Being on the pump vs. being on shots. Whats you opinion??
We have two people with diabetes in or household- 1 with a pump and 1 taking shots. The good news is that nowadays we have humalog and novolog. Fast acting insulins that weren't an option as recently as a dozen years ago.
The pump can give greater freedom and can help you remember or calculate insulin dosage. The bad part about pumps is that they are sometimes clunky and get in the way - but then again nobody complains about the same problems with their cell phones. The inconvenient bulges are easily justified by the usefulness of a phone (or pump!).
I was on shots for two years and have been on a Minimed Insulin Pump for 5 years now. Shots were ok, I mean they did the trick obviously haha; but insulin pumps provide more flexibility and are convenient (you never have to remember to bring your shots everywhere but you don't normally forget something thats attached to your stomach).
There are advantages/disadvatnages to both, and those adv./disadv. apply differently to different people, the best thing to do is see how you personally react and how your A1c reacts to either one. Often people progress from shots to insulin pumps though.
And i agree with Red, everything is better now that there is short-acting insulins like Humalog/Novalog.
I've never been on a pump. I looked into it years ago and it didn't live up to my expectations. I thought it would be more like an artificial pancreas or something that was put inside of you. I just figured its easier to give my self shots than have to worry about catheters and something hanging off of me all of the time.
It just seems like a constant reminder. Which may be great for some people. But I like to check my blood sugar, take my shot, go out and be free.
plaidjack
I wondered if it would be a constant reminder. As it turns out - I keep forgetting where the heck I put my pods and have to do a quick site check just to remember where the goofy thing is hooked up. Also, I remember the first morning after I started the pump - after taking two shots to start every day - I was sitting on the edge of the bed, my wife looked over and asked what I was doing... I said - "ya' know? I think nothing..." It was pretty cool...
The freedom I enjoy now is not having to give shots, snack through physical activity, and having fewer hypos and more even morning blood sugars...
LOL - we all find our own ways, eh?
Cheers!
A-D
I was on a pump for 7 years. First the minimed then the omnipod. I went back to shots because I just didnt like my pump. I got on the pump to have healthier pregnancies. I started the pump about 1 year before conceiving my first child and then stayed on it till 3 years after the birth of my 2nd child.
I personally find shots easier to handle. My kids were always getting tangled in the tubing. i went on the omnipod when it first came out and it was always malfunctioning.
Since being off the pump my sugars have been better. I think the stress I was experiencing with the pumps were too much on me.
I think the pump is great for some; just not me :)
Being a parent of a 13 yr old D, the pump has been great. Although we started him on it only 2 months after dx (which I am still scratching my head on how we got insurance approval), it has done wonders for him. Having it there REMINDS him he's D.. Yeah I know, how could you forget? trust me teens forget lots of things.
When he is over 300 I make him take a shot, and he hates it. I am pretty sure he's liking the pump (as he stands over me right now reading what I type. LOL)
Plaidjack~
That was definitely something that drove me crazy about the pump. At least with shots (which I do now) I feel 'diabetes free' when I am not physically injecting or testing.
It was hard to have the constant reminder.
~Becky~
Hmm... pump vs. shots.
Obviously, it doesn't need much thought at first as to which I would prefer: pump. When I was on shots, I was taking 7+ daily, and those lantus shots...! They hurt! But now that I have tried the pump for a while, I'm stuck in the middle. I wish we could just get a cure, and not have to choose :)
In the beginning, the pump reminded me a lot of being diagnosed. The cord kept reminding me of an IV, and it's been a hard adjustment. I don't like the idea of diabetes; scary thought to think you're choosing between death and needles. But it's obviously a necessary thing to choose, and I think I'd still pick insulin pump over shots ;)
I'm on shots and have been since I was diagnosed (just over a year) and my Docter pretty much said that since I'm comfortable with the shots right now and my levels are quite good that he suggested I stay on shots, and I'm not sure how great a pump really is since I've never had it but I'm doing good with the shots so I don't know if I'll change.
I'm still kickin' it ol' school! Shots.
A couple years ago I did a CGS monitoring test and those three days were awful! I hated having something attached to me 24/7. This thing was a bit clunkier than most pumps though, but still I couldn't wait for it to be over.
I think it would be annoying to have to deal with a pump being attached all the time, and it seems like it would be cumbersome when changing clothes, sleeping, showering, swimming, and other such times. I mean...doesn't it get in the way?
I just switched from shots to the pump a couple months ago. It was a big adjustment that I wish they had told me about before I went on it. Kind of felt like I was getting newly diagnosed all over again because I had to figure out numbers, write everything down, check my BG a lot, etc. And yes, it is a bit of a pain (not literally) to be wearing something all the time. I don't like changing my infusion site every 3 days, it's not very pleasant although I'm getting better at it. I am getting more and more used to the pump and usually forget I have it on. It doesn't bother me when I'm sleeping and surprisingly only one person has noticed I was wearing something and she thought it was an MP3 player or something. The things I love about the pump? My blood sugar is the same when I go to sleep as when I wake up the next morning and I know I haven't been having highs or lows at night. In fact in 2 months I think I've only had 1 nighttime low and that was because I didn't count my carbs properly. I used to have nighttime lows all the time. Also, I now have to take less insulin than before and it's nice not to have so much fat growth hormone going around. Another thing I love is that I can take insulin comfortably in public cause people think I'm just looking at a pager or something. Also, I take it sooner because I don't have to get off my butt to go get my insulin pen after or before a meal! Plus it calculates everything for me and always knows how long ago I took my last dose. And, the bottom line is, my blood sugar overall is way better. And that's the most important thing for me.
I'm using shots right now, for almost 2 years. I know they hurt a lot, but I am just going to have to deal with it.It's been difficult since I am only 9 years old, but my parents have been really supportive through all of this!
i was on shots for 18 years and i just recently changed over to the pump, to me it's the same, but it is easier to keep my sugars in a good range.
right now im on shots and hate them and starting tomrow(if thats when jan. 1 is) I can get a pump but my ddads going not until spring. I wonder what I could do to force him to get one sooner? dont worry I`m not planning on doing aanything horrible. maybe just be really sad because I`m soooooooooooooooooooooooooo tired of ssssoooooooooooooo many shots everrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy day! oh, sounds like a good plan and realistic too!
I'm on shots and I have no plans on changing to the pump.I'm with Plaidjack on this one,the thought of having something attached to me all the time as a constant reminder for me just doesn't sound appealing. I have great control with shots for now. If my endo ever told me that it would be better for me to be pumping I would definately consider it but he never seems to push it.
Ohh, I have to say both have their advantages! I was on the pump for 4 years and then switched back to shots after my first DKA experience because my pump had malfunctioned. When I started doing yoga and different sports so often, I felt like the pump wouldn't be as good of a fit for me.
Check this out if you'd like - a few of the pros and cons on pumping.
Ginger Vieira
I've used both, and I have to say pump has way too many advantages. First, I've lost needles and vials of insulin that fell out of my pocket, but never lost my pump. Second, if I forget to take insulin for a snack, the pump guarantees a minimum amount of damage control. Third, the pump cannot be taken away from you in certain situations (I could not take syringes into the GRE but my pump was fine). Fourth, for those who feel uncomfortable taking shots in public, a pump can look like a pager. Fifth, the pump makes it harder to identify small changes in blood glucose on "instinct" and forces me to test more often. Sixth, I don't notice it but my wife tells me my mood is much better when I am on the pump. Remember that your decisions impact more people than you think.