Advice on pump for 12 year old

[Liltzero]

Hi there- it would be great to have your input on something please. My 12 year old daughter has been really resistant to getting a pump because she doesn’t want to wear it while swimming training which she does 4/5 times a week. She wears a libre sensor but has it in her head that an insulin pump is too big. So I am trying to work out if there are any types which you can take out for swimming and then reinsert afterwards? Any help would be great!!

 

[rebrascora]

I wonder if it would be worth applying for a dummy Omnipod so that she can see the actual size and wear it for swimming training to see how she feels about it. The Omnipod is a tubeless pump and not much bigger than the Libre. Or the tubed pumps are often disconnected for swimming and showering, so yes that might be another option. Ultimately it has to be your daughter's decision, but I think being able to try a dummy Omnipod if she hasn't already might help her realize they are pretty small and discrete.

 

[helli]

I completely understand your daughter's concerns.
I have had a couple of different pumps and found the biggest advantage of tubed pumps is that they can be removed for swimming.
For a typical 12 year old, I think you will find the Omnipod is bulky and far from discrete when only wearing a swim suit and you cannot detach it. But a tubed pump can be removed for an hour or so leaving just the small cannula.
Kate Moss's daughter (sorry can't remember her name) shows off her Omnipod whilst modelling. It could be worth digging out some photos of her. Either to show pumps can be cool or to get an idea of size on a slim model.
Personally, I prefer a patch pump (not an Omnipod but similar -slightly smaller) because they are generally more discrete on a smaller body when wearing clothes but they cannot be removed.

 

[rebrascora]

I think it is Lilia Moss and Nikita Kuzmin from Strictly also uses a patch pump I believe and it was on display on at least one occasion when he was dancing on TV so there are positive role models to perhaps encourage your daughter to be less self conscious about them, but I understand that 12 is a difficult age for such things and she is doing really well to accept the Libre.

 

[Inka]

Hi there- it would be great to have your input on something please. My 12 year old daughter has been really resistant to getting a pump because she doesn’t want to wear it while swimming training which she does 4/5 times a week. She wears a libre sensor but has it in her head that an insulin pump is too big. So I am trying to work out if there are any types which you can take out for swimming and then reinsert afterwards? Any help would be great!!

Yes! All tubed pumps can be disconnected @Liltzero 🙂 All that’s left behind is a tiny cannula in/under a small plaster. If she had her cannula on her tummy, which is the most common place, it would be unnoticeable under her swimming costume.

It takes literally one or two seconds to disconnect the pump and then re-connect it again after swimming. She could either do this in the changing rooms or at home if she’s close to the pool centre. That’s what I do, disconnect at home and re-connect when I get back.

There are a number of tubed pumps she could look at. I have a DANA i pump. It’s tiny, tough and very intuitive. It can be ‘looped’ or used alone (I use it alone). The good thing about it is no injections (obviously), the ability to have a basal rate that very closely mimics what your daughter’s own pancreas would be doing if she didn’t have Type 1, and the ability to give tiny boluses and corrections and have fractions of units.

 

[SB2015]

Hi @Liltzero

I am using the Medtronic 780 which is another tubed pump. I just disconnect unplug the tubing from the cannula and out in a little replacement plug when I go swimming. No one would see it under a costuume

There are lots of benefits of a pump that @Inka has mentioned, and suspect that the tubed ones are more discreet than that patch ones, especially on little people.

Having switched to pumps from injections I would not choose to go back, although some do for a pump break. Mine I use in a loop which for me has made another big change as I can now ignore my diabetes at times.

 

[Liltzero]

Thanks so much for the replies- super helpful. I think getting dummies of the different options is a great idea.

I didn’t realise that all tubed ones could be disconnected and that it was so easy!
I’m going to research all these specific types you have mentioned- thanks! Another question (revealing my ignorance) is with a looped system do you need to wear a separate sensor/CGM?
Thanks!

 

[rebrascora]

I think attending a pump demonsrtation day might be really helpful to your daughter so that she can see the pumps available at her clinic without any commitment to applying for one and compare them more directly and ask questions of the nurses and reps. I would ask about this option as I think most pump clinics organize them from time to time.

Unfortunately I don't think any of the other pump manufacturers do a dummy pump, just the Omnipod,

 

[Flower]

Hi @Liltzero

I was just doing a reservoir & cannula change on my pump so took a photo of how the cannula & pump disconnect. The small white cannula is all that stays in the skin during swimming/ showering etc then it easily reconnects afterwards.



I hope things go well finding out & potentially using a pump for your daughter

 

[helli]

suspect that the tubed ones are more discreet than that patch ones, especially on little people.

I am not as small as a 12 year old but I am small.
As mentioned above, I have used both tubed and tubeless, I found tubeless far far more discrete.
Tubed ones only become discrete when disconnected but for day to day usage out of the swimming pool, I found tubeless much much easier to hide, especially when wearing gym clothing.

 

[Thebearcametoo]

It’s well worth going to the pump info sessions that your team will have as you can see and play around with the different pumps. My 13 year old has a dexcom and tslim combo so can loop which helps in lots of ways. With the tslim you just unclip it for swimming and there are little cannula covers you can use. A pump is much more flexible than injections and will cope better with variation in physical activity during the day and the week.

 

[Sally71]

To answer your other question - yes for a looped system the pump and sensor are separate, you also have to use whichever sensor will talk to the pump you have, you can’t mix and match. So for example the T-Slim pump connects to Dexcom G6, we can’t use Dexcom G7 or any other brand of sensor if we want to loop with the T-Slim. Which is fine for us at the moment, we find the system works very well, but it might make a difference to some people.

 

[Inka]

@Liltzero It would be worth finding out what pumps your daughter’s clinics issue. Some clinics might have 5 pumps to choose between, but others only have a couple. Ask specifically about children too as my clinic doesn’t give children patch pumps like the Omnipod, etc. They all have tubed pumps.

If you find out the pumps they offer, you and your daughter can research them a little and see how she feels. Just to add that my cannula doesn’t need a clip on/in cover when I disconnect it to go swimming. It has a special membrane so it doesn’t need a cover unlike my previous pumps.

 

[PhoebeC]

See again I’m not 12 but my 12 year old is only an inch off me in height and I’ve always been slim.
I use the Omnipod and I find it small enough actually.
I play contact rugby, I’ve only trained, no matches, since I got my pump in March but so far I haven’t had my pump pulled off in contact situations. But we will see how matches go.

I did weigh up getting one I can take off, and discussed it with my nurse and consultant. They have another patient who plays ice hockey another physical sport.

Something I thought about was the time I would need the pump off if using a non patch version. Matches are 80 minutes but with the warm up and all the breaks, half time etc it can be nearly 3 hours, and having that much of a rest without the pump wouldn’t work for me especially with the adrenaline during matches normally sending me higher.

It’s about her lifestyle and the best suited options from what is available. Closed loop wasn’t an option for me at the time, that might have made another choice more appealing than the Omnipod but right now it’s my best option.