Okay, this is going to sound really weird but Ive been to pump classes and have almost gotten the pump 3 times. But I just cant get passed the initial big needle. I hate it, I hate the look of it and it just messes with my head to the point where I just say screw it and stick with my pen. There were a lot of younger people in my class including a 4 year old girl who just shot it into her self and was perfectly fine. did anyone else have this problem?
Back when I was first diagnosed we did not have the option of the pen or of the short syringe needles. It was only the one long needle. I was forced at that point to just deal with it and move on. Now with all the choices most people forget that needle even existed. The thing to be aware of though is that it is not bad at all. I think in all the time I have used the pump and I switched pumps in the period I have maybe felt pain a total of a 5 times. Even though the needle does look big it truly is not. When you were at the class what infusion set were they showing you? Were you at the classes for a Medtronic, Animas, or some other pump? The way the set looks can also be a turn off. The quickset by medtronic looks the least intimidating, but I had no luck with that and used the silhouette. That is a longer needle as it went in at an angle. However, if you decide yes on the pump after the first few times you will even think about it. Kinda like after your first few injections. You just need to take your time and when you are ready move forward.
I think it was Medronic. They were showing me just do it in your stomach on the side kind of, thats really the only place I really can do anything on my body, it sucks. But I guess its just my fear of needles, I even have a hard time getting blood drawn, dont ask me why. Ive had diabetes for almost 4 years now, and I just feel like im behind using the pen still, seems like everyone loves their pump and loves the control they have with it and I guess I want to get to that point haha.
Andrew the pump is nice, but if you have great control with your pens there is no need to switch. The pump is just another tool, but you can go on without it. I managed 13 years without a pump. As for getting blood drawn, I still look away when the needle is about to go in. I will stare at the blood as it fills, but I try not to look at the needle. It is just part of our nature to want to avoid things that cause pain.
If you were looking at the Medtronic, than most likely if you were staring at the needle you were looking at the silhouette infusion set. It is truly not that bad. Good luck though.
Yeah that sounds about right. Thanks a lot for your help. Helps alot hearing how other people deal with things.
dont be embarassed of being afraid of needles. wednesday, i had to get immunizations at school, and i was so nervous. i told the nurse let me breath a few seconds then do it. she said tell me when your ready and im like no just do it.
at first i was scared of the pump but as the idea sunk in, it not as scary as it seems. plus tht big needle doesnt hurt. i am going on the pump next week and i tried putting my first site in a month ago. it really doesnt hurt and its a miracle to have such great technology. cant wait for next week. my pump is the blue medtronic mini-med 722.
i guess i wasnt much help with the pump part. hehe! if you think the infusion set needle is bad, try looking at the cgm! its very thick. but, it doesnt hurt the least bit! sometimes, your infusion set wll hurt a little bit when it goes in, but the joys the pump brings will greatly overweigh that small ounce of discomfort.
[quote user="Lauren Fertig"]my pump is the blue medtronic mini-med 722.[/quote]
i have the same one in purple!
I had diabetes 3 years before I did my own shots, and I only did because I was forced to at camp. If you are not comfortable using the pump, don't feel like you should. Like Brian said, it is simply another tool out there for you to use. There is no "right way" to handle your diabetes. Whatever works best for you is what you should do. If you are still interested in the pump, my doctor's office let me practice putting in an infusion set on a fake tummy, then they let me do it on myself. If you really want to try, you can ask if they have something similar available. I use a short cannula (6mm), and I think it feels just like poking a finger--as in no pain.
I went for 62 years giving myself ( or actually at the beginning getting them from my parents as I was only 3 months old ) so I guess I am just so comfortable with injections ...I was afraid of the pump .." what if it malfunctioned , having to change site so often "... a lot of things like that and add to it you do have to check blood sugars more often ,also ....BUT finally 3 years ago ( I was taking 10 shots a day at that time ..because of problems with insulin rejection problems. guess I was just a diabetic too long ) according to my Doctors my best bet was a pump ...the learning curve was the hardest hurdle fro me and the fact that I was allergic to every type of infusion set that I tried ..so it took a while ....but I finally found one that works perfectly ..and the needle on it is about __ that long and just gets set on the skin and a slight push and it sticks in and stays ....no PAIN AT ALL.....I use an Animas pump with a set ref# 100-187-51 a contact detach steel needle set .. You can not feel it at all and it does not have any problems with allergies ....easiest thing I have ever done ....check with Animas about it ..it may solve your needle problems ..as you don't even see the needle part going in .
I had times where I would sit for over and hour with my needle in my hand not being able to give myself the stupid injection! I hesitated almost every time I did it! The first time I ever put my pump site in I did it in under a minute. I unwrapped the inset, cleaned myself up and bammm, it was over and done with!
The needle is very intimidating! VERY! But, if you get the spring loaded ones they are amazing! I barely ever feel pain from it. And it's something you have to do!
Working up the strength to do it is a huge step! It starts to play mind games with you, but you need to put yourself in a state of mind where you think if it does hurt it won't last long enough for me to cry over it. Which I've sat for hours thinking a little needle was going to hurt and then I started doing it everyday. haha
if anyone doesn't have the pump you should definatly get it it is the best thing ever it makes you feel more normal than if you are on shots. you will definatly love it! trust me you will
i had the sae fear when i started the pump i was 10 or 9 and my mom would hold me down but i found a trick, relax your self and be real loose and it goes in . i inserted it myself for three years and and i changed and got a insert 30 and it's super easy and if you realy relaxe your self it stinbgs for like 2 sec.and it geos away . if you still have fear ask your endo. to try it on you and you will see it doesn't hurt , remember the more tense you are the more it hurts.
Thanks alot every one for the replies, Its all good advice, I guess I just gotta get myself past that first time like it was when I gave my self my first shot. I guess im apporaching it as I dont HAVE to do it, so im not going to haha, where as when I took my very first shot of insulin I did it because I knew I HAD to.
If you are afraid of the big needle, look into the Omnipod. You can't see the needle at all!!
I was really scared when I got my pump after being on injections for 5-6 years, but I found that I was a lot more comfortable with the 90 degree sets instead of the slanted ones. If you use the 6mm cannula instead of the 9mm, the needle is also much smaller. I like not being able to see the needle with the Quickset (and Inset, too). I think it's completely normal to be afraid of the pump at first -- it takes some getting used to. And if you don't think the pump will help you, then you should feel fine sticking to the pen. However, I found that after getting over the scary needle and insertion, the benefits of the pump really paid off!
What Katie said is right about the infusion sets. There are many varieties. The quickset was nice, but I had issues with it so I had to switch. When I first went to put in my infusion set I flinched, which made the infusion set not get in properly. It took me a few days to be able to use the serter and not pause anxiously before clicking it in. When you decide things will be fine.
And I can't remember who said it, but the omnipod is always a good option as well. You can't see what's going in you.
[quote user="Brian"]
What Katie said is right about the infusion sets. There are many varieties. The quickset was nice, but I had issues with it so I had to switch. When I first went to put in my infusion set I flinched, which made the infusion set not get in properly. It took me a few days to be able to use the serter and not pause anxiously before clicking it in. When you decide things will be fine.
And I can't remember who said it, but the omnipod is always a good option as well. You can't see what's going in you.
[/quote]
Plus there's that cream that numbs the skin. I don't use it anymore since I got used to putting in the infusion set, but it was great stuff for the first few years on the pump.
Brian, does your infusion set go in perpendicularly? Or at a different angle?
I use the inset 30 which goes in at a 30 degree angle.
I am hoping to get the pump soon, should I get the short or long tubing? I just have no idea