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Insulin pumps, do they help ?

BluePea

Newbie
Messages
3
Location
Glasgow
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
I do not have diabetes
hello.

This is my first post, I'm new to the forum and also quite new to diabetes.

A year ago my 3 year old son was diagnosed with type 1 and as I'm sure everyone is aware, it's a daily struggle.

His diabetic doctors currently have him on 3 injections of novarapid and 1 injection of levimir.
It's quite a harsh system and I was wondering if an insulin pump would be better?

I'm also wondering if there's some sort of criteria that needs to be met in order for my son to be given an insulin pump ?

If Anyone could share any info on this, I'd be most grateful.
 
I've had a pump for 12 years and love it! It changed my life. It's not a magic answer - a pump,is only as good as its user.

I've moved your post to the pump forum so you can hear from users. You can also browse threads here

Yes, you do have to meet certain criteria. This page might help:

http://www.inputdiabetes.org.uk/alt-insulin-pumps/
 
For me the benefits of a pump,are being able to match my basal needs much more closely. You can also reduce the basal rate for exercise or increase it for illness. Boluses can be more accurate too eg 2.75 units rather than having to choose between 3 or 2.5 units.
 
I got a pump in March this year. I absolutely love it and it was changed everything. A neighbour's child has new pump which I think she gets on well with. I had to fight hard for my pump and my clinic really helped as did my GP. You need to read the NICE guidelines and get as much knowledge as possible.
 
i got one just a week ago. so far l love it. mine still needs to be better but i like it. I think soon though something else will be coming out, it may be available now. My daughter takes her 5 yr old daughter to school and she noticed a young lad same age doing something. She spoke to his mother who told her he was a type 1 and used to inject. He was getting a lot of lumps so was offered a pump but he did not like it. He then went on a trial of a patch/syringe. This involved him injecting into a patch which he wore. She told my daughter it was going very well. This meant no injections and also no pump. Think i have read somewhere on the net something the same or similar is available.
 
Last thing I'd want is a pump after 44 years on insulin injections (currently 4 x NovoRapid and Levimir twice a day (since ageday 4)).
A work colleague has one and his often has air bubbles stopping the correct dose being given and the canula (needle) bending stopping the insulin being injected causing high sugars.
I think you'll get more people in favour since this thread has been moved to the pump section as most on here probably have them.
Would a pump be suitable for a 3 year old?...rolling onto it in the night waking him up, getting in the way when playing/rolling etc., inquisitive little fingers pulling at it/playing with it, etc
 
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I have been on MDI for 50 years and so far like my pump. I find it is more adjustable as if it is altered, it is affected straight away not having to wait until the next injection. Still early day's with me though
 
pumps have saftey features to avoid this from happenig, yes things can happen but they do on MDI, if I was a child again and know what i do now or had the chance earlier in life would I have taken it? ...................... hell yes
 
A pump to me is worth its weight in gold, control so much tighter after just 1 Week
 
I have got one the same but those are screen shots from Diasend
 

That just sounds like bad pumping practice and also the wrong cannulas being used. I've been on a pump for about 9 year and can honestly say I have only had one lot of bubbles and that was user error as in I didn't make sure the insulin was at room temp before filling the cartridge.
Had very few bent cannulas doubt more than 5 in all these years.

A pump does help and is a wonderful tool as long as you use it correctly.
buckmr2 said:
Would a pump be suitable for a 3 year old?...rolling onto it in the night waking him up, getting in the way when playing/rolling etc., inquisitive little fingers pulling at it/playing with it, etc
Click to expand...
Tubing comes in different lengths so no problem at all and sticky tape works wonders for an anchor
 

If you're happy on MDI then that's fine

However, MDI didn't work for me and my pump gave me my life back

I've been pumping 12 years and have never had bubbles as you describe your colleague having, and I've only had two or three bent cannulas which I spotted early and which didn't cause me huge highs.

Yes, pumps are suitable for three year olds - and younger! There are babies and toddlers on pumps. A three year old should understand not to touch it, but for younger children there's a pump lock, and the pump can be put out of sight. I've never heard of a toddler pulling tubing. You can watch videos on YouTube and see many young children happily using pumps. They're ideal for children as they provide smaller bolus increments and the ability to use temporary basal rates for exercise, illness, etc.
 
I've been Type 1 for over 40 years and diabetes controlled my life until 3 years ago when I got a pump.

Now I am in control of my diabetes and my life. I find sport easier and my control has improved massively. OK it's not the silver bullet but pumps are the best answer available to us all at the moment.
 
novorapidboi26 said:
I assume you got your basals pinned down very quickly then if you were getting good results in the first week.
Click to expand...
I had spent a lot of time testing and setting my basal spot on whilst on MDI. This made the transition onto pump very smooth. Had a months worth of libre data so knew when I needed more basal and when I needed less throughout the day. All this meant I was on 5 different basal rates during a 24hr period as a starting point
 
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