Happy Halloween, my Friends. For those of you who love the dress-up and parties: Enjoy! For those of you who fear the treats, please see Leighann’s D-Mom wisdom from earlier this week.
I stumbled on this video, created last year by the crew at the non-profit charity iPump, which provides insulin pump systems to diabetic children in need. Their “commercial” at the end is a little jarring, but I guess that’s par for the course:
See y’all Monday, “on the other side.”
I’m sorry, but here is another group giving out misinformation. Yes, I realize that inserting an infusion set isn’t technically a shot. But it’s a big needle and I still have to jab myself with it every couple of days. What else would you call it?
Meh, it’s not technically a shot, as you said. It’s the insertion of a cannula or catheter, right? For simplicity’s sake I can sympathize with their simplification.
But i cannot sympathize with their low handed, gruesome, scare tactics. I think there are other ways of presenting the problems of Diabetes (and MDI therapy) without resorting to that. When I think about a child with diabetes seeing this I cringe. Actually. Watching it made me cringe for myself. I think they could have done this another (better) way. Sigh.
On top of that they treat MDI like it’s this dangerous thing when I imagine plenty of people slip into a coma when attached to a pump too. Considering the state of the world we’re in, we are VERY lucky to have MDI as a treatment option, let alone pumps. MDI is expensive enough. Pump therapy? If a family can’t afford a pump can they afford the supply costs?
Ugh. But. After all that. I do think pumps can be very helpful for kids. Time to find some friends to donate with me…..
That is one scary video, Amy. Really a bit mis-leading with lots of fear-inducing statistics and the image of the young boy about to get stabbed with this huge needle…these guys should branch out into political ads.
Fair Winds,
Mike
Wow. Great video. Great take on an, err.. seasonal topic.
Scary, but fear mongering does snap people to attention pretty quickly
I’m not a huge fan of this video. Yes, shots can hurt (and Autumn is right, infusion sets ARE shots), but diabetes isn’t all about shots and fingersticks. It’s about control, about counting every carbohydrate eaten and accounting for every extraordinarily strenuous activity. I’ve been pumping for about 4 1/2 years, and while it’s helped my control, it’s far from perfect.
Contrary to popular belief, the injections are the easy part of diabetes. Believe me, if I were offered the opportunity to take 20 shots a day, but never have to worry about my blood glucose levels or any other complications, I’d sign up in a heartbeat.