One misty morning, in the enchanted land of Sweetfire Vale, Derek, the Dragon with Type 1 Diabetes, woke up feeling full of nervous excitement. Ever since Derek had unsuccessfully tried to cure his diabetes with paper-towels, he had been eagerly awaiting his appointment with Dr Sagescale, the wise old Dragon Doctor, to have a look at magical new diabetes technology.
That morning, Derek and his mum speedily soared through the misty skies, swirling through the candy floss clouds, reaching Dr Sagescale's clinic in record time! As they entered Fireheart Clinic, Dr. Sagescale rushed out to welcome them with a warm smile, excited to help Derek choose how to manage his diabetes. They settled into a relaxing pastel coloured office, surrounded by shelves filled with books and pictures of famous athletes and stars with diabetes.
“Wow, I didn’t know the mighty Oliver Flameheart has diabetes!” exclaimed Derek, excited to see someone so successful in Fireball with T1D too.
Dr Sagescale nodded excitedly and pointed at Flameheart’s insulin pump. “Right then, Derek,” he said, keen to get the appointment underway as he had many T1D dragons to see that day, “shall we explore some insulin pumps and CGMs and see if you’d like to try them?”
Derek was excited to learn that using a CGM would mean far less finger pricks, with a magical app on his phone to see his blood sugars, which would also really help with his fear of hypos. Dr. Sagescale carefully explained the advantages of an insulin pump, meaning a cannula change every 3 days rather than multiple daily injections.
“A pump isn’t an easy fix though, Derek,” Dr Sagescale said in his very knowledgeable manner, “it will take a lot of work to set up, but the results will be so worth it”. Derek’s mum squeezed Derek’s hand and said thoughtfully, “It’s ok, we’re ready to work together on this”. Dr Sagescale smiled warmly and pointed out two options for Derek to consider: the Dslim and the Dragopod, assuring Derek that he could also stay on insulin pens if he felt they were the best option for him.
Firstly, the Dslim insulin pump, a compact device that delivers insulin through a tiny magical tube called a cannula. The benefits of the Dslim included its touch screen, which would make it easy for Derek to program his insulin doses and see his blood sugar levels. Also, the Dslim's design allowed it to be clipped comfortably anywhere to Derek's scales with the option to move it around whenever he wanted.
The Dragopod 5 system, on the other hand, was a tubeless insulin pump. A small patch pod that could be stuck directly to Derek's scales, magically controlled by a handheld device or a phone. No wires of course reduced the risk of accidental tangling when flying.
Derek and his mum chatted for an hour with Dr Sagescale about the benefits of both. “Gosh, this is a tough choice”, said Derek “I can see so many advantages to each one, they both look great, and I really don’t know which one to choose,” looking up at his mum for guidance.
“You seemed very excited by the screen on the Dslim Derek “ said his mum, “so maybe that one?”. It would also mean she wouldn’t have to worry so much about Derek losing the handheld device that came with the Dragopod.
“Yes!” exclaimed Derek, “I think I will try the Dslim as I like the screen, but I wish it was a different colour”. Dr Sagescale let out a chuckle “you can make the pump whatever colour you like Derek”he said. “With magic?” asked Derek. “Nothing magical Derek, simple stickers can help you make the devices your own” explained Dr Sagescale.
So, like in the human realm of Earth, there was a waiting time between choosing the pump and receiving it. Dr Sagescale put the order in for Derek’s new equipment and made him an appointment to come back and have them fitted. Derek was disappointed about the wait, but he used the time to learn as much as he could about the Dslim and CGM, chatting to other T1D dragons on Wingstagram and watching YouWing reviews, he even started to look at stickers to decorate his pump.
After a few dragon adventures, Derek returned to Dr. Sagescale's clinic and left with his new equipment and a newfound sense of confidence. He was excited to embrace his tech and live his dragon life to the fullest, albeit a little nervous to try all his usual activities with his pump and CGM. His first job of course, was to fly to his best friend Lily’s lair to show off his new gadgets.