Viewing 36 posts - 1 through 36 (of 36 total)
  • Diabetic Omnipod users
  • whytetrash
    Full Member

    Been on libre for 3 months and just had a review, mentioned how unpredictable my levels were when riding and nurse recommended using the omnipod. I’ve always been put off pumps by the trailing tubing but these look a lot better as a self contained unit, any real world experience of it amongst you guys?

    eddiebaby
    Free Member

    Mate of mine works for them on the QC side. I’ll be seeing him over the weekend and ask for any feedback from users.

    whytetrash
    Full Member

    Cheers fella

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    whytetrash
    Full Member

    Nobody using one then?🙄

    tomhoward
    Full Member

    i was offered it, along with all the other options, and it was the one i would have gone for, however the libre, and the info it provided, meant i could tweak injection doses etc to get everything under control, sans pump. Which I’m happy with.

    Have you been offered the trial one? its just a shell, doesn’t work, but lets you know if you can live with it attached

    robw1
    Free Member

    Good to see theres other T1s on here! I’m just on pens….but have talked with my DSN about pumps and the omnipod…..not keen but might be a route to go down at some point. I use the libre….which is ok on its own, but I also use a miao miao Bluetooth device that means you can link it to your phone or smart whatch. With this you can then use an app like ‘spike’ or ‘tomato’ to see your BG levels on you smart watch / phone and it gives you alarms to tell you if you are going low / high. this has been a massive help in me avoiding hypos and making the best use of the libre. Don’t know if you have heard of any of these apps or the miao miao device before….but they have genuinely been a massive game changer, on top of the game changer that using the libre was!

    DickBarton
    Full Member

    Does the miao miao connect to Diasend? My Libre does and it syncs to Diasend and the hospital can log in and also see my results.

    Would be great if it could so that that functionality remained. If so, I’d be ordering it.

    scud
    Free Member

    My 9 year old daughter is on the Omnipod, been brilliant, very rarely have to use injections now, and it has allowed us much greater control as you can give much smaller doses of insulin then you can with a pen, which is great especially when younger.

    It isn’t that intrusive as there is no wires from it, and it is about the size of a matchbox stuck on her, the pump has to be changed every 3 days.

    robw1
    Free Member

    Dick, I haven’t used diasend, but I understand that the miao miao device can be used with its associated apps (spike / tomato / xdrip) alongside using libre normally. I would think you would then have to just use diasend as normal.

    scud
    Free Member

    The Omnipods handset can be used with Diasend yes, we can do it on laptop at home, and the diabetes clinic just take the handset when we get there and load it on to their Diasend system for her results.

    svensvenson
    Full Member

    yes! been using 1 for 16months now and frankly I’m pretty happy with it. I wouldn’t go back to pens anyway. I’m also using a libre, which is to be honest more of a game changer.

    still the pump, I didn’t like the idea either, or not the tubes, belts etc etc. but after getting used to the libre, actually having another stick-on isn’t that much of a deal. like someone said you can be much more precise with doses and you can just raise or lower you basal quantity depending on what you’re doing. (i.e. lowering it by 75% for a ride).

    worth messing around finding where you want to stick it. I found it too big on my arm so I tend to move them around my belly. didn’t get on with the kidney area though. the only problem I’ve had is the couple of times I’ve worn a climbing harness as that plucked them off pretty quickly. (although armed with this knowledge I’d position it somewhere else for the “event” now.

    I should be doing some work, but if you have any questions at all, ask away.

    steve.

    Nalla
    Full Member

    I don’t use the omnipod but am very happy with my tubed Accu Chek combo pump.

    It’s been great for exercise and mountain biking with the ability to lower basal rates based on what I’m doing,you can do the same with any pump with or without tubes.

    I also run a DIY closed loop where an app on my phone automatically adjusts basal rates based on cgm blood glucose levels (dexcom in my case but it will work with miao miao and spike when it’s available again). This has been a total game changer for me and my hba1c have been none diabetic levels with less hypos and a lot less effort.

    The opensource closed loop community have just released the code to allow the omnipod to be used as part of a closed loop system too.

    More information can be found in the ‘Looped’ Facebook group if your interested.

    whytetrash
    Full Member

    Thanks folks good to hear this… was looking at miao miao as mate uses it but libre2 should be around by Xmas according to Abbott rep and didn’t want to get one and find it wouldn’t work with L2, I’ve requested a trial omnipod but not heard anything yet. Often when I ride or run my sugars go sky high, especially pre event, novorapid seems to take a long time to drop levels…. does the omnipod insulin kick in quicker?

    svensvenson
    Full Member

    I don’t think that the insulin kicks in much quicker, I’m using Fiasp which is supposed to be faster than most and doesn’t hang around quite so long in the system, so ideal for pumps in theory. Personally if I ignore my tendance to worry about hypos before a ride and don’t over fuel, then by cutting back my basal level I’m generally ok. if I’m too high before hand It’s always slightly tricky to bring my levels down, without dropping too low an hour later. But I guess that’s the same balancing act we’re all doing? (If you’re not, how are you managing?)

