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Getting Pumped!

 


I finally got my Vyalev pump. Like anything else with Parkinson's, the road has been bumpy. I started in the clinical trial about four years ago. That only lasted a month or so because of the skin bruising, swelling and medication pooling. At the end of last year, the FDA approved the pump and recently Medicare started covering it. I was anxious to try again. So now I am on day 6 and here's the good, the bad and the ugly: I am having much less off time. I am still in the phase of getting my rate adjusted and anticipate that this will improve even more. On occasion, I still use my Inbrija to get me over a rough patch but I'm not using it much and I anticipate I will need to continue to have it on hand in the future because life with PD, well, life in general, is unpredictable. I have had some trouble with the medication pooling and my skin bruising and looking bumpy and swollen. Thankfully, there is an online community of wonderful people sharing tips and tricks for dealing with these issues. When I was in the trial, I didn't have this kind of support and thought I might be the only one dealing with this. The support from the PD community is so awesome and beneficial. The best way to fight Parkinson's truly is...together. I am getting used to the process of maintaining my new accessory and figuring out how to literally fit it in to my life because it is not small. At this point, the size is something I will deal with because the benefits far outweigh the fashion risk I am taking (but if the Abbvie engineers are reading this...I know you're working on making it smaller...please hurry). The adventure continues...I will keep you posted.

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