Muscle Jabs

It is possible to stick an insulin pump infusion site into muscle rather than into fat? I suppose it is but, in my five plus years of pumping, I've never had a site that felt like it was in muscle before so it never occurred to me that I could actually do that.

Last Wednesday evening I changed my site. I use one of those insertion devices that, at the push of a button, jabs the needle in. As the needle went in, I felt a bit more resistance than usual but nothing odd. It hurt a bit more than usual but, again, nothing odd.

Thursday, every so often, when I moved a certain way, I felt a twinge. I ignored it. It got worse. I ignored it. It started to twinge when I sat down or stood up but not while standing or sitting. It started to hurt when I folded slightly forward but no amount of moving side to side caused the same feeling. I started to wonder if I had somehow struck muscle with my infusion site.

I decided to try to gently wiggle it a bit to see if I could dislodge it from the muscle without causing it to actually dislodge from my body. It helped a bit but didn't solve the problem. It also hurt a lot.

I decided to use my Friday morning swim as a way to either solve the problem or force me into action. I figured the swimming causes me to move my abs in all sorts of ways as well as lengthen my body. I hoped all the movement would 'fix' the problem.

The swim, as it turns out, didn't cause any pain but also didn't solve anything. I felt nothing during the entire workout but, as soon as I went to climb out of the pool, I could feel it again.

Sigh, I hate wasting pump supplies.

I went home and stubbornly refused to change it. I went to work and gingerly moved my way around the office, getting up and sitting down more slowly than usual. I wondered if I could do it for two more days until I was actually due to change the site.

The big test would be my friday night golf game. Would the golf swing movement be a problem? I did one test swing in my kitchen and immediately knew that I had to make a choice. Change my site or skip the golf game.

Of course I changed my site. I'm stubborn but not that stubborn.

Nothing seemed amiss when I removed the site. No bent cannula. No bleeding. One removed, the pain disappeared. Just like that.

Maybe I should have an extra cookie or two, buy more maple fudge, maybe eat more salt and vinegar chips.  You know, to build up that adipose tissue cushion on my abdomen.