Some prefer to use telephones with cords - the fact is that they are always where you last left them and they don't need to be charged. However, then there is the rest of the world that is constantly looking for new technology, flat screens weren't enough, so we created 3D flat screens - it's the way we are growing up now a days - in kindergarten for example, I never used a computer in class, and now it is an option during playtime.
Taking the plunge to use a insulin pump is more than just about new technology I realize. One of the first criticisms is that we have to wear it all the time and many will reply with, well you always have your cellphone on you or a bluetooth in your ear... but the truth is it is much different than carrying around a cell phone. When I go to bed at night my cell phone sits on my night table, yes if I wake up and can't sleep I will pick it up, look on the internet, etc. (bad habit...) but all in all, when it's time to sleep I put it beside me. My cell phone doesn't roll around with me, my cell phone can be as far away from me as it wants without me worrying - my cell phone isn't attached to me.
This thought alone can start to make the average pumper think about his/her situation. Rolling around in your sleep, sharing a bed with someone, changing your clothes, getting in and out of the shower, wearing a nice strapless or tight dress, all of these things (not even a good chunk of the list...) are all things that make having an insulin pump a little bit awkward, for lack of a better word. All of a sudden that life saving device is a pain.
At times I think of switching back to pens, but realize how much freedom the insulin pump gives me in MOST situations. Although at times I want to throw it out the window, I realize how much it really does for me. An insulin pump is an aid that you learn to just accept and the people around you accept as well. It is a device that needs acceptance in order to work. Accept that at times it will test you i.e where does this thing go!? and accept that if someone loves you for you, they will love your insulin pump as well.
Kayla
Yeah. My husband just started a pump a couple of weeks ago. He calls himself a borg now. He actually uses an omnipod tubeless pump, but still has to think about what side to wear it on, how to sleep, and I have to be more careful when I pick him up, lol.
ReplyDeleteWe talk about whether he likes it or not, and how it compares to shots. He likes the pod because of the freedom it does give him and the the freedom from injections, as well aa calculating his bolus and basal insulin. Between his Dexcom warning him when he gets to high and low, and the pump calculating the insulin amputate and lack of shots, he is ok with the sacrifices for now.