What did @stedtalks1 actually say?
The creator walked viewers through injecting testosterone into what they called the "lattice in the store side" and "the big muscle on your back right here." The audio is garbled in places, but the intent is clear: this is a tutorial on self-administering testosterone injections into the lateral deltoid, using a pre-loaded syringe. They describe the site as "super super easy" and instruct viewers to lift their arm in front of a mirror to locate "any of this area right here."
The demonstration appears to show a subcutaneous or intramuscular deltoid injection, though the exact depth and needle gauge are not confirmed in the video. No mention of sterile technique, alcohol swabs, needle safety, aspiration practice, or disposal. The instruction ends with "keep reese" which is likely cut off audio, possibly "keep it clean" or similar.
Does the science back this up?
Partly. The deltoid is a legitimate injection site for testosterone, but the casual framing here skips steps that actually matter for safety. The evidence base for self-injection exists, but it comes with caveats most TikTok tutorials ignore.
The lateral deltoid is an accepted intramuscular injection site. A 2019 review by Nicoll and Hesby published in the Journal of Infusion Nursing confirmed that the deltoid accommodates needles of 1 to 1.5 inches for adults with average muscle mass, delivering medication reliably when the site is correctly identified. However, that same literature emphasizes consistent landmark identification, which the creator gestures at broadly without teaching it properly.
Self-injection for TRT has been studied in real-world settings. A 2020 paper by Kaminetsky et al. in Sexual Medicine found that patients trained in subcutaneous self-injection reported high rates of compliance and few adverse events, but those patients received structured training from a healthcare provider first. Watching a TikTok is not the same thing.
What did they get wrong (or right)?
The creator got the site selection directionally right. The deltoid, used properly, is genuinely one of the easier self-injection locations. Credit for that.
What they got wrong is everything around it. There is zero mention of skin preparation. No alcohol swab instruction. No guidance on needle gauge or length, which varies meaningfully based on body composition. A 2021 study by Ogston-Tuck in Nurse Education in Practice documented that incorrect needle length is one of the most common causes of failed intramuscular drug delivery, with subcutaneous fat depth varying widely between individuals.
The "any of this area right here" instruction is a real problem. The deltoid has a narrow safe zone. The axillary nerve runs below it, and the radial nerve is nearby. Injecting too low or too far posterior can cause nerve injury. The creator does not mention this at all. They also say nothing about rotating injection sites, which matters for long-term users who can develop lipohypertrophy or scar tissue buildup at repeated injection points.
- No sterile technique instruction
- No needle length or gauge guidance
- No anatomical landmarks beyond general gesture
- No mention of nerve injury risk
- No site rotation advice
What should you actually know?
If you are on a prescribed testosterone protocol, learning to self-inject is a reasonable skill. The deltoid is a usable site. But the steps this video skips are not optional extras, they are the part that prevents infections, abscesses, and nerve damage.
Proper technique includes cleaning the site with a 70% isopropyl alcohol swab and allowing it to dry completely before injection. Needle selection matters: a 1-inch, 23-gauge needle is commonly appropriate for the deltoid in individuals without excessive adipose tissue, but your prescribing clinician should confirm this based on your specific anatomy. The CDC's immunization guidelines, while aimed at vaccines, use the same anatomical landmarks for deltoid injections and are publicly available as a reference.
You should also know that the FDA has not approved testosterone for use outside of diagnosed hypogonadism. If you are self-sourcing testosterone without a prescription and using tutorials like this to administer it, you are operating entirely outside any safety net. FormBlends does not endorse unsupervised testosterone use. If you are on a legitimate TRT protocol, ask your provider for a proper injection training session before your first self-injection.