Standing on the edge... help me make the jump!

Diabetes Technology Insulin Pumps
1

Hello all! Been lurking for a while and soaking up the info.
Been type one for 39 years now and getting ready to make the jump to an Omnipod. Been using a Medijector product for years now and I'm getting to the point in my life where I'm tired of it all. Besides the simplicity there's the better control.

So... give me your best reason to make the jump (from your personal experiences of course) and start using the Omnipod. And don't forget that I've got a $1000.00 deductible to shell out to get this going. Convince me it's worth it!!

Curt

2

Each diabetic is different, but in my case, the OmniPod is a Godsend! I switched from MDI to the Pod in 2008. Since then, I have had much better control of my blood glucose levels, and my A1c is progressively improving. In addition, I love the freedom that the Pod gives me. There are no tubes, and the pump is directly on my body (not in my pocket or clipped on my belt). With the new design, the Pods are discrete, less noticeable, and more comfortable. I don't worry about damaging the Pod, either (they are actually very durable). Changing the Pod is quick, easy, and usually painless.
I hope this is enough, but I can tell you more if you need further convincing!

3

It's worth it. My first pump, after 38 years with Type 1 and a Becton-Dickinson Inject-Ease, I started with an OmniPod pump in 2007 and could not be happier.
The good things:
NO MORE INJECTIONS! This is especially useful when you are eating out, or with people who might be squeamish about seeing evidence of injecting.
Omnipod has no tubing.
Needle insertion is automatic.
You can customize your basal rates, insulin-to-carb rations, and correction factors to fit your schedule and your metabolism; this makes the timing and quantity of meals much less dependent on when your long-term insulin or multiple daily injections will peak.
If your meal is delayed or circumstances change, you can make adjustments to your basal rate, easily.
It's barely detectable; no-one will know you're wearing a pump (not that there's anything wrong with wearing a pump!).
NO MORE INJECTIONS!
If your doctor will write you a letter of medical necessity, many insurance providers will cover your PDM (personal diabetes monitor=the device you use to test your blood sugar and send instructions to the pod).
NO MORE INJECTIONS!

Inconvenient things:
Unless you are very close to home, you should carry an extra pod and a bottle of insulin with you at all times. (In case of pod failure or some sort of emergency that will prevent you from returning home.)
Pods can fail. Anecdotal evidence is saying that the new pods fail more frequently than the old ones, but I have no conclusive statistics.
If you have an MRI or CAT scan, or some types of surgery, you'll have to remove your pod and throw it away. If you are paying for your pods yourself this can be costly, but there are usually ways to get around this, such as scheduling your testing to coincide with pod-changing time.
Customer service was not good this past year during the upgrade to the new style pods, but it is now back to excellent service, at least in my case.

So my vote is, if you can afford it, sign up!

Beth

4

Here's the best answer I can give: going on the pod from injection pens provides insulin delivery that much more closely matches what your pancreas should be doing. The pancreas releases what amounts to short-term insulin as your body needs it, and the pod (or any pump, for that matter) does the same thing. You get a basal dose and boluses as your body requires them (provided you know enough about bolusing to do it correctly). My A1C went from over 7 to 5.9 in the first three months I was on the pod. I've never used any other type of pump, nor do I wish to. The pod is a fantastic device. As for failures, since I have been filling pods according to Insulet's new process (max 200 units, put the PDM right beside the pod during priming), my failure rate is actually less than with the old pods. One other thing: this forum is a valuable resource for problems, as this product is fairly new and many endos have limited experience with it, so don't hesitate to ask away. Good luck!

5

Curt,

I've been T1D for 29 years. Up until just over a year or so ago I was on manual injections. It was a stroke of luck that I changed endos and found one that felt strongly about pumping. He put me in touch with someone one that changed my perception about pumping and really changed my life. I did an in depth comparison to all my pumping options and I completed a detailed comparison of pumps. I can send it to you if you would like to read it. It helped me to make in an informed decision that I was confident that I knew what I was getting into. I did an in depth saline trial for a bit before choosing OmniPod. I also evaluated their software and then forwarded my results back to OmniPod. They valued my feedback and asked if I would like to be part of a pilot program here in Canada for blogging about Omnipod. The site launches in January. Omnipod has a great culture of continuous improvements and has always ensured that my health was top priority when it comes to any issues that I have had with pod failures.

I can honestly say that I have freedoms that I never had before; many of them couldn't be achieved with traditional pumps. There was a learning curve in the beginning with my fair share of pod failures and pods being dislodged but today things are really smooth and I haven't had a pod dislodge in over 6-7 months. I love that I never have to disconnect from my insulin for more than a few minutes to change a pod. That's made a huge change in consistency in BG's. Even short disconnections for me make a difference in my sugars.

