My son was diagnosed 5 months ago with T1D. He’s very active in sports. Does anyone have recommendation on insulin pumps?
Thank you all for the advice on various pumps. We currently have the Dexcom 5 and learned that the pumps currently don’t interface with that model … pump companies say it’s in work but not available yet.
The other concern I have, my son was diagnosed in April of this year so we are still in honeymoon stage. His current insulin dosages are small … 1unit at breakfast and lunch, 2 units at dinner and 3 units at bedtime. He does fine on these dosages, but start noticing spikes over 200 about 2hrs after he has his insulin. Hoping pump can help with that. Will the pump handle these small increments of insulin. All the companies say yes, but sometimes you worry that a sales person is only telling you what you want to hear … and it’s a big commitment when purchasing a pump so want to make best decision. Thanks for any additional advice … I’m so new to this I fear making a bad choice.
One thing needs to be clear no matter what the reps are telling you: they all do the same thing. However, maybe with different interfaces and ease of use. But, one thing is for sure, they will all have presets, they will all suggest corrections (if you spike 2 hours after eating) and avoid stacking the insulin, and they will all allow you to set a new basal on the fly. If you child is spiking after eating, consider how soon you eat after injecting. I will surely spike if i inject for 50g of carbs and drink a gatorade right away.
As an athlete, I’d say that setting a basal on the fly is the most useful feature of the pump. Excellent for those with changing schedules or complicated workouts (I run cross country for university). So, if your child wants to go for a bike ride out of the blue and took a basal injection the night before without considering this, he’ll go low 100% unless he “feeds the insulin” for the duration if his ride.
Personally I use omnipod. I practice endurance sports that require me to receive insulin even while I practice my sports. I can’t just unplug my animas tube and go for an hour run/race, and, I also don’t want to run with the whole kit attached to my body. With my omnipod setup, I input the desired setting for a long run (reduced basal), or race (huge bolus), leave the controlling device at home, and go for the run with just the pod on my lower back or upper but cheek. No tube, no worry about waterproofness, continuous insulin delivery.
When docs/reps say that it is in the works but not available yet… Oh boy… This can be months, years, or decades. Don’t wait. Often the companies have upgrade programs in the event that the new one comes out right after you bought yours.
My son is an active 12 yr old and played football with his Tandem T Slim pump. There is a company called Zoombang that makes padded compression pants. They made us some that has a pocket for the pump with padding around the pump. It works great!
Hi,
I’m Ryan, I was diagnosed when I was 3 and am 16 now. I have played ice hockey for pretty much the same time as I’ve had diabetes. I’ve used Animas pumps my whole life and never had an issue with my athletics. They’re very durable and have held up well over many hockey seasons. Currently, I am using the Vibe.
Our daughter is a very active 12 year old. She has been on the Omni pod pump for over a year now. We absolutely love it! Not having to disconnect every time she is playing is huge! You can turn off insulin if you need to during a game also adjust the insulin delivery during a game. It doesn’t bother her at all while she is playing. No tubing is amazing!
My 12 year old daughter has been on the OmniPod for 3 years. We could not be happier with this tubeless pump. She plays basketball, soccer, tennis and is a gymnast. We use a barrier wipe before adhering the OmniPod and use a GrifGrip to keep it in place. We have had no problem keeping the OmniPod in place due to sweat, swimming or bending of the body during gymnastics. The OmniPod stays securely in place. We use Desolv-it to remove both the OmniPod and GrifGrip. We can also change an OmniPod very quickly on the go which is an added bonus. Good luck finding the pump that works best for your active child.
I am a 14 year old boy and have had type one diabetes for almost two years now. I am highly active, participating in gymnastics and weightlifting. I am currently on the Omnipod system for my pump, and the Dexcom G5 CGM. The Omnipod is great for excersise and other activities due to its lack of tubing. I use a skintac adhesive wipe to keep it anchored to my skin and use a tacaway wipe when it is time to change it. Hope you find the best pump for your son!
My son is 12 and was diagnosed July 2015. We had the same questions, as my son is very active and growing! Here’s a few thoughts… Omnipod was going to be our first choice, but we had the Dexcom G4 first which required you to have a a receiver to see your levels, and that information was sent to your app. The first 2 weeks he had it, he lost it twice at school. He and I were concerned about losing/misplacing the pump controls. What we learned is that with the tube attached…he takes it off during bball and football games and practice. He has Animas ping, very durable, but as he is growing quickly and hormones raging, he runs out of insulin after 2 days. Only a 200 unit reservoir. T-slim we may consider when older because of the technology. He was worried it wasn’t durable enough at his age. Medtronic has larger reservoir but uses a different sensor. We love the Dexcom. My husband has Dexcom now with his Medtronic pump. Many things to consider, no bad answer…any pump and Dexcom makes their life easier.
I use OmniPod because there’s no tuning! It’s great for working out and it’s waterproof, the only thing Is to use extra adhesive if he/she sweats a lot.
My 10-y.o. daughter just received the Omnipod on August 30th. We LOVE it! She is extremely active and loves gymnastics. It is a tubeless pump that sticks like glue and can go in the shower/tub/pool up to 30 minutes without coming off. It’s been a BLESSING