Pump start diary (Dana + dexcom)

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Saoirse

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Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1
Righty-0 so there was some interest in this, so here goes.
First thing to say is that this will be a partial and prejudiced account- it’s just my experience and your mileage may (almost certainly will) differ. I’ll share my experiences of going from mdi to pump to loop, and I’ll be as honest as possible. welcome question, comments and advice but if pumps etc aren’t your thing, please feel free to find the ’ignore member’ function 🙂

so:
Pump start is on Tuesday. My pump choice is a Dana which is a tubed pump, which I intend to rum with dexcom and camaps loop. Saline start this week, Insulin start the following week and hopefully loop the week after..

experience so far: very quick and smooth. Pump approval came through in weeks followed by information session (at which most people chose a t slim, which appears to be the pump choice du jour). I got notified that insulin vials were being added to my script and have picked these up, and also got asked about when I wanted pump supplies delivered. So far, so good.

have investigated insurance for pump. It can be put on house insurance, for a fairly nomial cost, though there is also a specialist pump insurer - would be interested to hear of anyones experiences with this please.

feelings: excited, slightly terrified, really want this to work. Have had a torrid year with diabetes and have gone from a pretty good hba1c to a fairly terrible one. I know the pump is not the magic solution, but I confess there is a lot riding on this. I am willing it to go well and while I am ready for sone bumps in the road,will be devastated for it not to work. Wish me luck folks.
 
Good luck! You're under the case of a hospital specialist? Have they given you an idea of how they're going to support you? If I remember right when I started I was left to get on with it, but they were very good at just being an email or phone call away. That was over 10 years ago now, so clearly things may well have changed.

No experience with a specialist insurer for me - first time I've heard of that to be honest.
 
Will be following your posts with interest. Best of luck with it. It sounds like you are pretty realistic in your approach/expectations.... ie that it won't be plain sailing, certainly at first but fingers crossed the benefits far outweigh any niggles and you really get along well with your pump choice.
 
Rob Oldfield said:
Good luck! You're under the case of a hospital specialist? Have they given you an idea of how they're going to support you? If I remember right when I started I was left to get on with it, but they were very good at just being an email or phone call away.
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Not sure yet. Hopefully all will become clear tomorrow!
 
Saoirse said:
have investigated insurance for pump. It can be put on house insurance, for a fairly nomial cost, though there is also a specialist pump insurer - would be interested to hear of anyones experiences with this please
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We just put mine on the house insurance. Like yours it was a nominal cost.
They did ask would I be taking out of the house. I explained that I was very attached to it.

I hope your pump start goes well tomorrow.
I have experience of two different pumps now and in both cases the tech support has been excellent, with someone available 24/7. I am sure Dana will be no different.

Looking forward to hearing how it goes.
 
SB2015 said:
We just put mine on the house insurance. Like yours it was a nominal cost.
They did ask would I be taking out of the house. I explained that I was very attached to it.
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Mine is on the house insurance, to
I know some people are concerned generic insurers won't know what you are talking about if you have to make a claim.
I decided the risk is low - low that I will lose or damage my pump so need to claim and low that the insurers won't pay - so went for the cheaper option rather than going for the dedicated pump insurance.
 
My pump is on my contents insurance too. Don’t be freaked out by all the info at the pump start. The Dana trainer I had was extremely thorough, which, even though I’ve used a pump for many years, flustered me a bit. Actually, it’s all far less complicated than it sounds. My Dana RS has a fabulous, proper printed manual too, with things laid out step by step. Hope you get one of the velvet-y cool cases! Mine was crammed with lots of bits and pieces.

I don’t bother with the cannula inserters and do all mine by hand. It’s much quicker and I prefer it. The O sets are great, but do ask if they have samples of other sets and cannulas. I’ve got the O set and a couple of other types too. Top tip - the O set has a simultaneous double click when you press the top bit onto the cannula bit (you’ll see what I mean). The first few times I didn’t click it in properly, but it’s actually a nice, definite sound when you do.
 