My A1C has improved and I notice that my management techniques are much more effective with the methods and programs that I am able to use. I can customize things on the fly or use my default programs to manage things. I capture events and data with purpose and I am able to bring that to my HCPs and be more effective in making changes to treatment program.

I shower, get naked and sleep without ever having to worry about tubing or a pump hanging around. My testing and delivery of insulin has become less invasive in my life, some days I could honestly forget that I'm Type one.

I used to carb count, do 7-8 injections a day, formulas to enth degree just to try and stay healthy for fear of painful complications and I still never truly believed that it was possible to prevent them but I think differently now. I don't live in fear anymore, Omnipod has really given me a new perspective that I can avoid a future of complications even after 29 years of fighting this disease. All my formulas and how my body works is programmed in my PDM and I am able to manage everything with a few buttons.

No system is perfect but this one fits me well. I wouldn't want to live without it. If you're interested in my comparison report of the features of OmniPod and some of the other pumps that are out there please send me your email and I can forward it to you.

Hope this helps.

6

wow! 7 to 8 injections a day?? good lord.

So if I understand this right, the pump is delivering insulin all the time... plus you tell it to give more at meal time? Correct?

Is it painfull when it inserts?? How easily does it come out if bumped?
I know... a ton of questions. :)

7

Yes, 7 to 8. Fear does crazy things. It was awful. I started with some medical issues not caused by diabetes that were causing my sugars to rise and I needed to give corrections in addition to regular meal injections. So I had to do tons of calculations for Insulin on Board and corrections on top of carb counting. It was driving me crazy trying to stay on top of it but I was more afraid of what would happen if my BG's were out of whack for long periods of time.

Now, I'm strictly on short acting insulin that is delivered 24 hours a day. I give a bolus at meal time or when I need to make a correction. My PDM keeps track of all my BGs and my boluses; I trust its calculations when it calculates a bolus. It took some time, I did a lot of studies with how my body was working with the programs and how my BGs were affected with the ratios that I programed in and adjusted as needed. After lots of validation, I can finally breathe and live without all the extra work to manage my diabetes. OmniPod really changed my life.

The biggest hurdle was getting my basal program right since I wasn't used to using only short acting insulin but what a difference it makes. The software made that easy for me to see what was working and what wasn't. It took several months of tweaking to find the right dosages. I would never go back to a long acting basal insulin.

The insertion is amazing really. I use sites I never used before because of the auto insertion function. I apply the pod and don't need any hands to insert except to push the button on the PDM. Its a quick pick like a lancet device. Sudden, sharp quick pain; it's there for a few seconds and gone as fast as it came. Some spots are more tender than others but I experienced that with manual injections too.

The adhesive doesn't necessarily come off easily at all, if I knock one off its because I caught the edge on something and lifted the pod from the adhesive. I have learned to move the pod an inch or two in different directions and to change the angle of the pod ever so slightly to prevent this from happening.

I have tons of sites to choose from and I can turn the pod 180 degrees and use the contours of it to work with dressing or sleeping on it and I angle it to move with my body.

I have learned a few tricks for applying the pods for extra adhesion and I have knocked the thing pretty hard at times and it didn't come off. I horse around with my four kids and my dog. Seeing if it could stand up to them was one of my prerequisites before I decided to go with it. Depending on what I'm doing I sometimes tape it down for extra security too just in case. Mostly in summer when its really hot and I know I'm going to put it through a lot.

There is one issue I have experienced with the pods and that is that the 2 small holes located just adjacent to the perimeter of the opening tend to stretch after wearing the pod for a bit and can cause the canula to move on me. It caused some insulin leakage and a bit of soreness. I found a fix for it by using a tiny bit of liquid bandage on the opening and the holes and my pods stay secure.

Questions are good, better you ask them now. The cost is definitely a consideration however there are things that I took into consideration when I did my comparisons and testing of pumps. My sister and I use different pumps and I was able to use statistics from manufacturers and the pump clinic as resources. Try to consider all costs that you will have with each pump, and they can vary for each one.

Batteries was one of them, OmniPod uses 2 AAA batteries in PDM, the pods come with batteries so there's no additional cost for those. Other pumps have batteries in both the pump and testers/remotes. When I compared the manufacturers battery expectancy to actual users, I found traditional pumps went thru batteries far more than what was disclosed. It was a big cost factor for people that I spoke to since no insurance companies pay for them. My sister complains about the huge extra cost she has with batteries and the fact they only last her approximately 10 days.

Extra cost of accessories to rig tubing and pumps to body and clothing; clips, straps, extra tape. My sister also has to replace her battery chamber every couple of months on her pump to ensure it stays waterproof. Also insulin chambers on traditional pumps need to be replaced from time to time due to wear as well.

