Which Pump Do You Recommend?

Thanks for the heads up Dave

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@Dave44 - I honestly think you would be far happier with Basal-IQ than Control-IQ.

How big of a problem do you currently have with high blood sugars?

I agree with @Tim35 on this, the Basal-IQ will probably be the better option unless you are constantly higher than the target BG that the Control-IQ will force onto you.

Not muchā€¦because my G5 alerts me and I take action before it gets too high. :slight_smile:

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I would think the Basal-IQ would be a good match for you. I know it helped lower my A1c from 5.8 down to 5.2. And I know that lower A1c would never happen with the Control-IQ having that much higher of a base level BG range.

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I hear you on the giving up control. I was just like you in that regard. I have been doing this for 48 years and started pumping in 1990. When all the newer tech stuff started, I didnā€™t trust it. My first CGM which was a Medtronic was always backed up with a meter check (and most times not close & stopped using it). When I had an insurance change, I got a Dexcom G4 and it was eye opening, this new technology! But I didnā€™t trust it. I tested before every dosing. I just felt I couldnā€™t take the risk. I am pretty insulin sensitive so I always did a meter check.
I switched to the new Tandem X2 with the basal IQ and am using a G6 with it. And for the first time in my life, I am giving up control! And iā€™m loving it! And for someone who tested 8-12 times a day, it was a huge departure for me. I have not tested with my meter since before Christmas! And I have had no problems! My time in range is better, my urgent lows are gone and my a1c has stayed the same. The joy of not worrying about it so so darn freeing!
My feeling here is I have spent most of my life trying to control my diabetes. It is so darn sweet to not have to work so hard anymore! Freedom is a great thing. And when the new program rolls out, I will be on board. One less thing to think about. Good luck with your choice! It is nice to have options. Maybe one day we can just tell the pump company with items we want and they can make it. Kinda like when you order a car! Such a sweet dream, isnā€™t it?!

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Exactly.

Hi Sally, I am looking into the tslim pump and like what I see. I am currently using a 630g. When animas closed down I had no choice. I used to use a stand alone dexcom with my Vibe before having to give it up and use medtronicā€™s crappy sensor. I didnā€™t like it so I went back on a dexcom sensor. Now Tandem is offering people with more than 6 months warranty left on their pump to opt out and pay $1400. I have alot of problems with lows at night even at the lowest basal rate of .025. I am hoping that my cgm numbers will be accurate enough for the basal iq. My g5 seems to have a problem when my sugar is falling. Alot of the times it will tell me I have an ā€œurgent lowā€. I have seen this only during the day. At night it is accurate. Does the basal iq work only for some people? Thankyou for your opinion.

Iā€™ll reserve judgment until we actually see Control IQ in use.

Trust me, I WANT Control-IQ to work! I WANT to get the update.
But, I will wait until I hear how it helps people out.
I guess I have to hope that they will relax their control over the set BG numbers in a later date after they 1st, prove the Control-IQ works, and 2nd, run test trails again at lower numbers, and/or user set numbers.

As for the lower A1c, statistically speaking, based on the information that we have been given so far, I doubt the Control-IQ could allow for an A1c to be as low as 5.2.
By their math, the BEST A1c would be 6.2.
And while I would gladly try the Control-IQ if it meant my A1c going up marginally, but I feel that I would be doing myself an injustice by letting it go up by at least a full point!

For now, the Basal-IQ works wonders for me! And while I truly want to get Control-IQ asap, I will wait and see how it goes. I am very happy with how much of a difference the Basal-IQ has made.

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I completely agree!!:grinning:

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Me as well

Not sure about this one. I know many here and that I have meet around town who have had great success with their new system! But one of my friends is using the same system and she has had some major problems across the board. Connection issues, sensor issues. She was using the TandemX2 with a G5 before. She only uses her pump for info while I am using my phone as my receiver. I do miss not being able to use a receiver but it will only allow one medical device and that would be the pump. And I am not very tech savvy so I was not thrilled about the phone but I must say I love having the numbers available on it and I install the. Clarity app so I can pull reports whenever I like. I do recommend trying Tandemā€™s website. They have all kinds of tutorials. Play around with them and see what you think. My thinking here is everyone has different needs and wants from their pump. Just got to find which has the ones you want the most.
One I do miss from my Minimed days was the option to put in insulin doses that I took via injection. It helped me with insulin on board issues if I could tell the pump I took an injection of 2 units. Not a big miss, not a deal breaker for me but I do kinda miss it.

I think I might just stick with my 630 and wait it out. The control isnā€™t even in Ontario yet and by the time I am ready hopefully all the bugs will be worked out. I am going to ask my endocrinologist about it. When he looked at my logbook he said to me ā€œYou really do need that self adjusting pump!ā€ The one problem I think with the accuracy was the times I was calibrating. I was doing it anytime that the arrow was going straight. Now I wait 4 hours after food and no insulin on board and when the arrow is steady. I know what you mean by inputing carbs and injections in events. It is handy for in the middle of the night when I go low I can record the carbs in there. I really do hope that the next 21 months fly by when my warranty expires.

There is nothing wrong with using a pump out of warranty. In the 20 years I was with Minimed/ Medtronic, I had 3 pumps. If itā€™s working and the newer ones really offered nothing new, why do it?!
But I will say, I LOVE this system! And I have released control finally! I havenā€™t tested in months! I turn the alarms off during the night, so the pump just does itā€™s thing and turns off the insulin and I get a good night sleep. Those overnight lows are a thing of the past. And like I said, I have only meet one person who had connection issues. Everyone else loves it. And iā€™m Looking forward to the next download where is will increase the basal without me having to do anything. Even better night sleep in my future!

Wow! I can hardly wait!! 35 years of dealing with ā€œDā€ .

Please donā€™t over hype or over-expect on the Tandem Control-IQ.

It most DEFINITELY is NOT an artificial pancreas. I guarantee you would be extremely disappointed if that was your expectation. That simply is not what this product is.

(Apologies if you were talking more in the abstract about a future device yet to be developed - that I totally understand the longing for)

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I still think the way to a ā€œcureā€ will be by the way of a medical treatment and not by new hardware/software/insulin formulation.

I had an older T-Slim and gave it up for the Omnipod. I have to say, having the freedom of never having to find a shelf in the shower or scrambling for my cap cover is really wonderful.

Does the new generation of T-Slim still take forever to prime? The only reason Iā€™m considering it is for the insulin automation and Dexcom integration, but Omnipod is supposed to be closed loop in late 2020.

The X2 is quicker than the older pumps because the newer Tlock system uses less insulin.
I havenā€™t used the other pumps to compare how long it takes to fill the cartridges. Others here will be able to answer it better.

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