# Medtronic veo minimed pumps



## Davyjg (Sep 22, 2010)

I have been diabetic for 38 years and have just been offered a pump but am really unsure about it.
I am very sensitive to insulin and 1 unit can make a huge difference. Have lost all warning signs of hypos and have been as low as 1.2 still standing but somewhat confused ,below 2 is a regular occurence and as I live on my own could be quite dangerous. I dont know why but my insulin /cp ratio changes from day to day. I work hard at trying to keep control but seem to be fighting a losing battle my HB is 8 at the moment and has rarely been much higher than that but this is only because of large swings in my blood sugars. I was told to run my blood sugars higher but this will end with nasty complications .
I have searched for information on the internet but seems very sketchy and mainly american based.
I have been told i would be getting a medtronic minimed veopump but cant find anything that usefull on the internet.
I am a bit of a techno phobe have trouble with a mobile phone so god knows how i woold get on with something that is basically going to keep me alive .
Really want to know if they really are a lot better for maintaining a good and stable blood glucose.
At the moment I am just a little scared and very depressed


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## novorapidboi26 (Sep 22, 2010)

That looks like the DAFNE online diary.............dont know why it would be on this forum though.................


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## Northerner (Sep 22, 2010)

Hi Davy, welcome to the forum  I'm not a pumper, but we have several members here on the Veo pump so do check back as I'm sure they will give you the lowdown when they see this. From all I have heard, pumps can make a real difference, especially when your sensitivity is so great and hypo awareness is a problem, so it sounds as though it would be a very good move for you.

p.s. I've removed extraneous text from your post - presume you copied and pasted from another forum.


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## Ellie Jones (Sep 22, 2010)

Davyjg, snapped I unit of insulin make loads of difference to me hence why I have a pump...

The pumps are fantastic for this as they can deliver a 0.005 of a unit over an our period...   All come with 2 different bolus's to use, 

Standard= full dose in one go
Sqaure   = The dose is delivered evenly over your chosen set period
Multi/
Dual wave = Split's the dose (you chose the split%) it dilvers the fist dose in  one go, and the remainder is delivered evenly over your chosen period..

You find that all pumps now come with verious wizards to aid control and can calculate your insulin dose required by calculating the IOB (insulin on board) with your current BG, sensivity factor etc..

Sounds daunting, but don't worry menus are pretty easy to follow to where you need to go, but if for people who have techno phobia and need to be confidence with navigating etc..  You can start with just using the basic function of the pump, standard bolus etc..  The menu can reflect this basic use, and hide the not in use function out the way, so it makes it easier to navigate the menu..  Then as you get used to the basic functions, you can then add other functions as you build your confidence..


Give it a go after all if you find it's really not for you, you can always give it back..  But believe me when you've got a sensivitiy issue with insulin, then the pumps are soo perfect for handling this indeed..


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## rossoneri (Sep 22, 2010)

Davy,
Welcome aboard.  

I do use a pump but not the Medtronic.  We do have some users of that pump here so I am sure they could give you some good insight into that pump in particular.

In terms of pumping overall, I think it would suite your sensitivity to insulin for the reasons Ellie has suggested.  Also on a pump you are delivering the short acting basal dose every time you eat rather than limited to say three injections a day.  This allows you to inject smaller amounts more frequently although it does depend on your eating pattern.    
I would also say that it is common for someone who has moved onto a pump to reduce their overall insulin intake.  I believe mine has dropped by at least a quarter.
It may also help you that on the pump you will be on just short acting insulin rather than the combination of the short and long acting stuff that most people are on before they begin pumping.

If your insulin/carb ratio varies a lot then the pump may not help with that but you are in no worse position than you are today and you will also probably have access to the wizard that Ellie mentions to assist you.

Being a techno phobic might not help but I would say my experience is that once you have learnt the basics it is largely just a case of repeating the same steps.  That said it is a steep learning curve at the beginning but if your clinic team is good and supportive, and the fact that they are recommending that you try a pump suggests that they are, then you should be able to cope.  The pump suppliers themselves also provide 24 hour technical (but not medical) support.

