What Actually Happens During an IV Therapy Session

Of everything we offer at BE SUPERHUMAN, IV therapy is probably the one that makes people pause the longest before booking.

Cryotherapy sounds cold but manageable. HBOT sounds relaxing once it’s explained. IV therapy involves a needle, and for a lot of people, that’s enough to keep it on the “maybe eventually” list rather than actually booking it.

So here’s a proper, honest walk-through of exactly what happens, from the moment you arrive to the moment you leave, so there’s nothing left to wonder about.

Before Anything Starts, a Proper Consultation

You don’t go straight into a chair and get a cannula put in. Every first visit starts with a short conversation with a qualified member of our team, going through your current goals, your general health, and anything specific you’re hoping to address, whether that’s hydration, general energy, or something more targeted like NAD+ support.

This matters for two reasons. It means the drip you actually receive is suited to you rather than a generic default, and it’s also when any contraindications or concerns get properly flagged before anything happens, not after.

Getting Settled

Once the consultation’s done, you’re taken through to one of our recovery lounges. These aren’t clinical, uncomfortable chairs, they’re proper, relaxed seating, the kind you’d be happy to sit in for the better part of an hour.

Most people bring a book, put in headphones for a podcast, or just use the time to close their eyes and do nothing at all, which is honestly one of the more underrated parts of the whole experience.

The Part Everyone’s Actually Nervous About

A trained practitioner places a small cannula, usually in your arm, using a fine needle. This is genuinely the part people build up in their heads more than it deserves.

It’s a brief pinch, similar to a standard blood test, and then it’s done, there’s no ongoing discomfort once the cannula’s in place. Most clients tell us it’s over faster than they expected and considerably less of an ordeal than they’d built it up to be.

The Drip Itself

Once you’re connected, the fluid runs steadily for somewhere between 45 and 60 minutes, depending on what you’re having. You might notice a cool sensation moving up your arm as it goes in, which most people find oddly soothing rather than unpleasant.

Beyond that, there’s genuinely very little to feel. You’re not tethered to anything uncomfortable, you can read, scroll your phone, chat with a member of staff, or just sit quietly.

Afterwards

Once the bag’s empty, the cannula comes out, again, a brief moment, nothing lasting. There’s no downtime required. You get up, get on with your day, and most people head straight back to work, a meeting, or whatever else was already on the calendar. Some clients notice a lift in how they feel fairly quickly, particularly around hydration, though the exact timeline varies depending on what you’re having and why.

What Actually Determines How It Feels

Two things shape most of the experience, and neither of them is the needle. The first is how relaxed the space is, our lounges are genuinely designed for you to properly switch off for the better part of an hour, not just tolerate a medical procedure.

The second is how much you’ve actually mentally built up the cannula part beforehand. Almost everyone who’s nervous about it beforehand tells us afterwards it was nothing like what they’d imagined.

A Few Practical Things Worth Knowing

Come with a full stomach if you can, an empty stomach can occasionally make the sensation of the cannula slightly more noticeable. Wear something with sleeves that push up easily, since the cannula generally goes in your arm.

And if you’re generally nervous about needles, just say so during your consultation, our team places cannulas every day and is genuinely good at making it as brief and comfortable as possible.

Ready to Try It

If IV therapy has been on your list of things to eventually get around to, hopefully this makes the actual process feel a lot less unknown than it did before.

Book a consultation with our team and we’ll talk through exactly what makes sense for you, whether that’s simple hydration, a full vitamin drip, or NAD+ support.