How do you think of/feel about your pump?

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curlygirl

curlygirl

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1
Hi,
As i am soon to start on a pump i have been reading lots and watching videos etc. Something that is noticable from these is that a lot of people really love their pumps and trust them completely.

Some people seem to see their pump almost like a 'friend', others, like a gadget (in the same way that a blood meter is viewed perhaps, although with it being constantly by your side (well, on your side actually) i am not sure that i will feel the same way as i do about other technological gadgets. I have discovered that many people name their pump - which appeals to me, and some people admit to talking to their pump too - not sure about this one, but i guess i can see where they could be coming from as long as they don't expect a reply!
I also came across some people who refuse to see it in these ways at all, more as a 'thing' that has to be accomodated, rather than a part of themselves...
Anyway, it got me thinking what the best way to approach things is.
I was wondering - how do you think of yours?
Curlygirl
 
My son doesn't have a name for his pump (seems to be an adult "thing" to do that, my son thinks it's a bit daft!). He was 7 when he first got it, and the number 1 advantage for him at the time was being able to have a 99 icecream from the van by the playground WITHOUT an extra injection! Now it's just part of him, not something he thinks about all the time. The advantage for me was having a tool that actually worked, unlike Lantus - I see the pump as literally buying him a few extra years of life expectancy.
 
Have a flick back on this page & look at "Love my Pump". As I say I have email nos of Medtronic staff who are brill at what they do. I once had to adj basal rate after a clinic & the Dsn rang me when I was on way to work in van. Blue tooth in van adj pump & off to work (5 mins stop) Can you imagine that in the 60s when I was first diagnosed 😱
 
My daughter treats hers like a friend, to the extent that she doesn't even like taking it off to be refilled! And on one occasion she somehow pulled the cannula off whilst getting dressed at the swimming pool, I didn't have a spare with me but luckily home is only a few minutes drive away. She felt totally lost without it just for those few minutes!

Although we do occasionally get "I hate my pump", by that though she means she hates the fact that she needs it. Mostly it's just part of her. I don't think she took long to get used to it, she was only 6 at the time though and I think was fairly terrified of what would happen to her if she refused to wear it, and also it's better than loads of needles every day.
 
Bumping this, hoping that adults, especially women, with pumps will tell curlygirl how they feel about their pump. She'll never have to have a pump as a child. Pumper sue, trophywench etc. Not point saying what I, a T1D adult on MDI, who doesn't qualify for a pump, and probably wouldn't want one even if I did qualify, thinks about pumps.
 
My pump is part of me. I got it 5 years ago, and it took me quite a few months to fully trust it, but now, unless things are going wrong (eg high blood sugars that I cant quite work out), I don't even think about it. Its called 'pump'. 🙂
I think I'd say I consider it like my watch - I always wear my watch, I always wear my pump.
 
Yes - I feel like Annette I spose. Just automatic.

Mine 'roams' in bed, and it's been truly amazing to me how quickly when I wake up and need to turn over or go to the loo, I got into the habit of automatically reaching for El Pumpo (he's a He, or rather an It)

I did used to shout at it a bit when I first had it, or talk to it, ask it questions like 'Why are you doing that/ telling me that?' - and maybe out had to come the ruddy book but that wears off.

I do 'check it's there' from time to time - same as I check my earrings IYSWIM. I have pierced ears and a) it's best to move them in the holes so you don't get soap grunge behind them b) it's best to check the butterflies haven't got dislodged pulling clothes on/off - and I guess checking the pump's still there is much the same?

Being as mine Bluetooths from the meter, I rarely touch the pump to do anything diabetes-wise after I get dressed for the day.

Being old I guess I could compare it to how quickly I got used to having a watch I didn't need to wind up every morning! - No time at all !
 
I would go really wild if anyone tried to take it away from me 😱😉
 
My pump is a vital part of me and I'm just exceedingly grateful to have it. I would put it in a league of its own of things I can't live without. I was absolutely bereft when it malfunctioned over a Bank Holiday weekend and I had to revert to MDI for 3 days. I realised then how utterly reliant I am on it and even though I have a back up plan for pump failure, when it came to reverting to MDI after about 16 years I was absolutely terrified.

It doesn't have a pet name, I talk/shout/swear at it to varying degrees depending on the problems I'm having with control and the number of alarms it sends.

Sometimes I have to feel around my waistband/pocket etc to even remember where it's attached, it isn't a constant presence on my mind. We co-exist, often like a comfy pair of slippers, occasionally like a thorn in my side.
 
Thanks for the replies, your thoughts and advice are appreciated.
Curlygirl
 
My pump is just a part of me. I thought I would never get used to it but all of a sudden it just becomes a part of life. I really love my new pump. I have got an Accu Chek Insight. It is fantastic.
 
Spiritfree - been meaning to ask! - does the Insight meter use the same strips as the Combo one?
 
I don't think about mine much, which is good. It is out of sight and I only touch it to get dressed/undressed. What I do love is being able to go out in dresses which I couldn't do on MDI as I needed access for injections. This is definitely a bonus for me. :D
 
I went on to a pump last summer. I had great control with injections, but asked for a pump during my 3rd pregnancy, as sugars were all over the place. I have to say that I struggle. My control with a pump is better generally, but I have never felt so much like an invalid. I loved not being attached to anything, and now I have a bulky pump on me at all times, which makes me feel horrible. It gets in the way of comfortable sleep, my baby's feet get tangled in the tubing during breast feeding and my toddler pulls on it, my skin reacts to the adhesive and it takes a couple of weeks for a site to heal, there is no way of wearing it discreetly while being comfortable. It interferes with sex and showering as I have to go look for a cap, so I can disconnect hygienically and the alarm drives my husband & I INSANE. I have had a few instances of very high bloods since being on the pump (in the 20's) as you have no slow acting insulin in your system, so if a site reacts and slows absorption, you are in trouble within a couple of hours. I suppose it depends a lot on your attitude and personality, but I def struggle with it, and may revert to injections.
 
Can you not move your cannula sites so that baby doesn't go anywhere near tubing? Like in your tum, with most of the tubing down your drawers - or at least - below your waist LOL

Sex - all adds to general hilarity, we find! It's no worse than getting cramp at the 'least convenient' moment really - and that can happen to either of us.

Allergy to sticky - are you using Cavilon spray as a barrier, which is available on prescription, on request, or what?
 
I love my pump too for all the reasons mentioned but I also understand about the issue of having something 'attached' all the time. Sometimes I'll have a shower and forget to re-connect for a bit and the feeling of freedom I get when nothing is attached to me is sometimes overwhelming. That however doesn't outweigh all the benefits it brings and I would never volunteer going back to MDI
 
I never really thought about it... my pump is my pump, it's just always there like my arm or my leg 🙂 if I suddenly didn't have it I think I would feel very lost! I would cry I think! But no I don't talk to it or anything.
 
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