ya
so we’re finally here. we’re starting my 3 year old son on a ping pump in about two weeks and although i am thrilled and KNOW the long term affects will be awesome and in many ways i am really looking forward to it
i also am nervous for the transition
please give me any advice to prepare myself and my son
i do have two weeks booked off of work - do you think i’ll need more???
i am anxious and nervous and just want to make it as smooth as possible for everyone
thanks for any input you have
Prepare yourself…it will be like having a newborn in the house again. You really do have to test more often so they can make sure the settings are correct. This is throughout the night as well.
Learn the pump as much as possible ahead of time if you can.
In the long run it will really help with over all control. While your son is quite young to have been diagnosed, it’s almost better, because mine just turning 13 - the age they know it all. Your son will grow up knowing this is just how life is and hopefully not fight it so much.
Good Luck!
thanks - we went through a very rough patch between september and about december where he was ALL over the place, crashing through the night etc - so for those three months we were constantly testing, through the night and all through the day
so
in a way i think that that period was a prep for this - it was INSANE and i wasn’t prepared for it because we had gone through about six months of good you know -
so at least i know this change is coming - which i think can make it worse
and my son is VERY good with everything so i just want to make sure i’m ready and he’s ready - he likes the idea of the pump and knows its something to be excited about - so hopefully it goes well for him
My daughter started on the Ping at 27 months old and we didn’t find the transition too difficult. Sorting out the basal settings is much faster if you have a CGM. I would advise you to start watching YouTube videos of how to bolus, do a site insertion, etc. There are many good ones available. Then you will be familiar with the steps before you start, which really helps. Also, Animas has pump training videos on their website.
I really recommend the book Pumping Insulin by John Walsh. It is pretty much like a textbook, and is written for adults, but it is still the best reference you will find on how to use a pump effectively for diabetes management.
Hopefully, you have a knowledgeable CDE or other support person who can really help with your pump settings. Don’t be afraid to use the Animas pump trainer, they are a wealth of help and information. Our CDE at that time was not knowledgeable about pumps at all and the pump rep really helped us. Also, when you’re frustrated and don’t know what to do, reach out to other parent pump users - they always have good advice! Certainly, I’m available anytime you want to email me with Ping questions.
My final piece of hard-earned advice with using a pump: When you’re riding the BG roller coaster and can’t get off, your basal settings are not right.
You guys will be fine and you will LOVE pumping. It is really such a great tool and advancement in diabetes management. Best to you both!
ah thanks so much
i did read that book and found it helpful so i could wrap my head around the info before i went into training and that way stuff wasn’t brand new information in a meeting
i have heard that you tube is a great tool so i will look into that too
maybe that way my son can see it as well - i don’t want to scare him but i want him prepared as well
so we’ll see
i’m scared but excited at the same time
That is great! Our son is 4 and has been using a pump for 2 years now. He really took to it well. I think being free from shots for everything he ate was a big plus for him. Site changes can be a challenge. When we first started I would have to put on a favorite show and sprinkle tic tacs in front of him to keep him distracted. We started using the buttocks. I would put a lidocaine cream on about an hour before to help numb the area, but being his age he is still a squirmer. Most of the time I didn’t have an extra person here to help so I had to learn to be quick. Since he is getting bigger and stronger I sometimes have my husband just hold him.
I use an IV prep pad to wipe the area, it has a skin protectant and also makes the area slightly tacky so the site adheres well (I did discover that it will adhere much better without using the lidocaine cream, for times when I couldn’t wait an hour. Even after wiping the cream off first, sites would come loose easier than when I didn’t use the cream) I also use the transparent IV dressing to put over the site for added protection. He uses the medtronic minimed Paradigm pump. I am not familiar with the one you will be using.
And I agree the hardest part in the beginning we be getting the basals figured out. A lot of extra fingersticks. We had to have the doc change the order on the prescription because we were having to check more often and running out before the insurance would cover more test strips.
But it is worth it! I am glad we made the switch. His overall control is so much better now. Good luck!
My experience is not too different from those below… my son is 5.5 and he began pumping just a month before he turned 4. The overall difference in lifestyle quality the pump made/makes both immediately and in the long term has been COMPLETELY worth it, but it’s not easy. You’re substituting some complications for others.
I like the advice in this thread about learning your pump fully… the more you know about the pump, your son, and diabetes in general - the less stressed you’ll feel on bad days. Bad days are when the numbers keep going up or won’t come down… or he keeps hitting lows… or in particular, when he’s sick.
Emergency set changes in the middle of the night (2am?) or at public places are my least favorite part about pump ownership… when the set unexpectedly fails (you can tell my multiple high/increasing tests over time despite correction)… it doesn’t matter where you are or what time it is… you have to change the site or get him an injection. In that case, it’s always preferable to us to change the site. The more you get accustomed to the pump and how your son uses it, the less often this sort of thing will happen and the more you’ll be able to anticipate it.
2 weeks should be enough to start - but it may be a very rocky time. Be prepared to be “on call” for another 2-3 weeks after that for whoever your care provider is… and TRAIN that provider heavily!
We took a different approach than Natalie with set changes and I’m glad we did. It works for our son because he’s a generally tough boy anyway… but we only tried emla cream (topical lidocane) for site preparation a couple times before we figured-out that he freaked out anyway and that most of his problem was in his anticipation of the site change and not necessarily in the change itself. Through some discussions with staff and his Endocrinologist we decided to go without entirely. It took months, but he is now accustomed to it… he still occasionally struggles but for the most part he’ll sit still and tolerate it. The key to set changes has always been patience, comfort, love… patience… and patience. For the first few months it would be 1-2 hours for a planned set change process - starting with a warm bath to soften up the old site and through finished and dressed and no longer crying. We can do it now in about 10 minutes if we have to, but we still like to take 30-45 mins including a nice bath… it makes him happier and cleaner skin prior to set change is a superb bonus.
In all this time we’ve only had one very minor infection. Keep it clean, use IV prep wipes… we don’t cover it with anything other than the inset adhesive itself but your son’s skin may vary. As he is so little, we use his butt exclusively. His endo recommended this to us - when he is older and has more trunk bodyfat then we’ll think about his abdomen, etc…
There’s so much to know… I suppose I could ramble forever… what other questions do you have?
thats awesome… all of the advice = its great to head tid bits from parents experiences. i’m learning more and more everyday and know it will be such a bonus in our lives
