So I got blood drawn to check my A1c the other day, and I was thinking. I don't like how the needle feels under my skin but i don't know why exactly that is, but for all pumpers here's my question.
Does the infusion set feel like when you're getting blood drawn or is it completely different?
I know how it's not taking anything out of you like blood drawing is,( I think that's why i hate getting blood drawn plus the fact I'm not doin it)
Personally, I don't really ever feel my infusion set. I've only been pumping since the begining of Oct. 2010, so about 3.5 months. I actually think inserting a set hurts less than injections. But, that could be just me. My set, I used Medtronice QuickSets, has a plastic cannula that stays in my skin. You use a needle to insert it, but then remove the needle.
Kelly
I hate having my blood tested too! It stinks, right?
Well I LOVE my pump and my infusion set, simply because it makes life so much easier..but thats a different story. :)
So, onto the infusion set. The way most sets work (or at least how mine works), is the thin and tiny needle that puts the site in, has a little plastic canula around it so small that a mouse wouldn't be able to see it. (Well maybe they would...but you get the point ) After the site is in, the piece/mechanism and the needle that inserts it is removed and the canula stays in you. For me, I can only usually feel the canula for about 30 seconds - 2 minutes after the site is in me. If the site hurts for about 5 minutes or more, I take my site out (simply just peel it off like a band-aid) and put a new one in. Most of the time nothing is wrong with it; maybe it just hit a vein or something. Other times however, it may bend while going in. That is the only time it hurts, but once I take it out, it is ok. When it hurts, it feels nothing like getting blood drawn. This is so small and I bet that if I chose not to take the site out after about 5 minutes of hurting, I would forget about it, whereas I think blood tests hurt a lot, and I would never be able to just ignore it. Usually, it doesn't hurt though. Normally I just put my site in and go on my way.
Anyway..my point is....that sometimes the canula in you may hurt a little bit, BUT when it doesn't hurt...theres no other way to put it I guess besides it doesnt hurt! I can never really even feel it in me! It's so incredibly small and thin and I can never feel it in me. It feels completley different than a blood test because you feel a blood test, but you usually don't feel a site!
Hope I helped!
Yikes! I don't think I could wear a pump if it felt like having your blood drawn! Like the others have said, sometimes it hurts when you put it in, but most of the time that only lasts a few minutes. I can't even usually feel mine once it's in! I've been pumping since 1998, and love it! The major pump companies (Medtronic, Animas, Omnipod) should let you test drive a pump if you're interested--then you can test for yourself how it feels.
Im on the Omnipod and the infusion site is a canula tube that is in ur skin for 3 days and I cant feel it at all! the only time i feel it is when it goes in and it feels like a finger prick.
I won't repeat what everyone else has said, but it is absolutely true that you don't feel it once it's in. The "pain" that some have mentioned is similar to the experience of finger-pokes, in that it hurts for a few seconds, and then goes away. If I were to ask you right now which finger you used for a BG three hours ago, would you really be able to tell me?
Half of the time, I forget altogether where my infusion set is on my body - that's how little I feel it! I sometime pat myself down, like a cop looking for weapons... just picture it, it's hilarious!
I think that the best thing for you to do is to see if you can "test drive" a pump to see how it works for you. The general consensus seems to be that it does not hurt once you take the needle out, but that is not always the case for me. There are times when I feel absolutely nothing once the site is in, and there are other times that it does hurt. There doesn't seem to be much of a reason for the difference to me. The other thing is, I think that i may be slightly allergic to the adhesive that they put on the patch because my skin often gets red and *itchy*... It doesn't seem that many other people have that problem though.
When the nurse does a blood draw for your A1C (and other stuff) they are sticking a needle right into your vein. Ouch!
The cannula of an infusion set is just going thru your skin until the end is just under your skin. Just like for an insulin shot. You don't put it into a vein (on purpose). So it shouldn't really hurt. As other said, sometimes you will hit a small vein or other vessel by accident and that will hurt. So then you take it out and put a new one in.
I don't know from personal experience, but my 5 yr old usually can't feel the set. If he does, we just re-do it.
Thanks Everyone! that was just a concern I had with looking at pumps! :)