I adapted this thread title to fit Melissa's thoughtful question. I hope more people can share their thoughts as beautifully as Melissa did!

Hi Scott,

I was wondering how you felt when you got Arden's pump. Alison has been doing MDI since July 2010 and we just got her first pump yesterday.

I have to admit that I was really excited when the girls and I opened the box up. The little ones were excited to see the unit power up and hear the sounds it made and it was a really positive experience.

Once both girls were asleep in their beds, I took another quick look in the box. I was overcome with tears. I felt this enormous weight and sadness, almost like I did when we were coming to grips with Alison's diagnosis.

Just thought maybe others could share how they felt (excited, nervous, sad) about the changes in their child's lives.

It is much more overwhelming for me than it is my son. He loves his pump and thinks nothing of it all. His gift to me....kids are amazing! It's those quiet moment when I realize that this is forever. Then I see blogs like this and realize we are not alone by any stretch of the imagination.

My Son is 17. he was diagnosed at 15. he started MDI of course...and has been pumping with the Omnipod 2 years now. When I read the part about Arden asking about what she will do when she goes to college...I cried. My niece was diagnosed just 3 months before my son....in the middle of her Senior year of HS. She is on the Animas. she went off to college so soon after diagnosis ....and tried so hard for 1 and a half years to do it all on her own.... And ended up failing out. She was an honor roll student who took AP courses before diagnosis.... She never learned to drive and is now ...20 . She just recently came to live with me. I am teaching her to drive. Her parents both work late hrs so it is hard for them to have the time to spend with her. So my job now....(I am a stay at home mom) is to help her gain her life back...and continue to help my son so when he needs to go out on his own...he will be more prepared than she was. I took an online crash course on the Animas .....and will be helping her get back some control of her life that diabetes spun out of control for her. So now.. I am responsible for both a 17 and a 20 yr old with type 1 that were both just diagnosed in 2009. Still in the learning phase.....but....when does the learning phase ever really end.....?

Hi,

My son is 8 years old. He was diagnosed when he was 7 months old. We started with the medtronic pump when he was about 3 years old, that was in 2007. I remember feeling excited, scared and nervous. Our diabetes educator came to our house to teach my husband and I how to use a pump, we both wore a pump using saline for a week, so every time we ate we told the pump how much carbs and we would give ourselves a bolus. I found this very beneficial, not only did it help us to learn how to use the pump, but it calmed our fears and nervousness. We have been pumping for 5 years now, and it is the best decision we have made. But still after 8 years of being a D-mom, there is always something new to learn