Is anyone thinking of going back to injections from using the pump?, I have had so many alarms and now a motor failure, I feel I want to go Options

[susanhs]

I thought I was becoming an old hand with the Mini Med Revel, have had it for 8 months, went on an 8 week trip to Europe and had no problems. Now at home, I had a No Delivery alarm, changed the set and reinserted my insulin reservoir, since it had just been filled. Then the reservoir registered double the units I actually had left in it, so I called Medtronic help line. After going through all the checks, reinserted the set, and the techie said that the motor had a problem and it would be dangerous to use the pump.
The did get me a new/recond. one by 11 am the next day, but I am feeling less confident in the pump at all.
I injected for 4 months after being diagnosed with pens, Humalog and Lantus, and at times I get really impatient with wearing the pump. It is in the way. I can't wear dresses easily and I have given up nightgowns!! Pants during the days and p.j.'s at night!
Has anyone been so frustrated ?
I guess I am looking for others' experiences of similar doubts for staying on the pump. My a1c was imporved, but not all that much with the pump vs injections. I will be seeing my Endo Doc in early August.

[Liz]

If you had good control on MDI and feel that the pump isn't really that much of a help I can understand why you might want to return to injections. I had terrible control on injections so I would not want to give up my pump. I have always worn pants most of the time so finding a place to clip the pump has never been an issue. Same for sleeping - I never, ever wear nightgowns and usually no bottoms either (just a t-shirt/undies) and I clip the pump to my undies. In the winter I will sometimes wear pajama bottoms and always buy men's because they have pockets.

[Linda B]

I thought I was becoming an old hand with the Mini Med Revel, have had it for 8 months, went on an 8 week trip to Europe and had no problems. Now at home, I had a No Delivery alarm, changed the set and reinserted my insulin reservoir, since it had just been filled. Then the reservoir registered double the units I actually had left in it, so I called Medtronic help line. After going through all the checks, reinserted the set, and the techie said that the motor had a problem and it would be dangerous to use the pump.
The did get me a new/recond. one by 11 am the next day, but I am feeling less confident in the pump at all.
I injected for 4 months after being diagnosed with pens, Humalog and Lantus, and at times I get really impatient with wearing the pump. It is in the way. I can't wear dresses easily and I have given up nightgowns!! Pants during the days and p.j.'s at night!
Has anyone been so frustrated ?
I guess I am looking for others' experiences of similar doubts for staying on the pump. My a1c was imporved, but not all that much with the pump vs injections. I will be seeing my Endo Doc in early August.

It is unusual to have a pump malfunction where it cannot be used. I can imagine your frustration, but you should really not give up based on the motor problem. You were smart to call the Helpline.

Pumpers often forget that an A1C is an average. Of course we all want to lower it, but it is also important to tighten the range of numbers that make up the average. Two people can have an A1C of 7.0. One can have swings from 40 - 400 while the other might have good, tight, control and a range of 75 - 200. Obviously the second one is under better control. Pumping should help you tighten your control.

As far as sleeping and wearing dresses, do you know about the waist-it? It is a neat pouch on a cloth belt that can be easily worn underneath clothes. Have a look at the accessories on these two websites, you might find a solution:

http://www.uniaccs.com/categories.asp?id=2

http://www.pumpwearinc.com/pumpshop/index....ct_list&c=2

Linda B.

[Arlene S.]

I thought I was becoming an old hand with the Mini Med Revel, have had it for 8 months, went on an 8 week trip to Europe and had no problems. Now at home, I had a No Delivery alarm, changed the set and reinserted my insulin reservoir, since it had just been filled. Then the reservoir registered double the units I actually had left in it, so I called Medtronic help line. After going through all the checks, reinserted the set, and the techie said that the motor had a problem and it would be dangerous to use the pump.
The did get me a new/recond. one by 11 am the next day, but I am feeling less confident in the pump at all.
I injected for 4 months after being diagnosed with pens, Humalog and Lantus, and at times I get really impatient with wearing the pump. It is in the way. I can't wear dresses easily and I have given up nightgowns!! Pants during the days and p.j.'s at night!
Has anyone been so frustrated ?
I guess I am looking for others' experiences of similar doubts for staying on the pump. My a1c was imporved, but not all that much with the pump vs injections. I will be seeing my Endo Doc in early August.

I never had any doubts in the almost 18 years that I have pumping. Just curious. Did you go through the full body scanner with your pump at the airports?

[susanhs]

No, I did not have to go through the full body scans, but went throught the metal detectors and had my diabetic card in hand. Also, on & off the ship they reassured me that it was not going to be a problem and I always checked my settings afterward to make sure they were not affected.

[Arlene S.]

No, I did not have to go through the full body scans, but went throught the metal detectors and had my diabetic card in hand. Also, on & off the ship they reassured me that it was not going to be a problem and I always checked my settings afterward to make sure they were not affected.

