22 Comments
If you use an insulin pump, which of these options best describes when you most often change your pump site?
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After my shower.
I try to keep it around 5:30pm. Don’t want to take the time before work or wait until I am getting tired after supper.
After my post-workout shower-usually late morning.
Whenever it’s convenient to respond to the warning! I’m almost 75 and not working, so I change the cartridge when the time is good for me.
I change my infusion site the day it is due, I try to pick a time when my BG is stable. I try to avoid just before a meal bolus or just after a meal bolus.
I tried mornings, but while failures are relatively rare, they do happen and ended up making me stressed/late for work or worse discovering an occlusion while at work meaning I had to re-do the set with an emergency pod. I stick to evenings now. But when I retire, I plan to move back to mornings – prefer them.
I do stick to every 3 days, but the timing varies. I see a rise in bg’s towards the end of day 3, so I do try to be prompt.
Twice a week, Monday morning and late Thursday afternoon (every 3 1/2 days) for a consistent routine.
I like this approach, regularity and consistent predictability. Thanks for suggesting it.👍
I love this and also send thanks for this great consistent regimen for pump site changes!
Sometimes I change because of pain at the site or I notice it not working well
No specific time but I try not to change it right before bed.
I do it 2 hours before a meal, usually supper. I can then use the food and a lower insulin dose for my supper (or sometimes lunch) to prevent the severe low sugars I get 2-4 hours after changing sets.
I try early morning. I work remotely so I don’t have that worry. I always go low the first day even when I lower my basal rate so never close to bed time.
I try to pick a time that will be relatively convenient three days down the line. For example, if I know I will be busy Weds evening I will change out my pod either Sunday afternoon or late Sunday night.
Although I selected ‘No specific routine – whenever the site expires or the reservoir is too low’, I also change my infusion site if my blood glucose level has been high for several hours and ‘correction boluses’ aren’t bringing down my blood glucose level. I’m fully aware that my body’s own ‘defence [defense] system’ sees the cannula as a ‘foreign object’ so tries to combat it by surrounding it with all sorts of white blood cells called phagocytes and lymphocytes, which produces a gungy-looking surrounding that makes it difficult for the insulin to ‘escape’ the cannula.
I do it in the morning. The first half day of a new site is not usually good for me and I run higher. I don’t eat breakfast so I like to get the set in early and hope the site is getting saturated by lunchtime.
I like to change early enough to determine if the site is providing acceptable insulin sensitivity
In all of my 27 years pumping I’ve changed sites every 3-3.5 days and always fill the cartridges full up and change cartridge when needed when it’s low. The medical myth about needing to change cartridges with sites has no science base, it just sells more cartridges.
I probably should have answered no specific routine, because I change for many different reasons, other than routine. When I wear the cannula on my leg, it tears off, even with lots of tape. Occasionally, it clogs up. But, mostly, when my pump reminds me to change my site, which I usually notice in the early or late afternoon.
Every 3 days
I change it 8 hours after notified it is expiring because it starts continious alarming. I use Omnipod and always get the extra eight hours because the pods are so expensive using for the extra eight hours gives me an extra day after three changes. It means that sometimes I am getting up in the middle of the night to change it.