Thursday's the Day
Tuesday, June 6, 2006 at 4:02PM After receiving my pump two weeks ago and following 3 phone calls to the corporate offices, I finally received a call from a person at Medtronic and have an appointment to finally get going on this pump. I have read the manual a couple of times and went through the handy dandy CD-Rom twice. I purchased a food scale, carb counting book, new measuring cups and spoons, and have also read the manual on the BG machine that comes with the pump.
I am so excited, nervous, scared, and a bunch of other feelings that I cannot quite understand.
Do you guys have any suggestions about questions I should ask or other things I should do prior to the appointment? I would love to hear your thoughts about this. I am prepared to be extra patient during the adjustment period since you all have stressed that it will be difficult. Any suggestions will be appreciated!
Thanks OC!
Reader Comments (3)
Nothing real special as far as the questions or preparations.
Just get hooked up and live life - see how things go. Be extra prepared for lows (glucose tablets with you ALL the time) as you work out all the settings.
I usually try not to make drastic changes in anything unless I can reproduce the problem (I'm not going to change any ratios unless I'm certain it's the ratio that needs changing - know what I mean?). It's all about eliminating variables during your testing.
Easier said than done. But I don't think you'll have any problems. Motivation is the key, and you've got plenty of that right now!
Keep us posted and be sure to let us know how it goes!
You'll be fine. It's going to be an adjustment in the beginning but it'll work itself out. In addition to the tips of Scott, make sure that you set up a couple of appointments with your diabetes educator or somebody from Minimed, since the first settings are basically estimates. You will find out that your body seems to need more or less insulin throughout different times of the day. I started with 1 basal rate but now have 7 different basal rates. I seem to need a lot more insulin in the mornings than in the evenings.
It might sound complicated in the beginning but I'm telling you, it becomes a 2nd nature. Please ask for any advice you might need, we'll be happy to help you! GOOD LUCK!
Ditto what Scott and KJ said: Eliminate variables, and check often with a CDE. I too started off with just one or two basal rates (for like 5 years!), but it turns out when I did all the fasting basal tests I now have 8 or 9 (I honestly forget). And as far as eliminating variables, like I said before, I found that eating the same (well measured) meal for a while really helps out. Also, you probably want to focus on getting your basal rates set first.
If you have any questions, just ask, ask, ask (your CDE, your endo, your minimed rep, the OC). I'm sure they/we are all happy to help.
It's gonna be great.