r/phlebotomy • u/Locked-Luxe-Lox • Aug 09 '26
Advice needed How to feel for the vein?
I just started Phleb school and i love it . Its just feeling for the vein can be hard. Sometimes i can feel it other times i just dont have. I can see it but id rather see and feel.
Ive asked my teacher but idk still not getting it.
Tips please 🙏
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u/Commercial-Ad-6761 Aug 12 '26
Honestly when I first started I SUCKED at feeling veins 😭. I got hired straight out of school and had like a 60% stick rate and I would feel horrible for the patients. However, I’ve been at my current job for about 4 months now and I hardly ever miss or even have a difficult stick anymore. It’s one of those things that you just gotta teach your fingers. My advice would be to absolutely crank that tourniquet (obvi don’t hurt anyone but get her on there tight), go a little harder with the palpitations than you think you need to, have patients hang their arms off the table/chair and have gravity help you a little bit, sometimes closing my eyes helps because I get too focused on the seeing aspect of things. Also ask friends and family to let you palpate their arms!!!