Emily Plays Softball and is on the Swim Team

I was diagnosed on February 11, 1985 with diabetes, a month and a day before my 2nd birthday. I never really celebrated my birthday with a real cake. It was always sugar free. That was until March 29, 1996. the best days were yet to come. At Yale New Haven Hospital I was put on an insulin pump. I still remember the day I went for an interview to see if I was a good candidate for the pump. I nervously answered all the questions I was asked. Then it was time to see if I could insert the infusion set. I did it with ease! I decided the pump was right for me. March 29th was a scary day. I was scared and excited to go on the pump. When I got there, my blood sugar was high because I was taken off the NPH I was on the night before. The rush was on to put in the set and get my blood sugar down, although I must say, I moved quite slow putting it in in comparison to the trial run previously! Things went well, until I gave a bolus. It would not deliver. I had to reinsert the set because the cannula was crimped. Once it was in, all these fears came to my mind; What would I do with the pump when I sleep? will the site hurt if my clothes rub against it? What about sports? I had all these questions along with learning more about the pump running through my mind at once. It was like being a newly diagnosed diabetic all over again. I spent the night at Yale so Elizabeth Boland, who I am very grateful for, could regulate my basals and boluses. Liz is the greatest Nurse Practitioner and person one could meet. I didn't sleep at all that night, nor did I cry. (I saved that for the ride home the next morning) When I got home, exhausted, I took a nap. I still was afraid to roll over because I thought my pump might break. I was a nervous wreck for the next week or so. People in school asked me a lot of questions and some of them I didn't yet know the answer to (talk about embarrassing). I did a lot of complaining and whining, but it was 100% worth it!

I have learned so much about the pump in the past 2 years. I now know my pump will not break it I roll over onto it during the night. I found when I sleep hooking the pump to my pajama bottoms works the best for me, plus a lot more. No downside of the pump would ever make me want to go off of it. The advantages greatly overweigh the disadvantages. My hemoglobin before the pump was 8.0. At my last visit, it was 5.8, and that isn't with lows all day either. Many other diabetics who have asked me about the pump were concerned with it and sports. I play softball and am on the swim team. It doesn't present any problems. With the pump, I sometimes forget I am a diabetic. That is the best reason I could think of for loving the pump so much!

Sincerely,
Emily
eadamski@juno.com
Connecticut

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