Obviously you had a faulty pump or something went wrong with it. When you reinserted your reservoir after your "delivery alarm" did you just put the reservoir back in or did you rewind as if you were inserting a new reservoir? It seems strange that it registered twice the amount of insulin.

As for clothing, I don't wear dresses that often but if it's a skirt I clip the pump on the waistband. With one-piece dresses I clip it on to my bra. Most of the time I wear pants. I have never had a problem sleeping with my pump.

[tedm]

Keep pumping vs. back to MDI is really a personal choice. I would never go back, based on my severely uneven basal needs from hour to hour. Handling that kind of thing with Lantus or such is really difficult.

Fear of pump failure is not a good reason, IMO, to stop pumping. Pumps have many safeguards against undirected insulin delivery. (My feeling is that the Medtronic telephone rep. could not be sure that your old pump was dangerous but switched it out to be safe. This is a good response on their part, though they could have worded it better to you.)

On the other hand, if you find pumping to be more of a hassle than MDI and you don't think it is improving your control much, I cannot argue with you switching back. (Though, keep in mind Linda's comments about A1C being an average.)

Good luck either way.

[Mike G]

No

[susanhs]

Obviously you had a faulty pump or something went wrong with it. When you reinserted your reservoir after your "delivery alarm" did you just put the reservoir back in or did you rewind as if you were inserting a new reservoir? It seems strange that it registered twice the amount of insulin.

As for clothing, I don't wear dresses that often but if it's a skirt I clip the pump on the waistband. With one-piece dresses I clip it on to my bra. Most of the time I wear pants. I have never had a problem sleeping with my pump.

Hi, Arlene,
I put the old reservoir back in, since I had just filled it the day before. It also looked as if, when I took it out again with Medtronic Helpline on the phone, and the black measurement lines were 4, instead of two concentric lines. Seems like a faulty reservoir.

I also wear the pump hooked to my bra, but at a restaurant, I hate fishing in my top to get the pump out to bolus for dinner! Some folks have told me to cut a hole in the dress and wear a belt over it, but I haven't done that yet. I did make a "pocket" with my sewing machine to hold the pump with safety pins to my nightgown, but it flops around in bed when I turn over, so I will stick to pj's.

[Linda B]

I did make a "pocket" with my sewing machine to hold the pump with safety pins to my nightgown, but it flops around in bed when I turn over, so I will stick to pj's.

The waist-it is perfect for underneath nightgowns:

http://www.uniaccs.com/thumbnail.asp?id=2&cid=66

[Arlene S.]

Hi, Arlene,
I put the old reservoir back in, since I had just filled it the day before. It also looked as if, when I took it out again with Medtronic Helpline on the phone, and the black measurement lines were 4, instead of two concentric lines. Seems like a faulty reservoir.

I also wear the pump hooked to my bra, but at a restaurant, I hate fishing in my top to get the pump out to bolus for dinner! Some folks have told me to cut a hole in the dress and wear a belt over it, but I haven't done that yet. I did make a "pocket" with my sewing machine to hold the pump with safety pins to my nightgown, but it flops around in bed when I turn over, so I will stick to pj's.

Hi Susan,

The only way you can tell how much is in the reservoir is by checking the pump itself.

I guess I have it down to a science now. I just pull it out, bolus and put it back in and I don't really care if anyone is watching. I was going mention that some have used a baby sock pinned to a nightgown but I don't much worry if it isn't attached to me. It just lies there on the bed.

[ncpumper]

I went to a 31" infusion line to make it easier when sleeping. I just lay it beside me in bed. It is what it is...

[Gregg C.]

I went to a 31" infusion line to make it easier when sleeping. I just lay it beside me in bed. It is what it is...

When sleeping I use an Ipod sock. It hangs around my neck like a necklace. In the daytime I found that a cell phone case on my belt works great.

[jbkjr]

I have a friend that takes a "pump vacation" every now and again. She will go back to MDI just to take a break from pumping. I have read one article where they take half their basal as lantus or some other long acting insulin this way pump failure or disconnecting does not cause a major problem. There was another interesting article where the guy goes pump free on the weekends. He takes his long acting insulin and just uses the pump for bolus. He played on some sort of NFL basketball league with a lot of contact and would be off the pump for hours. There are a lot of options. I have to keep changing things up to keep control interesting. Whether it's a different meter or lancet or lancet device or infusion set. It gets boring and mundane if everything stays the same. At least for me it does.

[susanhs]

I have a friend that takes a "pump vacation" every now and again. She will go back to MDI just to take a break from pumping. I have read one article where they take half their basal as lantus or some other long acting insulin this way pump failure or disconnecting does not cause a major problem. There was another interesting article where the guy goes pump free on the weekends. He takes his long acting insulin and just uses the pump for bolus. He played on some sort of NFL basketball league with a lot of contact and would be off the pump for hours. There are a lot of options. I have to keep changing things up to keep control interesting. Whether it's a different meter or lancet or lancet device or infusion set. It gets boring and mundane if everything stays the same. At least for me it does.

