My New Pump

So on my drive home tonight, I thought of an interesting topic to write about, but darn it I can't remember what that was.  Instead, I'll write about the thing I've been thinking of writing for the last two weeks.

I got a new pump!  Someday I will have to take a picture of my "museum."  All the old blood-test machines and pumps that I still have which are utterly obsolete.  Someday.

My new pump is purple.  I'm not making any political statements with it, I just wanted a pretty color that wasn't bubble-gum pink.  Mind you, I do like the color pink, but I'm more in the mood for a darker, more jewel-like, almost-magenta pink.  The next best thing about this new pump is that it has the newest continuous glucose monitoring technology system in the US.  The sensors are better, more comfortable, and more accurate.  At least...that's what they say.  The old ones, which went with my old ("clear"-colored) pump did not work well for me.  I'd tried them, when that pump was new back in 2010, and they were more of a nuisance than anything.  The old ones sensors were worn for 3 days, the new ones for 6.  The old sensors were difficult to put in, the new ones...don't like to stay in.  You see, when you insert the sensor, a needle is used.  There is a bit of adhesive around the needle so that when you remove the insertion device, the sensor stays in.  This is more difficult than it sounds.  The removal of the insertion device ends up pulling out the needle/sensor.  I hate wasting sensors almost as much as I hate wasting food!

One of the reasons my doctor wanted me to get this new pump is because it has what's called a "Threshold Suspend."  That means if my blood sugar falls below a certain number, the pump will shut itself off if I do not respond to the alarm.  It also alarms if my blood sugar is above a certain number (and no, it doesn't automatically administer more insulin.  That would be bad-news-bears, see below).  It also alarms if my blood sugar rises or falls at a certain rate.  Well, I should say it has the ability to alarm for all those things, because a person can turn off the alarms and Threshold Suspend.

Another thing I've noticed; for the first 2-3 days that the sensor is in, if you can get it to stay in, it is so very wrong.  For example: the first day I wore a sensor, it said my blood sugar was over 400 mg/dL for hours.  In reality, it was somewhere between 156 - 300ish mg/dL during that time.  After those first 3 days, though, it's accuracy improves.  I'm rather glad I took heed to the instructions that said, "Never adjust insulin based on sensor readings alone.  Always check with a glucose monitor first."  Seriously.

Moral of the story, it's wise to follow manufacturer instructions and warnings.

Oh, and the jury is still out on whether or not I like this new-fangled set-up.  The first 3 days of a new sensor are frustrating and kind of pointless (I turned off all alarms and the Threshold Suspend), but the last 3 days are probably pretty useful.  It will be nice when these little glitches are all worked out!