How are you at adapting to new things?  When I started on a pump I had been diabetic for 25 years and I know I did feel a little exposed going from injections that I was very accustomed to doing to using this pump, which was all new.  But like I said, once I had learned the basics it became a lot easier.

How often do you test currently?  Before I started pumping I would say I tested on average 5-6 times a day, now it is more like 6-9 times.  In the early days on the pump it was more frequent.  If you don't fancy testing so frequently every day then I would reconsider.

Overall for myself changing to a pump has, I believe, given me better and more stable control and I think my figures bear this out.  It does however, require some effort to get the best from it and you should not expect it to automatically solve every diabetic issue.  It also does not suite everyone.  At the end of the day it is therefore your decision.  

The final point worth noting however is like Ellie says, if it does not work out then you can always return the pump and revert back to your current regime.


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## rossoneri (Sep 22, 2010)

Davyjg said:


> ... Have lost all warning signs of hypos and have been as low as 1.2 still standing but somewhat confused ,below 2 is a regular occurence and as I live on my own could be quite dangerous. I dont know why but my insulin /cp ratio changes from day to day. I work hard at trying to keep control but seem to be fighting a losing battle my HB is 8 at the moment and has rarely been much higher than that but this is only because of large swings in my blood sugars. I was told to run my blood sugars higher but this will end with nasty complications. ...



Davy,
Just one further point on your hypo awareness, I suffered a lot of hypos too and lost my awareness.  I was given the same advice, to run my sugars higher.  This however, is only for a month or so and to raise the levels only by say 3mmol/L.  The aim is to have a sustained period without a hypo so that your awareness returns.  When this happens you can revert back to as you are so long as you continue precautions to avoid the hypo and act quickly when you are aware one is happening.  Getting your awareness back should help your overall levels in the long term because certainly for me a bad hypo does cause my sugars to become very unstable for up to two days afterwards.  I would recommend that you act upon this advice.


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## bigpurpleduck (Sep 22, 2010)

Hi Davy,

A warm welcome to the forums 

I have a Medtronic Veo and I love love love it.

I have the opposite problem to you - I am very insulin resistant, particularly in the morning, so I often need stupidly high amounts of insulin. However, as has been said, you can set the pump to give you a tiny basal rate which would be a benefit to you since you are sensitive to insulin.

I think the pump gives me much tighter control than I could ever have imagined when I was on injections. You can have a different basal rate every half hour of the day if you need it, and I find this makes it much *much* easier to avoid hypos and highs.

I also find that, although I still sometimes have hypos, they are nowhere near as bad now as they were when I was on injections. My blood sugars used to drop very quickly to a hypo - often from 13 to 3 within an hour - and as you can imagine I felt rather horrible, and I often didn't catch the hypo until I was very low. With the pump my blood sugars are much more stable, so when I do hypo it's much more gradual and a lot easier to treat.

On the techno-phobe point - as has been said, you can "hide" some of the more complicated menus and start off simple, then introduce more settings as you become more comfrotable. In my experience, my DSN was very good at explaining everything. Also, Medtronic are always prompt at answering and very helpful if you call them with any issues.

To sum up, I would *highly* recommend a Medtronic. I can't say enough good things about it.

I could talk about the benefits of pumping from now until doomsday so I'll leave it there. Feel free to ask more questions, though, or PM me if you'd like more info.

Either way, best of luck!


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## mindy (Feb 25, 2016)

Davyjg said:


> I have been diabetic for 38 years and have just been offered a pump but am really unsure about it.
> I am very sensitive to insulin and 1 unit can make a huge difference. Have lost all warning signs of hypos and have been as low as 1.2 still standing but somewhat confused ,below 2 is a regular occurence and as I live on my own could be quite dangerous. I dont know why but my insulin /cp ratio changes from day to day. I work hard at trying to keep control but seem to be fighting a losing battle my HB is 8 at the moment and has rarely been much higher than that but this is only because of large swings in my blood sugars. I was told to run my blood sugars higher but this will end with nasty complications .
> I have searched for information on the internet but seems very sketchy and mainly american based.
> I have been told i would be getting a medtronic minimed veopump but cant find anything that usefull on the internet.
> ...


