Hi Mary Francis. I’ve been on a pump for over 25 years so changing sites every 3 days was not new. What was new was having to carry a vital of insulin with me in case I needed to change my pod while I was out. With my pump I could draw up a cartridge and pop out on my bag so it was ready to go - with the pods you have to insert it within an hour of filling. However I’ve adjusted, and have gotten used to it. The process does not take long once you’ve done a few, and I asked my trainer if I could try a couple with sterile saline before going live with insulin: of course in my case I used my Tandem pump and practiced inserting the pod and bolusing normal saline alongside it for practice - you might be able to do the same as you inject.
I rarely sleep on my stomach - it hurts my back - and don’t stay that way for long so I can’t speak to compression. I wear my pods on my upper arm and upper thigh in addition to my abdomen, and they work well.
Right now I’m wearing my pod on my right bicep and my sensor on the right one and they work fine - I did that accidentally one time but it was not a problem. Some people wear the pod on the upper butt or lower back (see their placement guide). I would find that awkward and probably uncomfortable - plus I would need to enlist some help to make sure it’s in place. I woukd rather not “phone a friend” - in this case my wonderful husband - so I don’t okay there. I would think having the pods there and your cgm on your abdomen would interfere, but that’s just a theory.
Tubeless pumps relatively new, and most of us on the forum area used to them, even if we didn’t care for them. I have worn my pump in my cleavage but usually wear pants to I clipped it to my waistband or tucked it in my pocket. I’ve inserted my infusion set on my arm - there. are a couple of lengths of tubing and the longer one was better for that. I’ve found wrapping the tubing a couple of times through the waistband and leghole of my panties kept my pump from hitting the ground if the clip slipped or or slipped out of my pocket.
My endo didn’t care for the previous Omnipod but gave me the 
to try the 5. I think I was one of her first Tandem patients (most used Minimed at the time) so she’s used to me being the “Guinea pig.” White I got initial settings from my endo, I’ve relied quiteva but in my trainer because my endo has not had training herself (her office goes in a few days).
Keep in mind: with any pump you have to determine some background settings, such as basal rates and carb ratios among other things (and those nasty vary at different times of day, and need to be tweaked occasionally). While you need to have those in place with the pod, they are only used if you are in manual mode. The Omnipod5’s advantage is auto mode (I live in it), which automatically adjusts flow constantly on its own as it “learns” your body. You will still need to bolus correctly for meals and snacks but if those and other background settings are in place the system should be able to keep you from going too high or low. Now that’s my non-professional, two-months-as-a-user insight. I would say check out out: there is no commitment with Omnipod and if you don’t like it you can always switch to Medtronic or Tandem. I think you could even switch back before your commitment is up but I’m not sure. That said though - since you’re not already on a pump I would wait until my doctor has done the Omnipod5 training so they will know how to help you manage the special features of this particular one (auto adjust technology). And that said, you could use it in manual mode - wear it as a basic pump connected to a CGM. With the controller as your Dexcom receiver, you would learn to adjust on your own as needed for highs and lows. And that would help you learn the basal rate/s and carb ratios you need throughout the day. I hope that wasn’t too confusing.
Keep in touch!
@wadawabbit Dorie, thanks very much for the quick reply!
I don’t think I realized you my need to change the pod ‘on the go’ but that would probably be covered in the training. My new endocrinologist was part of a test group for the 5 and she found her patients loved it or hated it - didn’t seem to be much in the middle. She is not a fan of the pod (she didn’t come out and say it but it was how she said a few things and what she didn’t say that lead me to believe this.) Because I am a fairly new T1D, the MDI don’t bother me all that much. I am thinking about the pump because my overnight numbers are so far off when I wake up (109 at 4 a.m. to 190 at 9:30) that I think I need to do something.
I appreciate your insight. Keep posting how you like it. I have a meeting with the Nurse on 10/25 and my Endocrinologist on 12/6 so I will be making a decision within the next few months.
Take care,
MF
Hello! I have been using the Omnipod 5 for 6 weeks now. I absolutely love it. I have moved from only being in target about 50% of the time to 75 to 80%. It is an easy change every 3 days. I am a little fleshy so I make sure I don’t place it in areas where my waistband is. Your educator will work with you and will help you tweak as needed. We made a small tweak after a week but I can tell it is starting to learn my body. I have worn on my arm and stomach. No issues. Just be careful with purse straps if you put it in your arm.
Pumps are considered “the” best treatment for Type1, but many people do fine or even better on injections.
