I’ve been on the Omnipod 5 since Tuesday. I change my first pod tomorrow. I’ve never been on a pump before. Been giving myself 6 - 8 injections per day for several years with the help of my Dexcom 6, and my Endo thought it was time to get me on a pump. I told her I didn’t want one with a tube, so I asked if Kaiser could get me the Omnipod 5, and to my surprise, they said yes.
I have been religiously looking up and entering the carbs and giving myself a bolus every time I eat anything, and so far, I’ve stayed mostly between 150 and 180, with one or two rises to 200, except at night, when I’ve gone down to around 130 - 140. I’m told the pod will improve with time (I guess it needs around 3 pods to ‘learn’ how much insulin I need) and I expect my numbers to improve. I have left it in Automatic Mode the entire time I’ve had it, and I see I now have 48U of the 85U of insulin I started with, so I have insulin to spare for the increase I expect will improve my numbers.
So far, I am happy with it, especially since I have not had a low and I guess I can stop carrying a pocketful of Smarties for emergencies (I will keep a few). I used to be afraid to give myself any insulin before bed if my blood sugar was 150 or lower, because if I did, my Dexcom would often wake me with a low, even if I had a big meal (I only eat dinner) and that would occasionally cause my sugar to eventually go well over 200. The pod seems to be especially good (at least for me) at night. I will give it 3 pods before I try eating pizza.
For what it’s worth, my last A1C was 6.1, so I was keeping it pretty low overall with all those injections, but my Dexcom showed large variations. My main hope is that the Omnipod 5 will reduce those, and so far, it appears to be doing that.
That’s awesome to hear. I would think coming from MDI the OP5 would be a tremendous move for you . . . Although it sounds like you were doing great on MDI with a 6.1 a1c.
@bggale Congrats on transitioning to the Omnipod. I hope it automatically adjusts for you, but it may need a few nudges to get it dialed in. Don’t be afraid to exeperiment a little once you get the hang of it. You should be able to dial in a better range than 150-180 over time if you want that. Nice to see the tech is working well for you. Don’t forget the cardinal rule of pumping, if in doubt change it out. Any time you think you may have a suboptimal placement. Insulin can always be sucked out of a pod.
The woman who trained me is calling to follow-up tomorrow. I will discuss what tweaks can be made to speed up the ‘learning’. I also have an appointment with my Endo in 2 weeks.
Sounds like you are getting a good amount of support during the process. That is nice to hear.
@bggale I know it’s been covered in other discussions and I have not checked to see if you posted in those, but the Juicebox podcast had a 3 episode series on O5 by a lady/nurse involved in testing it with users. If you haven’t already listened to those it might be helpful it getting tips or subjects for discussion with your trainer/Endo. She had several good tips on how to make it work better, things TO do and NOT to do with it. My apologies if this is a rehash of what you’ve already considered.
I inserted my second pod today, and after that got some setting tweaks from the woman who trained me (after consulting my Endo) based on the numbers being shared. She also told me that the Omnipod 5 doesn’t start modifying the initial settings until the second pod, so I hope to see some progress on the highs I’ve been seeing following meals. I woke up at 112, so it’s doing a good job during sleep. I will give a listen to the Juicebox podcast.
Incidentally, I discovered today that trying to apply an overpatch to the pod myself, in the mirror, is a very bad idea. I will ask my wife for help on the next one, as she does all of my Dexcom overpatches.
I also recently started the Omnipod 5 and have had a mixed experience. But my morning numbers are definitely part of the plus side. Dawn phenomenon high morning sugars before breakfast were the norm for me, but automatic mode on the Omnipod 5 has kept those numbers from spiking.
In my experience, automatic mode works well for keeping the numbers level, but shouldn’t be relied upon for bringing down highs. You might still need to bolus even when not eating to bring down those occasional highs. Automatic mode will take much to long to bring them down. And the algorithm will adjust based on the Insulin On Board, so you shouldn’t need to worry about doubling up.
