UPDATE — tried warming + icing:

Took the pen out 30 min early, iced the spot for 3 min before, injected slowly (held 10 seconds), iced for 5 min after, didn't rub.

Result: still got a small lump but it's maybe 60% smaller than usual and the redness cleared by day 2 instead of day 5. HUGE improvement!! Going to keep doing this. Thank you all so much 🙏

Glad that helped! The warming is probably the single biggest factor. That medication is viscous when cold and creates more tissue disruption on injection. Most patients who implement the warming step alone see significant improvement.

Great improvement Laura! If the smaller lumps still bother you, a thin layer of OTC hydrocortisone cream on the injection site after the post-injection icing can help with the residual inflammation. Just don't apply it BEFORE injection — you want the area clean and dry pre-injection. 👩‍⚕️