    whytetrash
    Full Member

    I try and start a ride about 8 – 10 with a weak carb drink in camelback, monitoring frequently with libre and drinking more or less to keep me around 8… adrenaline before events does mess it up massively, nearly 30 on the first climb of the Dyfi two years ago 🙄 the problem with pens is once you’ve injected it’s in your system for 4 hours, I’m liking the sound of making minor tweaks to insulin levels as you ride

    robw1
    Free Member

    Sven, how do you find fiasp? Im using novorapid which I find slow and sometimes unpredictable (i.e. same carbs / dose at same time of day / circumstances and different effect on BG). my DSN mentioned Fiasp that might be worth trying …. but when I mentioned this to my consultant she dismissed it as no quicker than novorapid!

    svensvenson
    Full Member

    well she might be right about it being no quicker, although it’s the time it hangs around that makes changes to your planning sometimes difficult to deal with I guess. If you get you pump correctly calibrated to you, so that it “knows” how you long you take to process a unit of insulin at different times of the day that really helps. I’m not totally there yet, but I can usually rely pretty much on what dosage the pump suggests, unless I’m about to go ride or what ever. It a long way from an exact science though. I still have those moments of doing exactly the same thing, eating the same, dosing the same and still getting different results. I would say the libre helps here, as It’s so easy to take reading that you can monitor things and adapt faster.

    I would add that in 23 (about) years of being type 1 the libre is one of the first real advances I’ve seen – followed by the stick on pump. progress.

    anyone else heard about people getting their pancreas kick started by an abnormally large dose of the BCG vaccine? someone I know who works in a hospital told about it, but it sounds a little out there and I haven’t had an appointment with my endocrinologist since to ask. just curious.

    robw1
    Free Member

    How long you been on a pump Sven? do you like it? easy to adjust to? better control?

    robw1
    Free Member

    yeah, tempted to give fiasp a go to see if it works better for me…..but it just means another few weeks / months of adjusting.

    svensvenson
    Full Member

    since the 5th of November 2017. about 10:30am. ha.
    actually I do like it, other wise I would have gone back to pens I guess. It does take a bit of getting used to, if you have a libre then the idea of something stuck on you all the time is easier to get used to, but it does mean a bit of adjustment in that way. when you inject with a pen, when you’re not actually injecting or pricking your finger, well you’re kind of like everyone else. if you se what I mean.

    I naively thought that I’d had less stuff to cart around with me, but as you actually need to carry a spare pump plus insulin around with you plus the controller, plus in my case the libre reader, well, more not less. (I know I could read the libre from my phone, but I’m little reluctant to do that, probably having always had cast off phones that had weak batteries).

    I assume that everyone else also ends up permanently carrying around a bag? I am occasionally jealous of friends heading out for the day with just some cash and a phone…

    sorry diverted there. also get better control, hardly any hypos now. in does need fairly constant monitoring though, it’s definitely not a fit and forget device. so, as ever, to certain extent your levels are a little bit down to you. That may be unfair. personally I think it gives me another parameter to play with in controlling my levels, which works for me.

    on the whole I’d say if you can one for a trial, then I’d recommend that you try one, ideally for a month or so, so you can actually get used to it.

    sort of answered your question I hope.

    whytetrash
    Full Member

    Cheers Sven… was wondering about the baggage involved with the omnipod?… gotta admit heading for a night out with a phone and pen in my pocket is libre-ating 😉

    whytetrash
    Full Member

    Demo kits just arrived… jeez this thing is tiny! Way smaller than I expected ….. maybe a daft question but was gonna fit it on my (hairy) stomach do I need to shave a patch to fit it to?

    svensvenson
    Full Member

    ha. not so sure about getting it to stick, but it will definitely less painful to pull off if you’ve removed some of the foliage underneath…

    chipster
    Full Member

    Thread resurrection.
    Folks, I’ve been given a chance to try an Omnipod system today. Put a search in here and…
    I’ve been on Medtronic pumps for knocking on 10 years, and I’m fancying a change.
    The only drawback I can see with the Omnipod is that if/when I forget to take the controller with me, I’ll be knackered.

    How’s everyone getting on with it?

    mtbtomo
    Free Member

    Just seen this thread. My son is T1 Diabetic and has been using a Medtronic pump for nearly 4 years so he’s shortly due a replacement and Omnipod is an option. I was quite keen for him with that one, no trailing tubes etc but reading the reviews in America where they have more awareness of cost of medical intervention, it gets rated as a “budget” option.

    Anyone used a more typical pump with tubing and Camila separate and then moved to Omnipod?

    chipster
    Full Member

    @mtbtomo That’s exactly what I’m looking at doing.
    Medtronic to Omnipod.
    This thread’s a year old, hopefully, there’s still an Omnipod user about.

