection site and let it dry.

• Never share needles or vials with anyone, for any reason.

• Do not use anything that looks cloudy, discoloured, or has particles in it.

Bacteriostatic versus sterile water

Bacteriostatic water contains a preservative that inhibits bacterial growth, which is what makes a multi-use vial reasonable after reconstitution. Plain sterile water has no preservative. Which is appropriate depends on the compound and how long the vial will be in use — and the preservative itself is not suitable for everyone, which is another prescriber question.

Add the water slowly down the inside wall of the vial rather than jetting it onto the powder, and swirl gently to dissolve. Do not shake.

Storage and handling

• Lyophilised (freeze-dried) powder is generally the stable form and is usually kept cold and dark until reconstituted.

• Once reconstituted, these are fragile solutions. Refrigeration, protection from light, and a limited in-use window are the norm.

• Heat, light, and repeated freeze-thaw cycles degrade peptides. Degradation is usually invisible.

• A compound that has degraded has not become dangerous so much as become unknown — you no longer know what is in the vial or how much.

Injection sites and sharps

Rotating sites matters: repeatedly using one spot causes local tissue changes and can alter how the compound is absorbed. Keep a simple record of where you last injected. Used needles go into a proper sharps container, never household rubbish.

Signs that mean seek care now

These are not "monitor and see" symptoms:

• Severe or persistent abdominal pain, particularly with vomiting.

• Signs of an allergic reaction — swelling of the face or throat, a spreading rash, difficulty breathing.

• Symptoms of very low blood sugar — confusion, shaking, sweating, faintness.

• An injection site that becomes hot, swollen, red and painful, or any fever.

If you are unsure whether something is serious, treat it as though it is and get it looked at.

Getting the arithmetic right

Reconstitution maths is a common source of real harm — a decimal place is the difference between a dose and ten times a dose. Our calculator does the arithmetic from the numbers you enter. It does not tell you what to take; the target dose is yours to enter and to discuss with a professional.