The Pumpers Thread!

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Sorry so long to get back to this Lou -- sounds like you did get some good info, anyway. Was this a new person? This sort of support will help you overall, I reckon...

I know that insulin is connected to weight gain, but I thought it was more likely in the case of 'feeding' insulin, eg having more food to keep up with it all? Which shouldn't happen on pump? I might be confused.

What do others think?

I can't believe you've been on statins for no reason! Good grief!

Here we are in a strange state of being weirdly stable, but too high. So the swings have stopped (virtually no hypos, and the change in correction doses, we think), but he's still around 8,9,10 with forays higher.

So we are now trying to figure how to uniformly lower this, without swinging!

We looked at hypos last night: none this week (until this morning, when he woke low). Only about two the week before. The week before that: about a dozen. The week before that: about 20. Seriously. That's how bad the swings have been.

So now it's the challenge of lowering things without a loss of general control...

Two things about this:

1) the cartons of apple juice (200ml) are probably too much for a hypo treatment, in general. We suspect this sends him higher than range most of the time (but he only tests at 15 mins after to make sure all okay, and in range then. It's after that time we think he's going too high, which contributes to the swing...) I'm going to ask on the main board about smaller cartons...

2) BISCUITS! We now wonder STRONGLY if the small packets of McVitties choc digestives have a VERY delayed effect on him. Two nights ago: bolused for a pack at 9.30pm, but climbed all night. This was unusual, as although he's been a little high at night, he's been stable. Again, a swing contributor!

His sensor has now died a death, so that's it for a while. He's not very keen at all to continue them: finds putting them in a bit icky, and taking them out, and the readings are too far off too much of the time for him to count on them. He was woken two nights in a row to sensor error too, and we didn't even have an alarm set on it!

We of course really like the sensor and find it a huge comfort. But it's his choice. When this one's gone he may want one again, but hey...oh well.

For now!

xxoo
 
Hi Patricia

Glad things are stable for you at moment, if a little too high. Good luck with bringing him down without swinging. Not easy, I know!

Things very steady for us at moment so we able to relax a bit which is very welcome.

Just wanted to say that we only use 100ml of fruit juice (so half of a small carton) for hypos. We usually have a large carton open in the fridge at all times anyway so we pour some out into a cup that we have specially marked with a line at 100ml. We keep a couple of the 200ml cartons on the landing in case of night hypos. Again we use the cup to measure 100ml and then someone else finishes carton off next day. A 100ml carton would be great so please do let us know if you find out where you can buy them!

Hope everyone is ok. xxxx
 
Thanks Mand...Yes, we keep a large carton as well in fridge, and dole out from there if home. Prob is he's not at home so often now! And he can *barely* deal with glucose tablets; they make him feel incredibly sick. Sigh.

Will let you know if I find anything!

Yesterday had ANOTHER bent cannula. To his credit, E noticed that he was 16 at break -- usually a crash time for him, but had been better last couple of days...still too high. He bolused for pretty large snack, but by lunch 1.5 hours later was right up to 22. He knew enough NOT to eat lunch. Texted and then we all talked...He corrected fully. 45 minutes and 2 conversations later he was still hovering around 22/23. We gave it another 20 minutes, but no change.

School was great. Named person kept an eye on him, but he felt okay. I went to get him. We came home and he was STARVING. But tested and still 22. He really didn't want to inject, so we did a swift set change, immediately removed the old set: 90 degrees bend at the end.

Argh. It took him all afternoon to come down to anything even decent, with constant corrections. A difficult one because he had a performance last night, so it was a balancing act...

Made it through performance a bit high, a bit high all last night, but at least a) he didn't get incredibly sick as he's done before and b) we know *why* he was suddenly high.

Was proud of him anyway for knowing not to eat, for testing properly and above all catching it before it got dreadful.

Flipping diabetes! He also missed a school council meeting to come home, which really made him cross...

We have *got* to get these numbers down.
 
I totally sympathise, Patricia. These bent cannulas cause the biggest problem for us re pumping. All else runs smoothly. Very ggggggggggrrrrrrrrr! Well done, E, for handling situation so well!! 🙂
 
Well done E! Very sensible young man. It is awful when this happens at school isnt it? I absolutely hate taking A out of school for diabetes related problems - it makes me so angry and i feel guilty that he is missing things.

The last time this happened the school rang me and i talked him through it over the phone - he gave himself an injection and within an hour he was down to under 10 - so i think we will do this in future as he hates having a set change at school - which i have done 3 times now!

We have realised that he needs a set change every 2 days rather than 3. He always rises on day 3 and its annoying - but what can we do - he must be really sensitive to the canula.😱

Patricia, has E tried the glucojuice? They are 15cho which is spot on i think. A has tried them and hates them - but he likes fizzy drinks - so maybe E would prefer them? They arent cheap but you can get them on prescription. I think they are about ?1.60 for one!

