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Moving from injections to pump (roche insight) - help appreciated

fozzie84

fozzie84

Well-Known Member
Messages
53
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
I have had diabetes for 29 years, and in the past 6 or 7 years have moved to multiple daily injections. I get on with this ok but having worn an ipro continuous glucose monitor discovered that my blood sugars start shooting up around 3-4am in the morning so I am always waking up high, which then tends to mess up control later in the day. When I've been to the dietician/nurses/consultant they have asked if I would consider a pump. I am in the process of exploring this with them but have practical day to day living questions.

I am interested to know how people swapping from injections to pumps have found it. Whilst I can do my injections I am not a big fan, so the concept of putting in the cannula for a few days at a time appeals to me. How do people find the damage from these vs injections? I have bruises from injections but wondered if the cannula sites take longer to heal? I know this will vary from person to person...

I am also wondering where to keep the pump when I'm not wearing something with a waistband, if I am wearing a fitted dress, and at night as I don't tend to wear something with a waistband and I think I move around in my sleep a lot!

Is there a lot to carry around equipment wise (apart from the pump)?

Does anyone have experience of the roche insight pump as I think that is what I would be getting?

And lastly, I am quite small, so was interested in which infusion sets people have found good when you don't have a lot of padding!

Any help would be appreciated as this is completely new to me.
 
Hi @fozzie84 :)

I've had my pump for 11 years. I found the move from MDI surprisingly easy. I put this down to having excellent training and a great trainer who set up my basal rates well. I also had good back up from my DSN.

I'm slim and I find the cannula sites do leave more of a mark than an injection, but they soon heal. It's not a bad mark, just noticeable for a day or two. It depends where you put your sites too.

When wearing a dress, I put my pump in a bra bag. It hangs under my arm from the side of my bra and is very comfortable. I also use a Tubigrip on my thigh. At night, I use a soft belt around my waist with a soft case on to put the pump in. I keep this loose and it moves around my waist as I turn.

I use the Tenderlink sets and also the Rapid Ds. Both from AccuChek. You can get different lengths to suit you, both of tubing and of cannula.

When you ask about equipment, it depends on how long you'll be out. For a day, I take my meter and an insulin pen as a back up, but that's because I'm cautious. For a weekend away, I take those and spare sets.

I tried the Insight and disliked it a lot so I'm probably not the best person to comment on that! I found it very fussy, but I know others like it.
 
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Thanks azure. That is reassuring as I have a really great team of DSN's. Can I ask where you personally find works better for your sites?

It's stupid, but I wouldn't have thought of putting the bra bag on the side of my bra, so that's helpful, along with the other methods you have.

Equipment wise it doesn't really sound much worse than now, I guess it's just getting used to taking different items out and about. I'm bad at remembering my pen if I pop out at the weekend, so having a pump attached should help in that respect!
 
You're welcome, @fozzie84 :)

I used my tummy for sites for 4 years, but have now switched to my bum and thighs. I do approx 6 months in each area.

My favourite site is my thighs. I use different cannulas for each area as there's a different amount of fat in each area.
 
That's good to hear. I usually read and see pics of people using their tummy, but at the moment I use my thighs/bum. Not averse to trying it but good to know I can use my 'standard' sites too :)
 
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