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Completely new to this!

Caitlin Macrae

Caitlin Macrae

Newbie
Messages
3
Location
Edinburgh, Scotland
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi all!

I have been diabetic for the past 18 years (20 years old now) and it only occurred to me the other day to have a look online for forums etc.
I am now annoyed at myself for not thinking of this sooner! As naive as it may sound, its so lovely to see that there are others out there in the same boat!
I have had a bit of a bad time with my control from the age of 15 to around now (terrible teens lol) and finally after 2 years on the waiting list I am about to start on a pump in the next month! This is an incredibly exciting time for me and my family, as this is really the first big change in 18 years. Although it's exciting, I'm also extremely nervous, which is to be expected I suppose.

Anyway was just wondering if anyone had any advice before starting pump therapy? For example what to expect in the first few weeks etc?
I am having the full week off university and work and they are both being great about it :)
I am getting the Medtronic Minimed also!

Look forward to speaking to you all!
 
Hi and welcome, it's good to hear you are getting your Bg in hand, as you know you are no orphan with the teen years.
I'm T2 but the pumpers will be along
 
Exciting times ahead, hope all goes well on the change over to the pump and you make good progress in your studies, good luck :)
 
I have only been on the pump 6 months - 7 now. I would say be prepared for some hard work and some frustration in the early weeks and months. It is definitely a case of "you only get out what you put in". But a pump is an amazingly powerful tool. If you use it well it will reward you with improved control and improved stability, as well as greater flexibility in your life (in many ways).

There are some headaches to get used to in relation to having a device attached to you all the time.
 
Congratulations! I'm starting my pump next month also.... I have been reading "pumping insulin" and "think like a pancreas" in preparation for my pump start and they have both been incredibly informative! I'm getting an animas vibe! Can't wait!
 
Hi Caitlin

I've been using a Medtronic pump for the past 4 years. You will find it a real change from basal/bolus but once things have settled down and you have got your basal levels and carb ratios sorted I'm sure you won't look back. There are some great threads on this pump forum giving advice on what to expect so do have a read back through them. Stock up on test strips for basal testing and also hypo treatments just in case.

Don't be put off if/when your control starts to go haywire when you first change over, take it slowly and with basal testing you will start to reassemble your control. Using a pump is a much more specific way to adjust and tweak your insulin delivery and once you get it right it makes life so much better. It will need some ongoing tweaking every so often as all sorts of things affect basal requirements. Good luck with starting your pump.
 
Before starting pump make sure you have at least two weeks of blood tests written down... And try and test prob 8 times a day...

I say this as it will help you and your team to assess where you may need extra basal units when in first few weeks of starting up.

Make sure your dsn/consultant gives you a letter for your gp to increase your strips.

Get pump insurance organised.
 
Hi Caitlin,
Glad you have found us, it's a pretty good forum to keep and eye on especially now with big changes going on. So many questions get asked and answered all of the time, I feel I often get more out of this than my clinic appointments because you don't run the risk of being judged. We've all been there done that so to speak.
Anyways, congratulations on getting the pump, it's such an achievement just to be told you're getting one means you've worked hard already. Now it's time for the real hard work to start.
I'm into my second week of using my minimed and must admit it is fantastic but like someone said earlier in the thread "you only get out what you put in".
There is a lot of trial and error with your ratios which means a lot of testing but it's one clever little device once you get going. Don't lose patience with it if it's not giving you perfect results straight away, I'm still adjusting mine and expect to be adjusting for a while yet.
I thought it would be much more invasive on my life but to be honest I can forget it's there (to a certain extent) I just hook it onto my bra and get one with my day (I wear dresses all of the time so hooking it onto trousers was never an option).
Also inserting the cannula is easy too, I was a bit apprehensive about it at first because of how loud it is going in (I use the quick-Serter) but once you get it in right you don't feel it.
Hope everything goes well and if you have problems obviously speak to your DSN but also have a look through this forum like I said you're not ever going to be the first person to go through something. It's a brilliant little place when having diabetes can often feel very lonely.
Good luck!!!
X
 
All good advice. I found the whole 'filling the cannula' bit quite daunting to begin with so I wrote down step by step what I needed to do and followed it religiously. Of course, after a few weeks/months all these things start becoming second nature.
It's a lot to have to take in to begin with so try and take someone with you to your pump meeting(s). A lot of us had saline for a week or two to get used to pump buttons and changing cannulas etc. - do you know if you will get this?
All the best and ask away !!
 
Thats great guys! Thanks so much for all the advice!!
Ill definitely make sure to post any questions up on here if I come across any problems (hopefully not!)
**shell** yeah im pretty nervous about the cannula, im presuming just like injections each time you do it, it can vary pain wise? Would people say its generally more painful than an injection?

Its great to see you all say to not to panic if levels become a bit crazy, this is something ive been concerned about, however its nice to know that this is likely to happen and just to stay motivated :)

Also I was wondering with medtronic, how is your equipment eg infusion sets etc given to you? Im presuming its no longer through the pharmacy? Do medtronic deliver it themselves and how many months supply do you receive? Wondering whether I need to clear a bigger diabetic cupboard or not lol!
Thanks again guys! x
 
Riri said:
All good advice. I found the whole 'filling the cannula' bit quite daunting to begin with so I wrote down step by step what I needed to do and followed it religiously. Of course, after a few weeks/months all these things start becoming second nature.
It's a lot to have to take in to begin with so try and take someone with you to your pump meeting(s). A lot of us had saline for a week or two to get used to pump buttons and changing cannulas etc. - do you know if you will get this?
All the best and ask away !!
Click to expand...

Hi RiRi,

Unfortunately im not having a trial with saline, getting thrown straight into it!! This definitely sounds like it would have been helpful however I have never been offered it. x
 
Your diabetes clinic will set up an account for you with Medtronic. You can either order over the phone or register to order from their website shop. It is delivered directly to you usually within 2-3 days using one of the couriers. I am allowed to order 3 months worth of everything at one time but this can vary from clinic to clinic. You'll be given a selection of infusion sets and all the other bits and pieces when you start your pump, each product has a specific code that you use for re-ordering.

Do remember to keep spare pens/needles and in date insulin cartridges just in case you need to go back to MDI for any reason due to a pump fault etc.

Storage wise I have just unveiled sideboard No 2 for all my diabetes wares and already space is at a premium!
 
Inserting an infusion set is fairly easy and the insertion needle is like an 8mm insulin pen needle.
Depending how much insulin is needed every day, about 2 vials per month should be ok. Blood glucose teststrips will need to be about 250 to 300 per month as pumps require a lot of bg testing to be done in order to adjust the settings ok.
 
Glad you're finding things helpful.
Medtronic are brilliant, you just phone them up and give the order codes to them. They are clued up so if you have any problems with how many you should order they can help. They do recommend that once you open your last box to reorder as everything comes from Norway so especially in winter things can take longer to arrive.
You also need to insure your pump for £3000 I found a website that is mentioned on this site for £6.99 a month. If I remember correctly it's called insurance4insulinpumps.co.uk.
You will receive a new blood monitor aswell it's a contour link so if you're not already using it you will need to order new strips and lancets. It's good though because it syncs up with your pump.
Yeah I would say inserting your cannula is like injecting you just hit some bad places occasionally but overall I find it a lot less painful.
Not sure if you're worried about sex or not but don't, it's easy to unclip in the heat of the moment, just don't forget to attach it again after.
X
 
Ordering depends where you live.... Some hospitals in Ireland make Patients place and collect their supplies from the hospital. It is not carte blanche one way, everywhere...
 
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