I am sure there are other diabetics besides me on the site so I thought I would toss out my experiences to, maybe, help any newer diabetics get acclimated to the disease.
I have been Type 1 for the last 39 years, diagnosed at age 14. When I was diagnosed, treatment consisted of peeing on test strips and, if Ketones were present, taking higher dosage insulin injections.
My treatment progressed over the years through NPH insulin (one or two shots a day. Watch out for those lows!), to Humalog and Novalog insulin injections (take a shot every time you want to eat anything and finger pricks 8 times a day), to a Medtronic insulin pump (It's like being hooked up to a cell phone but the A1C numbers are good. Still have to check blood sugars up to 8 times a day.) and now, finally, to a CGM (Continuous Glucose Monitor).
Note: If you type 1 guys don't have a pump already, I suggest looking into it. It's a lifestyle change but it may bring a much longer life with less side effects from Diabetes. the pump lets you input your BG (blood glucose) readings and estimate your food carbs then it calculates the amount of insulin to give you through a tube under your skin. You change the site every few days. It's not ideal but it's better than the half dozen injections I was taking a day before it.
Living in Chicago, I had an active profession and my A1Cs were always 6s or low 7s. After I moved down here, they crept up into the 8.0 range. I contribute this to a more sedentary lifestyle. I sit in an office now rather than running around all day. Not good for diabetics or anyone.
Which brings us to the CGM. My insurance company, after ten years of my trying to get them to pay for one, now understands the value of this device. A CGM consists of a sensor that injects a tube under the skin to collect samples, a quarter sized transmitter that plugs into the sensor and a receiver that is a small phone sized device that has to stay within 20' of the transmitter to get readings. I put it in a pocket or on a belt clip. the sensor has to be reinstalled in a new location every week or two (company says every week. Blogs say 2 weeks).
Before the CGM, I would take blood sugar readings after getting up, before and after meals and snacks and before bed. These readings would give me a single number to base my insulin pump programming on. For instance, I might get a reading of 125 (not bad for a diabetic, 90-100 is normal for non diabetics). Question was, is my blood sugar going up through 125 or was is coming down past 125? Not knowing the direction my blood sugar was heading made it tough at times to decide whether to eat, take insulin or do nothing. With the CGM, I still need to take finger stick readings twice a day to calibrate it but it does the rest.
The Dexcom 4 CGM takes a BG reading every few minutes. Instead of getting a singe number every couple hours, I now get dozens of readings every hour. The receiver graphs the information so I can see exactly where my BG level is going. There are also alarms that will let me know much earlier if my BG is getting too high or low so I can make corrections sooner. I have only had the device for a day now but I can already see the potential for better control of my diabetes.
Companies like Medtronics and Dexcom are testing insulin pump devices that will incorporate the CGM and insulin pump into one device. They are also working on the concept of a double reservoir pump, one for insulin and the other for glucagon which raises blood sugar. Eventually, they will have a device that can take readings every few minutes and then automatically raise and lower blood sugar which will mimic the way a healthy person's pancreas works. They aren't there yet but they are making progress. Once they get their devices to be completely accurate and reliable and don't kill people with them, type 1 diabetics will have what amounts to an artificial pancreas. Progress marches on.
If any of you have any questions, let me know. As a 39 year diabetic, I have quite a bit of experience with diabetes and the medical profession and will be happy to share. If you guys have insight into products or techniques that have worked for you, please share them as well.
Insulin pump and CGM sensor/transmitter:
Dexcom 4 receiver:
I have been Type 1 for the last 39 years, diagnosed at age 14. When I was diagnosed, treatment consisted of peeing on test strips and, if Ketones were present, taking higher dosage insulin injections.
My treatment progressed over the years through NPH insulin (one or two shots a day. Watch out for those lows!), to Humalog and Novalog insulin injections (take a shot every time you want to eat anything and finger pricks 8 times a day), to a Medtronic insulin pump (It's like being hooked up to a cell phone but the A1C numbers are good. Still have to check blood sugars up to 8 times a day.) and now, finally, to a CGM (Continuous Glucose Monitor).
Note: If you type 1 guys don't have a pump already, I suggest looking into it. It's a lifestyle change but it may bring a much longer life with less side effects from Diabetes. the pump lets you input your BG (blood glucose) readings and estimate your food carbs then it calculates the amount of insulin to give you through a tube under your skin. You change the site every few days. It's not ideal but it's better than the half dozen injections I was taking a day before it.
Living in Chicago, I had an active profession and my A1Cs were always 6s or low 7s. After I moved down here, they crept up into the 8.0 range. I contribute this to a more sedentary lifestyle. I sit in an office now rather than running around all day. Not good for diabetics or anyone.
Which brings us to the CGM. My insurance company, after ten years of my trying to get them to pay for one, now understands the value of this device. A CGM consists of a sensor that injects a tube under the skin to collect samples, a quarter sized transmitter that plugs into the sensor and a receiver that is a small phone sized device that has to stay within 20' of the transmitter to get readings. I put it in a pocket or on a belt clip. the sensor has to be reinstalled in a new location every week or two (company says every week. Blogs say 2 weeks).
Before the CGM, I would take blood sugar readings after getting up, before and after meals and snacks and before bed. These readings would give me a single number to base my insulin pump programming on. For instance, I might get a reading of 125 (not bad for a diabetic, 90-100 is normal for non diabetics). Question was, is my blood sugar going up through 125 or was is coming down past 125? Not knowing the direction my blood sugar was heading made it tough at times to decide whether to eat, take insulin or do nothing. With the CGM, I still need to take finger stick readings twice a day to calibrate it but it does the rest.
The Dexcom 4 CGM takes a BG reading every few minutes. Instead of getting a singe number every couple hours, I now get dozens of readings every hour. The receiver graphs the information so I can see exactly where my BG level is going. There are also alarms that will let me know much earlier if my BG is getting too high or low so I can make corrections sooner. I have only had the device for a day now but I can already see the potential for better control of my diabetes.
Companies like Medtronics and Dexcom are testing insulin pump devices that will incorporate the CGM and insulin pump into one device. They are also working on the concept of a double reservoir pump, one for insulin and the other for glucagon which raises blood sugar. Eventually, they will have a device that can take readings every few minutes and then automatically raise and lower blood sugar which will mimic the way a healthy person's pancreas works. They aren't there yet but they are making progress. Once they get their devices to be completely accurate and reliable and don't kill people with them, type 1 diabetics will have what amounts to an artificial pancreas. Progress marches on.
If any of you have any questions, let me know. As a 39 year diabetic, I have quite a bit of experience with diabetes and the medical profession and will be happy to share. If you guys have insight into products or techniques that have worked for you, please share them as well.
Insulin pump and CGM sensor/transmitter:
Dexcom 4 receiver:
