Insulin pump changes life for the whole family
How does life change when you go on an insulin pump? We got an immediate answer when we called to arrange a time to chat to young footballer, Frank Clarke.
“What time do you have dinner?” we asked his mum Lianne, concerned not to interfere with an important meal time.
“Now he’s on the pump we don’t have to worry about fixed meal times. You can call any time!” she laughed.
That flexibility with meals was even more evident at Christmas time. Frank, whose determination to succeed in football featured in an earlier newsletter, had been on the Accu-Chek Spirit insulin pump about a month by then.
“For the first time since he’s been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, he could have the same Christmas meal we all had, including the traditional Christmas pudding. And he had so much more energy,” says Lianne. “It was just brilliant.”
However Lianne adds that there had been a moment just prior to Christmas when she would have thrown the pump away. “The pump is amazing,” she says, “and it has made such a big difference, not just for Frank but also for us as a family.”
“But when you first get a pump, you have to go right back to the beginning, and that’s quite a challenge,” she admits.
Lianne explains that with insulin injections the body gets used to variations in blood glucose levels throughout the day. But because the pump provides small amounts of insulin all the time, the body becomes used to more ‘regular’ levels and doesn’t tolerate any extreme highs or lows.
As a result, when Frank’s blood glucose levels are high he really notices the symptoms such as being thirsty, having a dry mouth or frequent need to go to the toilet. This means there’s a bit of work to be done to understand how to adjust the amounts of insulin – the bolus – required at meal times and when exercising.
As Diabetes Nurse Educator, Nisha Taylor of Roche Diagnostics explains, that by doing carb counting and fine-tuning for exercise, the amount of insulin can be adjusted – in precise amounts – to keep blood glucose levels in the right range to prevent those symptoms.
“Yes, we had to get our heads around counting carbs and doing more blood glucose tests, to keep everything level,” says Lianne. She also notes that, as the main caregiver for 10-year old Frank, she had to learn how to change the infusion line, insert the cannula and fill the insulin cartridges.
“It was a bit like getting a nursing qualification!”
While this was all new, there were some whoopsie moments along the way.
“We got air bubbles in the cartridge, Frank had a couple of episodes where his blood glucose levels went from one extreme to the other, and I got to the point where it just seemed too hard,” Lianne says.
On a visit to their hospital consultant, Lianne suggested the pump was a great tool, but it just wasn’t working for them. She is now greatly relieved that the consultant insisted they give it another month.
“He made a few tweaks to the basal insulin levels, and told us if we still weren’t happy in a month to then make a decision. But he really encouraged us to give it another month.”
Incredibly, Lianne says that within a week life was different. “Suddenly it all came together,” she laughs.
For Frank, it had all been together from day one. He liked the freedom the pump gave him, and he found he had more energy than he used to.
“Being on the pump is a good thing,” he says, when asked what he would tell anyone else thinking about going on to a pump. “At first it’s quite stressful when you’re learning everything, but it gets easier, and you can have seconds at mealtime.”
And now that Lianne has climbed through the learning curve too, she’s thrilled.
The pump means life for the family no longer totally revolves around Frank’s diabetes. A long day out at the beach doesn’t have to be interrupted by injections and strict meal times. Frank can stay up late and sleep in without having to be woken for a meal.
“And he sleeps so peacefully now. No more sweats or tossing and turning. He’s getting a really good night’s sleep, and it shows.”
About the only thing Frank and his mum worry about these days is taking care of the pump. “If I take it off to swim or something, I just worry a bit in case someone gets it,” he says.
But apart from that, life for Frank has become a whole lot more fun. He can go off to the movies without his parents worrying about what he’s eating or if he’ll have a hypo. He can sleep over at a mate’s house without any fuss. And he has even more energy for his football.
When we called to chat to him, Frank was outside practicing headers and “freestyling” ( the gravity defying fancy tricks with a football that Brazilians are so good at) as well as more traditional general fitness such as “crunchies”.
One day he would like to take over from Wayne Rooney at Man U, but this year he’ll be playing AFA Premier 11th grade and aiming for his team to win.
According to his soccer team coach, Gary Norris, Frank has beefed up since going on the pump. “His body mass is noticeably greater, and he’s fitter,” says Gary, adding that this will be good for his sporting success.
“Frank was already passionate about football, the impression I get is that his pump has allowed him to follow his passion with even greater gusto. From a coach’s perspective this is good to see – he’ll hit the ground running at the start of the season in a couple of months. He’ll be fitter, quicker and more skilled than most of his contemporaries - diabetes or not.”
And that really sums up how life has changed for Frank and his family now that he’s on the pump. Diabetes is no longer such an intrusion in their lives.
“It’s really incredible how much it’s changed things for us,” say Lianne. “It’s not a magic pill, and you do have to be patient at first. But it’s given us all so much more freedom and, dare I say it, normality. As parents, that is worth so much to us.”
If Frank’s story has inspired you to consider an insulin pump, click here to find out more about pumps and how we can help arrange a free trial of a pump.