Sensorless
Wednesday, February 10, 2010 at 9:35AM I have taken a break from the Continuous Glucose Monitoring System I fought to get.
Just reading that sentence makes me so mad at myself but the fact remains. I needed a break and I am taking one.
I use the Minimed monitor that works with my 722 pump. It’s nice that I don’t have to carry around another device and I can see the trend right on my pump screen but I have had such poor luck with getting these things to be remotely accurate that I am about to throw in the towel on the whole thing.
Trends, it’s all about trends. I know that and that is what I am looking for. I know I still have to test my BG and should not bolus in reaction to something I see on the CGM screen. I totally get it. In fact I found I tested more to check the accuracy of the CGM.
And that is the problem. I have had several occasions where the “trend” would be a flat line and my finger sticks were giving me ups and downs and lefts and rights! I could be up for a while, bolus, come way down and still have a flat freaking line. Why?
Is it the location of the sensor? Angle of insertion? Scar tissue? Bad hair day? What?
My body looks like a warzone and sticking more things in me that have not proven to be affective consistently seems silly.
I am not going to give up. I wanted this technology regardless of how good or bad it was. That was my mentality and it has to be my mentality now. I’ll try again soon.
But for now, I am sensorless.
I just need a break.
Reader Comments (21)
That pretty much sums up my experiences with the MM as well
What in the Wide, Wide World of Sports was Medtronic thinking?
so I switched to the Dexcom and then Baby, I got them CGMS Blues
A well-deserved break, it sounds like. We all deserve one. That inaccuracy of this Early Generation CGM tech is my main holdup in going ahead with it... Have trial-tested them all and like the Dexcom the best, but don't want to go ahead at this point because of that exactly point - despite the trending ability, I too will chase the numbers just by habit and feel even more frustrated at the trends, functionality swings, and simple site and body attachment issues. Suppose it all depends on how severe a person's Existing Rollercoastering and Lows are and how that balances the full puzzle... It might be worth it for some. The cost component is also a concern and holdup on my end, too. But before I endure all that and the foreseeable insurance battles in the beginning, I want to see the next generation's "upgrades" that may have more accuracy, less expensive/better coverage, and existing kinks worked out. I've considered taking a "break" from my pump after 9 years, but have yet to do that... We'll see. Anyhow, good luck with your break, G.
I understand your frustration. I tried the MM CGM over a year ago and gave up on the thing. I had to. For me it was totally inaccurate, the sensors were painful and it wound up just not being useful for me. It's a shame because I really liked the fact that it was integrated with my pump. I had no CGM for quite a while when I read about the Dexcom. I was skeptical but figured I'd give it a try and it is such a different device. I'm not saying it's perfect but so much better. Could you consider switching?
Everybody needs a break now and then. Sorry to hear you are having such a spat with your CGMS. Maybe it was just trying to be stealthy like a ninja, only it does not realize that is not a good thing. Daniel is currently taking a break simply because I did not get the sensors ordered when I should have. I definitely think that location matters, especially with scar tissue.
Your sensorless and I have no sense. Coincidence or fact? You be the judge!
Hang in there G, take a break and regroup, then go back on the CGM with a fresh outlook !
BACON
Kelly K
Hi, first time commenter here. I was so thrilled when I got my CGM from MM, but have been very disappointed. I have worn mine sporadically at best because I don't see the point. I get SO excited when the numbers are the close, but 9 times out of 10 they are off by wide margins. 20% plus/minus my butt. And I didn't like that my meter would send my reading to the CGM then I would end up with calibration errors all the time. I feel like such a whiney person b/c so many people can't get this technology covered. But the truth is that it's just not there yet.
I had way too many accuracy issues in the 6 months I did MiniMed. Started Dexcom and loved it, then about a year ago tiend a one-month MM trial and realized just how badly it sucked in comparison (for me at least, I've heard people who have opposite issues).
Then Dex went through a huge issue with bad sensors - I had something like 3/4 of 2 boxes in a row fail. They replaced the bad ones for free but the PITA factor is edging up.
