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So, the OmniPods I use are listed to have an IPX8 water tight rating which means the pods will work flawlessly in eight feet of water for up to thirty minutes. This is a great feature to have during shower times, sunny-day pool ventures, and splashing around carefree in the ocean. It is one of the reasons I chose to use it, because it limits the time I need to be disconnected from an insulin source. But, since I started surfing last year, three pods have met their fate in the waters of the Pacific Ocean. I was able to keep one from polluting the ocean floor, but the other two are on their way to a rusty end. Sad.

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I am seriously considering an upgrade.  I guess you could call it a life upgrade, in some ways. 

I've been reading up on the Minimed Revel pump and CGM system.  Though the upgrade is pricey, I'm thinking that come the new year and a renewal on my Flexible Spending for medical benefits, I might just be able to swing the $1,300 or so in 2012.  Of course, it'll mean forgoing other items that I might want in favor of putting money into my FSA account to cover the cost of the new devices.  But I'm thinking it might just be worth it.

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This is a breakdown of my first use of the Dexcom CGM. It's had its ups and downs, as you'll see. It's been peace of mind and obsession all in one. Mostly, it's been eye opening to what my diabetes is really like these days.

Day 1: I was really excited to start the first sensor. I went through all the setup process. I waited for the receiver to charge, downloaded the software, and prepped my skin for the sensor. The sensor comes with its very own insertion device. The insertion is nothing like the Minimed CGM that I used before. You see the needle in the device, just like you see the needle with the Minimed. However, this isn't a fast, hard insertion. It's up to your own fingers to stick the needle in. Surprisingly, past the initial sting of the needle, it really doesn't hurt at all. Much less than the Minimed for sure.

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Last night, I dreamt diabetes had been cured. It was, in both real-life and dream time, a short dream. I feel asleep around midnight, and woke at 12:30 or so.

In my dream, I had just been given my "cure diabetes" shot. Apparently, whatever was in the syringe they'd injected had been powerful stuff, because they had my hands tied to the hospital bed as they injected me and I struggled and fussed against the pain in my arm. The doctor then came in and declared me "cured."

I walked out of the hospital alone. And I sat in my car in the parking lot and cried. When I looked in the back of my car, I saw it was filled with Orange Hostess Cupcakes, chocolate milk, and TAB cola. I continued to cry, sobbing so in my dream that the tears spilled over into real life.

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Right now, I'm a complete bundle of nerves. Last night, I suddenly decided that today I would go off the pump. I know that I've been talking about it, but I assumed that I'd get it all straightened out and be back into "normalcy" before April 1st came around.

But you'd be surprised to find that poor control is actually NOT the reason why I'm going off the pump. In the past two weeks, I've had some highs and far fewer lows (which is just amazing). My averages are still in the 150 range though, which is what I'd settle for to get down to the 130 range (slowly, without lows).

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First, let me tell you that I used my very last sensor in February, and didn't even get a full life out of it. I decided to try to different spot on my belly and it wound up being a crap spot because the readings would come in sketchy and after about twoish days I realized most of the adhesive had come off. So I begrudgingly yanked it.

But I was in the midst of fighting my insurance company for coverage of my sensors and I was certain that the situation would be resolved soon and that it wouldn't be long until I had replacement sensors. And then one day, like magic, I got word that the sensors were covered. It was like an enormous weight was gone.

I quickly took care of the other weight on my shoulders: paying my deductible from the last batch of pump supplies I received. Medtronic said I only needed to pay it in full before I ordered supplies again so I was taking my time.

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A few months ago, I decided to start using my thighs for my infusion sets. I wasn't getting good absorption from my bottom and the adhesive gives my stomach a rash. Within a few days, I loved that I could use my thighs.

The set would catch less on my jeans. It was easier to place my pump on my belt or in my sock. There was less pain than my stomach. Overall, my thighs proved to be very effective (and not as scary as I thought).

Over the past months, I've rotated my infusion sets from my right to left thigh and back. I've also rotated the area ranging from the upper portion of my thigh to a lower portion. I generally know where the previous infusion sets have been because the needles cause a lingering red spot. So it was easy to avoid using the same exact spot.

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I have woken up to bloodsugars of greater than 350 mg/dl for three mornings in a row.  This, after a spate of morning lows that required a basal adjustment, the smallest adjustment possible with my pump, that seems to have thrown things completely in the opposite direction.  I am not happy with waking up that high.  I am not happy with thinking about how long my bloodsugars might be hanging out in that range while I sleep. 

Today, I really wish I could wear a CGM.  I wish I didn't have an adhesive allergy so severe that at times my pump site alone pulls my skin off.  But sometimes basal adjustments just don't cut it.  It would be helpful to be able to cut these highs (and lows) off at the pass. 

This time of year is difficult, somewhat stressful and I'll admit to being tired.  After this tough week of bloodsugar struggles and more, I had been hard pressed to write about a blessing. 

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