Continous monitoring?

[SOTR]

I have not visited this forum for several years. I do know that monitoring is a big topic here.
I have not been wel controlled for the last year or so, and my GP has me on metformin and Gliclazide.
When I was first diagnosed the GP practice would not prescribe test strips. However I bought my own and did use them, but I rather fell out of the habit. The practice rely on the HBA1C. I think this does not help you on a day to day basis.

What are the thoughts on continuous monitoring? I looked at the Dexcom site but 560 pounds for three months? Seems very expensive. What are the options at the moment?

 

[xfieldok]

I self funded Freestyle libre until I got a prescription. Cheapest was from asda £45 for 2 weeks.

 

[LittleGreyCat]

I self fund Libre; used to buy from Asda but now buy direct.
I find it very effective for tracking what your BG does when you eat, drink and do different things.
I do still cross check with finger pricks from time to time.

It can be worth just trying out a Libre for a couple of weeks (especially if you have a compatible mobile phone) to see what your body is really doing.

In the past I have been on and off with the Libre but for the last few months I have been monitoring continuously.

In my opinion well worth it as long as you can afford the £90-£100 per month longer term.
Certainly worth £45 for a trial run.

 

[lessci]

Slightly off topic, but are you in the UK and do you drive. If so the GP must provide you with testing strips as you are on Gliclazide, as you must test before driving on this medication. Personally I'd love to give the Libre a try, but can't afford the £100 a month cost

 

[Mbaker]

I would use a standard glucose monitor to get somewhere near where I would like to be, and then a Libre to optimise choices.

 

[Fenn]

I self fund libre, in my opinion it’s a complete game changer, I wouldn’t want to put a value on it but for me, it’s way more than £100 a month. Good luck

 

[nutribolt]

If you can afford £96 each month my vote goes to Libre as well.

See the thing is, Libre by itself without calibration maybe at times is a bit off but will still indicate the trend which can help one identify which food groups are impacting BG adversely. This in its most basic usage with just the sensor and the phone for scanning the sensor.

The game changer part is with aid of a transmitter such as bubble or miaomiao which when combined with xdrip+ allow for calibration. However, this requires one time investment in the transmitter which can set you back by 120 to 140 quids. This is the route I have been using since October'20, and it has helped me immensely in identifying various food groups that work for me and what I need to avoid.

With Libre2 though this can be completely avoided using the app called Diabox (Caution: Link is for direct download of the apk file) - available freely for download from GitHub. Now I started using this app only yesterday, and it can connect directly to the sensor via Bluetooth and does not really need the transmitter so long as you are using Libre2 and your phone supports NFC and Bluetooth.

 

[Daphne917]

I have not visited this forum for several years. I do know that monitoring is a big topic here.
I have not been wel controlled for the last year or so, and my GP has me on metformin and Gliclazide.
When I was first diagnosed the GP practice would not prescribe test strips. However I bought my own and did use them, but I rather fell out of the habit. The practice rely on the HBA1C. I think this does not help you on a day to day basis.

What are the thoughts on continuous monitoring? I looked at the Dexcom site but 560 pounds for three months? Seems very expensive. What are the options at the moment?

I’d have thought that if you were on Gliclazide you should be given a meter

 

[LittleGreyCat]

With Libre2 though this can be completely avoided using the app called Diabox - available freely for download from GitHub.

Can you please warn in future if the link goes directly to a download without any prior information?

I now have an APK file but no information on what it does, why, or what platform it is for and how to install.

 

[nutribolt]

Can you please warn in future if the link goes directly to a download without any prior information?

I now have an APK file but no information on what it does, why, or what platform it is for and how to install.

My apologies. The github page for the app is on this link where they have a readme which hopefully will give you some background.

https://github.com/bubbledevteam/diabox

Additionally the developer has a dedicated site with more info and videos so you might find this more helpful:

https://www.bubblan.org/docs/installation-guide-for-bubblan/