Pregnant Diabetics Support Exchange

I love the idea of this exchange!!! I am a type 1 since 1994. I was 10 years old and the doctors then told me I could never have childen. SO about 10 years ago my endo told me I could and i have been dreamy since! LOL... I have a pump so anyone with questions feel free to ask.

hey wow!! I'm glad someone came in lol!! I know it is a hard disease to deal with!! I was wondering about the pump myself right now i went back on insulin since being pregnant but I heard of the pump and I wanted to try it but I heard it took a few months for your sugars to even out so I was waiting until the baby comes before I try it... my questions are does the needle bother you being in all day? and do you take it out at night? How do you keep it from falling out lol I gues i have alot of questions about it I heard you could pretty much eat freely anytime and whatever you wanted with the pump is that true?

Oh also i was wondering are you trying to conscieve now??

Ummm...Well the needle doesn't stay in you. It is like a tube over the needle. So you inject the needle and then you take the needle out and the tubing stays. The length of the tubing varies but I have the longest length available which is 43 cm. I have to wear it all the time..sleeping or not. So that is where the 43 cm tubing is nice. I tend to squirm a lot when I sleep so it tends to wrap around me a bit. Around the site (where the tubing goes in under your fat) there is a pretty good sticky tape like thing that holds it in place. It never comes out on its own unless it gets caught on something like a door handle. And even that doesn't hurt...kind of like a band-aid ripped off. THis is where the 43cm tubing is also nice cause if the pump falls out of your pocket it freely falls to the floor and doesn't pull. If it does get caught you usually know it before it getspulled out. As far as eating....you can usually eat what you want freely....I don't stick by a day to day schedule but like anything else you have to do it in moderation. Some foods are harder to control like pizza and pasta but once you learn how to manage these with a pump it isn't that hard. I love my pump. I have had a pump since 1998 and it is awesome.My husband is also a type 1 diabetic and he wears one. I am 16 weeks pregnant right now and can't imagine managing my diabetes with pregnancy with out a pump. Feel free to ask any questions I am a huge pump advocate.!!!!!!!!

You are awesome and congradulations!!! we're not that far apart in our pregnancies either!! Yes I have had the hardest time mananging being pregnant becuase before i really wasnt taking good care of myself... I really would like to do this pump thing, does the tube hurt or bother you at all when youre awake or sleeping? It sounds like a dream come true having the pump because you dont have to be so strict right know i have to eat certain times a day and i can only eat a certain amount of carbs for breakfast i get 45 and lunch and dinner is 60 and snacks in between is only 30..its so hard and sometimes when i really want something i just take the extra insulin and eat what i want to but i know my doc doesnt like me doing this!! In your oppinion is pregnancy the wrong time to start the pump or should i give it a try? I just didnt want my numbers to be all over the place with the baby and cause any dangers but i would really love to be able to eat freely and not be stressed about it, which we all know stress itself makes your sugar go up not to mention the cravings for potatos and chocolate which also dont help lol..its so nice to speak with someone who understands, if you were me at 20w and you had never tried a pump do you think you would start one now or wait until the baby was here? My fasting readings arent where they need to be and my readings two hours after eating arent as great as they want them either and it is stressful...now my doc is sending me to another diabetic specialist and i feel like i cant handle any more appointments and i keep having to take off work lol..what is your oppinion! thanks so much!!!

Sorry Amirah...I lost the link to this board and couldn't find it. I think it would be really hard to start a pump while pregnant. Back when I started my pump the education and restrictions are way less than they are now. I would just work really hard right now (which I know is better said than done) and start the pump after the baby is born. Even though I am on the pump....I am still on a diet/nutrition plan while pregnant. When not pregnant it has less restrictions. My advice would be to wait! Good luck!

Thanks for your advice girly!! I made that decision in the begining my primary doctor which i need a new one was going to put me right on one if thats what i wanted i started seeing a new diabetic specialist and i'm working to get my numbers down. Thanks so much for your advice!!