FreeStyle Libre - My Life with the Machine

[Grateful]

Hi @Grateful
Obstinate is my middle name..!
However, I have realised that my treatment is being guided by someone who sees me every 6 months - when actually I can refine my own judgements every day..!
So I decided to take control of my own treatment. It really is so liberating..!

Bonne chance mon ami. J’espère que tous va bien pour toi..!

Chacun à son goût. I'm a compulsive/obsessive type and feel it would be "too much information" for me. Also, I can leech a lot of information off this forum in terms of what is Good and Bad to eat or drink. Mind you, I brought this beastly disease under control largely on my own, with help from food labels and dietdoctor.com, and only found this website recently.

Amazing how much confusion there is out there, so having detailed data such as you are providing on this clever little device is invaluable.

Edited to add: Oh, and I'm also a dinosaur. Don't even own a smartphone, for instance.

 

[Peter_Sylvester]

Chacun à son goût. I'm a compulsive/obsessive type and feel it would be "too much information" for me. Also, I can leech a lot of information off this forum in terms of what is Good and Bad to eat or drink. Mind you, I brought this beastly disease under control largely on my own, with help from food labels and dietdoctor.com, and only found this website recently.

Amazing how much confusion there is out there, so having detailed data such as you are providing on this clever little device is invaluable.

Edited to add: Oh, and I'm also a dinosaur. Don't even own a smartphone, for instance.

Happy to help if I can - either on this forum or via Direct Message.
In the meantime, I will keep sharing what I am learning.
Peter

 

[hankjam]

LIBRE : A Risotto mistake avoided (next time)
(Friday 3rd November 2017)

So here I am now, 10 days into my active use of the Libre gizmo, and I have been feeling pretty pleased with myself.

I now have more information on the impacts of certain foods, better knowledge of the effects of timing on my daily blood movements, and by taking that info on board, I have made remarkable progress on taking the "spikes" out of my day.

In the last 48 hours, I have been particularly pleased with being able to stay within what I call my "tramlines" all day (in other words, the target range that I set on the system).

Until last night, that is...

I am quite partial to Prawn Risotto, and it has made a regular appearance on my dinner table.
However, after last nights "discovery" it is now on the banned list..!

My bloods went up from 6.4 to 13.2, in a one hour spike straight after dinner...!!!

It then took me 3 hours and a (very vigorous) walk to get things back inside the tramlines.

****** - I MUST READ THE PACKAGING BETTER.

It is not Libre's fault, but without Libre, I would never have known that I have (probably) been experiencing this ridiculous spike 2 or 3 times a week...

So, onwards and upwards - all learning is good, even painful learning is good (apparently)

I am pleased to say that there has been no lasting "damage" this morning or throughout the day - but there is no need to make it hard for yourself, is there..????

Peter (Wise-After-The-Event) Sylvester

The sugar content to us T2 is more or less meaningless, what was the carb content on the back?
Reading your blog with interest and wondering about a local collective for the device in NE Fife....
Good luck

 

[Peter_Sylvester]

The sugar content to us T2 is more or less meaningless, what was the carb content on the back?
Reading your blog with interest and wondering about a local collective for the device in NE Fife....
Good luck

Great question @hankjam
I don’t know the answer (yet) but tomorrow I will rummage around in the bin, find the packaging, and post as soon as I know..!

I have to admit that I get confused when it says “Carbs, of which sugars..”

Another thing for me to learn about
LOL

 

[kokhongw]

B****R - I MUST READ THE PACKAGING BETTER.

It is not Libre's fault, but without Libre, I would never have known that I have (probably) been experiencing this ridiculous spike 2 or 3 times a week...

The package says only 9.9g of sugar....but did not mentioned the carbs...

We have to learn to account for all the hidden carbs...what is complex to others may still be simple to us

Although with rissoto being rice...it is likely a simple carb.

 

[Peter_Sylvester]

OMG..!
Another thing to learn about.
Q: When is simple not simple ?
A : When it’s compound...

My head hurts - one for tomorrow me thinks..!

LOL

Thanks for the interaction everyone - I appreciate it

 

[db89]

Great question @hankjam
I don’t know the answer (yet) but tomorrow I will rummage around in the bin, find the packaging, and post as soon as I know..!

To spare you bin ratching one of those risotto meals contains 63g~ carbs.

When carb counting try to ignore the fairly useless sugar content on the traffic light system (unless you would like to know how much of the content is likely to convert to glucose the quickest).

 

[Peter_Sylvester]

You are right @db89 ..!
(I couldn’t wait for tomorrow)

 

[Peter_Sylvester]

So I guess I need to start to now better understand what is my optimum carb intake per meal / per day etc...

