Gettin excited and a little nervouse to start using a pump. Never used one before.
My insurance approved me at 100% coverage and its now on order. The Insulet rep is coming to my house tonight to give me the lowdown.
I've been T2 for about 7 years, on insulin about 3 and have been really terrible about control. I inveribly forget to inject. A pump will help, however I'm terrified that I will start gaining tons of weight. Everytime I consistently inject I start gaining, even though I only eat about 1000 calories a day.
I'm also nervous with all the recent talk of bad pods and problems with PDMs. I hope I'm not jumping out of the frying pan, so to speak.
You will love the Omnipod. I started podding in February and can’t believe in the difference in my control. I have had one bad pod, and that one failed to beep after injecting the insulin. It was replaced by insult right away. I found I was having issues with the batteries and the pdm kept restarting, but I solved that problem by cutting a small piece of felt the same size as the battery compartment. I place it on top of the batteries after they are inserted and then put the back on. Works like a charm and no more issues.
Any questions you have, ask away. Everyone here is awesome! Good Luck!
I’m pretty sure you’ll love it too; by far the most hassle-free pump option. The trick is not to panic with technical blips.
Take your time, think through the issue and nine times out of ten you can sort things without a call to the tech guys. If it’s a comms error, try moving the pdm closer to the pod. If it’s a pod alarm, well, I’ve only had three fail mid-session and they’ve all been replaced without issue; and, I spend a LOT of time in a wetsuit in the ocean, so that’s a pretty good record given the abuse I give it. If you’re more than an hour from home you should really be carrying a spare anyway.
Most issues/failure seem to be at the changeover stage, but you’ll have another to hand in those situations anyway, so no drama there. And if you’ve done it by the book you’ll get a replacement, so no problem there either. Just remember that the technology is based around a pretty complex system, so, as with all complex systems it’s prone to the odd ‘wobble’. All things considered though, it’s a very reliable and extremely convenient alternative to multiple daily injections.
Congrats! You will love the pod. My daughter loves it, and would never go back to a tubed pump. We’ve had a few rough patches with the pod, but they pass quickly as we learn new tricks. There is a bit of a learning curve. Use your trainer as a resource, and if you start burning through them, ask her for some replacements. You probably will have a few failures until you learn what spot works best and how to do the insertion for your body. For example, some people pinch up on the skin when inserting, and some push down on the end of the pod (almost complete opposites!). We have to push down on the end of the pod (prevents kickback). Pretty much every pod I inserted with the pinch up technique failed. Others are the exact opposite. I can’t explain why, unfortunately. It may have to do with % of body fat, but I really don’t know for sure. Insulet will likely train you on pinching up.
Anyway, don’t stress if you lose a few pods, the company or your trainer should replace them.
If you are flexible and willing to try a few extra steps, I’m sure you can get the pod to consistently work for you!
Congrats! I just officially started on the Omnipod on Tuesday and so far it has been great. I’m still trying to figure out some things but so far I’ve had a lot less highs and more steady numbers.
I was really scared about pod failures too. I actually had my first pod failure yesterday that occurred when I was changing the pod, but that was probably my fault because I was in the bathroom of a restaurant and was rushing and didn’t keep the pod completely flat. I slowly injected the insulin into the new pod and it didn’t beep. I saw a puddle of insulin forming in the cannula window and got a little anxious because the needle wouldn’t go into the pod to get the insulin out, but I was able to get 99% of it out after a few attempts. I had an extra pod with me and extra insulin, so it was no big deal. Just be sure to carry extra insulin and an extra pod or 2!
As far as weight gain goes, I was also really concerned about this too. I gain weight whenever I up my insulin intake by even a few units! I was using 32-33 units of Lantus total a day and at least 15-20 units of Novolog a day (my insulin to carb ratio is 1 unit per 5 or 6 carbs, and I’m a fairly petite type 1!) so a TDD of around 47-55 depending on if I’m doing low carb or not. My TDD the past couple of days has been around 46 units total, so I’m using less insulin than before. Once I adjust my basal rates a little bit, this should decrease even more.
Nope, I’m a hardy(ish) UK surfer/kitesurfer. When it gets really cold I switch to an Ocean Rodeo surf-drysuit: super thin, breathable drysuit with a neoprene compression skin over the top. Seems to keep the pods happy, and me too for that matter. Looks like a wetsuit, only you’re dry as a bone and toasty warm underneath. Not heard of problems with pods in cold water. Any experience of that yourself?
Having your blood sugars under control should have nothing to do with gaining weight. If you eat right, count your carbs right, and get healthy exercise, you should be in good control and your weight should not vary. If you DO gain weight, you might want to have your thyroid checked. Many times Type 1 diabetes and thyroid problems go hand-in-hand. After being diabetic for over 45 years, I was just diagnosed with hypothyroid. Since I was working hard this summer remodeling a house, I actually did not gain any weight… even though I could and probably should have! If your thyroid is off, a little medication will get you back on the right track.
Good luck with the Omnipod. You will still have to remember to take your insulin (in the form of a bolus), but it is much easier than daily injections. You cannot ignore your diabetes, but you can control it.
Hi. Another dumb newbie question. How do you know, after pinch up or press down, if you aren't 'in'? Do you just find out after your BS skyrockets or does the PDM tell you? Waiting for my POD. Met w/rep yesterday and he put a saline one on my arm in back. LOL. How on earth would I ever be able to install a POD back there especially w/'pinch up or press down'? I was amazed at the 'prick'. Waiting for a 'stab' and it was no more than a finger stick. Still wearing it (deactivated) and it itches a little but slept on it ok and can't wait for mine to come.
