46 Comments
For insulin pump users: If you were to spend 4 hours away from home but still in your local area (e.g., an afternoon of running errands around town, or going out for dinner and a movie), would you bring a backup insulin delivery method, such as supplies for a pump site change, an insulin pen, syringes, etc.?
You must be logged in to post a comment.
I said probably not but I think a spare infusion set is a good idea. I once tore the tubing without realizing it and mg bg went over 300. My bolus for lunch never reached its destination. I was about 1 hour from home working at a camp for diabetic children. Not sure at what point I tore the line.
Yes, happened to me too.
i keep one in my work desk and car.
Hard question. 4 hours, maybe maybe not, but 6 hours or more definitely. Β―\_( Ν‘ββ―ΝΚ Ν‘β)_/Β―
If I stayed in my local area I never bring any backup. I have never needed a backup in all the years I have been on a pump (1990s).
I rarely leave the house without back-up supplies. Pod, syringe, meter, test strips, glucose powder. I rarely carry extra insulin for a short trip out as I can pull the insulin out of my pump if it fails.
Not unless I am down to my last 20 units
If itβs day three if a pod or more than 30 minutes from home we bring a pod and a pen to fill it with
I am retired for more than 20 years. I plan my activities so they do not interfere with my times for a set or sensor change.
I only bring back up when I am leaving town overnight.
I keep a syringe in my purse and car for emergencies. I pull insulin out of my pump cartridge if needed!
I said probably not, but if I know I’m going to need to change my site or if I’m low on insulin and going to eat I’d bring appropriate supplies.
I always keep an infusion set package in my purse. I never know when it may be accidently pulled out. That way I don’t need to interrupt my shopping or meal out to run home.
When I was on Medtronic, I would keep a couple infusion sites in my car. Now that Iβm on Omnipod, I just keep syringes in my car, which I can use to pull insulin from a pod and inject in case the pod falls off.
I carry 2 insulin syringes in my meter kit in my purse so if my pump failed I could use the pod reservoir togive myself an injection if needed.
I always have an extra pod with me. Itβs not very big and would be so much easier to replace than having to go home during a movie or dinner with friends.
I usually bring my diabetes kit with me when I go out. It contains my BG meter, strips, lancer, a vial of almost empty Humalog insulin (last ~10-20u), syringes and alcohol swabs. This has covered me in cases of accidental infusion site or CGM tear outs.
I carry a small pouch in my bag with finger stick testing supplies and a spare infusion set. I have occasionally needed both.
I make sure my pump has enough before leaving my house.
Thereβs no option for T1D insulin dependents to say they donβt have a pump
We feel neglected!
I’d prep a new cartridge and site before leaving if I knew my current cartridge might run out while I’m away from the house. But it has to be less than 10-15 units left for me to consider this. If I’m eating a big dinner out, I might worry about it with only 20 units left, just in case. Otherwise, I leave the house for extended periods of time constantly and have never been in a situation where I had to do something about a site. Even being away from home overnight (but still local) might not matter to me if I just started a new site. To me, that would be like not sleeping just in case my house caught fire and my smoke alarms stopped working. Could it happen? Sure. Is it likely to happen? Not at all.
If Iβm traveling with in 4 hours I have all of my supplies. Day trips I donβt bring a back up. I would just cut it short or run home and return
I answered “probably not”, and usually don’t — unlikely to need it, and likely to be able to go home if something did happen. But can imagine reasons why I might, on occasion.
I always carry a syringe and extra insulin bottle in a plastic bag in my purse. Never without that.
I have only had pumps fail twice and that was decades ago. So, I do not carry backup insulin delivery. However, I do check to make sure I will have enough insulin in my pump, or I refill.
I answered Unsure, because I always keep a prefilled syringe with short acting insulin in my purse.
A syringe is a low tech highly reliable back up to a pump short term (<12 hours). More than that, you need a basal insulin to have reasonable control.
Typically I ado not carry extra stuff with me. If I know I need a site change, I do that before I leave. I do however pack supplies when I go boating or know it will be a long day out of the house.
only pack the insulin spares 4 overnights
Here’s a circumstance: before leaving for work I get a Low Reservoir alert, which for me means 12 hrs basal left. Plenty to get through the day basal-wise and a waste of insulin if I change right away, but not enough to let me bolus for carbs at lunch. This is why I have a script for injectors. If I want to have a sandwich, I can bring one to bolus with.
I always keep an extra infusion set in my car, just in case.
I selected “unsure” because it would depend on the circumstances. If I’m using public transportation I’d include an extra alcohol swab and infusion set in my purse. I have had a site tear out as I was getting off a bus for a medical appointment. Not something I want to repeat. If the 4 hr. local trip was our regular pharmacy, pet supply, grocery shopping run I usually don’t include anything extra because we’d just quit and drive back home.
No but I have a syringe and an extra infusion set. In an emergency I could get insulin out of the pump with a needle or install a new infusion set.
I always carry an extra inhaler with me anywhere I go.
My purse always has my meter to replace my Dex and a few syringes and a vial of insulin to replace my pump.
I said, “probably not”. Generally, I carry a bag with food and supplies, which includes tubing, a cannula and an alcohol swab. I do not carry insulin unless I am running low, or am going overnight.
Having said that, there have been a few occasions when I wished I had insulin with me.
No. Being a person with diabetes for over 56 years. No big deal running high for a short while. However, on a pump for over 39 years, never a carried a back-up when I’m local. Living in the New York metropolitan area, 4 hours from home may be only 10 miles!!!
Always have test kit, battery, insulin, syringes, alcohol in my purse. Haven’t had a pump problem but I have had some bad sites that required a syringe until I could get home and change the site.
I always carry backup methods, ie glucose meter, lancets, strips and insulin pen/vial/syringes. This includes a prefilled cartridge & extra tubing for my pump. You never know what will happen or where u will be. An ounce of prevention is definitely worth a pound of cure
Never have, never will. Been pumping for 15 years, have never had an issue. If I were around town and something happened I would just go home. Diabetes does not complicate my life.
I answered probably not.
I aLways carry glucose tabs, juice boxes etc, and usually my meter.
I don’t use a pump. I carry an insulin pen with me when it’s just running around town doing errands or visiting friends. If I’m traveling, I carry two full pens, extra dexcom sensors, and the extra supplies of alcohol pads, syringe tops and glucose tablets.
Yes, because the one time I didn’t…my site got pulled off while in the restroom, in the middle of dinner. Needless to say, I ruined the night out having to get back home.
Yes. Always. I hate carrying everything I need, but do. I hate inconveniencing people I’m with. I hate being inconvenienced. I feel more independent being able to take care any unforeseen events. Tube kink, cannula kink, sensor failure(I would just use finger sticks). Travel delays, can’t run home, someone needs help. I don’t want to run home to fix something. If errands turn into a chance to do something else fun or needed, I’m ready without having to draw attention to my T1. I don’t want to cripple myself. Leaving my supplies home would be akin to leaving my shoes behind, knowing there might be glass in the parking lot. Overdramatic, but at my age, this regret can be avoided.
I always have glucose tablets and a cracker pack with me in the car. I have cut errands short when i had run into delivery problems.
yes, I always carry extra pump/CGM supplies and syringes. If I’m local to home and in a situation where I can easily go back to the house for insulin, I do not carry insulin. If I’m away for 4 hours and can’t return home, even if local, I carry a vial of rapid-acting insulin with me for site issues or highs that won’t come down.