 

[kokhongw]

So I guess I need to start to now better understand what is my optimum carb intake per meal / per day etc...

Yes...that meal was like a 75g oral glucose tolerance test...and perhaps more, depending on what else you added. Things add up pretty quicky for us...and for T2D...we do not yet have the tools to measure the amplified effects on our insulin response. That would have given us even better insights to our underlying issues.

 

[RFSMarch]

A batch of dodgy sensors notwithstanding, my general practice now is to put the new sensor on anything up to 24hours before the old one is due to expire. Depends on where I am/what I am doing when I finally get the 24 hour or less message when I scan the outgoing sensor.

It gives the body time to adjust to what you just fired into it and for the sensor to calm down a little.

However... the last few sensors had short expiry dates left on them, and I have noticed that they are producing a skin reaction.
My first sensor in this batch just fell off my arm with 7 hours to go, with the new one in place, after a trip to the gym, pool, steam room and sauna. So I bought Tegaderm and used that to secure it.

That sensor though started to cause a lot of itching especially with the tegaderm over the top, and failed at work one day with 6 days to go. By this time I had invested also in Skintac wipes and I used that on the next one with tegaderm over the top. That lasted longer, but this one also was very itchy under the tegaderm from time to time and the sensor itself started giving me LO readings for an entire day despite eating a jacket potato and beans and having a Starbucks with caramel waffles. Something was definitely not right! It was while I was away and I had a new sensor with me and so I took the failing one off my arm (actually it and the tegaderm just came off when I was getting changed) and revealed are rather fetching weal and very inflamed area.

I had no choice but to switch arms (which presented its own issues given lugging heavy backpacks around etc) and the inflammation has gone down but the ‘burned’ surface area still remains.

This latest sensor (also short expiry date) I decided NOT to use tegaderm, just the alcohol wipe and skintac and not put the skintac on such a large surface area as it itinitially looked like where the skintac and tegaderm had been in contact, there was the skin irritation. Within a week a rash started to develop around the edge of the sensor. So my pharmacist and I ruled out an allergy to tegaderm because the rash is there without it.

Someone advised that the alcohol wipe and skintac might be reacting. In the last I have used only the supplied wipe and the sensor and had no issues with the sensor staying on, in fact have had to soak the little blighter in baby oil to ease it off (longer dates though on the sensor)

So... on Monday, new sensor is going back on the old arm, and will use cavillon barrier spray, no wipe, no skintac and will use tegaderm when I go to the gym only... and will see if that helps.

 

[Ledzeptt]

Hi @RFSMarch

I’ve read other people complain about skin irritation have some success by taking a mild anti-histamine, such as Piriton.

It depends if you want to start taking medication and if you want to try more than one approach at a time.

 

[Ledzeptt]

Hi Peter_Sylvester

To complicate matters, rice is high GI (high on the Glycemic Index) which means the carbs are absorbed into your bloodstream quickly; hence the early spike.

There’s more info here: https://www.nhs.uk/chq/pages/1862.aspx?categoryid=51

http://www.bracknellandascotccg.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Glycaemic-index.pdf

 

[Peter_Sylvester]

A batch of dodgy sensors notwithstanding, my general practice now is to put the new sensor on anything up to 24hours before the old one is due to expire. Depends on where I am/what I am doing when I finally get the 24 hour or less message when I scan the outgoing sensor.

It gives the body time to adjust to what you just fired into it and for the sensor to calm down a little.

However... the last few sensors had short expiry dates left on them, and I have noticed that they are producing a skin reaction.
My first sensor in this batch just fell off my arm with 7 hours to go, with the new one in place, after a trip to the gym, pool, steam room and sauna. So I bought Tegaderm and used that to secure it.

That sensor though started to cause a lot of itching especially with the tegaderm over the top, and failed at work one day with 6 days to go. By this time I had invested also in Skintac wipes and I used that on the next one with tegaderm over the top. That lasted longer, but this one also was very itchy under the tegaderm from time to time and the sensor itself started giving me LO readings for an entire day despite eating a jacket potato and beans and having a Starbucks with caramel waffles. Something was definitely not right! It was while I was away and I had a new sensor with me and so I took the failing one off my arm (actually it and the tegaderm just came off when I was getting changed) and revealed are rather fetching weal and very inflamed area.

I had no choice but to switch arms (which presented its own issues given lugging heavy backpacks around etc) and the inflammation has gone down but the ‘burned’ surface area still remains.

