I'm trying to convince my husband to put our daughter on a pump

Jennifer - posted on 03/23/2012

I have a 5 year old son who has been on the pump for two years. His blood sugars are still a constant battle due to hormones, growth spurts, and unaccountable snacking! There is no perfect solution without a cure!

With all that being said though, I would much rather inject a site once every 2-3 days versus chase him around my house for 4-5 shots a day. It truely is a NO BRAINER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dee - posted on 07/29/2011

I can't believe the endo is finding excuses not to. Don't get me wrong, ours is dragging their feet, but I think it's more the policy of the hospital that they are attached to than the Endo herself. We've had to take two pump classes through the hospital and they were HORRIBLE! I got more information from talking to the pump reps themselves at JDRF seminars. Most pump reps will let you wear an insulin set so that you can feel and see how to do it first hand so that you get a better understanding of what the kids go through!

You may want to look at the Ping pump. This is the one that we decided on because you can program the food that the kids eat from the meter. You can program their dinner while they are eating without bothering them! Or you can give them a snack and as they are opening it, you can get it programed in before they even take a bit, all without having to have them stand their and you fiddle with their pump!

Kelina - posted on 09/27/2009

My 16 year old son has the pump and it has made a huge difference. I am also a nusring student and have done a ton of research so I am a huge advocate for the pump. The pump is a cell phone sized device that holds a catridge of insulin that is changed and refilled aprox. every 3 days. Then, tubing is connected to the pump at one end and a tiny needle inserts the other end of the tubing into you (often in the abdomen or buttocks region) this delivers the insulin from the pump.
There are a few pros and cons should know about:
1st of all, the pump can be pricey -around $5000 without insurance and about $1200 out of pocket with insurance. Sometimes you can set up a payment plan to pay off that amount. The cost of supplies is also a bit more because you have to buy cartridges, infusion sets and extra batteries to use the pump.
Ok, now the pros:
The pump keeps your numbers more conistent and better controlled. Here's a sample of how it works: You get up, test and put that number in your pump. The pump is preset by your doctor with what your normal blood sugar should be so then the pump will calculate and give you the correct amount of insulin you need to get it to a normal range. When you eat breakfast, count carbs and put that number in your pump, again, it will calculate the correct amount of insulin to cover the food you eat. You will need to continue test before meals and count carbs through out the day and put it in the pump to keep your numbers in check. Also the pump gives a small basal dose ( tiny amounts) of insulin through out the day --this works almost like your pancreas would giving small amounts of insulin to keep you blood sugar in a normal range. this is why it can give you better, tighter control over your numbers and keep you healthier. Hope this is helpful.

Susan - posted on 09/19/2009

Julie, if your endo wont put your daughter on the pump, then he is doing you and your daughter a disservice. We had a endo similar to yours who wouldn't put my son on the pump. But, I kept asking and finally she did. The real reason why she wouldn't was because she didn't know how to regulate the pump and for two years his a1c climb. Our ped dr. sent us to childrens hospital in pittsburgh where they KNOW how to deal with children and pumps. His a1c went down, we learned how to manage his diabetes better from them than our old endo. Your endo might be hesitating to put your daughter on the pump because they have no clue how to regulate a child on the pump. I would suggest you find a childrens hospital where they specialize in pump therapy for children. My son is now 19, a sophmore in college and you couldn't pay him enough to go back on shots.

Amy - posted on 09/04/2009

My daughter is 5 and we just got the pump, and we love it!! My husband wasn't sure about it at first either, but now he loves it. The reason that we are using the pump is becasue her numbers were high also and it was really hard to get them down. After being on the pump her number have gone down. The way that I convinced my husband was by making him go to a class about the pump. They tell you all about the different pumps and how they work. They can answer any question that you or your husband might have. The best thing I about pump for me is that it makes my daughter feel more normal, " I don't feel so different anymore!" she says! We no longer have to go somewhere people won't look at her to give her a shot, we just have to push buttons now!

Nicole - posted on 09/02/2009

Your best bet is to go to a pump training class. My husband and I went for our 5 year old son. They gave us the pros and cons. Pumps make it easier to administer the insulin, ie. 1 infusion set every 3 days vs. 6 shots every day. Pumps also deliver a continuous basal dose throughout the day rather than just one shot per day. Also, if your child likes to graze, it is easy to enter the carbs for a bolus rather than saying "No" because they have to wait until their next shot. Our son just started last week and we love it. His numbers are high, but we are working with the doctor to get the numbers down. What does your doctor say?

