Cleaning out the stash

RLK · #1 (**permalink**) 10-09-2006, 11:29 AM

I decided to clean out my diabetes stash today. What a walk down memory lane! I found my old BD Pen Mini (alas, they no longer make the cartridges for it) and a whole box of 5/16" pen needles, a couple of old Accuchek meters, as well as countless expired Accuchek test strips. What do I do with all this stuff? It's just taking up space, but I feel odd chucking meters and an insulin pen in the trash. What do you do with your old stuff?

spike · #2 (**permalink**) 10-09-2006, 12:10 PM

I keep old meters around in case the mfgrs resume their old habits of taking trade ins. I used to send in old meters and get new ones, but haven't seen that ploy being used lately; who knows if they'll go back to their old tricks in the near future?

SueM · #3 (**permalink**) 10-09-2006, 01:20 PM

Sorry I did have to laugh at the walk down memory lane when I saw your diagnoses as 1998

As momento of my early yrs I still have my glass insulin syringe and harpoon needles from the 1960's.
Has anyone else kept any stuff from the eerrrrr good old days?

RLK · #4 (**permalink**) 10-09-2006, 01:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SueM

Sorry I did have to laugh at the walk down memory lane when I saw your diagnoses as 1998

LOL! It's hard to believe how much things have changed in only a few years....I can't wait to see what the next 10 years bring

Mick · #5 (**permalink**) 10-09-2006, 01:55 PM

Sue--

I no longer have any of my glass syringes, but when I was a kid, I used the boxes that the early disposible ones came in to store my old memorabilia-- grade school report cards, correspondence from college (when we still wrote actual letters to one another!), etc--and those old boxes all say "26G U40" on the box, and some claim "Free alcohol preps included! That's all I have from the old days, except my first meter, a late-80's contraption which read the color from the original color-changing blood-glucose sticks, you did not require a meter for them, but it kept you more honest! My test tubes, holder and dropper from the Clinitest days are long gone.

Michael
T1 since 1966

Mich · #6 (**permalink**) 10-09-2006, 02:29 PM

I think I still have some of the old glass syringes and metal BD needles with a bundle of "cleaning wires" to poke through them after boiling. The funniest thing in my stash-o-stuff is my Busher Automatic Injector. Mom bought it for me to take to Jr. Hi slumber parties with me in case I chickened out.
It holds the syringe & needle and has something like a sewing machine foot on the bottom. The click it made was loud enough to startle you into learning to use your syringe!

Boy, I sure don't miss those days!

Mich

spike · #7 (**permalink**) 10-09-2006, 02:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mich

I think I still have some of the old glass syringes and metal BD needles with a bundle of "cleaning wires" to poke through them after boiling. The funniest thing in my stash-o-stuff is my Busher Automatic Injector. Mom bought it for me to take to Jr. Hi slumber parties with me in case I chickened out.
It holds the syringe & needle and has something like a sewing machine foot on the bottom. The click it made was loud enough to startle you into learning to use your syringe!

Boy, I sure don't miss those days!Mich

Luckily for me, I missed the glass syringes/boiling, etc. But it was bad enough in '78 w/o bg meters or Humalog. I could never get regulated on the various versions of Lente, along with Regular. Gawd, I still have flashbacks to the traumatic lows I had on that ****.

Cyborg · #8 (**permalink**) 10-09-2006, 03:25 PM

You'd think there would be a way to donate these items to charitable organizations for needy people.

ramrummy · #9 (**permalink**) 10-09-2006, 05:33 PM

Don't you have a head office for your Diabetes Association. Ours is called Diabetes Australia, and I remember having to go to head office and there they had a display of old diabetes paraphenalia, maybe if you have something like that, they would take your old 'bits'. Personally I dont think disadvantaged people would appreciate out of date monitors, strips, needles -dont you think that they have enough problems, LOL.

Diana · #10 (**permalink**) 10-09-2006, 06:19 PM

Ha ha, I was diagnosed in 98 too, but a few months ago I went through my old supplies and chucked some stuff out. I had a glucotrend and a glucotrend premium meter from 98 and 99 that I finally parted with. In one way I wanted to keep them (for memories sake? I really dont know!) But I was firm with myself and threw them. I did just throw mine into the bin. My first meter had all this glitter nailpolish on it where I had tried to decorate it, lol.

I remember watching my grandparents test their blood sugars with a meter that you had to take the strip out and wipe it with a tissue. That would have probably been in the early to mid 90's. When you think how far we have come in the last 10 to 15 years it makes me feel really positive. Not that I'm going to hold my breath for a cure just yet.

Cyborg · #11 (**permalink**) 10-09-2006, 06:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ramrummy

Personally I dont think disadvantaged people would appreciate out of date monitors, strips, needles -dont you think that they have enough problems, LOL.

Personally, I wouldn't donate out of date supplies...

Angelique · #12 (**permalink**) 10-09-2006, 10:16 PM

Wow, glass syringes, that was probably just before my time. I was diagosed just before Humulin came out, I took the pork insulin for a short time. I still have all my meters. I even have a journal from when the dr wanted me to save my strips, you the know the kind that you matched the color to the bottle. I still have all those strips in a book. I use to be so good with keeping track of my diabetes.