So here's the situation. My pod had an error where I had to call and reset the PDM. As a result, I was suppose to throw out my pod and start a new one. I was only a day in. I am still getting my basal insulin but I don't think I can bolus. It keeps beeping asking if I want to start a new pod and I say no.
Anyway, I was in a dilemma about where to place my next pod anyway because I am flying to a wedding; do I place it in easy sight for securtiy reasons or hidden so it doesn't show under my dress for the wedding?
I am wondering, since I've been only getting my basal doses and taking my bolus's with a needle, my current pod should last much longer before running out of insulin, right? So I should be able to get several days over my 3. I was suppose to change it out tonight (Mon.) I'm hoping to make it last until after I get on the plane and change it out on arrival(Friday - so about 7 days instead of 3) Does anyone know, when you get an out of insulin alarm, is there a cushion? I did the math and there should be enough insulin to last 7 days.
What do you think!?
The pod expires after 3 days plus 8 hours. This is a precaution on the battery life. Once the expired alarm goes off, you will have to change your pod no matter how much insulin is in there.
Unfortunately no, the pod will only last 80 hours max.
It will "expire" at 72 hours, and then you have an 8 hour window before it completely "dies".
As to your question of pod placement, it will depend on what you want to hassle with regarding the airport security and regarding a pod change if you want it hidden for the wedding.
I would put it in an easily accessible place (which honestly could still be your stomach or your lower back...you just lift the edge of your shirt and they can see it) and then it would still be covered by your dress later. OR, you put it on your arm and then you take an extra pod (on top of the backup supplies you're traveling with) where you'll change out the pod early and put it in a hidden spot for the wedding. A bit more work in the end w/ that extra pod change, but totally up to you...
According to the pdm there is no pod running. It ejected the current pod, told me to remove and keeps asking if I want to start a new one and I keep saying no. It was explained to me that it's like a divorce where one has filed papers and moved out but the other has no clue the marriage is over and keeps going. I'm still receiving my basal but can't do anything else; bolus, temp basal, extended basals etc. I guess we'll see what happens. I may call omni support and see what they say. I was hoping to stretch it until Friday, change it out to my leg for the wedding.
You're correct. Somewhere the communication was interrupted but the pod continued to live (in a "normal" scenario it should be shut off in this process, but something went wrong). I like the marriage scenario you mentioned :)
If you call omnipod support they'll tell you to remove the pod (it's a CYA b/c they don't want someone wearing a pod that can't be communicated with lol).
The pod still has its own internal clock though. It knows when it was started, and it knows when that 72 and 80 hour point will be. If you were supposed to change it to tonight, at some point this evening it will start beeping at you...
I thought that might be the case. But it's already been beeping at me for the last 24 hours, how can I tell the new beeping apart from the old beeping????
So the beeping will come from the pod itself. The PDM is useless in this scenario. B/c it thinks that pod is dead already.
When my PDM did this it went completely bonkers and so I didn't have the "privilege" of dealing with the PDM beeping lol.
In the future, if the PDM stays alive and is workable, then I don't see why you wouldn't put a new pod on with it (assuming it's still functioning correctly of course). If there is an error and the company is sending you a new PDM, then you might just take the batteries out of the old bad PDM so it will shut up (and again in this scenario the pod somehow survived the marriage breakup and so is still pumping basal for you...). Then you just let that pod ride until it starts beeping at you (which you will "luckily" get to listen to for 8 hours, probably hourly until about the last hour when it will likely beep at you every 15 minutes until it starts screeching the song of death lol).
Hope all that made sense?
Nope but thanks anyway :)
The current beeping is coming from the pod, not the pdm asking if I want to activate a new pod. If they aren't communicating or connected, how will the pdm know that the 3 days are up and alert me to change? There's no pod according to the pdm!
lol. Sorry about that.
Let us know how it goes tonight! Good luck.
Thanks!! I was hoping to take advantage of this screw up and get the timing perfect so I could go through security with the current pod, placed within easy view if needed, then change to another spot for the wedding! Hoping that it just kept going until it ran out of insulin but I guess there would be no alert for that either. We shall see.
I can't remember exactly when this pod would be up. I think either tonight or tomorrow morning. Just don't want to have it stop and not alert me! Guess I'll just have to watch very closely my CGM.
Or..... just change it!
I had a similar event just last evening but fortunately it was pod change day anyway. I assume you were instructed to "reset" the PDM with a paperclip or in my case an earring poked into the hole of the little green plate at the base of the batteries. Then you just change the pod as usual. (I also remove any leftover insulin in the pod and insert it in the new one along with enough new insulin to fill to the 100 unit line so as to not waste insulin. I also keep a log of my pod changes that includes the serial number of the pod, the date, the activation time and the site # (I give the sites numbers and do a rotation of 14 sites in my hip and buttocks region. I don't really know if the pod kept giving me basal insulin or not as I had suspended insulin delivery when the PDM had a glitch. At any rate, when I removed the pod it wouldn't stop "squealing" so I had to take a hammer to it. I can rarely get one to stop that noise with a paperclip and if I put it in the freezer as they recommend it often starts up again when it thaws out. I've had success getting the "squealing" pods to stop with a few well placed whacks with a hammer! Since I've changed to Novolog from Apidra, I often get more than the 72 hours out of a pod and still keep the BG's in the 100-200 range but the pod quits at 80. As for airport security, it depends on which airport whether you have to display your pod. Sometimes they "wipe" it down. The body scanners let me walk through without a problem. I've been using the Omnipod for 4 years.
Exactly the same thing. The rep said the pod would continue to give me basal. I couldn't remember when the pod change was due so I just wore it until it finally gave a continuous beep - around 4am! My bs was through the roof but... I can now change it after I get through security (placed it on my stomach) change Friday morning for the wedding dress and will change it back to an easy access spot before going back through security. All is good!