That sounds very interesting, about using injections in between. Can you efer me to the articles you mention? I will try googling the topic, but would appreciate more specifics. Thanks

[JohnG]

I injected for 4 months after being diagnosed with pens, Humalog and Lantus, and at times I get really impatient with wearing the pump. It is in the way. I can't wear dresses easily and I have given up nightgowns!! Pants during the days and p.j.'s at night!
Has anyone been so frustrated ?
I guess I am looking for others' experiences of similar doubts for staying on the pump. My a1c was imporved, but not all that much with the pump vs injections.

Your a newbie, 4 months on MDI is hardly enough time to learn how to maintain good control. I takes years for someone to understand how
insulin, food, and activity will impact their BG control, and unfortunately you are the only one that can truly figure this out. A pump is the best
tool for delivering insulin but if you do not understand intensive insulin therapy and have no one to teach you then your pump will only fix
some basal issues (if it is set up properly) and this will have little impact on your A1c.


I will never give up pumping insulin as long as I can afford the cost.

Here are just a few things that have gotten in my way:

My feet burning so bad I couldn't hardly walk.
Trigger finger, frozen shoulder, and digestive nerve damage.
Trips to the ER for Hypoglycemia and high ketones.
1000’s of sleepless nights worrying about where my BG was headed.
Unpredictable A1c’s.
Poor nutrition, starvation diets, and massive weight lose trying to stop unpredictable high blood sugars.
General poor health.

My first few years with diabetes was easy and then it hit me like a sack of bricks.

My pump has fixed most of my list and I can live with the rest.

Vanity has never been high on my list and I will pull out my pump and dose anytime, when I was on MDI
I would inject anywhere except a public restroom...PU

Good luck on your decision...the impact a few years down the road could be good or bad it’s your choice roll the dice...;-)

[JohnG]

That sounds very interesting, about using injections in between. Can you efer me to the articles you mention? I will try googling the topic, but would appreciate more specifics. Thanks

Some Doctors place juveniles and small children on a dual regiment so there is less risk of DK, little people do not communicate
their symptoms well...

There are also some adults and some professional athletes that use a dual regiment during competition and training but they
are only interested in wining...BG is kept at higher than recommended levels to achieve good performance without
low blood sugar risk during activity. A1c is not their number one priority.

Pump vacations are a bad idea. When you switch back to a Basal inulin you are giving up one the most important benefits of
pumping insulin. Lantus absorption rates can very 50% to 70% every day. Some individuals are forced to take a brake from
their pumps but this is usually because they have some kind of absorption problem.

This post has been edited by JohnG: Jul 27 2011, 03:05 PM

[susanhs]

Your a newbie, 4 months on MDI is hardly enough time to learn how to maintain good control. I takes years for someone to understand how
insulin, food, and activity will impact their BG control, and unfortunately you are the only one that can truly figure this out. A pump is the best
tool for delivering insulin but if you do not understand intensive insulin therapy and have no one to teach you then your pump will only fix
some basal issues (if it is set up properly) and this will have little impact on your A1c.
I will never give up pumping insulin as long as I can afford the cost.

Here are just a few things that have gotten in my way:

My feet burning so bad I couldn't hardly walk.
Trigger finger, frozen shoulder, and digestive nerve damage.
Trips to the ER for Hypoglycemia and high ketones.
1000’s of sleepless nights worrying about where my BG was headed.
Unpredictable A1c’s.
Poor nutrition, starvation diets, and massive weight lose trying to stop unpredictable high blood sugars.
General poor health.

My first few years with diabetes was easy and then it hit me like a sack of bricks.

My pump has fixed most of my list and I can live with the rest.

Vanity has never been high on my list and I will pull out my pump and dose anytime, when I was on MDI
I would inject anywhere except a public restroom...PU

Good luck on your decision...the impact a few years down the road could be good or bad it’s your choice roll the dice...;-)

[jbkjr]

That sounds very interesting, about using injections in between. Can you efer me to the articles you mention? I will try googling the topic, but would appreciate more specifics. Thanks

The article on the weekend basketball guy was in a book about exercising and pumping. I have it laying around the house somewhere. Don't recall the exact title. The girl I mentioned was in college and she would take 2 maybe three weeks a year while at school. I have read and searched so many articles I don't recall where i gathered the information on 1/2 basal as lantus. Just a whole ton of options when it comes to the pump.

[BruceT]

So glad to hear someone else is thinking of switching back to MDI ... I've been on the Revel for 1 month and am sticking with it for now -- but am very much on the fence about it. I was in tight control on injections -- A1C between 6 and 7.0. Taking injections was never a real issue for me. I went on the pump to see if I liked having more freedom to eat when and what I wanted. But I'm finding that I don't have an overwhelming desire to eat more or at odd times. Meanwhile, I'm having a hard time getting used to having this thing in me 24/7. My other issue is that I have a hairy chest, and taking the infusion set off is painful--I dread it. So, I'm committing to a year on the pump, and then I'll decide. Strange to say that I felt more freedom with the injections. Hmm.