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Our Endo is really pushing us to try the pump. My son is 15 - soon to be 16. He is type 1 with Addison's Disease. He is a competitive swimmer / triathlete. He spends at least 2 hours a day ( sometimes 4 ) in a swim work-out. I am concerned about having the pump off for 2 hours 15 minutes at a time on a regular basis. I am also concerned about site infections - he swims open water from June - Oct. Any input you could give me would be great .
Responses
Gary Scheiner says
Hi Melanie-
You have every right to be concerned. While site infections are a relatively rare occurrence, disconnecting from a pump for long stretches of time can wreak havoc on blood sugar control. But there some good options.
Some pumps are completely waterproof, such as the Animas. They can be worn while swimming. Another, the OmniPod, is tubeless and waterproof. The "basal" insulin level can be reduced prior to and during swim sessions to help prevent hypoglycemia.
Another option is to use an "untethered" approach: Wear the pump most days, but on days when lengthy water time is expected, temporarily switch back to injections (taking lantus or levemir in the morning instead of wearing the pump all day).
Feel free to get in touch if you would like to discuss further. I'm a big fan of pumping, especially for athletes, but there are always a few hurdles to overcome. My e-mail is gary@integrateddiabetes.com
Ginger Vieira says
HI Melanie,
You know, there are many athletes who use pumps, including Olympian swimmer Gary Hall Jr.! As an athlete myself, I did not like wear the pump and I stuck with daily injections. However, another example of a swimming, pump-using, triathlete is Team Type 1's Bradford Gildon (http://youtu.be/xmpCLlac5FI).
For many other reasons, outside of sports, the pump is an incredible device that makes many parts of life with diabetes so much easier. It's not a cure, an easy fix, and it still requires a lot of work, but it's absolutely worth a try.