Carie - posted on 09/01/2009

Just from what I know it gives a slow regulated amount of insulin to keep the sugar down. During times when she is active you can turn it down or off to insure that it does not drop to low. You will be in control of the insulin levels.....Every child will respond different but in our case I think that my son will benefit from it..My daughters friend that I wrote about ealier is doing great with pump and she is a very active child. Hope everything works out for your family.

Kristi - posted on 09/01/2009

I am glad that all the info that you were given helps.

Julia - posted on 09/01/2009

Thank you for all of the information everyone! I've finally convinced my husband to fight for one. I say fight, because her endo is giving every pathetic excuse possible to keep us from wanting a pump. We've requested to change endo's in the same office, and have yet to hear about it.
I should have updated this once he was on board, but I completely forgot.

And... it really really sucks for them to be diagnosed as well, but an Endo with Diabetes on a pump, must be a wonderful resource. I was just "excited" that when she starts Kindergarten, the nurse at her elementary school has Diabetes as well. So I know that she'll be in good hands during the day.

Thanks again everyone :)

Kristi - posted on 09/01/2009

My husband was the same as yours when we started talking about the pump. But it was the doctor that convinced him that it was the right thing to do. Our son's doctor is also a diabetic and is on the pump he answered my husbands questions using first hand experieance. That alone helped my husband with the choice to haave our son go on the pump. He went on at 11 and is now almost 15. He plays all sports and has even grown 6in. since he started at age 11. Pumping makes life easier for you and your child. Anytime anything goes in the mouth, they get a bolus it is a lot easier than trying to determine small shots.

Hope this helps.

Cheryl - posted on 08/19/2009

My boyfriend and the father of my diabetic son has diabetes too. He is on a pump. His numbers used to be high all the time and it took the doctor a while to convince my boyfriend to get one. Once he did thorugh his number have stay at a normal reading unless he's sick. It's also a lot easier for her to eat snacks. The pump remember the last it pumped and will adjust the insulin accordingly. I have been watchin him pump since out son was diagonsed and I have already filled out paper work and waiting for a reply becasue I know it will free up pur lives just a little more.



Insulin will already be with him so your just go with blood meter thats it. So you won' have to pack a huge bag to go anywhere. Maybe leave in the car a few extas just in case something get pulled out.



I believe it will help her. Talk with her doctor too.



Good Luck!

Denise - posted on 07/30/2009

To add to Joanna's post:
#8 with a pump, you can give really small doses (.05u) to correct a bg that is just a little high or if you child is super sensitive to insulin
#9 when your child is sick and has ketones, you just increase the basal rate instead of having to give more shots to get rid of them
#10 our Animas Ping uses the meter as a remote so we can bolus him without anyone even noticing (the pump vibrates so he knows he is getting insulin)----not that we try to hide his diabetes or management of it, we just don't need to slow our 4 year old down to do it!

The pump is great. Good luck!

Joanna - posted on 07/25/2009

My son (now 8) has been on the medtronic minimed 522 since he was 5 years old. He did shots for 8 months prior to being put on the pump. He tells me at least once a week that he would never go back to shots. That is benefit #1. HE loves it!
#2 - the basal rates for sports, increased activity, decreased activity is easily changed. When he was on Lantus it was very hard to deal with the ups and downs.
#3 - if I check Brian at 11pm and he his BS is 115 and I'm worried about him going thru the night I can just decrease his basals instead of trying to wake him to eat something or a glucotab. His teeth are better for it and his sleep isn't interrupted.
#4 - Going out to dinner/baseball game, etc. is MUCH easier. We don't have to carry a cooler with his insulin and syringes. We don't have to measure insulin in the middle of a baseball game with people looking. Brian just plugs in the carbs and the computer in the pump calculates the dose and gives it to him.
#5 - Related to #4 - Brian can graze!!! This has been one of the biggest advantages to the pump. His sisters graze and now Brian can do the same. It was so hard in the past to measure out small doses when he wanted to grab a drinkable yogurt. Now he can just go to the frig and grab something and bolus for it. He has more freedom which makes him feel more like his sisters and friends.
#6 - A1c - His numbers were 7.4 prior to the pump. Now they are 6.3. They have been as low as 5.6. This means his eyes, kidneys, etc. aren't being taxed. This is his health and his future.

I hope this helps. I realize that it is :"change" and it takes more effort on the part of the parents to learn it and take the classes. We waited until the summer between Brian's Kindergarden and 1st grade. This allowed us to learn how to use the pump and then we taught the school nurse. Oh! Benefit #7 - THE NURSE!! If your daughter gets a really smart nurse then it is great however the pump helps decrease the calculation error and measuring with the syringe when doing shots. My son is going into fourth grade and has had the same nurse since Kindergarden. The errors were far greater with the shots! The pump gives me peace of mind when he is in school. Field trips, etc. are much easier. His friends think the pump is cool!

