Ok I was hooked up to my new pump today. What should I look out for?And what advice can you give me.
Long ramble:
Are you just doing saline right now, or are you already pumping insulin?
Depending on when your started pumping insulin and when your last shot of long acting was, you may have to look out for some lows.
During the first week or so you will probably be basal testing, which I personally find to be a pain in the butt, but once you have it down, it's pretty awesome. This generally means that you get to eat your "nicest to my blood sugar" meals and test a billion times more than normal for the week.
I remember it feeling kinda weird sleeping the first few nights with my pump, but these things are little tanks (or they should be). If you don't have a pump pouch or someplace to put it at night, I'd suggest getting some (pj pants with pockets or a pump pouch or whatever sounds like it will work for you).
You are allowed to disconnect for showers and other activities where the pump should not be involved. I know they tell you this, but I was still nervous for the first week or two doing this. If you are disconnected for a long period of time (say you went swimming or took a two hour shower), check and then you can bolus your missing basal if you need to.
If you have a MM or Animas, while they say they are capable of being submerged in water for a period of time, it's not always wise to test it.
Remember site rotation. It feels harder to rotate insulin pump sites (at least for me), but it's still very important!
Speaking of pump sites, don't feel bad about trying other infusion sets and different lengths of tubing and different cannula lengths. Find what works best for you, and sometimes that means having different sets for different areas. For example, I like the contact detach for my arms and the inset everywhere else, but I'll tolerate the inset on my arms if I have to.
This thing is going to be with you for a long time, you might as well name it or do some other things (like decorations or skins) to make it personal.
Once you have your basals and I:C all figured out for the pump (yes, it all seems to change), you can start tackling the new features of your pump. Going to go exercise? Try lowering your basal rate with a temp basal. Feeling sick and blood sugars just not coming down? Try raising your basal rate with a temp basal? Really want your food nemesis that normally ruins your blood sugar for hours and days on end? Try messing with combo/dual wave boluses. Combo bolus (on the Animas) and square/dual wave (on the MM. Are they still using those terms for the MM people?) allow you to give some bolus now and spread out some bolus over a period of time.
You are also allowed to change the delivery rate on your pump. I know the Animas pump seems to come preset to deliver "fast" and many people prefer it that setting switched to "slow".
Don't be afraid to push buttons!
That's all I can think of right now, but don't be afraid to ask questions. All that stuff above probably seems like information overload, so just take it one step at a time.
If you're just on saline right now, there's not too much you need to worry about. Check the site frequently to make sure you're not having any adverse reaction to the adhesive or canula. Look out for redness, swelling, itching, etc. Lots of folks experience mild itching from the adhesive and that's nothing too serious to worry about. You may have to experiment to find the right combo of infusion set/tape/product that works for you. Practice changing the infusion set several times so you can get accustomed to the whole process.
Once you're pumping insulin - you will likely be started on a flat basal rate. From there, check your BG as many times as you possibly can. Record all that info (if you're using your pump's wireless meter, all that data will be collected). Review that data regularly to identify where your highs and lows are. From there, you will work with your endo/CDE to make adjustments to your basal rates. Once the basal rates are good, you generally then work on tweaking the I:C ratios.
Things to look out for - the biggest issue with being on a pump is that you don't have any basal insulin in your system. Should you become disconnected from your pump or if the site or insulin goes bad, you can go into DKA very quickly. That's why frequent testing on the pump is so important.
Keep in mind that sometimes sites go bad and the fastest way to correct a high BG is with a shot, so make sure you have the supplies necessary to do that.