    DickBarton
    Full Member

    I had that as an option but didn’t take it as if the handheld device was damaged or forgotten I couldn’t dose.
    Was on Medtronic pumps since 2012 and liked them. Now on a My life Ypsopump and really liking it.
    Smaller and lighter than Medtronic, has a 360 degree rotating belt clip and infusion set can spin 360 degrees as well – 2 things I didn’t realise I’d need on the Medtronic but both prove useful – not broken belt clips now and I don’t wake up having wound the tube round my infusion point.
    Only real drawback I’ve found is the low insulin warning – it only gives one at around 12 units and then nothing until it is empty. I can get a whole day out of 12 units if I’m not eating much so I then forget to change until I’m not near my supplies and the alarm goes off. If it did another at 6 units it’d be very good.
    The app on your phone is good as well as you can plug your readings in and it calculates dosage so you then just tell it how much insulin to dose.
    Runs on AAA battery and that lasts about 3-4 weeks.
    The Omnipod looks ideal but needing the bespoke handheld device (about the size of a mobile – as it is one without phone abilities) felt like a backward step.
    Ypsopump and Omnipod are below £2k so are considered ‘cheap’ as they can be covered by your house insurance rather than having bespoke insurance for them.

    aphex_2k
    Free Member

    Happy Medtronic user here (670g and soon to be upgrading to the 770g after Christmas)

    Don’t have any issue running a 60mm bit of tubing from the pump to the needle.

    chipster
    Full Member

    60mm bit of tubing

    That’s a short one you’ve got! 🙂
    I’m sure I’d be sticking with Medtronic if looped systems were available on the NHS.
    Unfortunately, 🙁.

    DickBarton
    Full Member

    I’m on a 60cm tube but finding it too long, so going back to 45cm.

    whytetrash
    Full Member

    Interesting views there guys… ive still not started omnipod due to my consultant not doing face to face meetings or training because of covid… I did get a letter saying they’d not forgotten about me and would be invited to start pump usage when appointments start again!

    DickBarton
    Full Member

    Go back and ask for an online video call – that was how I got sorted with the Ypsopump…does mean all the supplies had to be at my house but that was easy enough to sort as well.

    datsunman
    Full Member

    I started on Omnipod during the first lockdown, all virtual. Went well, it’s a simple system to get to grips with.

    Re the remote, I balanced the fact that if my tubed pump got damaged I may have no insulin at all, versus if the controller got damaged I would only be sacrificing bolus delivery. It’s not a completely seamless integration, it’s a bit clunky (eg it sometimes takes a couple of attempts at reconnecting if I’ve been away from it for a while), but it generally works OK. YMMV depending on what annoys you.

    The pods themselves work pretty well for me, it’s allowed me to use my arms (which I have never done, in 39 years of T1), but equally they can be a bit bulky when sitting down if you wear them around your back.

    If I could integrate with my phone it would be much better, but I’m guessing there’s a reason they don’t do that. Maybe something to do with Horizon being on the horizon, so to speak.

    My CCG said I could do a 90 day trial without committing.

    You may not need to insure it either (I never have, even for the tubed pumps) as the handset is ‘only’ £250. The cost is in the pods, or at least that’s what I was told.

    Happy to answer any questions/queries on anything specific.

    scud
    Free Member

    My daughter was an omnipod user for a long time, and liked it, great in that it is purely the pod stuck on and no cables or anything else attached, you tend to always have the handset with you, as it is also the blood glucose monitor.

    You have to attach a fresh pod every 3 days, the only issue we ever had was that it 2-3 times a year became blocked, so her bloods here high over night.

    Any questions let me know as she used one for 6 years

    DickBarton
    Full Member

    It does sound good…I was seriously tempted by it but ended up not due to the ‘extra’ unit to remember. I don’t tend to forget stuff but it is all attached to me.
    Libre for blood checks – scanned on phone. Pump (previously to input blood and carbs and take a dose) now uses an app on my phone to calculate dosage based on blood and carbs.
    The handheld device apparently wasn’t waterproof so I had concerns about having it on me. Basically the way I’ve been doing my diabetes has meant everything is with me. Another item felt like a risk of forgetting or damaging and then I wouldn’t be able to dose for food. I’d also heard that the device needs charged quite frequently, hopefully that would be weekly but wasn’t sure.
    Omnipod is a good system though, it just wasn’t ticking all the boxes for me.

    chipster
    Full Member

    I’ve been Googling today, it seems the aim is to get the Horizon system to work from a phone in the not too distant future.

    If I were to go for a new Medtronic system, it’d be another 4 years before I can look at different options. As @datsunman says, it’s just 3 months with the Omnipod.
    I could keep a pen at work, as a “just in case” option.
    There seems to be a case for giving it a whirl.

Viewing 36 posts - 1 through 36 (of 36 total)

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