mixed insulin

[EGHSnr]

Hi all, ive just joined, i'm a carer fot my 12 year old son who has been type 1
since he was 6.
he is on a tandem tslim pump paired with dexcom g6, however, as we all know
there comes times when he hates life,diabetes and why did it happen to him?
Any way he is in 1st year of high school and doesnt want little tube hanging down or have to always take pump out to bolus
and now is asking if he can ditch pump and move to
a mixed insulin regime where he has heard he will only need to inject in morning and then afyer school at tea time.
does anyone have experience of this regime he was on levermir basal and novorapid for bolus which is still used in pump
so any and all help,info and or advice would be greatly appreciated

 

[sleepster]

Hi @EGHSnr, welcome
I can understand that your son may be self-conscious about his pump but IMO going onto mixed insulin would not be a good idea Honestly I can't see a consultant happily agreeing to it either. Especially for an almost-teenager.
Mixed insulin offers no flexibility, if don't want breakfast? Tough, you have to eat breakfast. Snacks are mostly off-limits too. Fluctuating blood glucose due to raging teenage hormones would be difficult to manage as well.
I was on mixed insulin as a teenager (a good while ago ) and I would've given any part of my body and all of my worldly possessions to have a pump!
In my opinion even going from a pump to MDI would be difficult.
Are his BG levels generally stable throughout the day?
If he is near his pump warranty expiry and his clinic offer it, I'd be asking for a Omnipod pump, they are tubeless and are controlled by a handset (I believe, I don't have one)

 

[Jaylee]

Hi all, ive just joined, i'm a carer fot my 12 year old son who has been type 1
since he was 6.
he is on a tandem tslim pump paired with dexcom g6, however, as we all know
there comes times when he hates life,diabetes and why did it happen to him?
Any way he is in 1st year of high school and doesnt want little tube hanging down or have to always take pump out to bolus
and now is asking if he can ditch pump and move to
a mixed insulin regime where he has heard he will only need to inject in morning and then afyer school at tea time.
does anyone have experience of this regime he was on levermir basal and novorapid for bolus which is still used in pump
so any and all help,info and or advice would be greatly appreciated

Hi,

Welcome to the forum.

I can't help regarding pumps. But I am on a basal bolus regime.

Thinking back to my school days. I wish I'd had a more flexible aproach regarding insulin dosage adjustments...
.. As well the CGM set up I have now. (Without joking, back then I had to "use the force.")
Two jabs a day on a fixed dose he may find it restrictive should he wish to skip a meal or eat extra? Maybe even a change in his routine like an impromptu invite to an event with friends..?

I honestly think I couldn't get through a working day. Or even a gig on a Friday night if I used the regime your son proposes..
He may need to think of the broader picture? Like what he likes to do outside of what he already feels could be restricting him using the tech he's got? He may find his alternative more so..

 

[ert]

Anyone at school that can help as a mentor? I have a type 1 11-year-old member of my tutor group. We compare blood sugar phone apps sometimes.

 

[Soplewis12]

Hi all, ive just joined, i'm a carer fot my 12 year old son who has been type 1
since he was 6.
he is on a tandem tslim pump paired with dexcom g6, however, as we all know
there comes times when he hates life,diabetes and why did it happen to him?
Any way he is in 1st year of high school and doesnt want little tube hanging down or have to always take pump out to bolus
and now is asking if he can ditch pump and move to
a mixed insulin regime where he has heard he will only need to inject in morning and then afyer school at tea time.
does anyone have experience of this regime he was on levermir basal and novorapid for bolus which is still used in pump
so any and all help,info and or advice would be greatly appreciated

Hi, I am an omnipod dash user. I only decided to change to pump when I discovered omnipod. I think it would be best to explore this option. I have been on mixed insulin years ago & it was very restrictive, then basal/bolus which was a bit better. The omnipod dash might make him feel less self conscious. All the best.

 

[EllieM]

Like many older T1s, I was on mixed insulin at your son's age, which was before the existence of glucometers so you had no idea how good your control was.
Downsides: fixed meal times and fixed meal carb amounts. (I also reckon that I may have lost a cm in height because I actually lost weight during one quarterly period at that age and I like to blame not enough insulin, though that is just a personal theory because I am by far the shortest in my family.) When in my early twenties and I was offered basal/bolus and a glucometer, I jumped at the chance to get the extra flexibility, albeit at the cost of more injections.

Good luck.

(Edited for typo)

 

[Daibell]

As others have said, mixed insulin sounds good idea but it would not replace the flexibility and better control of Basal/Bolus. I feel for your Son but going to mixed wouldn't be a good idea.

 

[EGHSnr]

Thankyou all for your shared wisdom and experience, he has followed the advice as he doesn't fancy missing out on snacks and stuff and inflexibility that mixed insulin offers.
Thankyou all and my fingers are always crossed that the pharma who have buried the cure for t1 decide on their next cash cow and and set you all free.
Again many thanks and merry xmas to all.
Ed