FAQ

Hi all, 

Today I am going to clear 2 of the Frequently Asked Questions about my insulin pump.

1) How heavy is your pump?

I am using the Medtronic MiniMed 522 pump, it weighs around 100g, according to the user guide. I weighed it using the food scale today, it is 111g. I would say it is almost like holding a soap bar in hand.

2) Do you need to charge your insulin pump?

Nope. This pump is operated using a AAA battery. One AAA battery can last for more than a month, if I am not using the CGM (Continuous Glucose Monitoring). Just changed a new battery, after the Low Battery alert.

Open the battery cap using a 5 cent coin, unscrew it.

I remember having a Tamagotchi Digimon way back when I was 10 years old. My pink pump looks exactly like that. It was just that Tamagotchi Digimon can communicate with another tamagotchi and battle haha. While, insulin pump communicates with my laptop to send insulin and BG logs, and be viewed in PDF format, so that I can show it to my endo during follow up :)

WHAT, WHY, HOW of pump

Have been sharing plenty about my insulin pump since December 2014 in my Instagram @sugarsanity. And I finally bought my very own pump in February 2015 *recalling the moment I hold it in my hand :))

Find out what is an insulin pump and how it works: here!

A few things that I had been considering very much before my family and I decided to buy it.

1) Cost

It is not an one-off cost. It is a long term cost. Other than my family and I have to bear the 2 years instalment for purchasing the pump, I have to bear the monthly consumables for my pump. 

Consumables are infusion sets and reservoirs. They are not reusable. I have to change these every 3 to 4 days, meaning I only have to inject every 3 to 4 days, rather than injecting 4 times a day.

Reservoir keeps the fast acting insulin (Novorapid).

Infusion set is like a tube that delivers the insulin from reservoir to my body with the help of insulin pump (the device). And there are many types of infusion sets, I am using the Sure-T.

2) Frequent finger pricking

Willingness to do more finger blood glucose checking, means more test strips. Last time because of the cost, I only test my blood glucose level twice a day, ie. fasting and pre-bed. Or I check it when I feel really unwell only. 

Now I have to check it more often, at least 4 times a day ie. pre-breakfast, pre-lunch, pre-dinner and pre-bed. Why? Because basal insulin is being delivered in small amounts every hour, as a fully insulin dependent person, a short period of time with no basal insuin can bring me to DKA (to the hospital).

Alright, usually I check it more often during my infusion-set-change-day, just in case the consumable is not working (which I always hope this will not happen).

3) More control

I am not a control freak haha. But I wish to have more flexibility. I wish to know how my sugar goes about in 24 hours, with the help of a Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) and how many active insulin still available in my body in order to avoid insulin stacking, with the help of Bolus Wizard in a pump.

I was using the CGM while on a family trip to Taiwan. Love it! However, I do not use CGM everyday because of the cost.

4) I have hypo unawareness

I hardly remember the latest severe hypoglycemic event after using a pump. I certainly do not worry as much as those days when I drive, when I sleep, when I do presentation :)

One of the embarrassed moment due to hypo-unawareness, previous post.

To understand more about hypo-unawareness, here.

Diabetes emoticon

Hello my dusty blog and readers! *pointing fingers

I have already started using Medtronic Insulin Pump since Dec 2014. I have been sharing my feelings and pictures on Instagram @sugarsanity (that's why I did not update my blog for such a long time :p )

_______________________________________________________________________________

Back to the story. 

Describe diabetes with one emoticon. Hmmm I probably need to squeeze my face to show you that emoticon. 

Having diabetes is not something to celebrate. Is not something to be proud of. And it's mostly not something happy or positive. 

But, I guess for the coming 8 years of having diabetes. 

I do not mourn for diabetes anymore (but it is still not something to celebrate, I mean I don't celebrate it everyday literally).

I am not proud of getting this diagnosis (Sharing sessions on how I control how I live with diabetes...is consider as something to be proud of? Sharing is not about proud, it's about the inner pleasantness, inner satisfaction and the warmth).

Well, it's not something very negative now. I adapted well to its routine (maybe I should be happy about this).

Alright, the thing is, people ask questions that I am not too sure how to feel when I want to answer them. 

Whether I should feel happy, sad, angry or eye rolls while answering.

Example like what happened today,

She read my doctor's letter and asked: You have diabetes?! / You ada diabetes ke?! / 你有糖尿病啊？！(with disbelief eyes as if I have done something really bad)

And she asked after reading the doctor's letter. She asked after knowing the reality.

So...

What is the suitable emoticon or expression to show, when I want to affirm people: 

YEAH BUDDY! YOU'RE RIGHT! I HAVE TYPE 1 DIABETES *grinning with a peace sign

or OMG YOU'RE RIGHT, I HAVE DIABETES *covering mouth, blinking, looking upwards, preparing tears

or CORRECT LA! IT'S ME WHO HAVE T1D LA *eye rolls

I was really not in the mood today. I just answered her emotionless-ly: YES (full stop).
And she continued asking: Really? Omg Really?! Ya ke? 真的啊？

I was so tempted to answer: No lah, where got. / Ah, tak de la. / 假的。
In the end, I didn't answer her. I just nodded and walked away.

Gosh I was very rude right? On the way back, I was like: Maybe I should smile when I say that. But, smiling because I have diabetes at this age? (Will she be thinking I am crazy?)

Alright guys, I have Type 1 Diabetes (yes the young one, though I was diagnosed at 17. But FYI T1D can be diagnosed at any ages) and...I am really cool about it (you may ask me any questions about T1D, but probably can stop asking if I really have diabetes again and again after knowing the real)

Well, you can ask HOW? WHY? WHEN? WHERE? Not only just...really? really? really?!

So, describe diabetes with one emoticon. 

Maybe this  (yes, REALLY) haha