One Friday per month, I’ll write about my favorite things that make life with diabetes a little easier for me.
This month’s favorite thing is so damn obvious that it’s kind of shocking I haven’t written about it yet on the blog: my OmniPod insulin pump.
I love the friggen’ thing.
I don’t know if it’s because pumping works better for me in general over multiple daily injections (MDIs), or if it’s because the OmniPod is simply the perfect pump for me. Honestly, it’s probably a combination of the two. I love how convenient it is – I can deliver insulin any time, any place, I don’t have to worry about tubing getting caught on random objects, and it lasts me for three full days (of course, only if it’s working properly…I’d estimate that it does about 90% of the time). And I love that my dosages are so much more precise compared to how they used to be when I was doing MDIs. It gives me more control, knowing that I can dose in .05 increments according to my current blood sugar levels and carbohydrate intakes.
However, it is merely another piece of diabetes technology, meaning that it does have some flaws. Sometimes pods fail for the silliest reasons, such as coming into contact with static electricity. And other times pods don’t work for no damn good reason at all, without giving the user proper notice (in the case of bent cannulas, something I recently encountered).
But for the vast majority of the time, I love my OmniPod. I’m still surprised to how quickly I adjusted to the system – the first week or two was tough, but then it was relatively smooth sailing after that period. I think it was easy for me to get used to another wearable device, because I’d already been wearing my Dexcom for a couple years by the time I got my OmniPod.
Will I wear my OmniPod for many years to come? Or will I want to switch things up and give another pump a try? Only time will tell, but for now, I think I’ll stick with what I know best in the world of insulin pumping.
Hugging the Cactus 
I wish I had such a good history with pumps. I’ve heard the stories of them making a big positive change for people. I’m just too different. I need so little insulin at times, it just can’t seem to stay ahead it. My experience with one left me with the EMTs knowing my name. 5 times in 7 days the first week they had to wake me up from a low. One of those times it was so low they couldn’t get a reading from their machine, under 18. When I tried to return it, they said it was past my 30 day trial (they included the 3 weeks it sat on my dresser while I was being trained).This last time made me swear off pumps for good this time. All the promises from both the doctor and the company that if I stayed with, they’d grant me an extended trial period so I could still return it after they found the right setup. They never did. The “automatic” algorithm was not as good as they had hoped. It would go low at work and stay there, suspended, for about 4 hours. She started pointing to my eating too many carbs as the reason but still couldn’t explain my long low periods. She finally agreed to let me off the pump but then the fight ensued as to where my treatment needed to go then. I had been on Toujeo at 4 units daily. Yes that is not a typo. 4 units instead of the 24 they started me on. It still dropped at work requiring me to snack to stay lucid. Again they backed out of the return promise and I was told it was past my trial period. OK. lol Enough of my story. Yours is not mine. You seem to have a much better story with it than I did. Keep going and do what is best for you.
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As Molly’s dad, I am too familiar with the number of daily injections she received as she was growing up. The omni pod is a welcome tool in the life of my diabetics. I will say their failure at times can cause some worry. The company is very good about sending replacements when they do fail. I’m very proud of the blog Molly writes and hope others get an occasional take away from it.
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DAD ❤
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