Inka said:
My Dana RS has a fabulous, proper printed manual too, with things laid out step by step. Hope you get one of the velvet-y cool cases! Mine was crammed with lots of bits and pieces.
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I would also recommend asking if they could email you the electronic version.
Embarrassingly, as I working with computers all the time, I am losing the ability to use contents pages and indexes: I prefer to just "search" for what I need when I haver a problem. Medtrum gave me a nice manual but I have never opened it as they also sent me the pdf which lives on my laptop, phone and tablet so I always have it with me.
 
Onwards & upwards, sure you will find pumping amazing.

Own pump is covered on home insurance, didn't need to list it individually.
 
Hope that it goes well today @Saoirse
i look forward to hearing all about it
 
First of all thank you all for the support, you really are very kind bunch 🙂

I went off to the clinic today bright-eyed and sleep-deprived, but ready to go. I was met by one of the dieticians and we dove straight in. It was a 1:1 appointment, I don't know if this is normal for pumps, but it was really great to have that kind of time with someone and be able to ask questions and go over everything. She was great.

Pump is now set up with starting basal and bolus ratios and saline. The interface has its quirks (main one being the 'one way' system, and needing to go around in circles if you have pressed past the icon you want) and is a bit old-school when many things are touch screen now. This does not bother me in the least as the app can do everything and you can work from phone. The pump is quite light and I can see you could quickly get to the point of almost forgetting about it. One slightly weird thing is that there is no clip on the device itself, you have to pop it into a carrying case of some sort to attach it too you. I suspect I will be googling to buy a clip to stick directly on to it before the end of the day as while the pump is quite small the case is really bulky - fine if you want to visibly clip to a belt, but I want something I can hide under clothes.

Thanks for the advice re insurance - I will go with house. The company have asked for a letter from the clinic and the very nice pump trainer is going to send this to me.

Things learned from today:

1) If you are going to get a pump, beware A LOT of kit comes with it - multiple infusion sets, needles, handbooks etc. So come prepared to carry it all away, unlike me :rofl:
2) The dietician who was taking me through everything was brilliant, but it is a lot to take in. I should have taken the rest of the day off work to get everything home and breathe out.
3) Very glad it is a saline start this week, I would not like to be immediately transferring across, still have pens for another week while I play with the pump, especially in the warm weather which plays havoc with levels.

Plans for the week - mirror the MDI with the pump, do several set changes to get used to it, keep a detailed record of food/insulin (I do carb count of course, but have gotten into the habit of eyeballing some things I eat regularly) as need some current accurate data to fine tune settings next week.
 
The lack of clip got to me too the first week but then I realised I actually didn’t need one with the Dana. Previously I’d always used a clip and put the pump on my belt or waistband. But with the Dana, you only have to touch the pump to change sets and cannulas, so it can happily sit in a Hid-in case and belt. The phone app really does do it all. When the trainer first told me nobody used their pump, I went hhmmmm and raised an eyebrow because I was sure I was going to, having had a pump for years and years. But - he was right! I don’t touch my pump or look at it during the day at all, just my phone.

What colour did you get? :D
 
Inka said:
The lack of clip got to me too the first week but then I realised I actually didn’t need one with the Dana. Previously I’d always used a clip and put the pump on my belt or waistband. But with the Dana, you only have to touch the pump to change sets and cannulas, so it can happily sit in a Hid-in case and belt. The phone app really does do it all. When the trainer first told me nobody used their pump, I went hhmmmm and raised an eyebrow because I was sure I was going to, having had a pump for years and years. But - he was right! I don’t touch my pump or look at it during the day at all, just my phone.

What colour did you get? :D
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Its classic black 🙂
 
That sounds like it has all gone well, and great that you were doing it 1-1. As you say there is a lot of stuff, and more once you have your supplies for a few months to tuck away at home.