Alex has either a can of coke or Dr Pepper or apple juice and he just leaves a quarter of the carton which we bin because its so cheap anyway.🙂Bev
 
Somewhat heartened to know this happens to others relatively regularly too! Today now numbers are down, so that's *something*!

We've got a glucojuice -- maybe I'll get him to try it.

Re the juice -- I agree, we leave it when we can...difficulty is that he is often out and about when having a hypo, and in the middle of things. I find empty cartons in his bag, etc...I think he would have a hard time leaving some then...ALSO, he is always v thirsty when low, so I think it's even physically hard for him to resist...Sigh. I'll try the glucojuice.

I wondered about talking him through an injection too...He was a bit bothered yesterday that he couldn't understand *why* this had happened, so I'm not sure he would have done that. But I think it's important that he can, and that the school help him to do this. It's on our list to go in and have a good ol chin wag with the named person, to help her know exactly what he would need to do. It's not that unusual for both of us to be out of immediate contact, and him having the confidence to do an injection would be good.

Our worry yesterday too was that we weren't *entirely* sure that the large pump correction hadn't gone in...We were worried that with an injection too he could hit the floor...

Oh, blah. Diabetes.

xxoo
 
Morning all,

I'm starting my pump countdown next Saturday when it wil be a month until I get it. The consultant is going to try to get me funding for a CGM as well. I've asked for and will hopefully get a Veo on the twelth of January 2010! It'd be nice to have it now as I'm under the weather a little but it seems I've just got to power on through it.

Tom
 
Tom, good luck with the pump start! You will know where to come when you need any help.🙂Bev
 
I definitely do know where to come Bev. I'll be getting a Veo like A has. The consultant is going to try and get me the CGM that goes with it too.

Tom
 
Good luck Tom!

Bev - We have to do set change every two days too. He starts rising after 48hours which is disappointing because three days (or three point five) would mean only two changes a week which would be so much nicer for them.
 
Tom Hreben said:
I definitely do know where to come Bev. I'll be getting a Veo like A has. The consultant is going to try and get me the CGM that goes with it too.

Tom
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Great! I would say though that you should get used to the pump first as it may be too overwhelming to start using the sensors straight away. I think medtronic give a box of 10 sensors free with the pump - so you should be able to at least use these - like we have done. We love sensors so much that we are funding them ourselves whilst we work out a way to convince the PCT to fund them.🙂

Mand, it is really annoying that the boys have to set change every 2 days isnt it? They must be sensitive to the canula's.😱Bev
 
bev said:
Great! I would say though that you should get used to the pump first as it may be too overwhelming to start using the sensors straight away. I think medtronic give a box of 10 sensors free with the pump - so you should be able to at least use these - like we have done. We love sensors so much that we are funding them ourselves whilst we work out a way to convince the PCT to fund them.🙂
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Yeah, it'd be nice to get that. If I have to self fund sensors then that may pose difficulties but I'm sure my parents are willing to help me.
 
Tom Hreben said:
Morning all,

I'm starting my pump countdown next Saturday when it wil be a month until I get it. The consultant is going to try to get me funding for a CGM as well. I've asked for and will hopefully get a Veo on the twelth of January 2010! It'd be nice to have it now as I'm under the weather a little but it seems I've just got to power on through it.

Tom
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I am so pleased you are getting a pump, well done. The time will go before you know it!
 
Hi Tom

Just brilliant news. The pump will massively improve your quality of life, I'm sure...

Good idea to pursue sensors too...Though this end E is opting not to do them at the moment. He finds them not helpful enough for him AND a bit medicalising...On the other hand, we really valued them as parents! Oh well. I suspect he will go for them when things are just a bit more accurate and a bit smaller/less fiddly. I'm sure we'll use them on and off, but for now 24/7 is out of the question.

Can't wait to hear how things progress with you when the time comes. Well done!
 
YAY TOM! :D

Hopefully I'll be in your shoes soon! My fingers are itching to get hold of one!!!
 
salmonpuff said:
YAY TOM! :D

Hopefully I'll be in your shoes soon! My fingers are itching to get hold of one!!!
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Yeah Sam! Anything I can do to help (passing the pump criteria questions?!) let me know!

For what its worth, I think both you and Tom will be great pumpers. I think you both suit it and you know your diabetes stuff from years of exerience you will prob pick it up very quickly.
 
Sugarbum said:
Yeah Sam! Anything I can do to help (passing the pump criteria questions?!) let me know!

For what its worth, I think both you and Tom will be great pumpers. I think you both suit it and you know your diabetes stuff from years of exerience you will prob pick it up very quickly.
Click to expand...

Aww, thank you Lou. Minor case of embarrasment here now lol. If my approach to diabetes is similar to my approach to lectures I might just have not picked up much 'cause I do a nodding dog impression in a fair few lectures!
 
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