Just wondering how many out there may have experience being pregnant while on the Omni pod. I am thinking about going on it, right now I am on shots, and hope to begin our family later this year. Has your experience been positive?
Have you used the Omnipod yet? It would be definitely be good to start on it before the pregnancy so that you can get used to it first and get all your settings right!
Here is a group for Omnipod users. You might want to check out the discussions there. I have heard some very good and very bad reviews of the Omnipod.
I have used the Cozmo and Minimed insulin pumps and have had very good experiences with both! If you have questions of those, please feel free to ask!
I am curious about this too. I also am on shots and with the need for better control and the insulin change I would be required to do (talked about in a discussion below) I am thinking about the omnipod also. I have been very resistant to the pump over the years and the pod seems like such a better thing for me. I have an appointment with my endo in 2 weeks and plan on discussing this with her then.
Hi, I am 24 weeks pregnant and using the OmniPod. It’s going well - I recently had the 20 week detailed u/s and fetal echo and everything was normal. Anyway, 1 thing you will want to check is to make sure that non-stomach sites work for you. I could wear the pod on my stomach for about 15 weeks into pregnancy and then it got irritated and uncomfortable (i’m pretty slim so w/ the belly starting to develop it didn’t work anymore). I switched to my arms and just started using my leg for a site also. But someone should have told me to check that out ahead of time, because some people have problems w/ certain areas. I don’t, but just check it out.
1 other point…Pod holds 200 units total of insulin. Sometimes at the end of pregnancy you will need a LOT more insulin (2-3 times normal) per day. I think I will have to be changing my sites every 2 days vs 3 days at this point. Sort of annoying, but I don’t see a way around it because that is the max for the pod. At this point I am getting through 3 days w/ about 150 units.
Thanks so much for letting me know! It is great to get this feedback. I will be starting the system in the next few weeks. Glad that your pregnancy is going well!
I’m currently 13 weeks pregnant and have been on the Omnipod for 14 weeks. So far, so good. I wear the pod mainly on my back and buttocks.
so, how low on the buttocks can you go? and do you go on the “side” of your stomach as well? or , is directly on the side not good? So, how has your a1c been? my husband and I want to have kids, but my doc said my a1c needs to be 7 or below, before even thinking about it. Mine is currently 7.4 , but not good enough. I am currently on the medtronic pump, and thinking about moving to the omni pod, but am so self-conscious and love to hide my current pump in my bra…
I wear it almost to the halfway or maybe a third of the way down on the cheeks. Mostly though, I prefer the top shelf of the cheeks, so to speak. I don’t have any problem hiding the pod. (I used to have Medtronic, then had Cozmo.) The only times I ever pod that it sticks out and makes me feel self-conscious have been the three times I’ve tried putting it on the top of my thigh. On the abdomen, back, back of legs, butt, arms, etc, it’s easy enough to obscure it.
It’s really recommended to be below 6.5 when you get pregnant, though below 7 wouldn’t be dangerous. It took me over a year of actively trying to get it down that low. When I hit 6.1, I got released to try to conceive. Then it took almost another 9 months to get pregnant. During the pregnancy, I’ve been running between 5.6 and 6.1 and I’m in my 7th month now. But I had never had an A1c below 7 in 18 years of type 1 before that. If I can do it, anyone can. My lowest up to that point was 8.3, I think.
Do you have any suggestions for getting the A1C down that low? I know it will be tough, but need to start “actively” trying soon, so I too can try to get pregnant. Are you eating the same foods each and every day? Or exercising more? Thanks for any insight!
Gina, I am a non-exerciser, to be honest - which surprised the heck out of my OB. And I like variety too much to eat the same things everyday. I focused on testing more often, managing my numbers, and dosing earlier.
First of all, realize that it’s your 1 hour post-prandial blood sugars that spike your A1c - they are the highest BGs you have in a day, so work to reduce those by some of the following tips:
a) Reduce carbs at meals (Weight Watchers helped me lose 30 lbs before getting pregnant, but I also credit the reduction in portion sizes with reduction in my numbers). I went from 60-80g at meals to 14g at breakfast (i.e. slice of toast with eggs/tky bacon) and 30-40g at lunch/dinner.
b) Play with taking your insulin further ahead of your meals. I pump with Apidra, but I still take and complete my bolus 15-20 minutes before I begin eating, allowing my insulin to match the food spike and control that first post-prandial number.
c) My pre-pregnancy and early pregnancy BG targets were the same: 90-100 fasting, 140 at 1 hour post-prandial, 120 at 2 hours, back to target at 3 hours. So once I had those in place, all I added was the baby.
Thanks for the info Melissa! I’ve been out of the TuDiabetes loop for a while, but I’m back, and just getting your response. Thanks again, super helpful!!
I agree with Melissa. I see that your question is from nearly a month ago, so maybe you have figured some of this out already.
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Test A LOT. I used to test 6-8 times a day.When I switched to about 10 times a day, my A1C dropped like a rock. Now that I’m pregnant, I am averaging 12 tests a day.
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Like Melissa says, work on the postprandial BGs. Experiment with the Dual Wave Bolus ( you might need some help from your doctor … finding the right percentage of “now” insulin vs. “square” insulin can be tricky and is different for everyone. But this made a BIG difference in my postprandials because they were creeping up after two hours.
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Count those carbs. Resist the urge to SWAG bolus (I went back to measuring things like pasta, rice, and potatoes with measuring cups) and don’t forget about the fat. Fat will slow down the absorption of those carbs, so can cause the postprandial to creep up later.
As an aside, I also hate to exercise and I find that it is actually another variable that is hard to manage. And I have had little success with exercise for weight loss, even when I’ve been able to stick with it for six months or more. I have also tried it to help insulin resistance and have only seen small benefits.
To piggyback on this (and to update), I have switched back to my Cozmo pump from the Omnipod to finish up the end of my pregnancy. At 33 weeks, I was using roughly 150 units a day and changing pods out every 30 hours or so!
Even though my CDE changed my Rx to change every 2 days, my insurance still won’t allow me to get an extra shipment before the baby comes. Insulet is sending me an extra box (which won’t last 2 weeks), but I just couldn’t (in good conscience) keep burning through pods like there is no tomorrow.
Using my backup Cozmo, I can fill a 300 unit reservoir a second time without changing the infusion set. I’m finishing up week 34 now and feel so much less guilt! I can take the insulin my body’s demanding without feeling like I’m wasting my supplies!
I’ll go back to the pod when my insulin needs are closer to my pre-pregnancy levels!