I stuff my pump in the side of my bra, as I need ready access to mine (my only gripe with my 780)
for my combo which I didn’t need to get out I made a Pouch and hung it from my bra strap. That was great as it was controlled by the handset like your Dana.

have fun getting to know your pump. Does it have a name yet?
 
Awake treating a very tiresome hypo, so a quick update:

have done a couple of practise set changes. If anyone is curious as to what’s involved, there’s a video of the process here:
(This is the slighly older version of the pumpbut very similar). The first time I did it I wound up using several sets mainly because of the extremely fiddly cannula inserter. @Inka you are totally right- second time I abandoned it and just inserted it myself. The trainer did say to use it as it keeps the cannula straight but I think this will go a lot better (and with a lot less faffing and waste) without it. Top tip: do not try set changes when already tired. I can see pumps requiring less day to day thinking than mdi but needing to be more organised about having time to do changes when not hurried etc.

Other than that I’ve been getting used to just having a pump attached to me. Thanks @SB2015 for the bra tip. I am far less aware of it than I thought I would be which is great. My main issue this week is I went to work one day without taking my insulin pens and I never normally forget my insulin! A bit of cognitive overload i think. Other jobs this weekend- downloading diasend and other apps, reading all the information pack and staying covid free so I can get started on insulin next week.
 
Saoirse said:
Thanks @SB2015 for the bra tip
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Sounds like a steady way to start on a pump, rather than jumping in at the deep end as we did for our Combos. You are right about needing to set aside time to do set changes but they do get easier And you find out what works for you.

For my pump pouch I ended up making one out of some very smart fabric (Margo Selby for any textile people) and also made a silver clip on a silver smithing course As the plastic ones that came with the pump kept breaking. A very posh pouch that no one else would see.

As for forgetting your pens that does sound like brain overload. I managed to forget my pump one morning. I remove mine when I shower and forgot to reattach. I was out when my OH phoned to ask if I was missing anything!!!

I look forward to hearing how you progress.
 
The trainer did say to use it as it keeps the cannula straight but I think this will go a lot better (and with a lot less faffing and waste) without it.

My trainer acted as though I’d announced I was going to commit the crime of the century by manually inserting my cannula :rofl: He couldn’t get his head round it. But I did mine in seconds by hand while everyone else was faffing about with the inserter. The O set inserter is particularly faffy, some of the others less so, but I still don’t use them. Not only is it quicker by hand, I feel you can judge where to put it and how it’s going more easily. I’ve never used an inserter in 18 years of pumping.

I usually try to change my sets during the day. Before meals is good because then you can push through a bolus, but it doesn’t always work out that way for me so don’t feel you must change them at an exact time. As you say, it’s good to have time, feel relaxed and not rush. The first time you change the reservoir, it all seems very involved and takes time, but once you get used to it, it becomes a lot quicker.

Looking forward to you getting it up and running so you can see how the basal works for you.
 
Regarding timing set changes, I try to do mine in the morning. There are a few reasons for doing this
- I can remove and clean up the sticky from my last cannula in the shower. And enjoy a smooth area (belly usually for me) to clean.
- it is before breakfast. As @Inka says it is good to push through a bolus to check all is working.
- After my shower, I am usually awake enough to do it and it feels like part of my morning ablutions.
- it does not impact my working day.
- I have enough of the rest of the day to check it worked and change if necessary. I avoid night time changes in case I make a mistake and fall asleep not noticing.
 
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@SB2015 @Inka @helli thank you all for your tips and advice. Morning set changes it is then at least to start with, and setting the alarm for a half hour earlier! A question: do you carry spare cannula or even pens with you? I travel a bit in the uk and might spend eg a full day two or three hours from home. I mean cannulas seem pretty secure an’ all, but is this something you do? I don’t mean travelling overnight, just daily stuff. Sorry if this is a daft question.
 
For a day, I tend to take a syringe and insulin as a backup.
The problem could be your cannula or your whole pump - pump failures are rare but they do happen and never at a convenient time.
Some people take pens but this seems a waste of insulin to me. I take spare pens for an overnight trip.
 
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