No injection is ever 100% risk-free. Following this process helps minimize the risks to you as much as possible.

1. Choose your injection site – There are 6 intramuscular (IM) injection sites, 3 on each side of the body: The glutes, the delts, and the outer quads.
2. Cleanliness – Wash and dry your hands. Use an alcohol wipe to cleanse and sterilize the top of the vial (be careful not to drop it, it will shatter on the floor). And then set it aside to air dry while you wipe and sterilize your injection site.
3. Open & assemble your syringe – Peel open the syringe barrel and both hypodermic 1-1.5” needles, one 20G (yellow) and one 23G (blue). Take the syringe and twist lock the yellow needle onto it. Do not over tighten, you'll feel it lock into place.
4. Draw some air – Holding the syringe upright, pull the stopper back to the 0.5 line (or whatever your dose will be), and then just a little beyond. This pulls air in and will be used to create pressure in the vial.
5. Over-pressurize – Holding the vial upright inject the needle into the rubber center of the topper. Push the stopper down to push air into the vial.
6. Pull your dose – Then, with the needle still inside the vial, turn them both upside-down and pull the stopper on the syringe back to withdraw the compound and fill to the 0.5 line (or whatever your dose is). You may push any air bubbles back into the vial.
7. Prepare to swap needles – Turn the vial and syringe back right side up and remove the needle from the vial. Hold the syringe so the needle is straight up and the stopper is down. Pull back the stopper to lower the compound down beneath the edge of the needle. Put the plastic sheath cover back on and twist the needle off. Keep the syringe barrel upright so it doesn't leak!
8. Swap needles – Take a clean blue needle (23 Guage) and twist it onto the syringe without touching the tip.
9. Remove air bubbles by gently thumping and rotating the syringe.
10. Ready the dose – Remove the plastic sheath. Push the compound up slowly and carefully so that all of the air is pushed out and a drop or two comes out from the needle. Gently! Don't waste your dose!
11. “Z-track” – Take one hand to the injection site, pull the skin to one side, and apply pressure. (The brain can’t process both pain and pressure simultaneously. Also, once you let go of the skin, the hole will close up faster.)
12. Inject the needle into your skin and then keep going through the fascia and into the muscle at least 1 inch deep. (the needle is 1.5 inches).
13. Aspirate by slightly pulling back on the stopper to ensure you're not hitting a vein. If no blood fills the syringe, deploy the compound by pushing the stopper.
14. Remove the needle and your hands and apply a cotton ball or wipe over the injection site and apply pressure to limit bleeding and prevent the compound from leaking out.
15. Safe disposal – Put the cap back on your needle and dispose of it responsibly by taking the used needles and syringes and packing them into a plastic tub (like an empty protein jug) and that will serve as a "Sharps container." Do NOT reuse needles.