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Should I buy a libra sensor with alarm for safety

Bobby105

Bobby105

Member
Hi . Should I purchase a libra item (with alert)? If so Which?
As listed Im type 2 with 1 x insulin in a.m . Im having problems with readings dropping, mostly at night. Occasionally a hypo by day.
Around 12 - 3 a.m (bathroom visit time) I test. Often theres a drop of 40% to 50% from bedtime reading . If that is 8 or below I dont know what to do. My thoughts are ''will the reading drop another 20% - 40% to a hypo b4 6.30a.m wake up'' SO I tend to take a jelly baby or slurp of Appletise. Readings on waking are variable but never below 4, today was 4.9 with a jelly baby at 2 am. Im thinking of buying an alert system then my doctors or Team might take notice . ANY input welcome and from from type 2 plus insulin in particular.
 
I have a different issue overnight which I've mentioned elsewhere. Type 2. 500 x2 metformin plus 22 units of Insulin a.m If @ bedtime I clock 12 - 15 then at 1-3. a.m the level has dropped 50 - 60% to. 6-7. My dilemma is this ,with this scenario, will the drop continue to hypo under 4 or cease to drop? Do I eat a jelly baby or 2 to prevent a hypo in the coming hours? or leave things as they are and risk a hypo.
I managed to speak to a doctor's receptionist who put me thru to a Nurse. She listened & arranged a blood test and chat on Friday.
Oddly since chatting to her on Monday I've been highly disciplined and the readings in general and at night have reduced ( 7s to 8s, tho im expected to have 6- 10 as im underweight) However the dilemma is worse eg last night the 2am reading was 7.9. I left it. No jelly baby. 5.9 on waking at 6.30. Which might be OK. BUT Breakfast is over an hour later ( Hearing Dog to see to ) I was quite muddled b4 and after breakfast,- thought it was Tues not Weds. Couldn't find my purse. etc, Hidden hypo? Tonight if similar occurrence I'll try 2 jelly babies to see what happens ......? At .least I feel someone will take me seriously at the G Ps this on Friday and some solutions might be found. My case is unusual, insulin and need to gain weigh, undrrc50 kg
 
I use the Libre 3 and 3 Plus. I've made a couple of posts commenting on them. I consider them failure-prone and unreliable. They're considerably less expensive than the Dexcom, which I haven't tried (due to cost). I do get regular low glucose alarms in the night, sometimes waking me, sometimes not; not a single one has been accurate so far. I use a finger stick glucometer (ReliOn Platinum), which has been accurate, which has yet to show low glucose, when the CGM shows low glucose. I feel fine, the finger stick is where I expect it and commensurate with how I feel, and only the Libre 3 shows low. Nearly every sensor for the last year has done this, with a number of them failing early, or failing in the first day or two. Usually they fail by going low several times, and finally go low and stay low, and then drop off. To me, the only value of these sensors is a general trend monitor for diet, but little else. I wouldn't want to make diabetic decisions based on them; they're far too unreliable for that.
 
sns3guppy said:
They're considerably less expensive than the Dexcom, which I haven't tried (due to cost).
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theres a free trial available for dexcom perhaps it might be worth your time trying that one to see if it suits yourself more. if you get the libre via prescription and the dexcom is more accurate the nurses/dr maybe able to prescibe dexcom for you instead?

Another possibly solution maybe to use an app which can calibrate issue with that though is can make the readings even worse in some situations apparently...

I've found the libre reads slightly lower for me usually somewhere between 0.3-0.6 out lower also have noticed that some others report it reads slightly higher. What i do know for sure is that it tries to predict and can say low then a few minutes later can rectify and then the prior low reading may then appear suddenly as slightly higher.

libre imo is good enough for trends and find it a very valuable tool despite some quirks :)
 
theres a free trial for both dexcom alongside libre sensors available perhaps take advantage of both trials and then make the decision wether to purchase or not from that with price/performance for your particular needs. if used both free trials thats 25+ days free.

(edited to change reply).
 
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I use the application on an iphone. 100% of the sensors failed in the first 24 hours, going high and low. I've come to see this as some kind of calibration procedure; they don't reflect actual blood sugar, and the application warns users to do finger sticks for the first 24 hours...but if one were using the Libre for life decisions and insulin choices, then it would be 100% useless during that time. Numerous failures have occurred in the next 72 hours, mostly going low, with alarms frequently going off at night. Due to my employment, I am allowed exactly zero hypo events without severe damage to, or loss of my career. It's a big deal to get a false warning. With the Libre 3 Plus, I get them constantly. I have 13 minutes remaining presently, for a new sensor to check in. The last one went low and failed, as many of them have. I'd say at this point, in one year, something like 80-90% failure.

