Pump-start day yesterday!!! All went very smoothly. Out to dinner last night. BGLs really great, but some tweaking of basals probably in store next week. Even got the software to work on Vista (the Australian version isn’t supposed to). Downloaded the pump data. Site change & refill today with the rep and handed in the reports from the downloaded data – less than 24 hours worth (LOL). Off to breakfast in town. So easy to bolus! Learning to trust what the pump tells me to do.

Am so loving this pump!! I made exactly the right choice for me.

Some hints before anyone goes on the pump.

• Do lots of homework.
• Download the manual and familiarise yourself with the functions.
• Do the online pump-school on the Animas site.
• Read “Pumping Insulin” by John Walsh, and then once you’re hooked up, use it to understand more.
• Play with the virtual pump on the Animas site.
• Make a list of your favourite foods with carbs so you can upload them to your pump later.
• Read pumping blogs and posts on Tu Diabetes and other sites.
• And ask questions!

The more you learn beforehand, the easier pump-start day will be. No two people’s requirements will be the same, but reading about others’ experiences was invaluable for me!

I have the most awesome Animas trainer on the planet (sorry, I want to claim this one). Not only does she wear the Animas 2020 herself, but is a fountain of knowledge and helpful information, given in a language catered to whatever level you’re at. She’s very kind and encouraging, and has a wicked sense of humour – definitely things I appreciate in any trainer. I can’t praise her and my DE highly enough for making this transition easy and painless in so many ways.

I’m definitely hooked up and flying!

Only about 12 hours to go before I get hooked up to the Animas 2020 insulin pump. It’s been a long wait – more than 2 months! Despite all the preparation and learning, I’ve still got a ways to go. I’m in for an awesome training session. But the real hard work begins after I’m hooked up.

I have no idea what my body is going to do on an insulin pump. Will I have better control? Will there be highs and lows? Will I be able to tweak my basals and figure out whether I need 2 or 10 different basals in 24 hours? It’s going to be a lot of work over the next few weeks, but something I’m more than prepared to do.

We have an 11am start, even though I am worried I won’t wake easily to get there on time. My getting to sleep problem is still hanging around. Que sera sera. I really can’t worry about all that tonight. I can survive on very little sleep. My only problem is waking up. So, I’ve got 2 alarms, my mobile phone and a phone-a-friend – someone’s going to call me to make sure I’m up. Of course, there’s always my husband who tries to wake me but is rarely successful. He’s generally sweet and gentle, and that’s the way he tries to wake me. As gorgeous as he is, I need something a little more loud.

So, I’ve got all my supplies ready. Only the insulin is still in the fridge. I’m about to make some food to take. Although there’s a fast-food shop of sorts on the hospital grounds, if I remember correctly, everything revolves around bread, which is too high carb for me. I’d rather have a normal lunch with me. Cheaper too.

So here we go. This is the last blog before I next report, attached to a pump.

Just a week to go for my pump-start. It’s been a hectic week with horrendous storms from South-East Queensland to the Mid North Coast of NSW. Trees down everywhere, flooding, power outages and more. My fridge died with one of the power outages, so rather than throwing more money at it, I decided to buy a new one. Reasonably happy with what I got although what I really wanted was $1000 more! Maybe next time.

I have finally worked out that I need to bolus for protein. Why has no one told me this before? Typical lack of education.

I’ve also worked out that at dinner, it’s far better for me to take 50% of the bolus with dinner, and the other 50% 1 to 1.5 hours later. Worked a charm tonight. I’d been playing around with percentages in a split bolus and finally nailed it tonight. Different meals may need a different approach but what I ate tonight is fairly typical for me. So at least I have that problem solved. This will be a breeze on a pump with the possibility of extended boluses.

Some really interesting information over at dsolve. Am still reading and learning.