Skin irritation with sensors - back to basics

[RFSMarch]

So it is sensor changeover day, and having got these silicon barrier wipes, and spent a fair while discussing the issue with a product specialist, despite having come to view compeed as a bit of a security blanket...

We have decided silicon barrier and then sensor on the skin.

It has caused me to go back and look at what concoctions I had tried and what was failing... all my skin irritation started when I used skintac, and then variations thereof.

So... a quick diary.

Day -1
Applied wipe *generously* around the area high up on my right arm. It has been probably 4 weeks or so since I had anything on this limb and there is still some heavy disolouration around the arm but no more rashes or raised skin and have been slathering in sudocream and every so often some low-level cortisone cream to help heal that.

 

[RFSMarch]

Day 1 - activated it this morning - I have noticed that as the outgoing sensor is... well going out... I register super low (below 4.0 which is my lower limit) so this morning's activated BG was quite high for me (8.7) but it has only had a smaller amount of time to settle in - I usually try and allow 24 hours, this was out on in the evening, and activated maybe a good 12 hours early so so hopefully the numbers will settle.

Felt a little itchy in the morning around the the top of the sensor, but where the silicon was, the skin was getting quite dry so a shower, and a little moisturiser and cortisone cream (well away from the sensor edges) to keep it a little softer.

No visible signs of skin irritation.

 

[RFSMarch]

Disappointing end to the trial - but at least I gave it a go!

Day 1 - woke up to a little itching but on checking the sensor - nothing to see - maybe just dry skin (which I do suffer from) so showered and as it is on an area that is still a little discoloured after the last time a sensor was on there (flonase, compeed/tegaderm combo) I just put some low-level cortisone around the area (as I have been using this week anyway on the other 'Libre-limbs' to help them heal up a bit! Will be taking pictures daily to feed back to the good folks at Trio anyway.

Night 1/Day 2 - not great... itching continued through the night until I finally slept on the other arm around 3am and FINALLY got some sleep. Put a stack of sudocrem around it but made not much difference overnight. In the morning I gave it a thorough clean with some warm salted water and then used a stronger cortisone cream and took an anti-histamine and the itching seems to have subsided. Will just try the anti-histamine tomorrow but keeping an eye on the edge where it looks a little red.
Like many here I don't have money to p*ss away, so I don't want to ditch an expensive, SELF-FUNDED sensor with only two days in, but in all honestly I am giving my other arm another week to heal up more and then I am afraid I am switching back to the tried and tested beconase base, compeed with hole, opsite over hole and cohesive bandage for when I am in the US. It was worth a try but I don't think this is the solution for me but hopefully someone else will have luck with it.