Has it been a month already? My 722 has quickly become a part of me. I hardly notice that it is there at all and I can’t believe that I was pushing shots 4-6 times a day. What I don’t understand is why I waited for so long to move to the pump. There was a huge mental block in making the move. Even with a mother who is a CDE and providing a steady stream of info about the pump for several years, I resisted. I guess it’s like being a preachers kid… never wanting to listen to what you know is true. Over the past year I had begun to think more seriously about it. But it finally took a trip to the ER last fall to push me along. Yes, that was me… not checking my numbers, not counting properly and all-around putting myself at risk. If that’s what it took, I am glad it worked, even if the ER was involved. It got me back on track and hopefully will add some years to my life down the road.
Since December I have read virtually every website, blog and resource relating to the pump. I read John Walsh's Pumping Insulin book, which I highly recommend to anyone even just starting to ponder the pump. I wish that I had read it sooner, because it would have likely turned the screws in my head to get moving with the pump.
In tightening my general control and moving to the pump I have been able to reduce my A1C from double-digits in December of 2007 to a 7.7 in March 2008. Not perfect, but a huge improvement overall. My next step is to master the advanced features of my pump to better control my post meal BG, specifically with meals that are complex in nature. Hello pizza!
Congrats to you, great job. One important thing to remember, pump or no pump is to bolus 15-30 minutes before a meal if you can. It is soooo important to go into a meal in the normal or even low normal range to have a good outcome. Not always possible to do, but worth it if you can.
Congratulations!!! So glad to hear about your pump success! My control actually got worse when I started on the pump because I was not as proactive about learning as you were! So you should be really proud of yourself-- it’s not the pump alone-- it’s YOU with the pump that made the difference!!!
I completely agree with Karen… when I started on the pump I was between 7.5 and 8.5 until I learned to start bolusing 15-30 minutes before a meal (as long as I was not low). Also I love John Walsh’s book as well, I still refer back to it!
Congrats! Along with the advise to bolus 15 minutes before eating, I’d add to use the dual wave bolus feature for pretty much every meal, saving the plain bolus for situations where you’re eating those times when you’re junking out on Skittles or some other straight sugar event.
