A leg up
I'm really enjoying wearing the sensor and transmitter on my leg. Today kicks off sensor number 11, and I installed it over on the left leg. I've got the sensor about a third of the way down my thigh, right in the center line. The transmitter is off the side, towards the inside of my leg. I'm liking this a lot more than having the entire array on my stomach. I'm not sure why, but it seems a lot less bothersome.
It is not without it's own unique set of problems, of course. The first leg-set on the right lost it’s top IV3000 about half way through the run. Rolled up like a venetian blind. Once those puppies get covered in blue jean lint, they are just no damn good. I slapped another one on and we had no trouble.
You do have to be careful taking your pants off, so you don’t get hung up on the transmitter and there is always the risk of catching your underwear on the cable when getting ready to hop in the shower....
This time around I’ve got the cable facing down, towards the knee, rather than up. I also used a fourth IV3000 to keep the cable flush to the skin. Did I remember to advise everyone to buy Smith & Nephew stock? I’m thinking I’m going to be personally responsible for a spike in IV3000 dressing sales. I’m told they come in larger sizes, but I’ve got two boxes of them (looong story) so I haven’t looked into it yet.
Now when I was wearing it on my stomach, it really didn't bother me that much when it was in place. What was beginning to drive me crazy was trying to figure out how to re-position everything at sensor change. It is a lot of gear with the sensor, transmitter and--in my case--the three IV3000 dressings.
But once I moved the whole lot to my leg, I began to realize that it bothered me less down there. Out of site out of mind? I'm not sure why...I just am happier with it there. Like I said, it never really bothered me on my stomach until it wasn’t there anymore. Does that make any sense?
Now the big decision will come in three more days, come sensor change day. Will I go back to my stomach, which is still recovering for it's reaction to the tape, or do I switch back to the right leg and just go back and forth between the two legs? I had originally planned to alternate between two stomach sites and the two legs. Now I’m not sure.....
Well, two more days to decide.
It is not without it's own unique set of problems, of course. The first leg-set on the right lost it’s top IV3000 about half way through the run. Rolled up like a venetian blind. Once those puppies get covered in blue jean lint, they are just no damn good. I slapped another one on and we had no trouble.
You do have to be careful taking your pants off, so you don’t get hung up on the transmitter and there is always the risk of catching your underwear on the cable when getting ready to hop in the shower....
This time around I’ve got the cable facing down, towards the knee, rather than up. I also used a fourth IV3000 to keep the cable flush to the skin. Did I remember to advise everyone to buy Smith & Nephew stock? I’m thinking I’m going to be personally responsible for a spike in IV3000 dressing sales. I’m told they come in larger sizes, but I’ve got two boxes of them (looong story) so I haven’t looked into it yet.
Now when I was wearing it on my stomach, it really didn't bother me that much when it was in place. What was beginning to drive me crazy was trying to figure out how to re-position everything at sensor change. It is a lot of gear with the sensor, transmitter and--in my case--the three IV3000 dressings.
But once I moved the whole lot to my leg, I began to realize that it bothered me less down there. Out of site out of mind? I'm not sure why...I just am happier with it there. Like I said, it never really bothered me on my stomach until it wasn’t there anymore. Does that make any sense?
Now the big decision will come in three more days, come sensor change day. Will I go back to my stomach, which is still recovering for it's reaction to the tape, or do I switch back to the right leg and just go back and forth between the two legs? I had originally planned to alternate between two stomach sites and the two legs. Now I’m not sure.....
Well, two more days to decide.
posted by Wil | 8:45 AM
2 Comments:
When I first started on my pump in January 2004, I wore the infusion set on my abdomen because that's where the Medtronic people told me to put it.
Then a few months went by. And those itchy rashy red circle What the Hell is That? things kept popping up on my stomach, making my upcoming beach season a distressing thought. That, coupled with that fact that bolusing in my abdomen burned me sometimes, made me give my leg a try.
To be honest, I don't use my abdomen anymore. Insertion in the leg hardly stings. The boluses almost never burn. You can't see that little "pump bump" under my shirts. I didn't notice any startling changes in my absorption rates. And the surface area is much bigger on my thigh than on my stomach, where I would only use a teeny range because it stung.
And my bikini and I are back to our regularly scheduled programming.
But yes, I have yanked it off accidentally when I've taken my clothes off and the tubing gets tousled about. But that's an entirely different story...
K--
Well I'm shaving my legs to wear this thing, but I refuse to wear a bikini! ;-)
But I'm glad to hear that you and yours are back to your regularly scheduled programming!
There must be something different and wicked about the glue Medtronic uses. I've never had any trouble at all with Comfort sets from Smiths.
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