(Warning: this post is not for those who might be squeamish around blood.)
I was just thinking to myself this morning how I haven’t had one of those finger poke gushers in a long time…you know the ones that shoot blood across the room and result in what looks like a used set from a slasher movie? Yeah, just now, as I was pulling a seemingly innocent infusion site, I we greeted with a scene out of Kill Bill. In less than 15 seconds blood was pooling on the floor and I was just standing there pressing in on the site hoping the pressure would cause the bleeder to stop. Luckily I had the peice of mind to step 2 feet aside into the shower which probably saved me an hour of clean up. (Is it weird that my first thought was to grab the camera to take a picture to post for the DOC?) Anyway, I was luckily on my way into the shower so clean up was minimal…but I’m going to need a new bath mat…
I have been diabetic for almost 20 years…and I was shocked! Imagine how my poor boyfriend (who’s a little squeamish around a finger poke) must have felt…
Hey - maybe you should star in a Slasher movie? LOL I’ve only had that happen a few times since pumping - usually I calmly walk to the freezer - pull out a small freezer pack - and ram it on the gusher. Okay - I did this the 2nd time - first time *** I FREAKED ***. You’d think after 40 odd years of being diabetic I’d get with the program - right?
Psst - if you need an old broad to do some sort of role in the Slasher movie you are going to do - think of me - okay?
I have never had that happen to a infusion site but I have had it happen with my CGM site it was freaky I mean I pulled out the needle after doing the insertion and it was like some one stabbed me. lol Blood everywhere and it was all due to me taking lots of tylenol all week prior to that insertion. I never thought of me taking that being the cause but it was. my Niece just looked at me and said ochie I just laughed.
Having read about gushers, when it happened to me, I calmly reached for a kitchen towel and put pressure and that worked fine… eventully. Bit of easy clean up after because I was in the kitchen.
Meanwhile my sweet husband went into a complete flap, insisting I needed a doctor right away, and was ready to sprint to the doctor’s surgery (illogically without me) down the road. I had to calm him and explain that, no, this was pretty normal once in a while.
Thanks to you folks here, when something out of the ordinary happens, it’s almost a given that someone else has had it and has described how they dealt with it. I can only imagine how scary it could be the first time, and you don’t know it happens to nearly everyone on a pump eventually.
I think my right to be squeemish went out the window the day that I was diagnosed.
I find gushers equally exciting and I’m glad that you got your camera! I kind of like the bath mat 