I Got a New Pump!

Hey guys!

So as you may know (or not; you may not have seen the post that I mentioned this in, so), my pump screen as well as my meter screen weren't working right (they were fading out all the time and I could barely see the screens in a well-lit room or outside), so I finally got over my anxiety and called Animas Tech Support to get a replacement pump. And I can honestly say there is a huge improvement compared to my old one.

The biggest difference as far as I can see if definitely the screens. I can actually see them now!

The first one is the new one, and the other is my old one. Both set with the exact same settings.

The one on the left is the old one, the one on the right is the new one. Both with the exact same settings.

Other than that, my new pump is exactly identical to my old one. Animas was very quick to have it delivered to me (took two days I think), and included return envelopes to send the old pump and meter back to them. So far, I haven't encountered any real issues with the pump, and it's looking good for now. 

I know, this post is pretty short, but I really don't have much else to say about it, so until next time guys! 

- Serena <3 

One Touch Ping pump by Animas Review

Hey everyone!

So, today I decided that I wanted to give my opinion on my insulin pump; the One Touch Ping by Animas.

I've had this pump for three years now; it's the first pump I ever had. My pump is black, and I use the corresponding glucose meter as well. So in this review, I will be touching on the pros and cons of the pump and meter themselves, customer service from Animas, and my overall opinion/final review of the machine.

Pros: 
- Waterproof
I'm not 100% sure about other pumps, but I know for sure that Animas's pumps are completely waterproof. That's an awesome feature to have especially in the summer time for beaches or pools. I haven't actually gotten it wet in the last three years since having it, but it's a relief to know that if I go to the beach, I can leave my pump on.

- The connection between the pump and the meter
I love that I can use my glucose meter to control my pump instead of always having to punch everything in on the pump itself. It's really great for when I'm wearing a dress or a skirt or if I just have the pump hidden away somewhere.

- The fact that it isn't a *pen* needle
Okay, this one applies to pretty much every pump on the market; the site change every 2-3 days (depending on your sites) VS the injections 4 times a day. That's a pretty sweet deal if you ask me.

Cons *These issues only apply to my old pump, because I did get it replaced at the end (I will be writing a post about that later), but I still feel the need to bring these up because I'm still not sure what caused these issues to begin with.* :
- The screens suck
If you plan on being outside 75% of the time, I really don't recommend this pump; you can't see the screen properly while in any well-lit area (like outside or in a well-lit room for example). No matter if you change the battery or modify the brightness settings, you just can't see a thing (and let's face it, that's pretty dangerous).

- Insulin delivery
This one kind of ties in with the screen issue, but I've noticed that while the pump is delivering insulin (especially larger amounts), the screen tends to fade (almost like it's going into 'sleep' mode or something) which, in my opinion, is a bit concerning because I use the glucose meter a lot to control my pump and then I end up uncertain if my full dose has been delivered or not, and when I press a button on the meter, if it wasn't done, it cancels the delivery.

- Diasend
Alright, so with this pump, you upload the data from the pump onto your computer with Diasend. I know I've personally had some trouble detecting my pump, and there have been times where I've had to try to upload the data several times due to it not working. I'm not sure how it works with other pumps, or what software they use, but I do know this one can be a pain in the neck sometimes.

Customer Service
So, for this part of my review, I will discuss how they handle customer service in terms of both ordering supplies and tech support. Let's start with ordering supplies. Now, I've never been the one to actually call to order the supplies (it's always been my mom who did that), but I know for a fact that they are typically very good at what they do and they usually have it shipped out and at your door in a few days. Now, as far as tech support, I have to say they are amazing. They are open 24/7 (literally, I called them at like 4:30 am once!) and they are amazing. They ask you follow-up questions after you explain to them what the problem is and they are very knowledgeable about their products (obviously).
Also, as you'll hear all about in my next post, I actually had to get my pump replaced, and they did it very quickly and efficiently! Both my new pump and meter were sent to me two days after I called them. They even include envelopes so you can send the old pump and meter back to them.

Overall Opinion and Final Thoughts on the Product
Personally, I find this pump okay, but far from amazing. I'm not a huge fan of it personally, and I do plan on changing it in a couple years once I'm able to. (probably going to switch to the Omnipod actually.), Although it does the job at the end of the day; I just don't feel like this pump suits me very well, and that's all there is to it.

So that's all for now. Keep in mind, this is all just my opinion, and you can take it any way you want to. Also, I'm not being paid by Animas to review this pump nor was I given this pump for free to review, I just wanted to voice my opinion on it and share it with you all. Until next time!

- Serena <3

Roommate Problems! *RANT!*

Hey everyone!

So, I know I haven't been posting lately, and I promise I will post an update eventually, but this is something I really need to talk about.

Some of you may know (I think I mentioned it), I started university in September and am living in residence on campus. I live in a double room and have a roommate (oh, boy...). Now, at 3:00 this morning, I woke up feeling weak and shaking, so I did the smart thing and grabbed my glucose meter and checked my sugar.

I wasn't able to get a reading the first time because my hands were shacking too much and I didn't get enough blood on the strip, so I had to try again. When I got my reading, my sugar was at 2.1, and I did what any responsible diabetic would do; I got some sugar into my system ASAP! I took 4 Dex4 glucose tablets, a juice box and a fruit roll-up to bring them up. Now, as I'm doing all this stuff to make sure I don't die, my roommate decided that it would be a brilliant idea to flash her phone's flashlight right into my eyes. After that, she grumbled under her breath and turn in her bed to face the wall.

I did mention to her that I was a type 1 diabetic before she moved in with me, so she knew what she was getting into. (actually, I'm like 90% sure she doesn't actually understand what diabetes is even though I did briefly explain it to her...)

Personally, I feel very attacked by her behavior. I mean, it's not my fault that my sugar was low at 3:00 am, and it's not like I asked for any of this. She makes it look like it's my fault and I'm waking her up in the middle of the night on purpose (whereas in reality she's the one keeping me up all night on weeknights, but that's another story...). I feel as if she is very immature and a bit self-centered and I don't even think she realizes I could have died this morning had I not woken up.

Also, she claims that my pump is waking her up at night, but my pump is set on vibrate and literally no one has ever claimed to hear it when it goes off, so I'm just wondering how on earth is she hearing it? Besides, it's quite rare that my pump even goes off at night anyway, and it isn't my fault that I don't hear it when I'm sleeping.

Anyway, so that's it for tonight, like I said before, I will try to start posting more often again, but I can't make any promises (university life, you know?!). So until next time!

- Serena <3