I say this with love as I know I don't have diabetes, but it sounds like your CGMS is making your battle with the disease worse instead of better. Your body looks like a war zone (the bruised pictures were totally scary!), you're frustrated more than ever (I follow your blog regularly, and since you got it, frustration seems to be the main theme) and it seems like the technology isn't up to par with the needs of your disease. I know it's not the same, but it's kind of like my battle with food. Until I can find a way to lose weight without having to constantly think about food, then I may never be happy- only frustrated. I think that maybe you thought the CGMS might make it so you weren't thinking about diabetes hourly and instead it caused you to think about it more than ever! I'm glad you are taking a break. Maybe you should use it to reevaluate whether it is helping you or not. Sometimes we fight the good fight only to realize that we weren't aware what we were fighting for and maybe we would have been better off to have lost.
Thanks George for posting this. After my husband spent the weekend enjoying the SuperBowl from an ER bed, and me having to prick him every hour to two hours, we thought about how nice it would have been to have a CGM at the time to avoid the constant pokes. But my husband has a MM and commented that even though he was unconscious, he was glad that he didn't have the CGM. We've debated this for several years now and appreciate your comments on this. Still too many problems for us too. We still want the one shot wonder monitor. A CGM that works with the insulin pump site so no double pokes!
P.S. May the bruises get better quickly!
I think we started on the MM CGM about the same time, and I'm about where you are with it. After taking a break for about a month, I'm trying it again. My latest sensor was in synch pretty well for about a day, and that's it. It alamed while I was at dinner last night saying I was low (65). Tested, and was at 183. I could swear I was getting better results with it for the first few months, but lately all the sensors seem to either never synch up to begin with, or not last long at all. I'd love to be able to have a good trend line for my upcoming 1/2 marathon, but I'm not counting on it. Enjoy the break!
Same for me, George. It was so mentally taxing I took a break over a year ago and never put another one on. I do find myself testing way more often because I really liked the info, but it wasn't reliable, went crazy at night and when it finally got to an accurate state, would die.
Give yourself a break!
We tried it over a year ago. I gave up after a month. Congrats for sticking it out this long and giving it a fair shot.
Not sure when we'll try it again...just not sure at all...
Enjoy your break!
I too take breaks from my MM CGM, I take a break every 5-6 days when I remove the sensor and recharge the transmitter battery over night before I insert a new sensor. I've been doing this since the Minilink transmitter came out. Before that, with the "pigtail" transmitter, my breaks were only long enough to change sensors when they "died."
While I totally agree that the technology has to improve to be more useful to a wider community and that many folks get better results with the Dexcomm (especially the 7 plus,) I personally have gotten good results from three MM CGMs over the last 4 years and won't go with another technology until, like the MM, the pump and the CGM are integrated.
I applaud everyone in the D community that fought with their insurance providers to get to the point where many of us are being covered for CGMs (any manufacturer) and no longer have to pay the huge cost out of pocket! I also applaud everyone on the bleeding edge (pun intended) who are engaged with the manufacturers in trials or reporting results from current technologies. We wouldn't even be having this discussion without you!
Super G,
There is a trick to getting accurate numbers on the Minimed CGM. What I do is put my CGM on at night but, I don't turn it on till the morning. I let it soak in the skin all night. I used to be like you until I learned that little tid bit from someone. It works like a charm everytime. Give it a whirl when you are done with your CGM vacay.
xoxoxo
The other Super G haha
George--Take a break! Don't be mad at yourself. Gosh, the sensor looks like it really hurts.
Caleb took a break a couple of weeks ago and ended up having the best numbers ever (fingersticks at least). I attribute that to the info we learned from using CGM. But it was nice not to be bombarded by constant information - like catching our breath. I agree about letting it sit overnight. Caleb uses DexCom and I have found that to be key in accuracy. Good luck George. Nothing wrong with taking a break in my opinion. :)
i totally get that, NinjaV...take a break...it is all hard work, ug!...and when you come back to it, your title can be: "I've been sensored again!"
i totally get that, NinjaB...take a break...it is all hard work, ug!...and when you come back to it, your title can be: "I've been sensored again!"
George - I wrote a VERY similar post last year. We're still on a break. ;-)
These tools can sometimes be helpful, and sometimes be not-so-helpful, but they are always another extra damn thing to deal with. Sometimes, that extra thing is just too much. Especially if it is not providing any value for the inconvenience of it. Take a break.