So we are scheduled for our pump prep class on Nov 2! Yeah! They will hook him up to a 'saline' pump to try wearing it for 3 days before we actually order one.
What are people's suggestions on how to talk with my 4yr old son about it? He has seen some other kids with pumps and has said "That's pretty cool." But I just want to be prepared if he is aprehensive, etc. about trying it, what might encourage him to give it a try?
We are big on 'trying' things now (new foods, new games, etc.) but he doesn't always want to. Don't get me wrong - we won't put him on the pump if he truly hates the practice pump. But I do want him to give it a valid trial and be able to talk with him thru his fears. He does really hate his shots so I think he will like the pump at least for that.
Any and all suggestions who have started kids on pumps are appreciated!
My daughter was 3 when she got her pump and the one thing I said to her when we would eat was "Instead of a shot, with a pump you would just need to hit a button and there would be no needle." That seemed to make her think, but at this age it is hard to get them to truly understand. I am fortunate that I too have a pump and Courtney has always known me to have it and having to change it so i don't think she was scared of it. But she does still fight us when it is time to change the site. And I have gone back to keeping track of how many shots she would have had if she did not have a pump. When I show her that in 3 days she would have had 15-20 shots, she's growing and won't stop eating, she then likes the pump and only 1 shot every 3 days. It is a tough age to explain, but the fact that he has seen others with one will help I am sure. I let Courtney also play around with mine, and hers once it came. She picked out the color herself and I let her play with the buttons without insulin in it. Don't know that it helped but she seemed interested in it.
Wow! Congrats Jdvs mom! I am so happy for you! My daughter was 5 when she got her pump. She wasn't sure she wanted it but I kept telling her how she would get one shot every 3 days and she could eat whenever she wanted. She hated having her lantus at night so I also made sure to tell her that she wouldn't be taking that any more either. I talked her through it all and once she tried it and realized she could eat what she wanted and not have 5 or more shots a day she was very happy. It is difficult to find a way to talk to a 4 year old but actually, kids with diabetes are wise beyond their years so I think they know more than we give them credit for.
We told our 4 year old how having a pump would mean not needing shots multiple times a day, just one new set every couple days. That was a huge seller for him!! He also thought that the pump looked like a "battery pack" like for a robot or super hero or something so he having it on him at all times is really cool. Doing set changes the first few times was REALLY a struggle for us...he was scared, I was scared and I made many mistakes. We finally started to give him headphones and an ipod to watch a video on while he hugged his favorite stuffed animal, and would have the set in before he knew it. Now we still let him watch some of his fave shows during set changes but don't need to if we are in a hurry. Anyhow, we LOVE his pump and would never go back! Good luck!!!