Parris‘s mum says “I enclose a photograph of my daughter Parris aged 14 years 11 months with her Animas IR 1200 pump. Parris has now been pumping since January 2007. It is the best thing “since sliced bread”. I cannot imagine her having to inject – her readings are SO MUCH better. She has been off on holiday on her own and still managed good control!! We are still under the care of Leeds Hospital who have been brilliant! Lets hope that more young people get the chance to go on a pump in the future.”
Alena, 3
Alena‘s mum told us “We were constantly fighting an up hill battle, no two days were the same, and we were in constant fear of her having a hypo episode in her sleep, wondering if she would be ok whilst we slept. We looked and tried many different continuous blood glucose monitors, but only one out-shone all the others for Alena and ourselves. The Dexcom seven plus was the only choice. She wears it everyday, it is so small and lightweight, can easily be hidden, she doesn’t complain when the sensor is fitted, and even continued to work whilst living in the swimming pool everyday on holiday! We simply could not live without it now, we know what is happening before it happens to her blood glucose levels, giving us time to treat before a hypo occurs; the graph display reassures us we are doing well with the insulin doses and we know what is happening every five minutes throughout the night. Thanks to Dexcom we can actually have a restful nights’ sleep again! We would highly recommend Dexcom seven plus to anyone and think it should be available for every child with Diabetes.”
Alex
“Alex was diagnosed at 11 months old and we took the offer of a pump straight away being fans of technology. The pump enables Alex to have a normal life as possible with diabetes. Because he is so young, he needs fractions of units of insulin and the pump is the only way we can administer this. He can eat what he wants, when he wants, and the temporary basal helps keep his blood glucose under control if he is more or less active in the day. We sometimes use continuous glucose sensors, and set the pump so the basal is automatically cut off if he drops too low, which is very re-assuring at night. We couldn’t imagine using any other way to treat his diabetes.”
Jen from Somerset says “I’ve had diabetes for nearly 30 years but it’s been so long now it’s hard to remember exactly how long. I’ve had an insulin pump for 2 years now and love the flexibility that it gives me. I’ve always had quite good control but thanks to the pump it’s now even better. I took up golf a couple of years ago but kept going hypo while playing 18 holes so had to restrict myself to only playing 9. Now thanks to the pump I can do 18 no problem… only wish I could play the game!”
Melissa Ford Holloway wrote:
“I lived in the US from May 2005 until October 2007. I got the DexCom STS in October 2006, before DexCom products were available in the UK. My A1C went from 6.5% to 5.5% in 3 months after I got my first DexCom system and it hasn’t been above 5.6% since. I upgraded to the DexCom Seven in June 2007 and returned to the UK in October 2007. With my diabetologist’s support, I got PCT funding for my DexCom sensors in February 2010, having self-funded previously.
I test an average of 5 times a day, down from 8-10 before I got the DexCom. I get fewer lows from ‘stacking’ boluses because I can see how my glucose level is responding. I am also less inclined to overtreat a hypo because I can see that the hypo is resolving.
It is also great to know in the morning whether I am having trouble with my overnight basal rate just by looking. I used to expend a lot of effort, including frequent 1, 3 and 5 am fingersticks, to figure out what my blood glucose level was doing overnight. Now if there’s a
strange pattern I just have to figure out *why* and address it!
When I exercise, I usually wear a heart rate monitor in addition to my pump and my continuous glucose monitor. I use a training program based on my VO2-max test results to stay in a fat-burning zone for most of my workout. Using fat as my main fuel prevents exercise-induced hypos and is very effective for weight control. My glucose level either
stays steady or goes down just slightly during my workout. I go to the gym before breakfast 3 days a week, which I used to think would be impossible for me.”
Scott’s mum wrote: “Scott got his pump about a year ago now. It has changed his life! His hba1c is fantastic – it was never under 10 before. He is growing fast now (upwards), he is in control, doesn’t eat if he doesn’t want to, and the best part…I have my son back! No more mood swings, no fighting, he is just a happy go lucky child again (hmm as far as a teenager can be). His legs had lumps and bumps and bruises on where he was doing so many injections a day, now they are clear again. He is proud of his pump. I wish every child with diabetes could have one and if I had the money I would personally buy them all one. Scott goes off with his friends and I don’t worry as I know it is there with him, it means I have given him his freedom back!
I cannot emphasise enough what a massive difference it has made to his life and I thank you for your support.”
Please send your stories (with or without a picture) to input.enquiries (at) gmail.com.
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