Finally got funding for a pump!!

[Noreen60]

My first appointment was on 8th dec, then I went back again 23rd dec to talk with diabetic nurse in more detailed discussion about the practical issues around pump therapy and to choose which pump I'd like.
(choice of three)
My next appointment is tomorrow where they are going to go through carb counting with me and adjustments then they have booked me in for 13th feb to have pump fitted. They did give me a choice of dates that i could go as I'm having to go out of my area for this to be done. It's nice to know we can go through this together and help each other.

 

[Viki]

definately - hopefully i might get mine around the same time too. have you read the book everyone talks about (by john something). i read it a few months ago but i think i might tackle it again in preparation.

What insulin are you on at the moment?

 

[Heb]

Hi Viki,

I have been using the Minimed Paradigm 512 pump for eighteen months now. It seems to do the job though there are a few annoying things I woauld like to change but nothing major. I am a patient at Addenbrookes hospital in Cambridge and they seem to be at the cutting edge of technology. It was the specialists there that suggested this particular pump as they had researched all and found this one better but I'm sure your specialists will give you relevant advice. The only thing I would suggest is that you get a pump that will adapt to an attachment for checking blood sugars. Although this option is not readily available to diabetics at the moment, I don't think it will be long before it is and if your pump is adaptable, you could be one of the first in line to receive it (unlike me who has an older model and I will need a new pump - and further funding to get an up to date model).

Let me know how you go and don't feel too daunted in the early stages - there is alot to learn and looking back, a degree in 'insulin pump use' would have been very useful before I took on the challenge! However, now it feels alot easier though you need to give the time to it to achieve maximum results. Good luck Heb

 

[Viki]

Decision made . .

Well ive decided, Green animas 2020 it is!

Spoke to my DN today after reviewing all the info she sent me and the ball is officially rolling.

Went for the animas in the end as we think its features will fit in my life the most. I looked at the pumps which fit the continuos glucose things (or will in the future) but im not sure i want to wear yet another machine. Plus in a weird way using my monitor and doing the tests makes me feel like im in control. is that strange???

My DN says it should all move quite quickly now the decisions been made so im getting stuck back into reading all the books i bought last year whilst she makes me an appt with the rep. 😉

nervous excitement is kicking in again!!

 

[Viki]

Heb, i meant to ask what sort of difference have you seen to your levels over the 18months since youve been on the pump?

 

[Heb]

My levels have improved overall and my HBA1c is 7.3 at present but because I have the pump the specialists want it to be even better. I am working on it but I am still having hypos so it's a bit of a catch 22. However, I wouldn't be without the pump now as I feel much more in control of things and I'm able to 'tweak' to get much better levels. Heb

 

[Viki]

Thanks Heb. How did you find the transition? did you have more highs and lows whilst you were finding the right basal rate?

also did you have to take time out of normal life 🙂)) work etc? im worried about having big highs and lows as i get incoherent (and sometimes a bit nasty!!) which is very embarrassing at work!!

 

[Patricia]

Being a parent -- and new -- I have to say though how THRILLED I am to see so much enthusiasm for the pump...Wonderful. I also feel honoured to be able to read all this.

My son is recently diagnosed, and we have pushed from the beginning to get him on a pump asap, because it just seems THE WAY to get good control. He's entering puberty, hungry, and although he's handling injections very well, he too is very eager to feel more in control. We're carb counting and beginning to use ratios. Funding is strange in this area, but we are going out of area and things look positive.

Thank you for thoughts about choosing one, including being adaptable to a CGM -- hadn't thought of that.

Well done Viki -- so pleased for you, and I look forward to reading all about it.

 

[Viki]

Thanks Patricia! Good luck for you and your son too x

 

[skelly]

Congrats - thats great. I'm new to this group but have had a pump for just over a year and would not swap it for my pens - ever. I have the Animas 2020, available in blue,pink silver and black to match the Lifescan One Touch Ultra(so perhaps Green is also available - not sure)Its clever and easy to use with advanced features when you're ready for them. I personally like the fact it's not got a remote as I like to be sure of my dose and that I've REALLY had it - access is not a problem as I wear it clipped to the middle of my bra - noone knows its there unless i tell them. It has a handy button which allows for 'audio' boluses so you don't even have to unclp it to give the bolus. I've worked with the Roche Spirit too and thats OK but didn't have small enough doses for the kids I look after, and I have one child on the Medtronic but we tend to use Animas - i suppose it's just more familiar to me. You'll get a chance to 'play' with them all and have a feel to see which is most suited to your taste. I would say though, it's not easy on a pump at first - folks think it's 'Plug and Play' kinda thing and it certainly isn't. Best of luck and Happy pumping.
Cheers
Skelly

 

[Viki]

Thanks Skelly! I currently have the one touch ultra easy monitor in green so i have ordered a green animas 2020 to match!
I discussed the remote quandry with a few people i know and i am thinking along similar lines to you that i will want to know that its definately happened etc.
Ive done quite a lot of research into the whole issue of pumping since i initially started thinking about it, which im glad i did as i think it would be easy for people to get the wrong idea about what a pump can and cant do. A few people have asked if it means i will be a normal person again (not sure what that says about me now!!) meaning will it do all the thinking for me.
For me the big short term plus will be losing my lantus injection. I find it very painful and restrictive. It does not last any where near 24 hours for me and the only option would have been to do 2 a day. not a nice thought! i have to do it very late at night to get max coverage during my waking hours which doesnt help with feeling tired all the time. 🙂

 

[Patricia]

I really hope this isn't a stupid question -- but I thought that the pump only delivered fast-acting (novorapid in our case). Do you mean it can do it *all*?! Oh my goodness. Are both vials in it all the time or something? Sorry to be so dim.

