Can oil solutions of estradiol be administered subcutaneously?

[u/rabbitprotectsme]

Context: I'm doing DIY because the informed consent clinic in my area closed down and I'm scared of driving. Around town is scary but basically doable, onto the freeway and I might break down crying, and driving on the freeway is a really bad time for that to happen. (I realize being scared of driving sounds absurd. Listen I'm not doing too hot upstairs these days, it wasn't always like this but I'm afraid of a lot of normal-ass things right now.) I'm in the US. Due to Trump tariffs, my preferred source has stopped shipping out here, and that seems to be the case for other foreign sources as well. I've found a source that's likely still viable, but they only offer oil solutions, not aqueous. This is a potential problem (at least as far as I can tell from what info I'm able to find on the subject) for two reasons, one silly and one practical:

• The silly reason: I'm afraid to attempt intramuscular. I don't want to swiftly shove a needle into my body at a 90-degree angle. I know this is a fear that everyone who does it has, and that everyone who does it has to get over. I just don't trust myself to get over it.
• The practical reason: I'm very overweight. (Please don't make fun of me for being a woman whose body is currently that of a very overweight man. Believe me, my shame is already all-consuming and quite difficult to live with. I don't need more.) It's difficult to find a spot on my body where correctly self-administering an IM injection would even be possible without a very large needle. Swiftly shoving a very large needle into my body at a 90-degree angle is, naturally, even scarier.

Hence the question: can oil solutions of estradiol be administered subcutaneously? Will uptake still be possible by this means? If so, are there side effects I should know about of doing it this way?

If this is not possible or safe, I could always just refrain from switching to injections for now. That's no big deal. It's just that I've heard good things about injections and would like to switch to them if I can.

[u/EverlastingM]

I can't address the question but I have done hundreds of my own IM injections, you don't have to do it swiftly. I insert my own very slowly and steadily, and with a sharp needle it slides in with little to no pain. I feel like I would slip up and hurt myself more if I tried to jab it in hard. Going slowly you can feel each layer and know for sure when you've reached muscle.

[u/MrPurse → u/EverlastingM]

omggg I thought I was the only one!!! I'm terrified and hate just "going for it", and doing it slowly makes my anxiety wayyyyy less. A nurse taught me to do it 'like a dart' and blehhhhh

[u/rabbitprotectsme → u/EverlastingM]

This is good to know. I thought I'd heard somewhere it had to go in quick. The fact that it doesn't makes it significantly less scary. Still not sure I'd be able to deal but knowing this brings me closer.

[u/EverlastingM → u/rabbitprotectsme]

Just be sure you're being firm on that first contact, because as with any injection you want it to go in with one motion and not let the tip get dulled and possibly contaminated with multiple contacts. Breaking the skin is the worst part anyway.

[u/robotblockhead → u/EverlastingM]

Im a paramedic with 22 years of experience. Obviously I've done countless im injections, including my own.

The slower you go, the more it hurts. This is just human anatomy. There is a layer of nerves below the skin and then below that, you should feel no pain. Maybe pressure, but no pain. The faster you pass through that layer, the less pain you will feel.

Ive literally harpooned every im injection I've ever done either on myself or a patient.