I’m going to need to look at that closer bc I’ve never heard of those before FUD.
I actually never heard of disposable pens until trying MDI again a couple of years ago. I don’t think they sold them in Canada when I was diagnosed. Unfortunately they seem to be becoming more popular, and Tresiba is only available in them unlike the rest of the world. Try going to your endo’s office and asking, they’re way better than the disposables. The NovoPens have digital screens on the plunger that tell you what your last dose was and how many hours ago it was taken. I’m sure the Humapens have something similar. Plus they create less waste and I think it’s easier for travel to only carry around a couple of pens and the cartridges vs. a whole bunch of pens.
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The advantage of the Lilly version of the disposable versus the reusable pen is the size. The disposable is a little bit smaller to carry around.
Does anyone have a picture of the Novo pens compared to the Lilly? Or measurements of one?
Thank you for that. Very helpful to see!
I remember when I started on Lantus in 2006 that it came as a reuseable pen with cartridges. Forgot about that until now.
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I too went many years without knowning there was such a thing as disposable pens as they were not available in Canada until recently.
The first disposable pens I used were when I was on MDI accidentally ran out of Humalog insulin during a trip to the US [I was younger then and accidentally left the bag of my back-up supplies at home - oops]. I got the disposable pens from a Walmart and I though they were terrible compared to the Humalog pen I was using at the time. I was so glad to use them up and go back to the cartridges.
Which one was it? The Lilly Humalog disposable, the “KwikPen”? Why was it horrible?
Also as a side-note, I have broken one of the non-disposable pens before. One advantage of the disposable is that if you break one, you generally have more available.
For people using non-disposable pens, it’s always good to have a spare! You can get the Lilly (Humalog) ones from Canada for only $10!
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And if you physically come to Canada, a pharmacy will likely just give you one. I don’t recall ever paying for one.
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Well dang, Beacher. You shouldn’t have said anything. You could open up your own FUD business, undercutting the current online places, and selling them for…$9.
Seriously, if you use one of those pens, it’s worth it to have a spare.
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It was the one before the KwikPen. At the time I found those pens hard to turn and they did not have a nice clicking action like the re-usable pen I was using.
Also they were frickin’ expensive. At the time I thought I was paying a lot more just for the disposable pen but now I realize that I was paying for the insulin because of US insulin prices. Yikes! At least my travel insurance company covered the bill for that mistake.
When I was on MDI I always carried a back-up re-usable pen. In Canada, you can get them free from the pharmacy (hey pharmacist - can I get another pen?) or your endo who usually has a giant stack.
But if you are from the US, they will sell them for $10/ea 
…and based on @Eric’s good advice, you can also use a syringe to draw out of your pen cartridges if your reusable pen fails.
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I’m cleaning out my basement and found this laminated bag tag that my very first Diabetes Mentor had made for me. He was a corporate pilot who temporarily lost his medical certificate when he was diagnosed with Type 2. He got his medical certification back and went back to flying once he got his A1C down to approved levels. ANYWAY, when I was diagnosed during my internship with his flight department, he took me under his wing and taught me how to advocate for myself, how to log everything, how to grocery shop, what to cook, everything. He is responsible for the successes that I’ve had. Before I moved away from Wichita (where I was diagnosed), he made me a personalized snack lunch box with a name tag from FlightSafety with my jet on it. I was so lucky to have had his mentorship and friendship. Now he’s retired and runs fishing charters around Florida. Heck of a guy.
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I started Butt Pod #1 on Friday. It hasn’t gotten in the way so far. I’ve accidentally slept on it without issue. Humalog is acting much faster and effectively from this site…as I’m sitting here waiting for my second juice box to catch this low, even w trimming down correction and snack boluses. Had a similar low yesterday from over-effective snack bolus. I’m impressed that it’s working so much better than my arm sites. I’m typically at +25 - +30% basal for this stretch of days, but only need +10% c/o Butt Podding.
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Just as an update, my pod sites seem to be doing Much Better when only using them for basal, corrections and sometimes my breakfast bolus. Using insulin pens for lunch/dinner/snacks seems to be saving my pod sites from most of my bleeding/leaking/tunneling problems so far. Fingers crossed.
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@T1Allison from what I’ve read on here, it sounds like Omnipod has presented you some challenges, but it sounds like you’re really working hard to make it work. I’m curious what you like about Omnipod that makes it worth working through the struggles, vs going back to injections only? I’m starting on Omnipod soon so I’m just interested in the perspective, if you don’t mind my asking!
@kpanda01, that’s a great question! I’m sticking with podding as long as possible bc:
- I like the tubeless pump option. I’ve never used a tubed pump, but if I have a sustainable method of using the pod, I’d rather stick with that than starting a new learning curve w some other pump at this time in my busy life.
- I prefer pumping to MDI because of the basal flexibility it gives me for:
a. Female hormone fluctuations which impact my basal rates for all but about 7 days of each cycle.
b. Sick day management
c. Quicker trouble shooting than what I had on MDI (I.E. if my Lantus partially leaked at injection, the next 24 hours is a big guessing game)
d. Travel/exercise basal tailoring
e. Basal tailoring through each day so I don’t have to plan around routine highs and lows from my Lantus, which usually means better sleeping with fewer overnight lows.
I wish I could make boluses work via the pump, but it seems my skin just won’t allow it. That’s a relatively small inconvenience for the peace of mind I get for improved basal accuracy throughout each 24 hour period and each cycle.
Good luck and great researching!
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Thanks so much for taking the time to answer. Wishing you luck as you continue to experiment…Hope you find a solution that works for you!
Thank you! Good luck with settling in with Omnipod and pumping. I hope it works like clockwork for you!
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One observation with two potential explanations:
Lately, I haven’t been experiencing pod change spikes…and I have had to stop running temp basal increases that I used to use to get a pod going better. I am happy for this change.
Two theories:
- Since I have decreased the total quantity delivered at each site from 120 units to about 55 units, the site isn’t leaking with a pod removal?
- Since I cut wine completely out of my routine six weeks ago due to suspected intolerance/allergy, my body is not reacting to podding as badly?
I’ve been using meal injections for about 3 or 4 weeks now, I think. My pod sites are much happier but I’m not sure if it’s due to less site pressure or less body inflammation (from the wine).
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