Hello, I have had diabetes for 16 yrs now and have never wanted anything to do with it, but things have changed. anyway…I’m looking into the pump…Right now I take 3-4 shots a day. I am trying to get my sugars under better control and I feel the pump could help me with this. what are some suggestions and can you tell me more about the pump? when I was younger I was scared of it, I’m sure things have changed since then. So I’m looking for more info 
Thanks
Hi Erin!
Whether you use MDI, or decide to go with the Pump is a personal preference. Some people like one, while others like the other. Personally I prefer to use the pump. Since I’ve switched to it I’ve had a lot of success and find it a whole lot easier to manage and control my Diabetes.
Before I went on the pump I did MDI. My A1c was sitting above 10 and it seemed like no matter what I did it would never go down. My endo recommended that I go to a pump, and the next A1c reading after I switched to it was 7.9! I’ve been as low as 6.6, but am currently sitting at 7.2.
The pump allows you to have finer control over your dosing because it gives you rapid insulin in small amounts in place of a basal insulin which stays in your system for a much longer period of time.
It takes awhile to get used to wearing something that is attached to you, but its not as bad as one might think - especially if you plan on tucking it under clothing. I wear mine on my belt and forget its there most of the time.
Please feel free to ask me any questions you may have about pump therapy, and I’ll be happy to answer them.
-Richard
I’ve only had diabetes for a little over 3 years and a couple of months after i was dignosed my doctor reccomened the pump. I was a bit hesitant at first but then I did the math, 2-3 shots a day every day or one every 3 days. The pump came with a lot less poking. I have a Medtronic pump and I love it. I feel like I have a lot more freedom and more like a normal teeen. I can eat when I want and not have to worry when my next shot was. It’s a little weird having something attached 24-7 but you get used to it, I barely notice it anymore. I would say to try the pump and see how it goes, if you don’t like theres always the option or switching back to the shots. If you have more questions I’m welcome to answer them.
Thanks I think I’m deff gonna try it. I made some appointments to talk with my nutritionist…They next thing is I want to see all the options they have…And I hope its somewhat small…
Lots of options! If you’re looking for something small then you’ll probably lean towards either the Animas or Minimed pumps with the tubing - I say this because the infusion sets are very small in comparison to something like the Omnipod. The Omnipod works well too though.
I currently use the Animas Ping myself, which is a tethered insulin pump - but the infusion site is extremely small and can’t be seen under my cloth. As I wear the insulin pump on my belt it looks like a pager and no one thinks anything of it. The ping also comes with a wireless meter remote that allows you to control all functions of the pump without physically touching it, so you can even hide it away and still bolus. The nice thing is that even without the wireless remote you can still control everything directly on the pump itself.
The Omnipod on the other hand is a completely wireless device - the pump attaches to you and can be seen from under tight clothing. It is nice that there is no tubing though, or anything to clip onto your belt. The one downside that I took into consideration was that if I didn’t have the PDM handy I wouldn’t be able to control the pump at all.
Both units I’ve mentioned are completely waterproof and guaranteed to be such (the remote/PDM is not though).
Best of luck with the choice! Feel free to ask questions if there is anything I can help answer.
thanks for all the info I hope to talk to my dr soon.