Hi Davyig, I was pretty much identical to you until I was put on the pump mentioned. As well as the minimed veo pump you should be given CGM sensors which will help iron out lows/hypo's. As the 2 devices talk to each other continuously if your blood sugar drops rapidly your pump will bleep and make you aware that a low blood sugar is predicted,therefore, you have enough time to  eat or treat yourself! This has saved my bacon!! The only downside to it is there is a bit of work involved in carb counting everything you consume. Your care team should also give you some basic training for pump use and contact numbers for emergencies. All in all I like mine and would never go back to 4+ injections per day.


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## HOBIE (Feb 25, 2016)

Welcome, I have had a Veo for a few years now & the predecessor. Have a look on this forum at "Love My Pump". Pumps are so so much better when they are "Tuned" to you. An injection the night before or before a meal does not live well with me. I adore to miss meals & if I got half way through something I did not want (stop the pump)  If for some reason you are running high- A couple of pushes of buttons !         Good luck


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## trophywench (Feb 26, 2016)

This thread is 6 years old!  No idea why it was dragged up yesterday?


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## Northerner (Feb 26, 2016)

trophywench said:


> This thread is 6 years old!  No idea why it was dragged up yesterday?


I think there is a way of warning people when threads are a bit old, I'll look into implementing it


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## Sally71 (Feb 26, 2016)

Northerner said:


> I think there is a way of warning people when threads are a bit old, I'll look into implementing it



Apart from the fact that they must have to plough through pages of newer stuff to get to it?

Although I have been guilty in the past of looking through the old stuff just out of interest and then have been tempted to reply to one...  Luckily I remembered in time how old it was 

Perhaps threads should automatically close themselves after a few years?


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## Northerner (Feb 26, 2016)

Sally71 said:


> Apart from the fact that they must have to plough through pages of newer stuff to get to it?
> 
> Although I have been guilty in the past of looking through the old stuff just out of interest and then have been tempted to reply to one...  Luckily I remembered in time how old it was
> 
> Perhaps threads should automatically close themselves after a few years?


Perhaps people are searching for something in particular and find old threads without realising how old they are? I don't think there's anything wrong with reviving old threads as long as the person is aware how old they are  I've seen a warning come up on other forums, so I'm sure it's possible to do it here, just need to find the right setting to enable it!


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## Robin (Feb 26, 2016)

Northerner said:


> Perhaps people are searching for something in particular and find old threads without realising how old they are? I don't think there's anything wrong with reviving old threads as long as the person is aware how old they are  I've seen a warning come up on other forums, so I'm sure it's possible to do it here, just need to find the right setting to enable it!


Part of the problem may be that when you search for something, you get a list of threads that have included the term searched for, but they seem to be in random order. 2015/16 posts come buried in the middle of a list of stuff from 2010, 2011, etc, and it's easy to lose track of when they date back to. I don't know what dictates the order they appear in, but is there a facility for 'newest first', or something?


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## Northerner (Feb 26, 2016)

Robin said:


> Part of the problem may be that when you search for something, you get a list of threads that have included the term searched for, but they seem to be in random order. 2015/16 posts come buried in the middle of a list of stuff from 2010, 2011, etc, and it's easy to lose track of when they date back to. I don't know what dictates the order they appear in, but is there a facility for 'newest first', or something?


It defaults to something called 'relevance', but if you click on 'More' when the Search box comes up you can choose to list things in 'Most Recent' order


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## Robin (Feb 26, 2016)

Northerner said:


> It defaults to something called 'relevance', but if you click on 'More' when the Search box comes up you can choose to list things in 'Most Recent' order


Ah, I didn't know to do that. Suspect others don't either ( unless they're more clued up than I am, which isn't difficult!)


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## trophywench (Feb 26, 2016)

I'd clicked on it, thinking I didn't recall the OP's name at all let alone his question - odd - so thought I'd go to the end of it  - is it worth bothering to read it all to see if I have anything to add, bearing in mind how many replies there have already been,  he's probably been helped already - and only THEN noticed it was ancient !!


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## robert@fm (Feb 26, 2016)

#Old threads, sat on the server like bookends... 

(With apologies to Paul Simon.)


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