I'm used to dealing with equipment I hang my life on; it's got to work, every time. The Libre sensors thus far have proven a joke, and at best, a rough trend monitor that's expected to frequently fail; they're seldom accurate. Abbott has been no help.
 
Hopeful34 said:
I'd suggest that when you start feeling muddled, you do a blood test. It's the only way to know if you're hypo.
What insulin are you on, and what time did you take it?
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Insulin - levemir pen . 1 x a day. On waking. 22 units
Last night at bedtime the reading was 8.3. I took up the nurses suggestion by having a small bowl of mini shreddies when the last fingerprick is low for me. the reading was lowish. I woke at 2.45 to find a reading of 3.8. Only symptom slight ringing in the ear. I took 4 jelly babies. An hour later 7.2. Waking @ 6am =8.0. I'm seeing a nurse tomorrow for bloodtests.
 
sns3guppy said:
I am allowed exactly zero hypo events without severe damage to, or loss of my career. It's a big deal to get a false warning.
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According to your profile, metformin is the only medication you use for your diabetes, is this correct?
Metformin is not associated with hypo's, on metformin only you have as much risk on a hypo as a non diabetic.
If your job is requiring you to do regular fingerprick tests to rule out hypos they are mistaken.

It's also good to know that the cut off of 4 mmol/l or 70 mg/dl for a hypo is meant for people on BG lowering medication like gliclazide or insulin. This is to build in a little more safety in case of a quick drop. It's normal for non diabetics to drop to the mid 3's occasionally.
sns3guppy said:
if one were using the Libre for life decisions and insulin choices, then it would be 100% useless during that time.
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Many diabetics on insulin find the Libre very useful, as long as we take its downsides into account. Even if it reads a bit lower than blood (out by 0.8-2.0 mmol/l for me, consistently), it makes a huge difference to be able to catch a spike or drop instead of having to guess if we're around 5 or around 15.
For many it's a life saver as well, preventing from dropping low enough to lose conciousness.

It may not be perfect but I definitely don't want to do without as a T1 on insulin.
 
Antje77 said:
According to your profile, metformin is the only medication you use for your diabetes, is this correct?
Metformin is not associated with hypo's, on metformin only you have as much risk on a hypo as a non diabetic.
If your job is requiring you to do regular fingerprick tests to rule out hypos they are mistaken.

It's also good to know that the cut off of 4 mmol/l or 70 mg/dl for a hypo is meant for people on BG lowering medication like gliclazide or insulin. This is to build in a little more safety in case of a quick drop. It's normal for non diabetics to drop to the mid 3's occasionally.

Many diabetics on insulin find the Libre very useful, as long as we take its downsides into account. Even if it reads a bit lower than blood (out by 0.8-2.0 mmol/l for me, consistently), it makes a huge difference to be able to catch a spike or drop instead of having to guess if we're around 5 or around 15.
For many it's a life saver as well, preventing from dropping low enough to lose conciousness.

It may not be perfect but I definitely don't want to do without as a T1 on insulin.
Click to expand...
I carry a pill divider with twelve different tablets daily, and chief prescriptions are metformin and atorvastatin. It's not that metformin causes hypoglycemia; unless an extra dose is taken (two tablets together, for example), it doesn't.

Regardless of the medication, the overriding condition, type II diabetes, requires a special-issuance medical certificate, for work, and one of the conditions attached is that a single hypoglycemic event invalidates the special issuance, immediately barring me from work (safety-sensitive). There's zero tolerance.

With the Libre 3 Plus giving frequent low blood sugar alarms and readings, it becomes problematic, like the boy who cries wolf far, far too often.

My job doesn't require me to do a finger-stick; that's not conditional, and neither is the constant glucose monitoring. I choose to do that. However, with the activation of the low glucose alarm, other than "I feel okay," the only other verification I can quickly do is a finger stick, to rule out another false alarm. Consequently, I carry several test kits and several hundred test strips, when on a trip.
 
sns3guppy said:
Regardless of the medication, the overriding condition, type II diabetes, requires a special-issuance medical certificate, for work, and one of the conditions attached is that a single hypoglycemic event invalidates the special issuance, immediately barring me from work (safety-sensitive). There's zero tolerance.
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The point is that you are not at risk for hypos. You don't use medication or have a condition that can cause hypos. Why not turn off the alarms?
 
On metformin and atorvastatin you are not at risk from hypos, it's perfectly normal for even a non diabetic to go low and feel shaky, disorientated but their liver will produce glucose which raises BG levels. However an insulin dependent diabetic can drop dangerously low and require medical assistance, hence the need for insulin dependent diabetics to monitor and check.

You don't even need to declare your diabetes status under the Equality Act 2010.
 
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