I love pumping and am very happy with Omnipod; but using any pump is a commitment, and not just financial. 190 isn’t horrible, but you know what your goals are and I don’t want to interfere with that. Sometimes a change in timing of your basal injection - or splitting the total dose into two shots - does the trick. In discussions with your doctor ask if it’s really necessary to go on a pump to meet your goals, or if trying some adjustments might accomplish them.
Some people absolutely must use a pump for various reasons; others do equally well either way, but prefer the flexibility; some people have erratic schedules that vary so much, injections just don’t cut it.
Some doctors push their patients to get a pump even if they don’t want one, or advocate for a certain one when their patient would prefer another. So be sure your reasons for switching - and the pump you choose (if you do) - are your own and not your doctor’s. Omnipod would be a good one to start with if you’re not sure you want to go that route. No commitment if you decide you don’t like pumping at all.
I read lots of use reviews - comments here on the forum and ones elsewhere online - and I too found that people either loved it or hated it - no in between. I asked my trainer lots of questions, including ones about the love/hate thing, because I like details. Some people didn’t like carrying a pda (controller). Omnipod is compatible with some Samsung smartphones but not iPhone, which I carry. I don’t mind - some people hate that. People often hated their higher numbers with the first one or two pods - I’m sure that so bother you but the system is adjusting and hopefully after the second or third pod things will level out in a nice range. Having to carry insulin around for changes is something I thought would bother me a lot but I’ve gotten used to it. Anyway, all your trainer for input on the negatives so you can see if the complaints apply to you.
Hi @wadawabbit
Wondering how you’re liking the omnipod 5 compared to t:slim and control iq. Any major differences (besides no tubing)?
I’ve really enjoyed following this thread so far- thank you for taking so much time to update us!
@6yGodsGr Omnipod’s algorithm works differently. Discussions with a trainer or rep will serve you best, but just as our CGMs give updates every 5 minutes, the Omnipod5 gives micro adjustments every 5 minutes. The system learns your body’s responses and uses those to adjust. Like I said - a trainer can go over this is much more and much here detail but that’s the general idea.
There is no sleep mode but there is one for activity.
As with any pump it only works as well as the background programming. In auto mode the basal rates don’t matter (of course they do if you switch to Manual), but others do - I don’t want to say too much since I’m not qualified to instruct. I think with the change of seasons something has changed and I’m trying to figure out how to get those settings set. My time in range was about 80% after my first few pods but has gone down to the low 70s and I’m trying to figure that out. Have to follow up with my trainer on that.
Overall I like the micro doses - they seem to work better for me.
Now, an adventure yesterday:
I had a dentist appointment and was going to eat before I went. I was going to have dinner about 4:00. I was due to change my pod at 8pm and jag plenty of insulin to last, but about 3:00 I got a communication error - mycontroller couldn’t connect to the pod! I went ahead and changed early thinking that would do the trick, and waited for it to reconnect to my Dexcom. That can take 30 minutes although usually not. I waited, and waited and when more than 30 had passed I did a fingerstick to get the reading to use. But the controller wouldn’t bolus! By now it was going on 4:00 and I needed to eat then drive to the dentist at 5. I was going to have to call Omnipod support - which had been an hour on hold each time - so I left work early and went home (only a 10 minute drive) to call from there. By the time I got home everything was back to normal, but I did take my backup controller just in case.
On that note - thankfully I had purchased a spare out of pocket ($150) to keep on hand just in case - the software is not compatible with iPhone but I prefer to use a separate device anyway. I’ll have to keep the spare charged to go. I haven’t had a chance to call yet.
I would encourage you to try it if you think you’re interested. The starter kit was $250 (I got just one box of pods, more may be more) but there’s no commitment and I think you can even try it while you’re on a different pump. Keep in mind what you’ve read before about running high the first few pods as the system learns your body. I would also suggest waiting until your endo is trained on the 5. Mine goes for training soon but I was worming closely with my trainer to fill in the gaps. Ideally we pump users learn to do our own programming, but the 5 is so different it’s good to have addirional expertise.
So - I left work early yesterday because my controller wouldn’t communicate with my pod. Things were back to normal when I got home 10 minutes later and I went to the dentist as planned. Got to work this morning and my co-worker good me I had missed some excitement.
Really, what?
We thought we had a bomb.
OH [insert your preferred expletive here]. I knew right away what he was referring to: the pod I had removed and tossed in the trash had not deactivated and was beeping when the early birds got to work. Thankfully James kept his cool and looked in the bathroom trash. I’ve worn my pod on my arm and told people what it is so thankfully he recognized it - he threw it in the dumpster down the street. Not knowing how loud it might eventually get I walked around the dumpster waving my controller to connect and shut it off. I thought it stopped before I went back to my office but I did go back to check later just in case.
