First of all, just wanted to say thanks to tudiabetes and the members of the forum here for providing this community and support. I've been living with diabetes for 20 years now, and I've never had a friend or family member who suffered from the disease and could truly empathize. So it's great to have found this resource.
I just wanted to throw this out to the group here, because I'm not sure what to do with my feelings about it at the moment. I've been using the OmniPod for 2 years, and there are things I love about it (i.e., no tubing, my A1C's are great, etc.). But I also find it incredibly frustrating. When I work out or exercise, no matter where the pod is on my body, it's never comfortable. In fact, it's often so painful I have to take it off early. Because of my insurance, I have to get pods through a distributor (Edgepark). They've been great, but I often have weeks where I go down to the wire in terms of how many pods I have left, and wondering if my last one will fail in some way before the next shipment arrives. I can't use the PDM software on my Mac, so I'm basically paying for a big feature that's unavailable to me.
So I've been thinking a lot lately about going back to injections. Before pumping, I was doing 3–5 injections a day. It's aggravating having to bring insulin and needles everywhere, but more aggravating than a pod failing in the middle of a big work project? I don't know. My girlfriend thinks I should stick with the OmniPod, especially to try the new pods/PDM (arriving next week).
I guess I'm just trying to figure out which experience gives me the best quality of life, and sometimes it's really difficult to know. I'd love to get your thoughts on this. Thanks for reading this.
Tblay, I don't have any great advice for you, but I definitely understand where you're coming from. I've been using Omnipod for a little over a year and my feelings are still mixed. The Mac thing is a huge frustration, as is the tightly-controlled quantity of supplies (I get mine through a distributor as well). I am definitely going to hold out and try the new version, though - I received the PDM last week and I think won't be getting the pods until my next supply order (September! yuck). When I get really frustrated (and that is often) my husband reminds me that the reason I went with a pump in the first place was to get my sugar in tighter control - and that part is working. It's just all the other little things that do add up.
Well, I won't comment on the Mac issue, that is a choice you have made for your computing and truly has nothing to do with how you control your diabetes..
As for waiting until you have at least had the opportunity to test out the new pdm with the new pods, I think that is just common sense at this stage. At least give the new system a full month of trial before throwing in the towel.
I just switched to omnipod from mdi back in April, although I have roughly 5-6 years of experience from earlier use of the Mini-med systems. I went through 3 of those as they upgraded. Anyway, I had been on Omnipod for years, then switched back to mdi for the last 25-30 years... nothing but trouble going MDI. Different insulins all the time, different doctors, none of which really knew anything OR knew so much that they didn't LISTEN to me about issues, they 'knew' the problems and assumed the answers were x, even though I kept telling them that the answer was a Y for me, not an X.
Sooo... I would never go back to using MDI unless I had no other choice... taking shots for two different types of insulin, neither of which works as explained, was a royal pain... typically requiring anywhere from 4-6 shots a day. Not fun, not even with a 28guage needle.
Your husband's reassurance is basically what my girlfriend reminds me of as well. And that's true and a very good thing. I appreciate your reply. It definitely helps. I wish you luck and hope the new pods are good to you.
I'm a little confused. You used the Omnipod and then were on MDI for 25–30 years? Do you mean you were on the Mini-med system for that time? Unless you amazingly got an OmniPod in 1988...? :)
I agree that common sense says to at least try the new system.
I'm sorry to hear about your problems with doctors you've seen, though I don't think that has much to do with whether or not a wireless pump is better than injections. But I hear you. It's hard to find the right balance with a doctor. And their job is tough too.
I appreciate your response. I think a lot of people feel like they'd never go back to MDI, except as a last resort. Maybe, with the new pods and such, I'll agree. Thanks for your response!
I'm wondering if you have a good endo or CDE with whom to talk over these issues. For example, the running low on pods seems scary & completely contrary to good medical protocol. Insulet tells you to order new pods when you open the last box of the previous shipment. Maybe the endo could re-write the Rx/send a letter to Edgepark to fix this issue. As for the painful pods during exercise I simply don't know. I'm very active & have been on the Omnipod for 5+ years & have never had this problem. Do you mean the pain only starts AFTER you start exercising?
I've always heard that the A1c will determine the quality of life to a large extent. If that is true, the method of diabetes management that gives you the best A1c's would be the one to pick, & then all the issues with that particular method would need to solved or some type of compromise
reached, e.g., customizing your workout depending on where the pod is on a particular day. There seem to be so many serious athletes on this forum; hopefully they can brainstorm with you possible solutions.
In general, if you've got an issue-from technical to emotional trauma people here will
give you support, suggestions, & genuine understanding.
Pumping is arguably not for everyone. And, I've found it to be a bit harder than MDI. But I think the payoff is worth it with better control, if you do put the extra work in that it requires. The first thing you'll miss with pumping is the protection against "Morning phenomenon" Where you will have high BG during the pre-dawn hours. Basically every diabetic will run into this. And it is a heavy drain on your long term health. Then there is a decrease in your flexibility for diet. This may not have been a factor for you, but many pumpers are able to have more control of their diet both up and down in carbs they consume on a daily basis. I know it made losing weight for me a LOT easier than it was in the past with MDI.
So if Omnipod isn't working out, I'd suggest trying another pump first. While tubes do suck, the difference in control methods may be better for you and your needs. Good luck on your decisions.