I hope this input helps!

Maribel - posted on 07/25/2009

Hi,

My daughter is 7yrs old. Diagnosed when she turned 5yrs. She is schedule to pump training if few weeks. Read the book "Smart Pumping : A Practical Approach to Mastering the Insulin Pump (Paperback). Its an incredible book. I believe my daughter's number will be more into level. Plus the pump has some settings that you can program and advice you when she is going up or down depending of the limits you add. Ex. If her low limit is 80 the pump is going to let us know that she is reaching that level the same if she is going high. I am looking foward to this new alternative.

Go and read the book and let me know. Bless you all

Maribel, Florida

by Howard Wolpert (Author)

Claire - posted on 07/24/2009

Good Luck I can understand your husbands concern but it does make a huge differance to many children. Our children are children with a managable condition sure there are bad days but the pump in alot of cases make the bad days less.xxxx

Julia - posted on 07/24/2009

thanks everyone, this is all great information. when we go in in two weeks, hopefully the dr will be willing to talk to him too.



THANK YOU!

Claire - posted on 07/24/2009

Oh and there is a safety feature on the pump so your little one doesnt press any buttons and give more or less insulin etc...so only you or another adult can be in control of it at all times which is good

Claire - posted on 07/24/2009

Hi My 14 year old soon was put onto the pump when he was 12 years old [ diagnosed at 6 years ] due to high bloods , 5 injections a day and wanting to have more freedom of foods to eat . I have to say it is alot of learning in the beginning but Connors overall bloods are great now. He only has to inject a small needle into a site every second day in order for the small plastic tube to go under his skin. he has much more freedom when choosing foods and what types of foods too. It works like an artificial pancreas I suppose...a tiny amount of insulin goes through the pump constantly and when he eats he manually puts in how many carbs he has eaten and the pump works it out. He and my husband and I feel it has helped control his diabetes alot but I do know 2 other kids that it just was not for them. My best friends little girl is 5 and is considering putting her on the pump too.Good luck and I would research it and ask your Diabetes Doctor or Nurse for advise. Love Claire Scotland

Kay - posted on 07/09/2009

I can't provide you with technical details but I can tell you that my son has been on the pump for about 4 years now and his blood sugars are so much more stable than when he was doing shots. I assume it is because of the basal drip of insulin that mimics the way the pancreas puts out a small amount of insulin all day/night long in non-diabetics. Depending on what kind of insulin your daughter is on and if you are just doing pre- or post- meal injections, she will have big swings in her blood sugars because there isn't a steady insulin supply. My son's A1C test results have been fabulous with him being on the pump - as low as 5.3 and never higher than 6.5. My son was quite a bit older than your daughter when he was diagnosed (middle school age) so he was able to learn the pump and takes cares of everything on his own with it. Your daughter might be a bit too young to learn how to do things with her pump but I assume you are helping her with shots now so it really wouldn't be a big deal in that regard and it would be so much easier than having to give her multiple shots each day. I know that Medtronic (makers of the mini-med insulin pumps has free classes they conduct to introduce people to the pump. We went to one before my son started on his so we could learn/understand the benefits. If that is the pump manufacturer you are thinking of using, I think you can go to their website and find out more about classes in your area. That might help your husband understand why it is better for your daughter. Good luck! I personally think you would find the pump really great.

Carie - posted on 07/07/2009

My husband is not exactly happy about that and my son is now 17. It is a new illness to us, but my daughters bestfriend found out when she 4. Her family has been a great inspriation to us...She is getting on the pump at the end of the month, she is twelve now. They tell me that the pump is way to go.

Julia - posted on 07/05/2009

Quoting Sarah:

 I would suggest doing basal/bolus therapy (it's just a type of regimin) before the pump. It helps you adjust and understand things better. 

Where can I find more information on that regimen?  Is that what it is called?  Just a "basal/bolus therapy"?

Thank you so much!

Sarah - posted on 07/05/2009

The main benefits for us have been being able to adjust the basal rates (the constant drip) by different times of the day because she needs different amounts at different times as well as setting temperary rates(a percentage of the basal) when she is very active (making it deliver less), very inactive or sick(making it deliver more). I would suggest doing basal/bolus therapy (it's just a type of regimin) before the pump. It helps you adjust and understand things better. My daughter started basal/bolus around age 4 I believe, then we started the pump at 6. Two years later, it also helps her feel more in control not to mention nowhere near as much needle sticking. We only have to change her site every 2-3days opposed to several shots a day.

The pump is not perfect, but in our case drastically improved our lives.