This latest sensor (also short expiry date) I decided NOT to use tegaderm, just the alcohol wipe and skintac and not put the skintac on such a large surface area as it itinitially looked like where the skintac and tegaderm had been in contact, there was the skin irritation. Within a week a rash started to develop around the edge of the sensor. So my pharmacist and I ruled out an allergy to tegaderm because the rash is there without it.

Someone advised that the alcohol wipe and skintac might be reacting. In the last I have used only the supplied wipe and the sensor and had no issues with the sensor staying on, in fact have had to soak the little blighter in baby oil to ease it off (longer dates though on the sensor)

So... on Monday, new sensor is going back on the old arm, and will use cavillon barrier spray, no wipe, no skintac and will use tegaderm when I go to the gym only... and will see if that helps.

Thanks for this info @RFSMarch
I have not got to the "change" time yet, so what is your suggestion regarding the location of the next sensor..?
I am planning to attach it 24 hours before expiry of the current one, as you suggest, and was thinking of swapping arms..?
What do you do - same arm, but different location..?
Peter

 

[Diakat]

If you can use both arms then switch. I' you prefer the one arm keep a good distance between them. This will help arm recover.

 

[Peter_Sylvester]

Hi Peter_Sylvester

To complicate matters, rice is high GI (high on the Glycemic Index) which means the carbs are absorbed into your bloodstream quickly; hence the early spike.

There’s more info here: https://www.nhs.uk/chq/pages/1862.aspx?categoryid=51

http://www.bracknellandascotccg.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Glycaemic-index.pdf

This is GREAT READING @Ledzeptt - thank you very much for sharing..!

 

[Peter_Sylvester]

If you can use both arms then switch. I' you prefer the one arm keep a good distance between them. This will help arm recover.

Thank you @Diakat
That was my plan, so hopefully I won't get any "sensitive" areas...
Peter

 

[RFSMarch]

Thanks for this info @RFSMarch
I have not got to the "change" time yet, so what is your suggestion regarding the location of the next sensor..?
I am planning to attach it 24 hours before expiry of the current one, as you suggest, and was thinking of swapping arms..?
What do you do - same arm, but different location..?
Peter

Normally I do same arm but diffeent location, because of the skin irritation I swapped but I was chatting to my pharmacist and he advised being consistent with an arm for taking my blood oresssure, so back to the other arm...

 

[Stroudie]

Hi Peter

Been reading your experiences about Freestyle Libre with interest and have the following comments as a Dexcom G5 user.

The G5 for those who have not come across it before is similar the the Freestyle in that it has a sensor reading the interstitial fluid but it sends a blue tooth signal to your phone every five minutes. This builds up to form a graph of you blood glucose (BG).

Moreover it signals alarms when you go high or low - no more coming to in the middle of the night with a paramedic leaning over you! (I am type 1).

The dexcom like Peter's experience has been a revelation. I no longer inject my insulin 10 to 15 minutes before meals but 30 to 50 minutes according to my BG level and now rarely get post meal highs.

I have learned that nothing to do with my eating patterns affects my dawn phenomenon (DP). Typically from around 4.30 am my BG rises from say 6 to 9 mmoll/l by 8.00 am. The only thing that fixes it is insulin. It is 35 years since I used metformin so I do not know how you take it but I suggest if you are trying avoid DP you need to go down the medicine route rather than the food path.

As with FL the first 24 hours of the sensor is the least reliable and I am experimenting with putting the next one on before the current one expires. dexcom sensors count down after 7 days but if you shut them down wait a couple of minutes and re-boot it a further 7 days or so can be obtained. I do not know if this would work with FL.

Dexcom users have to calibrate twice a day so an accurate finger stick machine is important. According to several web sites the most accurate is the Contour Next. The measure of accuracy is MARD (Mean Absolute Relative Difference). The Next has a MARD of about 5, while both FL and dexcom are about 11. This information is about a couple of years old so might have changed. Many other meters are above 20 so not accurate at all.

With regard to keeping them stuck for 14 days once I have put the sensor on I cut up strips of adhesive medical tape and put them over the edges of the sensor tape. Sometimes these fail but I just replace them. Not tried skin tac or had any rashes.

The big problem with dexcom is that it costs about £3600 per annum although over £1000 less if you re-boot the sensors

 

[Peter_Sylvester]

Thank you for you insights @Stroudie
This is a very helpful post, and I am coming round to the same conclusion as you regarding the Dawn Phenomenon- I have managed to reduce it, but not eradicate it. The benefit (for me) is that it makes the rest of my day more manageable

I really appreciate your comments

Good luck, and please do shout up if you see anything on here which resonates with you

Peter