Pen vs. Vial

[Hosanna]

I am having one heck of a hard time getting the right dose when I draw Lantus up in the pen. Martha very rarely gets more than 1 unit.
There are bubbles in it, and most of the time I flat can't see if there is insulin in the syringe. A couple of times I emptied the syringe just to see if there was anything coming out, and it was empty when I thought it was full!
I have been using the pen like a vial, turning it up, sticking the needle into the tiny little rubber tip, and drawing up. Should I toss the pen and purchase a vial? I never had this trouble when I used a vial the first time around. I thank you for your advice.

 

[Deb & Wink]

The pen has some internal pressure already, so you should not inject air into the pen like you would a vial. Could that be part of your issue?

Maybe try withdrawing from the pen very, very slowly and firmly holding back the plunger once you have withdrawn the insulin and then withdraw the needle. Sometimes, that internal pressure in the pen, causes the plunger to draw back towards the pen, and the insulin gets drawn back into the pen if you do not have a firm grip on the plunger.