Wow, thanks for all the ideas and info, Dantony! My Lantus doses are split...so that won't help me. The idea of using a pump plus Lantus (although the way I'm doing it is JUST for boluses and with no basal through the pump) is actually a valid management tool called the untethered regimen. Usually meant for athletes, it allows more flexibility and even greater finetuning of the insulin needs. Again, thanks for all your ideas as usual! You are my most informative reader!

I totally agree that Lantus doesn't have any 24 hour length! When I didn't have my doses split, I didn't see good results. But turning them into 12 hour apart doses helped. Thanks, "Mom"! I'm planning on having a great time on my vacation, diabetes cooperation or not!

Thanks, Mike! I know the blog screams pump, but when I use the pump my A1c jumps through the roof no matter what I do...so I don't know. Tough call. I'd like to use the pump to just calculate my boluses, but it still doesn't give me those finetuned numbers..guess we'll see though!

I switch my sites around, so no I don't think it's absorption. I'm glad to hear that switching yours is working for you! Always great to know something does work!

Most of the highs were overnight, unexplained...no abnormal food or anything. You're right that not wearing the pump 24/7 leaves room for theft, etc. I haven't decided what I'm going to do with it, if I use it for boluses. I always have plenty of backups at the hotel though, so even if it was lost, I'd have insulin on hand. Thanks for the input!

Hi Patrick~ I use the One Touch UltraLink meter that directly reads to my pump and the CareLink system from Medtronic. I'm not sure what you mean by how many boluses I have? I have carb ratios and sensitivity factors, but not different boluses besides being able to use the square wave, dual wave, etc. Did you mean basals? If so, I'm not using the pump for any basal, just Lantus for that. Thanks!

Hi Laura~ I'm sorry that you're feeling depressed about diabetes. It's so easy to get there. I've been there multiple times and had to pull myself out so I could just keep moving on. Michelle Kowalski here on dLife has recently posted about her struggle with depression...definitely check those out. If you'd still like someone to chat with, I'm available to chat. I may not be in the same age range as you, but I definitely understand living with diabetes for so many years. Hope you're finding the strength to keep on going today!

Hey Brunetta~ I know the basals are so much easier for hormone varieties, I really do miss some of the pump! But overall, I'm still advocating (for myself of course) that the pump is not my best option. With it, I can't achieve a better A1c despite extensive efforts. And I also stress more with it than MDI's. It does feel like I have more highs with Lantus, but I'm also very much still adjusting those doses. Plus the A1c tells that my overall averages seem to be lower now. The pump is always an option, but I'm still going to keep trying Lantus for awhile.
The other issue is that my periods are still so irregular and my hormones still being adjusted that I can't definitely know when to raise those basals, etc. I'm only guessing even now. Thanks for the advice and the encouragement!

Thanks! I definitely agree that getting my blood sugars in check is top priority over losing weight, but I also believe they can go hand in hand. I need to exercise anyway so I might as well work on both at the same time and hope I get good returns on both. I will of course keep everyone posted on what my new tools and exercise is doing for me, both body wise and diabetes wise. Thanks, as always, for the encouragement and the advice!

Hi beckydoodle~ I'm so sorry to hear about your frustrations with the pump/diabetes in general! I know EXACTLY how you feel! Are you working with an endo or diabetes team? The only thing that got me through the adjustment to the pump was having my friend Tracy (a pump user) help me through the basal tests, look at my numbers with me, and all that. Do you have someone that could do that for you? I'm always willing to give you my tidbits if you'd like my email. It's better to exercise when you are under 250, ideally under 200. When I'm above 250, I take a unit of fast acting and wait at least 30 minutes for it to get to work. The pump should make exercise much easier but it takes some trial and error. If you feel normal in the 200's, that's not a terrible thing. Everyone is different. As long as you are testing often and correcting, you don't need to worry that you don't feel the highs. Lows on the other hand are a different story. (Sometimes running high can also cause your body to adjust to being in the 200 so you don't feel high when you are and you may feel low when you are 150 since your baseline is off.)