I may laugh about this someday but right now I am not amused. Note to self: take your used pods home to discard🤨!
I’ll giggle for you! If a trash can started screaming at my high school they’d evacuate the building and send in a swat team. Fortunately your coworker recognized what the pod was!
Thanks for the info! I’m doing well on the t:slim but I’m also curious about the omnipod 5 since it’s so different (and I like knowing as much as possible about T1D/medical tech/etc). Considering that the omnipod has no commitment, I’ll probably try it out when my tandem pump warranty expires in 2 years. Insurance won’t consider any new pumps until the current one expires.
You might check with your insurance. My Omnipod 5 is covered under my Pharmacy benefit and not durable medical equipment.
I’m laughing about it now but I did worry if the thing didn’t turn off and 911 or a bomb squad was called! All’s well that ends well - but still…
It’s a good thing I don’t hide my pump!
The spare that I plugged in when I got home was actually the first one whose battery empties too quickly. I’m keeping that one at my office and can keep it plugged in if I need to. The one I paid for out of pocket is in its box. I need to be sure I’ve entered my settings so it will be good to go if I ever need it. About that - I’m still flabbergasted that you have to manually enter your settings - you can’t download them or even plug in to sync them!
Not to push you to rush but you could contact Omnipod about your interest and have them run your insurance just to see - as @danaestes suggested, it may be covered under pharmacy benefits.
Okay! So as a podder here’s a helpful tip which maybe wouldn’t be possible at work but at home I do this. If I ever have a pod that won’t disconnect with the PDM for whatever reason and then I hit discard instead of retry and then it just does it’s crazy beep like that I toss mine in the freezer. I was told to do this years ago and it does two things one it makes it really hard to hear the annoying beeping through the freezer door and two it stops the pod eventually from beeping and then I toss out. I used to try purposely breaking them cause why not and literally throwing it as hard as I could against the ground didn’t stop the beeping. It does make it skip around though instead of a constant beep 
Excellent info - thank you!
The older pods had a secret hole under the adhesive if you poked it with a paper clip the beeping was reported to stop. YouTube it, I don’t know if 5 has it.
@joe there is a YouTube video showing how to do that with the 5. I haven’t tried it. Yet.
My controller is having issues - yes, the replacement one I got not too long ago. I can bolus and see my numbers, etc., but is lost connection to the AT&T network so I have to use wifi; and it does not connect to bluetooth so it’s not communicating with Glooko. I discovered this rnoon 3pm yesterday - my last recorded reading was about noon.
I tried a few things but ended up calling tech support - thankfully someone picked up in under 10 minutes (I’ve waited am his or so on prior calls) but the person I talked to was not able to help. I finally asked to speak with someone me knowledgeable and he said he would have a higher level tech call me back - but it could be a day or two🤨.
Thankfully I do have the controller I purchased as a backup.
@wadawabbit The controller is a stripped down cell phone. My 2 cents is to hard restart the phone (controller) . Most phones with a power button will do a hard reset if you hold the power button in for like 20 seconds. Perhaps you could have said you can’t bolus to get another controller in the mail?
Thanks @joe! I hadn’t thought about doing a hard reset. The reset thing is, I would have to manually key in all my settings - they’re not stored in a cloud somewhere and you can’t even plug in to sync! I’m hoping to avoid that - will see what tech support says when I do hear back. Thankfully I can do what I need to do in the meantime and have my spare is this go south.
Thanks again!
Hi Dorie! Just wanted to check in. Still loving it?
Hi @Tee25 ! Yes, I am. I’ve had some periods where I was running higher and I’m not sure why, but the higher numbers are consistent and I think I need to change my goal range to bring them down a bit since the pod doesn’t use standard basal rates in auto mode. My doctor only recently had her training so I’m looking forward to working with her. I know some friends on the forum will remind me I should be able to do this on my own, but since the algorithm is so new I want a second opinion.
I haven’t had much appetite for a few days - pulled my right quad muscle and pain takes away my appetite - and the pod has been great about keeping me from going low. Much better than temp basals with CIQ.
I have found that site placement of the pod can cause some differences in your numbers. It doesn’t work as well for me when placed on my leg as it does on my abdomen area or back of arm. I have seen others have this same comment so something to think about. I am still experimenting with different sites. Went to endo last week. A1C down so happy about that. Doc made some changes for different times of the day to help. However, sooo pleased with my night time readings. I use to wake up 250 to 300. Now I am getting 100-125 ranges in the a.m.
Hope you guys don’t mind me jumping in on this conversation!