Keeping blood sugar levels in the right range is a challenge for anyone living with type 1 diabetes. Understanding my own body and how it responds to different foods, activities and environments is important to effectively control the condition. I find exercise is extremely helpful in keeping my blood sugar stable.

Roddy Riddle_140311_0515I use the Animas Vibe insulin pump which makes my life much easier. Like a pancreas, my insulin pump continuously releases accurate amounts of rapid-acting insulin into my body to maintain a normal balance of blood sugar levels. And when I eat, it delivers more insulin to cover the carbohydrates in the food that I’ve consumed with just a few simple presses. The insulin pump has changed my life. The pump is enabled with Dexcom continuous glucose monitoring technology and gives me an overview of my glucose trends and patterns direct to my pump screen which gives me information to help me rule diabetes and not be ruled by it. I can then tailor my dosage to suit my personal needs and the pump even alerts me if there are any glucose changes that I need to be aware of.

The Animas pump gives me much greater flexibility to change my plans. For example if I was still using injections I wouldn’t be able to go for a spontaneous run without risking a hypo which could be dangerous. With the pump I can just ‘dial down’ the base insulin level so a bit more sugar stays in the blood to fuel my muscles during the exercise.