Be careful with that, the algorithm has run me into low BG at times if I do a correction bolus while it is already started bringing my BG down from the spike or has caused me to flatline at the spiking high BG. These have happened when I get impatient and override the bolus calculator. I think (and this is totally gut feel, I have no expert knowledge of the algorithm) what you say holds true if you do correction bolus early while BG is still trending upwards. Then the algorithm can factor in the IOB and adjust.
Tomorrow I install my third pod, and I have to say I hope my numbers start getting better, because they seem to have gotten worse (al lot) after I made the settings changes that were recommended. I woke up over 150, and I was over 200 all day today, in spite of bolusing myself every 2 or 3 hours, and I even went over 250 for a while. I gave myself 5 units a couple days ago and did 8 miles at 4 mph/20% incline on my treadmill, and went low, so I’ve been trying to stay conservative with my boluses (keeping to a max of 3) but I put in the carbs and bolused for absolutely everything I ate today (a plain cake doughnut for ‘breakfast’, a tablespoon of peanut butter for lunch and chicken, green beans and mashed potatoes for dinner). Not good. I almost wonder if the settings changes were done backwards from what I need.
Well, I am at the end of the first day on my third pod, and my numbers have improved, so I guess this thing really is ‘learning’. According to my History, I have been in range 76% of the time today, 24% above and 0% below. I had a large dinner, and bolused per the estimated carbs, and I am currently at 120. Truth is, I changed pods at noon, so it wasn’t even really a full day on the third one. Wonder how I’ll do overnight.
@John58 I’m finding this as well over the past couple pods. I’m so impatient when it comes to bringing down numbers 150+ that I’ve gotten super aggressive with a correction bolus even though the algo has adjusted basal to bring me down. It’s happened twice now. This is typical trial and error for me though and the good news is that the algo seems to be working, albeit not fast enough for me!!! LOL
Same here. I have no complaints about Omnipod 5 but am trying to decide (compared to Dash pods) if (a) my BG control is better or (b) my BG control is more or less the same as it has been for a long while but has been easier with the Om 5…set it and forget it, etc. Clarity says B but my gut feel still leans towards A if I can just clean up a few too many after meal spikes.
Hmmm. Just put on my 4th pod, and my numbers continue to improve. I’m looking at my History, and it shows my average CGM is 120, CGM in range 100%, CGM above and below 0%. That is pretty good, but I wish the average was lower. Like the others here, I continue to bolus when I go high, and I have not had a low since pod 1. Mostly, I do not miss injections, and making a correction via PDM is pretty effortless. I still like this thang!
This is by far and away one of the most important parts of D care. The Pizza Test!..lol 
I live by this rule. It has proved to be life saving. Of course, I try to rule out all other possibilities beforehand. Great reminder advice Chris.
And best of luck on your new adventure. I pray it works out well for you. I have wanted to go on the POD recently, but I need to wait for my Medtronic tubed pump warranty to come to an end.
Since O5 is pharmacy, not DME, I think some plans will still cover even if you have pump in warranty. Check if on your pharmacy formulary.
Unfortunately, I am on Medicare, and they have a 6 year warranty policy and I cannot change pumps under their very strict guidelines . 
Thanks, though.
Interesting development today.
I put on my pod #4 yesterday as I have installed all of them (and my Dexcom G6) with a Simpatch over-patch applied over Skin Tac. This keeps my pods and Dexcom securely mounted, and I even go around my Dexcom with the wife’s hair dryer to make it extra secure. I believe that has been the secret to me getting 10 days out of almost every sensor I’ve ever used, and there have been a lot of them.
Today, I lightly bumped pod #4 on the outside of my calf, and it fell off. All of the sticky part remained, including the Simpatch, but the plastic part of the pod just fell on the floor. Holy cow - now I’m afraid to touch these things. I applied a new pod, but I assumed the pods would stay in place with their adhesive and an over-patch. Apparently I was incorrect.
Anyone else have a pod fall off from a slight bump?
@bggale I’ve had one pod “mostly” detach (all but the cannula end) and had one just last week that the glue holding the pod to the patch at one corner “stopped” holding, making it flop around more. Thought about putting some superglue on the pod/patch to re-attach, but feared it “soaking thru” and attaching to my skin (
yes, the opposite of the initial problem). I’ve not experienced on falling off completely…something to look forward too? 