Tag: Continuous Glucose Monitor

Well, I am sorry to say today's the day I finally pulled the plug on my plans to get a Dexcom CGM (color: pink). The reason: I can't afford it. The problem is the cost of the sensors, which are good for about a week to 10 days (my personal experience says one week). A three-month supply runs $1,356 until I meet my deductible. So, rather than spend a lot of money (mine and the insurer's to just have the device sit around unused) I decided to wait for the time being. I was explaining my dilemma (and...

Yesterday, while taking a snow afternoon, I finally managed to connect with Neighborhood Diabetes (who I have actually talked to in the past for stories—kind of cool) that I was referred to by the diabetes center to get the CGM. The good The insurer, as expected, gave the OK. The bad Also as expected, I would have to pay for the $1,100 device out of pocket because I have not yet met my deductible ($2,500). I never meet the deductible (see previous parentheses). The OMG! A three-month supply...

I handed back the CGM yesterday and asked "where do I sign up?" to get one of my own. That's because, while I wouldn't want to be tethered to it constantly, the peace of mind—and the guts to more aggressively manage my diabetes—that little black device offers would be worth it. Totally. Turns out lots of people use it during certain times, such as when their numbers aren't making sense, overnight, or maybe during a long hike. After going over the downloaded graphs, as well as my log book,...

I woke up Sunday morning around 5 am thanks to the guys clearing the latest snowfall from the neighbors. At which point I wondered, why hasn't the CGM beeped at me all night? Cause it needed to be charged, which doesn't take long, but since it has to stay within 5 feet of me, it was kind of a pain at that hour(old house, not a lot of conveniently placed outlets.) However, while killing the 20 minutes or so I needed to recharge, I found the logbook they gave me at the doc's office on Wednesday and...

In diabetes we have a rule: the rule of 15. What this means is, if you have a low blood sugar, you should consume 15 grams of carb, wait 15 minutes then test again. It's a good rule and it can work pretty well if you can stick with it. I woke up this morning around 4 and according to the CGM, my blood sugar was an excellent 98, which I confirmed with my meter. However, since I was planning to roll over and go back to sleep for another 3.5 hours I decided to have a swig of OJ in case my numbers were...

I've been chipped and calibrated and am once again using a dexcom continuous glucose monitor (CGM). I think this is a newer model. It seems smaller and lighter and has a few more data input options. I still have to keep it within reach at all times and have quickly adjusted to picking it up every time I walk away from my desk. Now, ordinarily, when I am tracking my numbers in this kind of detail (and with a nurse figuratively looking over my shoulder) I am on my best little person with diabetes behavior. But...

I was woken from a sound sleep at 3 a.m. this morning, most likely by my upstairs neighbor coming in. I actually thought it was around 6 a.m. until I turned on the light to test my blood sugar. It was slightly low so I had some juice. When I checked my CGM, it was apparently as disoriented as I was, because it was displaying question marks (Elaine never said anything to me about question marks????!!!!). Elaine did tell me that the CGM runs about 20 minutes behind where my numbers actually are, so...