# Hi pumpers...some advice please :)



## Danilouwho (Sep 24, 2013)

Hello all.
Im dani 26 years old, never had hba1c lower then 8 but so happy ive got it down from 15 to 8 in the past 5 years ( been type one for 17 years) Sooooo im eligible for pump therapy...YAAAAY! I am overjoyed i could cry  been told we get accu check combo which is exciting and looks very cool. Please can u tell me what you all use what the benefits are and what im to expect...i start my jigsaw 6 week course thursday at the hospital then pump trial not long after 
Thanks guys
Dani xxxx


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## Redkite (Sep 24, 2013)

Hi Dani.  My son has the Medtronic Veo (he got his first pump aged 7).  His Hba1c was always in the 8's on injections despite my best efforts (our clinic were useless so I had to self-learn carb counting and dose adjustment etc., and eventually move hospitals for better care!).  Since he's been on the pump, all his Hba1c's have been in the low 7's with a couple in the 6's, and he also has far fewer extreme highs and lows than before.  You have done brilliantly getting your Hba1c down, and I'm sure it'll fall even further when you start pumping 

Do you know what you will be learning on your 6 week course?  We just had two 2-hour sessions with the Medtronic rep and diabetes nurse - the first showing us the pump menus and how to insert the cannula, after which he went on saline for a week, then we had the second 2-hour training which was basically a refresher of the first, before going live with insulin.  It was hard work initially getting the basal rates correct (lots of testing round the clock) - you might want to bank some sleep ahead of your pump start.

We had some initial teething problems due to unsuitable infusion sets (he is very skinny and the ones supplied were the 90 degree insertion types, he did much better using cannulas with a 45 degree angle of insertion).  I won't go on about all the fab features, but do come back and ask any questions you have once you go live!


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## HOBIE (Sep 24, 2013)

Hi Dani, I KNOW you will be pleased with a pump. It takes a few weeks to get sorted but is worth it. There is more testing but it encourages you to test. Take as much info as you can in but ask away when you get it


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## Ricky-dj (Sep 24, 2013)

Hi Dani, Well done, the accu check combo is a good piece of kit. Like Hobie says take in as much info as possible and ask questions and you will be fine. Very easy to use.


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## everydayupsanddowns (Sep 24, 2013)

Hi Dani

Congrats on your move to the pump - hope your transition goes smoothly.

I've been using a Veo for just over 2 years (time flies!) and my control has genuinely never been better. 

Took me a good while to get to grips with things (at least 3-6 months of hard work initially to get the basics in place, but then gradually tweaking and improving ever since then).

I know not everyone does it, but I would suggest you start to get in the habit of keeping good notes/logs. It might seem a bit of a faff, but it REALLY helped me in the early days/months. There are all sorts of 'extra' options you can try to deal with different meals/circumstances (combo or extended bolus... Temporary Basal Rates...) and it was great to be able to look back over notes/comments (I use mySugr on my phone) to see what I tried last time... whether it worked... and what else was going on at the time.

Whether it was gym/exercise, vacuuming, a night at the pub or a big blowout from the takeaway I could see what I'd tried and how it worked out.

I was also very grateful for the advice to buy 'Pumping Insulin' (Walsh/Roberts) which is not exactly a light read, but is packed full of brilliant advice/information on how to get the best from a pump.

Good luck and let us know how you get on


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## Lauras87 (Sep 24, 2013)

hi dani

i started on that pump 3 weeks ago & when i went in to get it, i spent the morning with a rep from roche who showed us how to insert cannulas, how to fill the cartridge, prime the tubing etc and what to order.

i love my pump, as the others have said it takes some work but if you ever have problems & your nurses arent free or you dont know what to do, the people at the pump care line are lovely.

i assume Jigsaw is the same as dafne?


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## HOBIE (Sep 24, 2013)

No laura jigsaw are little bits of a picture with funny edges & take a long time to do !        (sorry coulnt help it )


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## Lauras87 (Sep 24, 2013)

HOBIE said:


> No laura jigsaw are little bits of a picture with funny edges & take a long time to do !        (sorry coulnt help it )



Don't give up the day job hobie


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## Danilouwho (Sep 25, 2013)

hi everyone thank you so much for your feed back defo sounds positive i cant wait  Does it get weight down at all? im 12 stone and need to loose weight find it so hard with the diabetes. Jigsaw is Juggling Insulin and something something or other which all diabetic patients wanting to go on the pump through the queen alexandra hospital in portsmouth must attend. first is tomorrow 
Thanks so much all of you <3


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