 

[Viki]

it works by kind of drip feeding a tiny amount of fast acting insulin every 3 mins or so. so youno longer need the long acting. then you have extra boluses to deal with any food you eat.

so it only uses the one kind of insulin.

Youre not dim, trust me its alot to get your head round!

 

[Patricia]

Thanks Viki -- that's an amazing thought. No wonder the stability is so much increased. We are actually having a heck of a time getting the long acting dose right for my son, and I was beginning to think we may have to go to 2x daily for long acting, which would mean 6 injections of course...And he's growing and eventually will want big snacks, etc...So it sounds like our instinct for a pump is right in so many ways.

Case in point: last night he had one more unit (trying corrections) than usual for evening meal, then had bath, then hypo, then high in morning. Sigh. We think that his rather large pasta meal 'missed' the insulin (slow digesting), and the bath made the insulin process faster etc so overall result hypo but high this am. Sigh. A pump would have spread it all...

Argh.

 

[diagonall]

I really hope this isn't a stupid question -- but I thought that the pump only delivered fast-acting (novorapid in our case). Do you mean it can do it *all*?! Oh my goodness. Are both vials in it all the time or something? Sorry to be so dim.

Hi Patricia,
The pump using just fast acting or soluble insulin.
What happens is the fast acting/soluble is delivered every 3 mins and you can set the rate of delivery over half an hour or and hour depending on the pump. This way over a 24 hr period you can set your basal(background) insulin to exactly the requirements your body needs.
You also use the fast acting/soluble to bolus for meals. All you do is tell the pump how many carbs you are eating and then press the button to deliver the required amount of insulin. It's alomost magic
There are all sorts of different things you can do with the pump ie if sick and need extra insulin all you do is set a temp basal pattern or if doing more exercise just do a temp decress in basal. Theres lots of other things as well but this is just a very basic what it can do.

 

[diagonall]

Case in point: last night he had one more unit (trying corrections) than usual for evening meal, then had bath, then hypo, then high in morning. Sigh. We think that his rather large pasta meal 'missed' the insulin (slow digesting), and the bath made the insulin process faster etc so overall result hypo but high this am. Sigh. A pump would have spread it all...

Argh.

Ah Pasta problems......... The way to fix this is to split the bolus. have 30 or 40% before eating and then 1 1/2 - 2 hrs later have the rest. This way it catches the pasta carbs as they hit the system.

 

[Viki]

its very frustrating because most of diabetes treatment is based on trial and error because evryone is so individual. Im facing a lot more of this i think as we try and get the basal rates etc right with the pump. But im sure it will all be worth it in the end.

I am also a snacker and prefer to eat little and often so the prospect of splitting my lantus meant up to 8 injections a day (2 of then really painful) so i wasnt happy with that.

I hate my lantus injection and is the part of having diabeties which is a real pain in the bum for me. I have 16 lantus at 11pm. If i have 15 im sky high in the morning, 17 and im guaranteed to hypo at about 4am. But after lunch im tired, hot and sleepy everyday which, after playing around with this ratio, my DN feels is more linked to the lantus. I also have a lot of probs with dawn phenomenon which the pump can help with as you can automatically set it to deliver a slightly high basal for these few hours of the early morning.

So with all this to factor in im actually expecting ALOT of trial and error . . . . . . . !

 

[Viki]

rice and pasta, I cant live without them, but I cant dose them correctly either . . .!!

 

[Patricia]

I cannot believe how helpful this all is... And how recognisable. Type1Sue thank you for your straightforward insight into what the pump does, how, and the pasta probs. This is clearly what happened.

Viki, I feel we may be faced with a similar prob as you eventually, but we'll wait. He's just started at 15 nighttime. And here's another question: he finds this injection most painful -- do you think these just are more painful? What an awful thought! I had put it down to him being tired and fractious at night, when of course we feel more pain....Whole thing's awful at times...

And I'm interested too in the hot and tired thing -- this morning he woke up sweaty, and I knew it must have something to do with levels, but didn't know what.

Thanks for all.

 

[Viki]

i get hot and sweaty when ive been both high and low in the night. did he do a blood test? if so what did it say?

i was told that lantus can sting some people. i find its massively less painful at room temperature and if i use my legs. im just finding places on my stomach that i can do it, now using shorter needles though. Im no wimp when it comes to pain but its been so bad for me sometimes thats its reduced me to tears and ive been tempted to "accidently on purpose" forget to do it, and im in my 20s!! must be really tough for someone younger.