How do you feel about insulin pumping? The ping especially???

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Permalink Reply by Laura S. on September 20, 2009 at 10:37pm

Hi: I was 1000 percent opposed to getting a pump, telling my doctors and friends it was too clinical looking.
Well, I did a complete turnaround and got one in 2000. Now approaching my pump start anniversary, havent gone off it at all.
The main thing it did for me was give me a way to turn my insulin doses down (instead of being stuck with long acting working all day). I used to go low every time I went shopping, walking, was cleaning etc. Now I cut the dose down and it doesnt happen. I am not one with extremely perfect A1c, in fact my first Animas trainer said I was a challenge.
Foods dont react the same on me every time I eat them, and carb counts often result in being too low or high as a result.
But my lows are nearly gone and that alone has been a help.
You have to want to do it, and you have to be willing to put up with lots of testing at first, but being attached all the time is no big deal.
And now of course, we have tubeless pumps out on the market and a new one coming out soon, so it will probably be more likely that in the future we wont have those tubes to worry about.
Best wishes.

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Permalink Reply by David on September 21, 2009 at 4:03am

One of the rewards for being in tighter control of your BGs is that you feel so much better. For me, that over-rode any problems i perceived about having to be dependent on a device, hanging from my belt with tubing connected. I got used to that part of it real quick. the learning curve for basal insulin doses, boluses, how to deal with exercise, stress, and illness was steep, but the payoff has been an A1C well under 7. the pump is a great tool to help you manage your diabetes. Take advantage of today's techology if you can. It's well worth it. I can't imagine going back to MDIs and haven't used a syringe in over a year. Good luck and give it a try.

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Permalink Reply by Susi on September 21, 2009 at 4:52am

I absolutely love my Animas pump. The ping isn't available here but what I have is the Animas 2020 (Ping without the meter). I'm not, however, going to sugar coat it for you.

If you don't count carbs and understand fully about basals and boluses, and you aren't prepared to do some really hard work and be vigilant, then an insulin pump isn't going to improve things for you. If you are really motivated, then you can read "Insulin Pumping" by John Walsh. It'll be the best investment you can make before you get a pump.

What steps have you taken to improve your current situation? Maybe we can tell you what things worked for us?

There's another book, "Think Like a Pancreas" that people rave about.

By the way, it doesn't bother me at all, having something stuck into me. I barely notice it. Pump reminds me when to test, and I enter carbs when I eat. It seems to me that can forget I have diabetes much more than when I was on injections. But it does require very regular testing and a willingness to learn not only about how your body responds to any given diabetes related thing, but also to become proficient with the pump.

I would hazard a guess and say there are definitely things you can do to improve your diabetes now, even without a pump. Yes, the pump will make things easier... if you want it to. You've got to be prepared to do the work though.

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Permalink Reply by Amanda on September 21, 2009 at 4:51pm

Hi Rose!

I know how you feel. I was opposed to getting the pump for years. I was also scared of how it would look on me, what others would think when they saw it and what it was going to be like being attached to something. I have the pump now and honestly it's amazing. It's the best decision I ever made. It's small and you can hide it. My friends don't even notice, I had to tell them to get them to notice. Also, after about three weeks you get used to it and don't even notice you have something attached.
I know you are scared about what it looks like, but it's an amazing thing to do for your diabetes. I'd much rather wear a pump, then have to worry about taking shots daily and being at a higher risk for complications.

But keep in mind you still have to work with the pump. It won't just solve problems if you have it attached. It still takes a lot of carb counting and getting all the units and configurations right, but once you master that, it's so worth it.

I'm honestly mad at myself for not getting it sooner. I promise you will love it once you decide to get it.

Get it when you are ready and you will love it. Good luck

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Permalink Reply by Rose Joelle on September 22, 2009 at 10:10pm

Just wanted to put a quick note here in hopes you all will see it -
Thank you so much for all of the responses. I am still struggling to find a way to afford a pump in the first place but the more I read and learn the more I feel the hard work to learn and balance a pump would be worth it! Its typical for my BG levels to be in the 400 range, My feet are hurting or numb and I feel crappy - its time to do something different and I will put in as much hard work and considering I am already doing 5-7 blood tests daily monitoring a pump would not add to my testing times! This site is really amazing. I have spent a lot of time resenting my diabetes, but what i really need to do is accept it, try to deal with my eating disorder and realize the issues of that and diabetes are integrated, learn as much as I can and seek support! You are all awesome! Thanks so much again!

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Permalink Reply by marti w on September 22, 2009 at 10:33pm

i'm needle phobic and had a terrible time with giving myself shots. i was diagnosed with adult onset type I just under two years ago and have been on an animas 2020 as soon as my insurance would cover it for me: june2008.
by the way, i just started a discussion about a thing i made to deal with my tubing pretty much right away. i lived with 5 dogs at the time and lost 2 infusion sets in one day from dogs jumping on me.

http://tudiabetes.com/group/inventorsandyellowpages/forum/topics/de...

going from 10 shots a day [gastroparesis means i eat a little bit a lot of time] to a pump made my life so much better and it was like getting my freedom back and i didn't even have to deal with it nearly as long as you and others have.
i look at my glucose meter results for 2008 on a graph and it's like the graph just tightened up within a few hours of having the pump on.

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