Samantha Walsh
Samantha Walsh has lived with type 1 diabetes for over five years since 2017. After her T1D diagnosis, she was eager to give back to the diabetes community. She is the Community and Partner Manager for T1D Exchange and helps to manage the Online Community and recruit for the T1D Exchange Registry. Prior to T1D Exchange, Samantha fundraised at Joslin Diabetes Center. She graduated from the University of Massachusetts with a Bachelors degree in sociology and early childhood education.
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Insulin pumps are only approved for use on specific areas of the body, but many people use other locations. If you use an insulin pump, do you prefer to use any areas of your body over other areas? Select all that apply! Cancel reply
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It really is crazy that the companies can only recommend the sites they actually tested AND that they apparently only tested the abdomen. After years of getting messed up readings at night by rolling onto my abdominal sensor I switched to using the upper inner side of my upper arms, which avoids that pressure problem at night. I am careful when I apply the sensor to make sure I’m not over a vein that will cause a lot of bleeding, but with a bright light such veins are easy to avoid.
Oops. Somehow I answered & commented on this pump question by mistake thinking I was answering/commenting on the very similar CGM question that preceded it.
Like Thomas, I answered for both pump and CGM. After many years of using both, and being fairly small, the “real estate” isn’t that large. ATO give sites a chance to recover, you gotta be flexible (literally as well as figuratively)
I use, almost exclusively, my abdomen and sides/obliques. I cannot reach the back of my arms to install the insulin cannula. I rarely use my thighs because I get bad results, and require more insulin when I use my thighs. I rarely use my buttocks because I reserve that area for my Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM). I did use my buttocks last week because I accidentally installed my CGM on my side/oblique. It caused my blood sugars to run VERY low. I had to eat huge amounts of food for several days until I changed my cannula site.
Another reason why I don’t use my thighs is because I cannot get 43 inch tubing from my DME supplier (Edgepark) with the Varisoft cannulas. The 32 inch tubing is not conducive to areas away from the abdomen.
I find that if I rotate my CGM sound my upper arms it leaves my upper and lower abdomen , sides, back and upper buttocks open for pump rotation. It is about 50 days before I am in the same area again.
Same with me!
Good idea. I’ll try it. I plan on switching from the Dexcom G6 to the G7. I believe the arm is recommended for the G7. I’ve stayed away from my arms because I cannot reach with my frozen shoulder, which I’ve had for 30-35 years.
As I said yesterday to a remarkably similar question, the only place I’m comfortable putting my CGM is my abdomen
Yesterday was about CGM, today is about your pump. 2 very different questions
I use my thighs in my rotation but don’t absorb insulin as well there compared to my arms.
I put my Dash pump on abdomen and upper inside and back of left arm; I put my CGM on the upper outside of left. I find these allow rotation of the actual pump cannula/sensor wire insertion and the least conflict with being mostly a side-sleeper. If one position conflicts with side-sleeping, I move it a bit forward or back so it doesn’t.
Dexcom on each side of abdomen
Insulin pump above waist on each side of belly button
Upper back over shoulder blade
Same !! Love that spot
How do you reach it?
I have very limited territory still available after 60+ years of MDI that’s now scarred. The only place I can now reach & use for the pump insertion set is my upper abdomen between my waist and bra band. I’m only 4’8″, so it’s a very limited area. The arthritis/frozen shoulders that I’ve had for decades prevents twisting to use additional sites.
I’m 4’10” with the shoulder issues too.
Is this even true? I never heard anything about non-approved locations. My only issue is some areas are too hard to reach or easily get ripped out by clothing etc., so for me it’s abdomen, as far around my love handles as I can reach, and upper thighs.
I don’t prefer any sites over the others. All of my body parts have issues of one sort or another, so they are all problematic.
Ambiguous question- is it about wearable pumps or insulin infusion sites, or both, or something else?
With tubing lower torso (abdomen/lower back), would love to try shoulders but my cat eats the tubing! Might try thighs someday when I’m sure sweating won’t damage adhesion! I use Medtronic’s suggestive sites for infusion sites: not for the CGM though.
The great thing about the Omnipod is that you can put it in more places than any other pump. It doesn’t have tubing so it works great on places where other pumps don’t because with them you have to put it some place where the tubing isn’t going to get caught on things when you move around.
Abdomen and lower back area once I get the Omnipod I’ll be putting it arms and legs where ever I can. Potential problem for me may be the lack of fat so we will see if and when the Omnipod 5 gets approved up here in Canada. Also the Omnipod 5 needs to have similar algorithms as the Tandem CIQ.
My favorite area is my stomach because I have the best absorption there. My sides, lower back or hips don’t seem to absorb insulin as well. I use those sites but I usually have to give myself more insulin. Arms aren’t too bad (better than sides, lower back, hips) so I use those also but arms aren’t as good as stomach.
I used my abdomen in the past, but I now take another injected medication that has to go in the abdomen and I was told not to inject my insulin in the same area. So, I don’t use that site any more.