I just upgraded to the latest Paradigm, the 515, from my old Paradigm 512. I’ve been on the pump for a little over two years, but have never used anything other than Minimed’s. So my view may seem a little biased lol…

3 Answers:

1) I have the latest Paradigm, as I said above. But the pump is only as intelligent as you are. It can do the math for you but you have to input the figures. It’s not an independant system that functions without user input, although it is very easy to use.

2) You hit it right on the head when you said it’s very personal. Only you can decide if you make the right choice. When I first started pumping, I contacted several different companies. My Minimed rep brought a pump from each of the other companies for me to play with. They all had similar features, so it all came down to personal choice. I liked how the Paradigm looked and felt in my hands, the ease of removing the reservoir and accessing menu’s. I also like the upgrades that Minimed offers, especially with the new pump scheduled to come out next year. It’s got a real time, continuous glucose sensor that communicates with the pump!! Very exciting!

3) I’ve never found the insertion to be overly painful; in fact, most of the time I don’t feel it at all. It’s really not that large of a needle, depending on the set one uses. Most of the cannula sets have a 25-27 gauge introducer needle, and an inserter can be used to minimize discomfort. Numbing the spot with ice is a quick and easy way of avoiding any possible pain (although really, it’s not that bad).

Hopefully that helped you out some. If you have any questions, feel free to throw them at me (even email me personally if you’d like).

Tiffany

–
www.candiddiabetes.com
Pumping with Attitude!

I have the new paradigm pump. I don’t have much trouble with the insertion, and don’t use the numbing stuff. But, then again, I have plenty of extra belly ’surface area’ into which to insert the needle.

Just for your information, my A1C used to be over 10. Over the last 4 months, as of last week, it is a 6.7. I am happy as could be! The thought of going back to injections sends shivers down my neck, and I kick myself for not going pump earlier, like 20 years ago. : )

This is only my experience, as you know.

Thank you, though, for keeping an open mind. By the way, even if you do go with the pump, and if you hate it, you can always stop using it and tell the pump people to take it back. I do believe thay are very good about that.

Warm regards,

Joan

I sent a prayer of thanks to Him for saving you from cancer, and that He will help guide you in the challenge of diabetes.

Thank you Joan. You cannot imagine the warmth of the feeling I get when reading this line… Maybe it sounds stupid to people who do not believe, but this is something that keeps me going…

The catheter must be changed every 3 days.

Does that hurt a lot ?

Anyway, that’s it in a nutshell. A pump educator can inform you much better than I, as can many of those in this group. I am still new to it.

Well to me this is very clear… [INLINE]

Some things are bothering me. My blood sugar level is NOT well regulated. I stick to the injection scheme I was given at the hospital, follow the diet (high carbo but “slow” sugars : brown bread, pasta aso). My level has gone down, that’s true, but now hypo’s all the time.

I was a very active person before. TOO active probably. Now with this mess, I am in hypo whenever I undertake the most stupid thing, cooking f.ex. Sigh.

I miss being independant (whenever I thought of something, I took off in my car, now I wouldn’t dare to drive. Very tough for me), being socially active, working. I’m stuck at home. I don’t even dare to buy tickets for a concert, I don’t know if I will be able to go…

My life is a mess. Do you think this pump could help me get my life back again?

Thanks for your advice and take care

Joan Geohegan <smartblnde@…

Nicole,

I don’t take injections anymore, except when I am doing water sports for more than an hour. Otherwise, I put an insertion site in, and leave it there for 3 days. With the pump, I am able to set a basal rate, say 1 unit per hour, which is delivered OVER that hour, not at one time. When it is time to eat a meal, I figure how many carbohydrates I will consume, and tell the pump to give me 1 unit for each 15 grams of carbs.

The fun thing with the pump, besides only being stuck once every 3 days, is it ‘remembers’ how much I took the last time, and approximately how much of that insulin is still in my system, then adjusts the amount recommended to dose. If my sugar is getting low, and I am not due to eat soon, I can suspend the infusion (suspend the basal) so I don’t go low. It will remind me I have temporarily turned it off so I don’t forget to turn it back on when my sugar gets a bit higher.

Anyway, that’s it in a nutshell. A pump educator can inform you much better than I, as can many of those in this group. I am still new to it.

The catheter must be changed every 3 days. This, to me, beats the heck outta 5 or 6 shots a day like before.

Nicole, it would not hurt to read any literature you could obtain to judge for yourself.

One last thing, then it is off to the grocery store….

I sent a prayer of thanks to Him for saving you from cancer, and that He will help guide you in the challenge of diabetes.

