Any advice?

on this coming up friday i am going to see my endo. and cde to switch from the pump to lantus! im nervous and excited at the same time. i hate haveing the pump as a phyical reminder of diabetes and it stops me from wearing certain things. is there any one who has made the switch or on lantus that may be able to give me advice and/or info about lantus?? thanks!

Hi Caryn! You should definitely ask about splitting the dose. This means taking your Lantus twice a day. Often doctors recommend you to take it only once per day, but for many people Lantus only lasts 16-20 hours, NOT 24 as they claim. So by splitting the dose at taking one shot in the evening and one in the morning, this helps a lot of people.

You don’t have to take then 12 hours apart. You can take one at 9am if that’s when you wake up… and one at 11pm if that’s a convenient time. In general, I think that it is best to find the times that you won’t forget to take the shot.

Also, I would recommend carrying your Lantus with you, at least at first. When on the pump, you get used to always having your insulin with you. So it’s easy to forget to bring the Lantus, which can be a real pain if you don’t have it when it’s time to take the shot. So carrying both types of insulin with you could be a big help!

I hope that the transition will go well!! I am considering going off the pump someday too. I love it and it does give me much better control and it is generally more convenient, but I think that someday I may switch back to injections. I will be curious what you think about it when you stop pumping. If you miss the pump, will you have the option to switch back?

so…with lantus u have still give an injestion eveytime eat/drink carbs?

So, the Lantus is the “background” (basal) insulin. So it will replace the constant drip that your pump gave. You will need to take a faster acting insulin (like Humalog, Apidra, or Novolog) when you eat/drink carbs. The Lantus you will take at the same time of day everyday, regardless of what you eat.

When I was on injections, I did about 6 injections per day.

Have you ever been on Lantus before? Have you always been on the pump?

i was on regualr injections when i was first dx. i was on the pump about a year into it…so no, never benn on lantus

Click here for a good description of Lantus. And here for more about the regimen that you will be using. Hope these help!!

To add to what Kristin said, I would also recommend carrying glucose tablets or something to bring your bg’s back up when or if you drop. Lantus spikes differently and could cause frequent lows. I was on lantus and humalog before I switched to the Omnipod. Good luck

I went off my pump last january just for the spring. I used Lantus once at night and novolog for meals and corrections. I went back on the pump this last summer and will be switching to the Omnipod in December. If the reason you don’t like the pump is because it’s in your way you should look into the Omnipod. My doctor feels it will be a much better choice for me because I keep catching the tubing on things and ripping out sites. Hope it goes well with the Lantus!

i looked at the omnipod and i did not like what i saw. i thought it was pretty big and what would get in the way of waering certain clothing, but if u like go for it!

Kristin is right to recommend splitting the lantus dose. It will certainly work smoother without having a gap.

If you dislike the itching of lantus then I would recommend to switch to levemir with two shots per day. I am a great fan of levemir due to its reliability. I need to be very carefull at night and the two dose regime of levemir allows me to use different basal rates at night (e.g. after sport or other events with high physical activity). I would use both insulins for one or two weeks to make a decision.

I take Lantus. As a matter of fact I take 160 units a day. I have had no success with it. Is Levemir a different option. I am sick of Lantus. It has made me gain a lot of weight too.