So I have not blogged for quite a while. Since the last update - we have ventured into pumping!! Big stuff here! Willow is very excited about it. But it does not come without some trial and error! As you can read in my previous posts - diabetes in itself is a 24/7ordeal. We check, dose, eat, check, eat, dose, measure, dose, eat, eat eat - bc the last dose was too much . . .Its like having a scale and no matter what you put on each side - you never get it to equal out - so you just keep moving items from side to side, adding some more, taking some away and are constantly trying to find some equilibrium . . .but it never stops . . .



Here are some of the latest sewing projects that I have made to make this pump thing more do-able and kid friendly. As you can see from the one picture - I have made a belly band of sorts that keeps the pump and tubing close to her and concealed under her clothing. She really seems to like this even better than the pouch thing in the bottom picture.

So to fully understand . . .the pump in theory is supposed to act more like an actual pancreas . Giving insulin 24 hours a day in small doses (called basal) which mimics what a healthy pancreas does. Then at any meal, snack, or grazing (as children do!)we program the number of carbs and it calculates an amount of insulin called a bolus that will cover the food. Additionally, we can lower her basal when she is more active, or increase it when she is less active . . .because the body acts in different ways throughout the day - the pump allows for a much more personalized insulin regimen. This all sounds wonderful - in theory.

Well we area having issues figureing out her basal schedule and her sensitivity to insulin. It seems that in the morning she needs more insulin for meals than she does at noon or afternoon. It is quite a learning curve and we have already snagged the tubing on her jacket which pulled out her site . . . Hence the making of the belly band . . . Oh the site - well every 3 days we should change the site. After that amt of time, there is an increase in the possibility of infection at the site, occlusions are more prevelant and scarring under the skin can happen. But what if the site comes out sooner?? Well then you have to change it then too. Or if the site is painful or you notice that her blood sugar numbers are higher than normal for too long - an indication that the site is just bad. The insertion device or infusion set can be quite scary. the needle is longer than a syringe needle and it makes a sort of popping sound when you insert. I had to wear one myself for a few days to prove to Willow that it was not so bad. She was not quite as convinced still. Yesterdays site change was the first that she did not squirm. If you look to the picture on the left you can see the site on her abdomen. She likes the tummy - but we need to rotate. She tried the bum this weekend - but it hurt and did not absorb the insulin so her numbers were too high. We had to change!

Overall it is going really well and she is liking the ability to eat when she wants and not eat when she does not want to and no more shots! We are lucky to live in a day and age when this condition does not lead to immediate death or serious complications and that although we have daily lots to manage - she has a bright future!