Regards,

Joan

Nicole

Hi Nicole,
I’ve been pumping for three months now. In the beginning my blood sugar
was running high but I finally got them down by changing my basal rates and
other settings. I had a few pretty good weeks, and now all of a sudden my
numbers have been running too low so I’ve been changing rates again. With
diabetes, things that work for awhile all of a sudden seem to stop and you
need to make changes whether you’re on a pump or injections. It’s just
easier to make the changes on a pump. Even when I was on Lantus I’d have
high readings, but raising the amount of Lantus I took might fix those
highs but cause lows at other times. With a pump, you can change your
amount of basal insulin over the course of a day. You can’t do that with
Lantus. If it decides to start working like crazy at a certain time,

you’re stuck with it.
The pump only takes short acting insulin (Humalog/Novalog) but it replaces
both your long & short acting injections. You set the pump to give tiny
amounts of Humalog/Novalog every hour, and those tiny amounts throughout
the day replace the Lantus (or NPH, Ultralente…). Before a meal, you can
take a dose (called a bolus) of insulin to cover the meal. Doing this with
the pump is very easy,. but first you’ll need to know certain numbers:
- how many grams of carbohydrate will be covered by one unit of
insulin. Some people might have a 1:10 insulin: carb ratio which means
that one unit of insulin will cover 10 grams of carbs. If you eat
something with 33 carbs, the pump can give you 3.3 units of insulin. The
dosing is much finer than you can get with a syringe or pen.
- you’ll need to know how long the insulin lasts in your body. After
taking an injection of Novalog, you might find that it’s still working 5 or
6 hours later. If you end up injecting 4 hours after one shot, you’ll
still have leftover insulin from the first shot overlapping with the
second, and you might end up going low later on. With the pump, it will
tell you how much insulin is still in your body.
- figuring the basal rates is probably hardest but once you get them set
it’s easier to tweak them and make small changes as needed. You can also
stop or reduce your basal rates if you’re going to be very active,
something you can not do on shots. If you’ve already taken Lantus and then
decided you’re going to go hiking, you’ll most likely end up with lows
during the activity. With a pump, you can stop the basal or reduce it over
the course of hours so that you won’t go low. If you’re sick and end up
needing more insulin, you can increase the rates to cover any highs you
might experience. You can set temporary basal rates for things like that
so your normal numbers won’t have to be reprogrammed.
If your numbers are good (daily BG readings + A1c) on Lantus/Novolog and
your routine doesn’t vary from day to day, then a pump might not offer much
help. But if you don’t follow any real schedules and have a hectic life it
can really help. You can always go to the different manufacturer sites and
request info if you’d like to find out more.
For the first 6 weeks I wasn’t too pleased with my pump but I like it more
every day now.
–
Liz

Nicole

I don’t take injections anymore, except when I am doing water sports for more than an hour. Otherwise, I put an insertion site in, and leave it there for 3 days. With the pump, I am able to set a basal rate, say 1 unit per hour, which is delivered OVER that hour, not at one time. When it is time to eat a meal, I figure how many carbohydrates I will consume, and tell the pump to give me 1 unit for each 15 grams of carbs.

The fun thing with the pump, besides only being stuck once every 3 days, is it ‘remembers’ how much I took the last time, and approximately how much of that insulin is still in my system, then adjusts the amount recommended to dose. If my sugar is getting low, and I am not due to eat soon, I can suspend the infusion (suspend the basal) so I don’t go low. It will remind me I have temporarily turned it off so I don’t forget to turn it back on when my sugar gets a bit higher.

Anyway, that’s it in a nutshell. A pump educator can inform you much better than I, as can many of those in this group. I am still new to it.

The catheter must be changed every 3 days. This, to me, beats the heck outta 5 or 6 shots a day like before.

Nicole, it would not hurt to read any literature you could obtain to judge for yourself.

One last thing, then it is off to the grocery store….

I sent a prayer of thanks to Him for saving you from cancer, and that He will help guide you in the challenge of diabetes.

Regards,

Joan

Welcome to the group! : )

I was on Lantus/Humalog for years and years and years and years and years and years and ………….

Well, I think you get the message. Anyway, I was VERY reluctant to start on the pump, thinking I was going to be LOSING control of my diabetes more than gaining it.

As with all else in diabetes, it is an individual thing. However, it was the best thing I, personally, could have done. When I was doing the injections, I would have NASTY lows, very unpredictably. I have had the pump for 2 months, and have had only 1 low that was worthy of having my husband find the smarties. My control has been tremendously better than with the shots.

We went canoeing last week, and I had to leave my pump in the car. What a hassle! Taking shots, carrying all the junk needed to do the shot, wondering if I ate enough or too much… argh. Then, the next morning, I had a major low, because of the Lantus hanging around longer than expected. That was a smartie morning, and I would only eat them if my husband promised I could tickle him later. That kind of stuff hasn’t happened while on the pump. Thank goodness.

The only good advice I can give on the pump is it is a personal decision. I truly regret not going on it 20 years ago. There are those who LOVE it, and those who are not so sure about it. I was not too sure about it, but gave it a try, and will never go back to shots.

Nicole, I hope this gives you some additional insight. I am sure there will be more members of the group to share as well. We are not a quiet bunch!

Warm regards,

Joan