When I compared everything on an annual basis, the cost of OmniPod was the same if not better for me. I bought a pack of batteries from Costco for $14 and it lasted me a year. I use rubbing alcohol spray instead of alcohol wipes because it works better for adhesion and its less expensive than the alcohol wipes.

I'm from Canada so our costs might be different. Here in Canada I had a 90 day return policy if I wasn't happy with my pump so that helped to me to feel secure in my decision.

I have never regretted my decision about choosing OmniPod.

Paula

:)

8

Izza, those are some very good posts with great information. I had never considered the battery issue with conventional pumps. That's definitely something that should be factored into ongoing cost calculations, as batteries are not cheap. Curt, the insertion process can be virtually pain-free (slight or no discomfort), or it can (on rare occasions where your site hits a nerve) be paintful like a bee sting. Sometimes a site can become uncomfortable over time, and there have been occasions where I replaced a pod early due to discomfort, but only about 3-4 times in the several years I have been using pods and none in more than a year, if I recall correctly. Maybe 5 times a year, I will knock a pod off, usually hitting it on a doorframe -- at home or in the car. It's pretty rare.

9

It's my 'mini pancreas'! Call Omnipod. They will send a demo pod for you to wear. They are great. Two years for me and I am doing great. Best of luck.

10
Inconvenient things:
Unless you are very close to home, you should carry an extra pod and a bottle of insulin with you at all times. (In case of pod failure or some sort of emergency that will prevent you from returning home.)
Pods can fail. Anecdotal evidence is saying that the new pods fail more frequently than the old ones, but I have no conclusive statistics.
I carry 2 spare pods, a Dexcom G4 sensor & inserter, insulin, and all the necessary peripheral stuff in my diabetes/laptop/work bag (got a really nice one I like a lot from Adorama).

That said, this degree of backup certainly isn't necessary. To cover emergencies, you could go as light as a compact meter case with meter and a few syringes pre-filled with short and long-acting. Or, a meter and two insulin pens (again, short and long).

Yeah, you're on MDI for hours or a day or so, but that's no big deal.

Point simply is, there are options. Hauling around all the gear necessary to put on a new pod when one fails is not required to manage diabetes.

11
wow! 7 to 8 injections a day?? good lord.
Not really.

Trying to achieve tight (in may case, tighter than tight :-)) control on MDI will involve 5-10 or more injections a day when all boluses and corrections are considered.

I was sticking myself about that much before I went on The Pod.

12

Hi Izza - I'm a former Animas pumper (I've been on MDI for the last 5 years, but am thinking about going back on a pump) and would love to hear your pump comparisons. Could you email me your report? courtneysupple@gmail.com - thanks!

13

I spent the first forty seven years doing needles the last four with the Omni pod. Would not consider anything else. Having read the posts to now I completely agree with most of the comments but one thing that has not been mentioned is the lack of nocturnal lows. Since leaving Lantus and using the pod for basil I have not had nearly the problems with low glucose events. I blessed relief. Best of luck on your jump.

14

Starting to get excited! Doctor appt on tuesday to get the forms filled out to get the ball rolling.

15

Michael,
I have to agree with you on the lows. I have had a dramatic improvement on lows all around.

Curt,
That’s great to hear that you are moving forward with insulin pumping. I look forward to hearing more about your progress. I’m sharing in your excitement this week, Canada just launched their next gen pods and PDM and mine came in yesterday! Can’t wait to try the new system.

16

I been a type one since 26 yrs old. Now 46. just went on the POD about two months ago. SO far so good. Levels are definitely better. Only a few POD failures so far. Havent had a1c checked yet. still getting used to bolus changes since i am very active in running and exercising. definitely would recommend it. I am thinking about the Dex Com also. A friend is using that and loves the instant knowing she is either high or low

17

Went to the doctor, he was a little reluctant. He thought I was being pushed by a salesman and wants me to look at them all. I told him nope! He then wants me to go see "his" endo, but it's May before I can see her. So he got all the info he needed and faxed in the forms to get the ball rolling. Now it's in the hands of Ashley and Beth from Omnipod to get it thru the insurance people. Wish me luck!

18

Unfortunately, your situation is typical of the challenge facing Insulet in trying to grow market share. GPs and endos are reluctant to abandon the products with which they are familiar in favor of the unfamiliar, despite some pretty obvious benefits. Way to stick to your guns!

19

i think you will really like it. I just order the DexCom unit also.

20

Well... insurance is ok'd, starter kit in my possession and I've got a meeting with the training lady in an hour. To say that I'm nervous right now would be an understatement. I'm about to walk out of the house without getting a shot and it feels weird. Wish me luck!!!