Tblay - Sorry to hear you are having such a time of it! I was MDI for 25 years or so before I went on the pod (when it was first introduced in Virginia in 1995...I was my CDE' s first "experiment" on it) and, for me, it was great in the beginning (for all the same reasons you gave) but then I started having problems with Insulet's accounting dept. (double charging, etc.) so, I, like you, have decided that MDI sucks, yes, but it it better than dealing with Insulet! Right now I am working my way through about 10 cases of pods that were sent to me for no reason, I was not on auto ship, I didnt order any...they just sent them! (Another example of what I see as slipshod management) so I have enough pods to get me through 2013, Then on Jan. 1st of 2014 I officially go back to MDI. I tried the animas "ping" for a bit but could not adjust to the tubing. Roche has a "podlike" pump in the works, the "solo", so I will wait to see if/when that is launched. Anyway,long story short, I am with you! Good luck bro! check out the "solo" online! PEACE
Thanks, and another thing that occurred to me as I was thinking on this, is that in retrospect I think I am having rosier memories of Levemir and Lantus than what was actually the truth. I had a hard time with both of the long-acting acting insulins and much less flexibility, especially in regard to fitness. There were certain times of day that I just could not exercise unless I had a snack first. My endocrinologist and I could never get the peaks and valleys of the long-actings just right, and looking at the roller coaster basal program that finally works for me, I now understand why! Is it annoying when a pod alarms, stops working, or falls off altogether? Absolutely, but it helps me to remember that dealing with the alternative was actually probably worse! I know this is not everyone's experience, but for me is was reason #1 to finally try a pump.
I wish you luck in your decision-making! Your message has been thought-provoking and made me reflect on why I started this in the first place.
Part of the advantage of the pump is that your endo can download the data and look at your BG,carbs, basel and boluses and you don't have to keep a journal. I also find it is nice with a CGM to be able to bolus more discretely than with a pen system. I don't know your financial situation, but, you can get a cheap laptop(used?) and use that to download your data.
One tip for stretching pods if you aren't getting the full 80 hours due to running out of insulin is to get a few pens(samples or a get a script "for backup" or just get some needles) and do your bolus from the pen when you are at home, Bolus 10% with the pod to keep track of what you have done. This does mean you need to be careful with stacking and the IOB will be 10% of what you really have. Once you get a little ahead be sure to keep up on your orders.
You can also get your script written to give you a little buffer as this makes sense and covers for pods that get ripped off by doors or whatever.
I just received my new pods and I can relate to your frustration. SO far 4 four out of 6 alarmed while giving me insulin...within a week...but I am trying to be patient and give the new pods a little longer chance they are "new". I would say try a little longer. I too am thinking about going back to injections because I have issues with the adhesive on the new pods as well not as good as on the old ones.
I very temporarily went back to MDI on Friday because of what I was doing; I stopped using the pod for about 2.5 days then swapped back yesterday.
The experience was enough to remind me why I really love the pod. Back on MDI I really wanted to be able to inject 0.5 IU of insulin from the pen to balance out my blood sugar! It's also scary being on Lantus because I can't switch it off. I deliberately under-dosed because of that, I'd rather use the Humalog every couple of hours to keep my blood sugar manageable than trust the Lantus not to send me low.
Perhaps worst of all though is that I simply don't believe the injections of 1 or 2 IU of Humalog actually delivered all the insulin; unless I'm very careful I always see a drop at the end of the pen, and while the volume of the drop is very low so is the volume of the injection (0.01ml; 10 micro-litres).
Once again I'm wondering why on earth we were all forced to change to 100IU/ml insulin. If I'd had traditional 20IU/ml insulin I could have managed much tighter control, though not as tight as with the Omnipod.
Like several of the other people who have commented my HbA1c is now much better (even, I suspect, after last weekend) and my wife has a very low opinion of using MDI.
As for the comfort issue, I assume this is because of discomfort from the canula. The new pod has a shorter canula injected at a steeper angle (to get the same depth). That might help.
Thanks for your kind words. I'm just glad to be able to have this conversation. Can't believe I only just now found this forum.
I had a similar experience with long-acting insulins, which is probably another argument to stick with the pump. I'm glad to hear the basal flexibility has helped you so much.
I do have a good doc, though not an endo per se. I go to Diabetes Center of America branch that's in the medical center in Houston, which houses a ton of great medical providers. So I feel lucky to have my doc as a resource.
The pain during exercise is hard to describe. If I have my pod on my quad, for instance, and I run or play tennis, it feels like someone is constantly stabbing me where the pod site is. Not with a huge knife, but maybe constantly stabbing me with a toothpick. The best solution I've come up with so far is to time my pod expirations and exercise simultaneously, so I can exercise without one on. Sometimes this ends up in unfortunate hypers, but other times it works out fine... I appreciate your response. I'll keep working on it, and maybe the smaller pods will work better.
Steve, that's kind of hilarious they sent you that many boxes of pods without provocation. I'll definitely check out the Roche. For the most part, I've had a smooth interaction with Insulet's billing, though they did double charge once. But, all in all, they've been supportive. It's just dealing with them + insurance + lack of local supplier that gets frustrating. I'm glad to hear you've got a plan in place for yourself.
Yikes. I'm sorry to hear that. I hope it gets better, or that you are happier if you go back to MDI. Does the adhesive irritate you or just fail to stick the whole time? I live in Houston and, through the summer, it's hard to get the adhesive to stick the entire 3 days...
Thanks, John. I'm sorry you had a frustrating experience going back to MDI, but I'm glad you've settled on the pods again. Yeah, the ability to give less than a whole unit is a great advantage of the pod system. I would definitely miss that.
And thanks for the info about the shorter cannula in the new pods. I wasn't aware of that.
