Freestyle libre

Yes the sensors last for 14 days (less in the US I think), and yes you just bin them after that.
I get mine from my local Asda pharmacy for £44 each (after signing a VAT exemption form).
I get on really well with them - they've improved my control a lot, but I know they don't work well for all )ie for some they are not even close to being accurate) and some people get an allergic reaction to the adhesive after a while.

I think many of us who use Libre have type 1 diabetes.
I am sure there also some with type 2.

The value in the Libre is the trends rather than the instant values. The instant values may be out but generally your BG goes up when the Libre says it goes up.
This means you can use the Libre graphs to understand what impact various foods, activities, stress, time of day, ... have on your BG and start to make changes to avoid the spikes. For example, when you see the spike you get from bananas you may decide to cut them out of your diet whereas many people say they cannot eat porridge but you can see with the Libre it does not cause much of a spike for you.

Some people use a Libre all the time.
Others use it to gather information about spikes and then just use it occasionally to check things haven't changed. This approach is, obviously, cheaper and you are less likely to experience allergic reaction through prolonged usage.
But, you do not have the constant view all the time.

Back using it, as finger pricking is a PITA ( if you will).
Sure they are pricey and I don't expect that to drop anytime soon.
At the moment, as noted, they are rationing them out even to current customers...so the chance of the prices dropping are between nothing and less.

steveis36 said:

U bin them?

How much are the sensors?

If u got one how are u getting on?

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Yes they get binned after 2 weeks, the supplied reader won't read the data on the sensor after 2 weeks. I have a MiaoMiao which reads the NFC signal from the sensor and sends a bluetooth signal every five minutes to an app (Xdrip) on my phone, and that will read for an extra 12 hrs (whoopee). I think there's another App that will read the sensor for even longer, not too sure exactly how long.

Superdrug £40, although my local has supply problems, they have a quota.
Asda as above
Boots £47.50 approx.

It's been a game changer for me in that I can monitor my BG 24 hrs a day. Not essential but it helped me identify peaks that were occurring as much as 12 hrs after eating a low carb meal.

I was thinking of getting a sensor and using my phone but unfortunately the phone I had that did have NFC decided it had had enough and the phone I have replaced it with does not have NFC so will have to wait till I can get a better phone sometime in the future.

My blood sugars have gone slightly skew whiff of late and I do need a better picture of what is going on with them.

I've been on the Libre for just over 3 months now, and it has changed everything.

Like others have said, the data can be slightly out - I've found though that mostly it is pretty accurate to blood tests when levels are stable - but the real value is the trending data.

I had been suffering badly from early morning rises (often waking up in the high teens or low twenties - sometimes even higher) but the Libre enabled me to see when the rise was starting and be able to treat it appropriately. I have now changed my basal from Levemir to Tresiba which has pretty much eliminated that dawn phenomenon altogether and this was what my consultant wanted to see to be sure that switch was the right one.

The real benefit to being able to manage things much more tightly though are my A1c readings - I've gone from 80 to 50 in a matter of months and my consultant couldn't be happier with that improvement!

I also have a MiaoMiao transmitter paired with xDrip on my phone, which is also linked to my Garmin. If my BG is rising or falling rapidly, or there's a hypo on the horizon I get about 25 minutes advanced warning to be able to proactively prevent it from happening, and this is incredible information to have at your fingertips!!

Just a BTW, you shouldn't just bin them, They have batteries in them. Toss them in the recycling at your local supermarket.

barrym said:

Just a BTW, you shouldn't just bin them, They have batteries in them. Toss them in the recycling at your local supermarket.

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I wouldn't do that either. There's a reason Abbott send 2 biohazard bags out if you need to return a faulty sensor.

They should be placed in clinical waste. The cannula has been inside the body after all.

MisterMints said:

They should be placed in clinical waste. The cannula has been inside the body after all.

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I'm not sure that's necessary. Used condoms and tampons don't get put in clinical waste. The main reason for Sharps boxes is int he name. YOu aren't going ti be able to stab yourself with a flaccid sensor wire.

MisterMints said:

I wouldn't do that either. There's a reason Abbott send 2 biohazard bags out if you need to return a faulty sensor.

They should be placed in clinical waste. The cannula has been inside the body after all.

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I'm sure Abbott's own website says to clean it and then dump it in battery recycling. Might be mistaken, but definitely read it somewhere.

MisterMints said:

They should be placed in clinical waste. The cannula has been inside the body after all.

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I know the sharps bins I get say 'to be incinerated' on them, not gonna put a battery in there

And yes if it was the blood that was the issue, everyone who puts a plaster in the bin would be doing it wrong