Diabetic Cyborgs United

Name: Alex

Age: 22

Diabetic since: March 3, 2004

Pumping since: May 25, 2010

Pump type: OmniPod

Pros: Tubeless, wireless PDM communication, hands-free cannula injection, super friendly customer service, Pods are waterproof (PDM IS DEFINITELY NOT)

Cons: Okay, after about 3 years on this pump, I have a lot to bitch about. Sure, it started out great… tubeless, wireless PDM communication, etc. But hear me out:

• I’m pretty forgetful. If I forget my PDM at home, guess what? That meal I just ordered with all my friends… yeah, I can’t eat it. Not without going all the way back home first, which isn’t even always possible.
• Look at the size of that adhesive site. My sensitive-ass skin can just BARELY handle that. When I change sites, I spend a good ten minutes just scratching the old one.
• It gives me a weird bulge on my back, which
• Can get knocked around quite a bit because of how much it protrudes from my back, which also
• Makes things like sex, yoga, and exercises like sit-ups either impossible or really awkward because there’s a giant, unyielding plastic bump punching me in the back.
•  If it starts beeping/freaking out at an inopportune moment, I have to subject myself and those around me to its ungodly high-pitched whine while I frantically dig through my bag for my PDM (which, see first point, IS HOPEFULLY IN THERE)
• This pump works by injecting it with insulin from a vial. If an occlusion/”pump error” occurs, you lose the pod, and all of the insulin you injected in it (I’ve had this happen MOMENTS after starting a new pod, and lost a very unfortunate amount of insulin).
• I’m also on a very low dose of insulin (Novolog, btw), so I tend to lose a lot of it anyway, since the pod has a minimum that it needs to get started.
• This also means if I put it on and the cannula’s been injected at an angle that hurts (which happens a lot, actually), I’m stuck with it for three days. And the pain just gets worse as time goes on.
• The bulk of this thing makes it near impossible for me to wear it anywhere else but my back, which severely limits my site options, and probably contributes to my irritated skin/frequency of occlusions (not that frequent, but enough to be a pain). I’ve tried wearing it on my stomach, it got knocked around by just about everything (tables, my steering wheel, sinks, pulling my hoodie off). Same with wearing it on my upper arm, with added, Wow, this looks ridiculous. I don’t wear skirts, so wearing it on my leg isn’t even an option, because my pants are just way too tight for that.
• I’ve also been through 3 PDMs in the time I’ve had this, and the one I have now is sort of glitchy but I’m just dealing with it.
• I’m not sure about the cost of other pumps, but even with insurance coverage, maintaining this therapy costs about $2,000/year.
• LOTS OF WASTE! Old pods, plastic pod casing, injection syringes that come with each pod, insulin vials, etc.
• No one that sees it knows what it is. I’m not trying to be an OmniPod spokesperson/Neighborhood Diabetes Infomercial, so this gets a tad annoying.
• The Pods are waterproof, so showering/taking a bath isn’t a problem, but I have noticed that a long time in the pool causes the adhesive to get a little goopy and they become easier to rip off accidentally.

Whew… Closing comments: My pump nurse has told me that OmniPod is working on making their pods “smaller,” but whether that means “slimmer” or smaller lengthwise, I’m not sure. I really enjoyed this pump when I started it, but now, it just doesn’t fit my lifestyle anymore. I know switching to a pump with tubing seems like taking steps backwards, but I’m in need of a change. Any suggestions are welcome! Right now I’m looking into the One-Touch Ping or the Accu-Check Spirit!